Did You Know?
Dangerous Times | Our ancestors somehow managed to survive plague, insanitary condtions, famine and possibly, in some cases, savage punishments for religious beliefs. In 1401, during the reign of Henry IV, an Act of Parliament was pushed through by the Bishops, enabling clergy to evoke death by fire for heretics, non-believers, and Lollards without any reference to the courts. Lollards were followers of the late John Wycliffe who questioned the taxes charged by the rich church to starving peasants, claiming it was against the teachings of Jesus. Many died as a result. Later even owning an English language bible could be dangerous. Although our direct ancestors evidently did survive the Plague (otherwise we would not be here!), not all were so lucky. An estimated 36,000 died in the City of London in 1602 alone. The Bubonic Plagues was carried by rats. There were many "dangerous times" throughout history! Previous page Next page |