Bubonic Plague in Early Modern Russia: Public Health and Urban Disaster

by John T. Alexander

John T. Alexander's study dramatically highlights how the Russian people reacted to the Plague, and shows how the tools of modern epidemiology can illuminate the causes of the plague's tragic course through Russia. Bubonic Plauge in Early Modern Russia makes contributions to many aspects of Russian and European social, economic, medical, urban, demographic, and meterological. It is particularly enlightening in its discussion of eighteenth-century Russia's emergent medical profession and public health institutions and, overall, should interest scholars in its use of abundant new primary source material from Soviet, German, and British archives.

Genres: Medicine

408 pages, Paperback

First published April 1, 1980

Reviews

[Victor Sonkin · Rating 4 out of 5]

An excellent account of one of the last epidemics of plague (if it was plague) in Europe. The skill of the author regarding his knowledge of and dexterity with Russian sources is astonishing. By the way, there is nothing remotely like this in Russian, and I don't think this book had ever been translated.

[Don Heiman · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Blue Bubonic Plague in Early Modern Russia: Public Health and Urban Disaster” by John Alexander PhD was first published by Oxford University Press in 2003. Before his death in 2018, John served many years at the University of Kansas as a highly recognized professor of History, Russian, and Eastern European Studies. His book presents a stunning history of a plague that led to the death of 52,000 to as many as 100,000 Moscow citizens in 1771-72. Alexander’s research is exceptional. He helped me better understand the forces that cause plague related panics and medical as well as management strategies that succeed or fail as citizens struggle to survive. (P)