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Plague of Justinian 541
About Plague of Justinian 541
The Plague of Justinian was the first recorded pandemic of bubonic plague, beginning in 541 AD in the Byzantine Empire during the reign of Emperor Justinian I. The pandemic originated in either Ethiopia or Central Asia and spread through Egypt to Constantinople, with modern estimates of deaths across two centuries of recurrence ranging widely, from about 15 to 100 million. Procopius recorded that at its peak the plague killed 10,000 people per day in Constantinople, a figure modern historians treat with caution. The pandemic weakened the Byzantine military at a critical point in the reconquest of the West led by Justinian; Italy was retaken by 554 but the gains proved short lived. Procopius of Caesarea provided detailed descriptions of the disease. The plague returned in waves until approximately 750 AD. DNA analysis of skeletons from sixth century Bavarian cemeteries confirmed Yersinia pestis as the cause. The Plague of Justinian is considered one of the deadliest pandemics in history, though the scale of its demographic impact remains debated among historians.
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