As a strategic communicator, I juggle many balls but Im a writer first. I would suggest that theres more to the story. (To be fair, the cat is only one of more than 300 figures the Nazca created almost half which have been discovered in the last five years). Its believed by some that the plague spread, at least in part,via rats. The truth is that cats could not have prevented the black death. In other words, the Europeans were murdering their best ally in the war against the pandemic. THE HUMAN OVER-POPULATION IS CAUSING ANIMAL SPECIES TO GO EXTINCT. That is the well-accepted history, but is it really true? I didnt expect to read the whole article, but I found myself tickled in all the right places, so dear sir, I did indeed finish the article in its entirety. Welcome to BELIEVE.art, home of Revolutionary Artist & Warrior-Poet, Chairman Meow. Interesly, June 7, 2016, The spooky history of how cats bewitched us, Abigail Tucker, The Washington Post, October 31, 2016, The History of the cat in the Middle Ages (Part 2): The Black cat as the devil in Christian sects, L A Vocelle, The Great Cat: The Cat in History, Art, and Literature. During these witch trials, a woman even testified in court that cats spoke to her, and threatened to hurt her if she didnt abuse children in the town. Gregory IX (Wikimedia Commons) Pope Gregory IX was a pretty good pope by medieval standards. Was considering writing a song about the folly of feline flaying, now Im not so sure. I adore cats, they are so zen. While rat-kind cant directly carry the disease, they carry the fleas that contain the bacteria Y. Pestis. Thus, whether the population of cats went down or not, the plague would still exist. A bit hard to read when YOU ARE SCREAMING AT ME though! In Ypres in Belgium, it was the custom to hurl cats from the belfry of local churches and then set them on fire during the festival of cats or Kattenstoet. Elsewhere in Europe, the legacy of cat killings passed into folk practices. To start, lets look at what Pope Gregory IX actually said about cats in his bull (special formatting is my own): If you survived, you lost many people you loved. Terriers were also used for that purpose, in fact they were bred specifically for it. Before the 13th century, many societies, . He believed that cats were evil creatures because they were related to Satan. Home chairman meow wisdom Why Cats Were (Wrongly) Blamed for the Black Plague in Europe. The cats play into the picture as they would have normally been instrumental in cutting down the rat populations. One small fact you havent taken account of here. Besides, it mutated into septicemic and pneumonic forms, thus spreading even faster. The purpose of the papal bull Vox in Rama, was to condemn a cult that had allegedly popped up in the Rhinelandand the bull was specifically sent to the city of Mainz. After food, clothing and medicine, the fourth item is cosmetics and the fifth is pets, he said, referring to a study on where most peoples income goes. When I graduated college,I began living my own dream as a reporter for a news media outlet. Gregory believed him. The papal inquisition rained down justice on heretics, the people who spoke out against church canon. Pope Innocent VIII came to power in the late 1400s, during the throes of witch crusades in Western Europe. In the decree, he declared that Satan is half cat and claimed that there were . While there were no immediate effects of the unjust cathunt, Europe will be affected in the years to come, with the rise of the Bubonic Plague. Then, there is the fact that cats just arent good ratters-, which is why dogs; especially terriers are employed to catch rodents. Henry was acquitted when he appealed to the bishop of Mainz and later that year Marburg himself was mysteriously murdered- probably at Henrys behest. The cat had obtained a darker connotation through its association with Galinthias, who became a servant of Hecate, a Greek goddess of the underworld after she was turned into a cat by the goddess Hera. Cat burning and other forms of cat hating have survived the centuries since. (2017, June 6). Even those among us who love cats (not me, I like dogs) freely admit that they are mercurial and probably evil animals that deal death for fun and would eat our eyes if they got the chance. Others are less sure. The fleas will jump on to the cat and then you can dose the cat to kill them. But in the final analysis cats just arent dogs. Guess what? They not only killed rodents, hence less infected animals but they themselves are more likely to get bit for you, with their sweet tasting blood. Conrads methods for identifying heretics were questionable to some. Ugolino di Conti was born around 11451170 in Anagni, Rome. While the papal bull was sent to several rulers such as Emperor Frederick II and King Henry of Germany, the central prominent figure that assumes that task very seriously is one Konrad von Marburg. WHY DONT U WRITE A SONG ABOUT THE PLAGUE THAT RAVAGED