Plague of Justinian - Definition and Overview

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The Plague of Justinian is the first known pandemic on record, and it also marks the first recorded case of bubonic plague. The plague occurred in around CE 550; it started in Africa and moved northward until it reached Constantinople (formerly known as Byzantium).

The Byzantine historian Procopius records that, at its peak, the plague was killing 10,000 people in Constantinople every day. The Byzantine Emperor Justinian ensured that new legislation was swiftly enacted so as to deal more efficiently with the glut of inheritance suits being brought as a result of the plague deaths (Moorhead, J., Justinian, London 1994).