10 Deadliest Plagues Throughout History
The serial killers of diseases
During the Peloponnesian War, around 430BC, a plague rose that affected over 100 000 people. According to Thucydides, a general and historian from Athens, “The catastrophe was so overwhelming that men, not knowing what would happen next to them, became indifferent to every rule of religion or law.”
The main symptoms of the plague were high fever, diarrhea, and rash.
1. The Antonine Plague or The plague of Galen
This plague occurred around 165 to 180 AD. The epidemic is famous for killing almost 600 million people at its peak. Up to date, it is not known what really caused it.
Historians believe that it was either measles or smallpox. At the time, the plague also killed many mighty leaders, including the Roman Emperor Lucius Verus.
2. The Plague of Cyprian
The plague of Cyprian affected a large part of the Roman Empire from 249 AD to around 262 AD. The main symptoms were vomiting, nausea, red eyes, blindness, and deafness. The plague killed an average of 5000 people daily at its peak. And it was named after the historian who narrated it.
