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The Black Assize is a name given to multiple deaths in the city of
From the time of the
Oxford
Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...
in England between 6 July and 12 August 1577. At least 300 people, including the chief baron and sheriff, are thought to have died as a result of this event. It received its name because it was believed to have been associated with a trial at the Assize Court at Oxford Castle.
Casualties
Reports vary as to the total number of deaths that occurred in the "Black Assize". The casualties in Oxford itself are consistently recorded as approximately 300, but some reports say that further deaths occurred outside the city. One report records: This reported lack of deaths among women and children led to speculation about the causes of the casualties.Possible causes
On the wall inside the Main Hall of the Old County Hall ofOxfordshire
Oxfordshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the north west of South East England. It is a mainly rural county, with its largest settlement being the city of Oxford. The county is a centre of research and development, primarily ...
in New Road, an inscription reads:
From the time of the Black Death
The Black Death (also known as the Pestilence, the Great Mortality or the Plague) was a bubonic plague pandemic occurring in Western Eurasia and North Africa from 1346 to 1353. It is the most fatal pandemic recorded in human history, causi ...
in the mid-14th century until the second half of the 19th century, Oxford was regularly visited by plague
Plague or The Plague may refer to:
Agriculture, fauna, and medicine
*Plague (disease), a disease caused by ''Yersinia pestis''
* An epidemic of infectious disease (medical or agricultural)
* A pandemic caused by such a disease
* A swarm of pes ...
, cholera
Cholera is an infection of the small intestine by some strains of the bacterium ''Vibrio cholerae''. Symptoms may range from none, to mild, to severe. The classic symptom is large amounts of watery diarrhea that lasts a few days. Vomiting and ...
, smallpox
Smallpox was an infectious disease caused by variola virus (often called smallpox virus) which belongs to the genus Orthopoxvirus. The last naturally occurring case was diagnosed in October 1977, and the World Health Organization (WHO) c ...
and typhoid
Typhoid fever, also known as typhoid, is a disease caused by '' Salmonella'' serotype Typhi bacteria. Symptoms vary from mild to severe, and usually begin six to 30 days after exposure. Often there is a gradual onset of a high fever over several ...
fevers. In 1348, the Black Death
The Black Death (also known as the Pestilence, the Great Mortality or the Plague) was a bubonic plague pandemic occurring in Western Eurasia and North Africa from 1346 to 1353. It is the most fatal pandemic recorded in human history, causi ...
reduced the city's population to such an extent that Gloucester College
Gloucester College, Oxford, was a Benedictine institution of the University of Oxford in Oxford, England, from the late 13th century until the Dissolution of the monasteries in the 16th century. It was never a typical college of the Universit ...
(from which Gloucester Green
Gloucester Green is a square in central Oxford, England, and the site of the city's bus station. It lies between George Street to the south and Beaumont Street to the north. To the west is Worcester Street and to the east is Gloucester Street.
...
derives its name) was forced to close. In 1571, Oxford University
Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...
had to postpone the start of term because of an outbreak of plague, and the ' gaol fever' six years later may have been part of the same epidemic, being considered more worthy of note because its victims included the Lord Chief Baron
The Chief Baron of the Exchequer was the first "baron" (meaning judge) of the English Exchequer of Pleas. "In the absence of both the Treasurer of the Exchequer or First Lord of the Treasury, and the Chancellor of the Exchequer, it was he who p ...
and the Lord High Sheriff.
This account of disease is reflected in a number of sources.
An early Chronicle
A chronicle ( la, chronica, from Greek ''chroniká'', from , ''chrónos'' – "time") is a historical account of events arranged in chronological order, as in a timeline. Typically, equal weight is given for historically important events and lo ...
records:
A 19th-century account is more sure of the cause:
Other accounts reject the notion of disease as a cause:
Further accounts merely attribute the deaths to a curse supposedly uttered by Rowland Jenkes.
Popular culture
The Black Assizes has featured as a display at Oxford Castle and is a regular feature of Oxford ghost tours, where the story of Rowland Jenkes' curse is given prominence. The events of this time are part of the backdrop to the historical crime novel ''Heresy'' byS. J. Parris
Stephanie Jane Merritt (born 1974 in Surrey) is an English literary critic and writer who has contributed to publications including ''The Times'', ''The Daily Telegraph'', the ''New Statesman'', ''New Humanist'' and ''Die Welt''. She was Deputy ...
in which Rowland Jenkes appears as a character.
See also
*Black Assize of Exeter 1586
The Black Assizes is an epithet given to several outbreaks of "gaol fever" which struck various prisons and court-houses in England in the late 16th century and which caused the deaths of not only many prisoners awaiting trial but also the magistra ...
References
Sources
* {{Nuttall, title=Black Assize 1577 in England 16th century in Oxfordshire Black Assizes History of Oxford Tudor England