On the History of the Plague in Merano and Vinschgau in the Years 1635 and 1636

Appendix.

History. 1/2

History passes over the plague that raged in southern Tyrol in the years 1635 and 1636 with only a brief mention. For this very reason, it is worth the effort to highlight a few features from this era. In place of all other localities, the town of Merano and the village of Parcines must serve, as documents and reports are known only of them.

In the Grisons, the plague had already been raging for some time. Unfortunately, France made common cause with Sweden and the Grisons against Austria. In 1632, the French Duke Rohan established himself with troops in the Engadine and, united with the Grison forces, threatened the Vinschgau with an incursion. To protect the land, foreign assistance had to be summoned, and in 1634 a number of Spanish soldiers were stationed in the Vinschgau. The military movements along the entire Adige in Tyrol made it impossible to guard the borders as required; perhaps the foreign troops themselves brought the germ of the epidemic into the country. Suffice it to say that by the end of 1634 it was already devastating the upper Vinschgau and was also lingering in the region of Bozen. A committee of the Estates assembled there on 25 February 1635 was no longer able to stem the evil; it advanced steadily, and on 22 February of the same year mortality appeared for the first time in Merano. People of higher rank sought to escape the danger by flight; but the peasants of the uninfected communities had drawn an inexorable cordon at the village borders, which struck down without mercy anyone who approached beyond the established boundary. A victim of this measure was the noble and rigorous (strenuus) Lord Ferdinand v. Mamming. On 30 September, at Velmau in Algund, he presumed to cross the boundary line. The peasants watched him for a moment with silent resentment, signaled to him, and when he paid no heed, shot him dead. The inhabitants of Merano now had to yield to the power of fate. From 23 September to 24 December 1635, the epidemic had carried off 58 of them, among whom were noted those who had to perform direct service to the sick: the priest for the infirm, the nurse, the attendants, and the gravediggers. If the affliction struck the parents in a house, it also seized the children, and vice versa. Algund too could no longer protect itself from infection; its close and open position towards the town rendered all caution and diligence inadequate. Winter then halted the progress of the disease.

Like an island in a dead sea, only the two communities of Parcines and Naturno stood untainted by the sickness in the entire Vinschgau. — As early as 1634, they had posted their guard posts at the Schnals bridge and the Ziegel bridge on the Töll. The location of these bridges, which permitted a tighter blockade, and the crisp air streaming down from the Schnals valley and the Ziel alpine pasture gave these communities good hope of escaping the disaster that befell their neighbors. Meanwhile, they did not neglect to make preparations for the opposite case as well, and to lay down certain rules of conduct, which are still extant under the title: “Prestenordnung” (Plague Regulations).

Since religiosity contributes so much to calming minds, it is initially ordered: “Everyone shall straightway betake themselves to confession and communion, nor shall anyone according to their means forget almsgiving. Likewise, every Friday a divine service shall be held, which every father or mother of a household shall diligently attend under penalty. A daily hour of prayer at noon or evening, as agreed upon, shall be established, and likewise under penalty every father and mother of a household shall turn their children, retainers, servants, and lodgers away from all sinful vices and toward the fear of God, etc.” Then follow the sanitary regulations: “2, 3, or 4 honorable, capable, and trusted men shall be designated with authority to keep watch over all preceding and following points, whether they are observed, and otherwise to deliberate upon purchasing all kinds of victuals, provisions, and other goods. At passes along paths and roads, several good, honorable, faithful, and instructed guards shall be appointed, and an assessment levied for their payment according to the estimate of the insured servants. All masterless, roaming foreign vagrants shall be turned away; but local poor beggars who must subsist solely on alms and cannot support themselves by any labor shall be registered and maintained in peace, even in times of pestilence, from the public treasury. 3 or more men shall be appointed, and whatever they find suspicious of any infection or other loathsome diseases, they shall report to the village headmen and committeemen. Also all householders shall be admonished to maintain good cleanliness and remove filth. Phlebotomists and a physician shall also be appointed, who shall supply themselves with necessary medicines. Further, 2, 3, or 4 gravediggers, 2, 3, or 4 women as attendants, and a midwife shall be appointed. In case this dangerous affliction breaks out anywhere, the said house shall immediately be closed, and the infected carried by the appointed bearers to the houses designated for that purpose, while the others who are not yet infected shall also be placed in separate lodgings, and those who have had any communication or dealings with such persons shall likewise be confined for a time. For winter, plague houses shall be appointed and built, and for summer, huts further back as far as circumstances permit. No one who is recovering shall leave the plague house without prior notice, but separate lodgings shall also be provided for them. Male and female attendants shall not go to those persons who are not yet infected but nevertheless separated, but shall remain with the sick, and those separated persons shall help themselves until regular quarantine is completed. For the handover and receipt of provisions and other necessaries, 2, 3, or 4 men shall be appointed, who shall deliver provisions to infected and uninfected separated persons up to a designated boundary, and from a distance inquire of the female attendants about the needs and state of the infected and uninfected, so that the proper orders may be issued. Above the boundary line, a roof shelter shall be erected on account of bad weather. Suitable places and locations for burial shall be marked out.”

It can be seen that in those times, although still quite crude and uncultivated, sanitary police institutions were not entirely unknown even in the countryside. Soon, however, the necessity arose to make use of them. (Conclusion to follow.)