Siena

In Siena, a total of 3 epidemic events are known so far. It is a city in Tuscany, Italy and capital of the province of Siena in Italy. The coordinates are 43° 19' 5.88" N, 11° 19' 53.04" E.

Map of Siena

Loading map...

Table

Disease	DateStart date of the disease.	SummarySummary of the disease event	OriginalOriginal text	TranslationEnglish translation of the text	ReferenceReference(s) to literature	Reference translationReference(s) to the translation
1348-05-00-Siena	May 1348 ^JL	The Black Death ravages in Siena.	La mortalità cominciò in Siena di magio, la quale fu oribile e crudel cosa, e non so da qual lato cominciare la crudeltà che era e modi dispiatati, che quasi a ognuno pareva che di dolore a vedere si diventavano stupefatti; e non è possibile a lingua umana a contare la oribile cosa, che ben si può dire beato a chi tanta oribiltà non vidde. E morivano quasi di subito, e infiavano sotto il ditello e l'anguinaia e favellando cadevano morti. El padre abandonava el figluolo, la moglie el marito, e l'uno fratello l'altro: e gnuno fugiva e abandonava l'uno, inperochè questo morbo s'attachava coll'alito e co' la vista pareva, e così morivano, e non si trovava chi soppellisse nè per denaro nè per amicitia, e quelli de la casa propria li portava meglio che potea a la fossa senza prete, nè uffitio alcuno, nè si sonava canpana; e in molti luoghi in Siena si fe' grandi fosse e cupe per la moltitudine de' morti, e morivano a centinaia il dì e la notte, e ognuno [si] gittava in quelle fosse e cuprivano a suolo a suolo, e così tanto che s'enpivano le dette fosse, e poi facevano più fosse.	The mortality began in Siena in the month of May, and it was a horrible and cruel thing. I do not know from which side to begin describing the cruelty and the pitiful ways of it, for it seemed that almost everyone became stunned with grief at the sight of it. It is not possible for human speech to recount such a terrible thing, and indeed one may say that blessed is the person who did not witness such horror. People died almost immediately. They swelled beneath the armpit and in the groin, and while speaking they would suddenly fall dead. The father abandoned the son, the wife the husband, and one brother the other; everyone fled and abandoned one another, because it seemed that this disease spread through the breath and even through sight. Thus people died, and no one could be found to bury them, neither for money nor for friendship. Those of the same household carried them as best they could to the grave, without priest, without any funeral service, and no bell was rung. In many places in Siena great pits and trenches were made because of the multitude of the dead. People died by the hundreds day and night, and each was thrown into those pits and covered layer upon layer, until the pits were filled; then still more pits were made.	Agnolo di Tura del Grasso 1939, p. 555.	Martin Bauch / ChatGPT 5.2
1363-00-00-Florence 001	1363 ^JL	The brothers of Pagolo died in the mortality and left him alone with the business. He had many debts which made his life full of wories.	Fu di nicistà che ’l detto Pagholo, giovane gharzone, e, sechondo l’età d’allora, fanciullo, provedesse al tutto; e se fu fatichoso e di sollecitudine e di rischio, i’ penso choll’aiuto di Dio dirtene tanto innanzi che ttu arai chagione d’inmaginare il tutto. Questi suoi fratelli morirono di (p. 193) pistolenza nella mortalità fonda del sesantatré, che ffu grande, e andaronsene a piè di Dio inn ispazio di venti dì; e, chome ài inteso, i due erano avillupati nel trafficho del guado e nella tinta, dove egli aveano inviluppati circha di quindicimila fiorini. Il terzo, e primo a morire, avea donna, e viva rimase dopo lui e giovane. Era invillupato questo nell’usure, ché pocho fecie altro; e none si distendea questo suo viluppo pure in Firenze ma per tutto il chontado, e pure chon lavoratori e poveri il forte, e chon grandi / (c. 42v) uomini e potenti, e in Firenze e di fuori. Il detto Pagholo, giovane, soro, solo, sanza alchuno aiuto o chonsiglio se non di suoi amici, a tenpo di mortalità, isbighottito della morte de’ suoi e della paura di sé, trovatosi in gran viluppi di molti crediti a rischuotere e di migliaia di fiorini, sendone morti assai d<e’> creditori e de’ fattori che aveano nel chapo i fatti loro, avendo etiandio a cierchare d’essi non pure in Firenze o nel chontado, ma di fuori, ‘Arezo, al Borgho, a Siena, a Pisa e per altre istrane parti, a ritrarre merchatantia, a venderla, e a svilupare tutto, non fu sanza grande sollecitudine e faticha.	It was necessary for the said Pagholo, a young lad and still a child by the standards of the time, to take care of everything; and although it was laborious, worrying and risky, I think that with God's help I can tell you so much about it that you will understand the whole thing. His brothers died of the plague in the great mortality of 1363, and they went to God within twenty days. As you have learnt, two were involved in the woad trade and dyeing business, where they had invested about 15,000 florins. The third, who was the first to die, had a wife who was left a young widow after him. He was in the usury business and little else; his business extended not only in Florence but throughout the surrounding area, especially with labourers and the poor, but also with rich and powerful people, both in Florence and beyond. The aforementioned Pagholo, young and alone, without any help or advice except from his friends, in a time of mortality, terrified by the death of his loved ones and in fear for his own life, found himself in great entanglements with many debts, which is why he had to risk many loans and thousands of florins. Many of the debtors and administrators who ran their businesses had also died. He not only had to retrieve and sell goods in Florence or the surrounding area, but also outside, in Arezzo, the Borgo, Siena, Pisa and other foreign places, and unravel everything. This was not done without great care and effort.	Giovanni di Pagolo Morelli: Ricordi 2019, pp. 192-193.	Translation by ChatGPT-3.5; Translation by DeepL;
1390-00-00-Florence	1390 ^JL	Mortality in Florence and people flee to Bologna	Chome messer Beltotto inghilese fue fatto nostro chapitano contro a' sanesi, e chome fu morìa […]La morìa è chominciata i Firenze e per lo chontado, e moionciene ogni in dì da XX a XXX. Molti cittadini si sono partiti e partono e fughono la mortalità a Bolognia. […]	How Messer Beltotto, an Englishman, became our Captain against the Sienese and how he died. The mortality began in Florence and its surrounding areas, every day there died 20 to 30 people. Many citizens had already left and still flee from the mortality to Bologna.	Anonymus:Alle Bocche della piazza 1986, p. 97	Translation by Moritz Uebelhack