The Uncanny Story of the Spread of the Black Plague in the 14th Century
Justin Newland SpeakerNet Sponsor
- Organisation:
- Justin Newland Author Services
- Regions:
- Warwickshire, Worcestershire, Devon, Somerset, Dorset, Wiltshire, Bristol, Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire, Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, Staffordshire, West Mids, Hereford
- Notice Period:
- Emergency (maybe less than one week's notice)
- Type:
- Talks
- Fee:
- Paid: £70 in 2025, £80 in 2026
- Category:
- History
- Updated:
- 9th November 2025
- Tagged:
- Silk Road. | Black Death | Plague. | Mongols
This talk traces the origins of the Black Plague in Central Asia in the 1330s, and its strange, inexorable journey along the Silk Road, through deserts and seas, islands and city-states, before it reached the little port of Melcombe Regis, Weymouth. The Black Plague bacterium was carried by fleas on rats, and it arrived in England in 1348, the Year of the Rat, which marks the first in the 12-year Chinese astrological cycle.
Views: 26 | Enquiries: 0About Justin Newland
A Doctor of Mathematics, I am an accomplished, entertaining and experienced speaker.
I've given over 70 talks to organisations including historical societies, the U3A, Probus, Rotary, and the WI. I am also the author of six historical fiction novels, with a seventh on the way.
I have so far developed 17 talks - the categories are: General Interest, Ancient Egypt, Historical, and Writing and Publishing. Here's the link to my website with the current list:
https://www.justinnewland.com/talks/
My fee for 2025 is £70 and £80 in 2026.
I don't charge travelling expenses for sites within 100 miles of my home in Weston-super-Mare.
Other Talks on SpeakerNet by Justin Newland
- A Rose by any other Name: Our Fascination with the Rose
- Mirror Mirror on the Wall: A Reflective Talk about Mirrors in Our World
- A Thousand Faces: The Untold Story of the Face
- An Introduction to Hidden Art in Ancient Egypt
- The Limits of Empire: How Drake's Circumnavigation Changed the Course of History
- The Hidden Story of the Repulse of the Spanish Armada
- Why Ancient Egypt is known as the Mother and Father of All Things
- The Great Ming Code
- Whatever Happened to the Great Enlightenment?
- History Repeats Itslef
- In Search of the Spirit of the Times
- The Curious Case of Broken Noses on Ancient Egyptian Statues
- The Eternal in the Now: An Introduction to the Enneagram
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