THE POPULATION OF HUMANS INSTEAD, BECAUSE THEY GOT WHAT WAS COMING TO THEM ALL. I have no idea where you get the idea that cats place is in the wild. This description created an image that was to be used for all future depictions of witches sabbats- and one that established the cat as a creature of the devil. One of these was the sparrow! some particularly superstitious believers seized on the idea that the black cats were servants of Satan. As was to be expected of a former angel The upper part of his body from the hips upward shines as brightly as the sun. However, his fall from grace was encapsulated by his lower body where his skin is coarse and covered with fur like a cat.. 1958 China Chairman Mao and the great leap forward he had designs on wiping out the four evils https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/learn/histories/eight-witchcraft-myths/. Both believed that cats were satanic and Marburg came up with evidence as to why cats are satanic. I SAY GOOD FOR ALL THOSE SENSELESS HUMANOIDS. Wildcat7 Youd rather see an animal domesticated for thousands of years in the wild doing what they are meant to do than indoors as pets? Wikimedia Commons. Want more crazy cat facts? Following years brought the great plaque of insects! When I was a kid, my mom thought that Id have my own talk show because I was always asking people lots of questions about themselves. The Black Death or Black Plague was the original zombie apocalypse. ALL ANIMALS ARE BEAUTIFUL, EVERY SPECIES KNOWN IS A JOY TO BEHOLD, EVERY ONE, RIGHT DOWN TO THE HIPPO, THE PIGS, EQUINES, PACHYDERMS , FELINES, CANINES, BOVINES. Lets see if the math adds up. Literally no cats. But, was it because of cats andrats? Cats came to be seen as a symbol of witchcraft, and even as the embodiment of Satan himself. Of course, the Bubonic Plague also motivated the kitty killings, as many believed that cat germs contributed to the plagues spread. ITS TIME FOR THE GOVT TO STOP THE HUMAN OVER-POPULATION. Apparently snakes and scorpions were threats too. However, amongst the warped fantasies were some bare facts from past beliefs which lent themselves to the dark image of witchcraft the church was attempting to conjure. This info on Pope Gregory the ASSWHOLE is just another scandal caused by a Pope. Not a cat person? Purina, the multinational firm known for making cat chow, notes that, Egyptians have had a long love affair with cats. Pope Gregory IX (1147-1241) was probably the world's worst cat hater or at least he did the most damage to cats. In Ypres in Belgium, it was the custom to hurl cats from the belfry of local churches and then set them on fire during the festival of cats or Kattenstoet. For he had inherited the problem of heresies which were blossoming across thirteenth century Christian Europe and challenging the 'universal' church. His pontificate was notable for the papacy's attempts to intervene in the quarrels between Emperor Louis the Pious and his sons. Cats Blamed for Spreading the Plague During the Middle Ages, it wasn't uncommon for cats to be killed, given their association with evil, Compora says. On June 13, 1233, the Pope issued the Vox in Rama to King Henry of Germany. He tended to treat all those accused as guilty until proven innocent and threatened all those who would not confess with the flames. Pope Gregory IX became pope of the Catholic Church in 1227 and he wanted to kill cats. Great read! Not only were they a source of companionship they were also a status symbol and source of worship. Purina. why did pope gregory think that cats were evil? Medieval people were indeed superstitious (but so are modern people), and cats are great but, lets face ittheyre assh*les. Reigning during the Western Schism, he was opposed by the Avignon claimant Benedict XIII and the Pisan claimants Alexander V and John XXIII.Gregory XII wanted to unify the Church and . Its true that paper cutouts of these furry creatures make nice imagery at Halloween parties. Not sure I am convinced either way, but people (especially those who prefer dogs) do like to hate on cats, so it is not a stretch to believe that they have been killed en masse in any era. It was one of the most deadly pandemics in history. While there appears to be no evidence that Pope Gregory IX ever told people to kill cats, there have been smaller historical examples of Medieval folks killing cats for weird reasons. As I understand it, people used small dogs for rat hunting. Home; About; Contacts; Location; FAQ Forgive us! says the master, and the one next to him repeats this, a third responding, We know, master! A fourth says And we must obey. 4, So whats up with this? Interesly, June 7, 2016, The spooky history of how cats bewitched us, Abigail Tucker, The Washington Post, October 31, 2016, The History of the cat in the Middle Ages (Part 2): The Black cat as the devil in Christian sects, L A Vocelle, The Great Cat: The Cat in History, Art, and Literature. Even in Egypt, where they still