General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: Maybe this is the way it's going to be. [View all]The Velveteen Ocelot
(119,331 posts)The plague affected all classes, but the working and peasant classes suffered the greatest losses because of their living conditions. Eventually it killed about one-third or more of the population, and it took 80-100 years to restore Europe to its previous population. But there was such a severe labor shortage as a result of the plague that workers were in high demand and therefore their wages increased. Some historians believe the plague contributed to the development of the Renaissance because of the eventual increased overall standard of living that resulted from the higher wages of the working classes, leading to a rise of the merchant classes as well. Good old Keynesian economics. https://dailyhistory.org/How_did_the_Bubonic_Plague_make_the_Italian_Renaissance_possible%3F
Will something like that happen again? We'll see.