view cats as sacred animals, plague hits. Thank you for your cooperation.You can sign-up to the Membership any time to remove the adds and enjoy the content with no interruptions, 2 popes and a plague are to blame for burning felines at the stake. Where do we get our stuff? The flea that bit humans was specific to the black rat anyway. And anyone who tries to understand them as the devil incarnate or as a female marker hasnt spent enough time enjoying a cat walking all over them, kneading them or running from cucumbers. So Gregory began to formalize and promote practices that formed the basis of the later medieval inquisition. On June 13, 1233, Pope Gregory IX instigated the first bull of his papacy: the Vox in Rama. Like a lot of other myths about history from the Middle Ages, the idea that Europeans wiped out cats and then paid for it with the Black Death makes more sense the less you think about it. Nazca, a culture that lived in what is now Peru, etched a 37-meter-long geoglyph of a cat in the coast plain some 2,000 years ago. Pope Innocent VIII came to power in the late 1400s, during the throes of witch crusades in Western Europe. The most likely targets were often older cat-owning peasant women (The Crazy Cat Ladies of their time) who were labeled witches and often burned alive at the stake. However, historian Donald Engel believes that the Vox acted as a death warrant for the cat. Share this article your friends will love it too! Sometimes it appears unduly large, and sometimes equivalent to a goose or a duck, and sometimes it even assumes the size of an oven. From there, its just a couple of logical leaps to the connection to the Black Death: inspired by Pope Greg IXs bull, everyone across Europe killed off all the cats. Retrieved from https://academic.oup.com/ehr/article-abstract/CXXII/498/1075/457108/The-Black-Death-in-Egypt-and-England-A-Comparative?redirectedFrom=fulltext, Kattenstoet. Cats dont generally take on rats. cats were only interested in our rat infested granaries. Gregory immediately recognizing Conrad as a useful tool in his war against religious dissent. 1999. Another belief is that the plague wasairborne. The Decretals reorganized the whole library of Catholic laws. Dear Sir, Plague. For a lot of folks, everything you need to know about the Middle Ages you can find in Braveheart or Monty Pythonit was a simple, stupid period when superstition ruled the land, heads rolled daily, and people were covered in sh*t all the time. And in the 13th Century, people in medieval Ypres, Belgium, had a festival calledKattenstoet, where theyd throw cats from the belfry tower to symbolize the killing evil spirts. Cats and the Black Plague. Writing is my first love. While there is no evidence that cats in medieval England were persecuted, their mousing skills were likened to the devils ability to catch souls, with the fifteenth-century merchant William Caxton remarking how the devil playeth ofte with the synnar, lyke as the catte doth with the mous. Some historians believe that the persecutions across Europe so depleted cat numbers that mouse- and rat-catching by cats diminished- one of the reasons why the Bubonic Plague took such a deadly hold in Europe during the fourteenth century. Scientists back in the 19th century found out that the real transmission is through touch, and the most common carrier of the disease is the natural enemy to the previously butchered feline friend the rats. This is mainly because the black plague ravaged Asia before it goes on its way to Europe. (As a side note, the festival continues in modern Belgium but nowKattenstoethonors felines with a parade that features cute effigies of cats, but I digress. By removing many cats from the food chain, the population of rodents began to rise across Europe, as Asian and other foreign ships carrying rats brought them to European harbors. Konrad has evidence of people worshipping Lucifer and black cats, he also seems to possess some sort of confession. It kept happening, lets say once per generation, until the 1700s. Some historians have forgiven the rats. They both carry fleas, only the mice never jump in my lap and bunt their head-glands all over my jeans. Omniverous diet, free bleeders- cats and other mammals? Anyone with a thing against cats may get some satisfaction from a weird history "fact" circulating on the internet. Wierd Tales, Vol 36. But this means that a papal bull that didnt tell people to wipe out cats and was only sent to Mainz somehow influenced the majority of people throughout Europe to kill off all their cats, and to stick to it over the course of the next 115 years. Against the pandemic jump in my lap and bunt their head-glands all over my jeans have normally instrumental. Best ally in the final analysis cats just arent dogs, pope Gregory the ASSWHOLE is just another caused! People who spoke out against church canon was the original zombie apocalypse became pope the. 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