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Quarantining Ships In the Golden Age of Piracy, Page 5

History of Quarantine Regulations - Bubonic Plague: Mediterranean

Some of the history of quarantine implemented to prevent the bubonic has more to do with land-based quarantine than it does ship-based.
Artist: William Brassey Hole - Outcast Biblical Lepers (c. 1925)
Several authors point to the Bible, particularly Moses' command to Aaron to have a priest determine who had leprosy and then "shut up him that hath the plague, seven dayes. And the Priest shall looke on him the seventh day: and beholde, if the plague in his sight be at a stay, and the plague spread not in the skinne, then the Priest shall shut him up seven dayes more."¹ If the person still had signs of leprosy after that, they were declared unclean, were to "dwell alone, without the campe shall his habitation be."² Further instructions to quarantine lepers can be found in the bible in Numbers and the first book of Samuel. However, the Hebrew "lazarettoes, it appears, were little used in connection with foreign trade, leaving out of the question commerce by sea. ...Had the Jews been active in outside commerce, we should probably read in the Old Testament of sanitary laws applicable to caravans and vessels."³ Still, the Mediterranean plague quarantines worked along similar lines, although the period of quarantine was longer.

It was not until the fourteenth century were that the type of quarantine still in use during the golden age of piracy began to form. The fairly standard period of quarantine may have begun when "the Knights Hospitallers of the Order of St. John of Jerusalem first adopted a forty-day quarantine after their establishment on the island of Rhodes in 1306."⁴

Decades later, following an outbreak of bubonic plague in Ragusa (in what is today Dubrovnik, Croatia), "the city’s chief physician, Jacob of Padua, advised establishing a place outside the city walls for treatment of ill townspeople and
Artist: Odoardo Fialetti
Unloading a Vessel, From Santi Giovanni e Paolo, Venice, (ca. 1606)
outsiders who came to town seeking a cure."⁵ Ragusa initially imposed a thirty day quarantine, which was later expanded to forty days and, in the winter, fifty days. "During a plague epidemic in 1377, the town council held both foreigners and locals together with their merchandise when they returned from areas considered pestilential. The month-long detention took place on the nearby island of Makan."⁶ The island location was likely chosen for its isolation rather than its convenience in stopping incoming ships from making port. Later buffer island-based lazarettos were used in part because they provided a good place to send arriving ships.

The independent city-state of Venice was the first to establish a digest of rules known as the Laws of Quarantine which were to designed prevent the plague from reaching the city.⁷ Venice appointed three guardians of public health in 1348 - Nicolaus Venerio, Marinus Querino, and Paulas Belegno - who were charged with inspecting ship's crews for signs of the plague as well as some other diseases. Suspect crews, goods and ships were sent to serve out their quarantine on an island in the lagoon.⁸ "By 1374, new ordinances forbade the entrance of suspected ships to the harbor altogether, and required custody of their crews for thirty days (the so-called trentina)."⁹ By 1383, a forty day quarantine was employed at Marseilles.¹⁰ Following a series of plague epidemics around the turn of the fifteenth century, "Venice established by 1403 a hostel on the island of Santa Maria not just for the detention of travelers, but also for the internment of local plague suspects. …where they were now subjected to a longer isolation period, the forty days or quarantine."¹¹

The Italian states established special Magistracies who had legislative, judicial and executive powers in public health matters with their prime focus being the prevention of the plague. "By the middle of the sixteenth century, all major cities of northern Italy had permanent Magistracies, reinforced in times of emergency by health boards set up in minor towns and rural areas. All boards were subordinate to and directly answerable to the central Health Magistracies of their respective capital cities."¹²

The first purpose-built lazaretto was built by the Venetians in 1423 called Il Lazaretto Vecchio (the Old Lazaretto). This was followed in 1468 by another building, referred to as Il Lazaretto Nuovo (the New Lazaretto).
Lazaretto Vecchio on Early Map, Wellcome Collection
"This Venetian system, introduced primarily to guard against the introduction of plague from the Levant, gained high repute in Europe and served as a model to other countries."¹² For example, around 1458, the Mdina Municipality in Malta appointed officials to maintain quarantine rules there. "Ships suspected of harbouring infection were directed to Marsamxett Harbour. Attempts to contain the infection included the burning of cargo, isolating the crew and submersing the ship."¹³

Many other lazarettos were built along these lines. Rather than list those or the quarantine stations which were created to combat the plague, the ones still active during the golden age of piracy will be discussed individually later in this article, including examples described by period and near period authors who were required to serve out quarantines. Although lazarettos in the Mediterranean were seen as desirable, their construction was still rather slow and often somewhat haphazard. As doctor Guenter Russe explains, "given the temporary character of both plague epidemics and health boards, the construction of permanent facilities was often delayed for decades in favor of makeshift arrangements that included former out-of-town monasteries and private estates."¹⁴

Not all incoming ships had to perform quarantine at every city. This would have been onerous for both the ship's crew and for the merchants who were trying to get products into port before they were spoiled or ruined.
Artist: Claude Lorrain - The Sun Rising in the Levant (1650)
"To avoid quarantine and obtain free pratique, ships had to produce a clean bill of health, i.e. an official document certifying that the last port of call was free from these diseases, and this bill of health in many cases had also to have the visa of the consul of the country of arrival, since this was a guarantee that the information was correct."¹⁵

Bills of health for ships may be even more ancient than maritime quarantine. John Macauley Eager notes that in the archives of the 'Conservatori di Mare di Genoa' [Conservatory of the Sea of ​​Genoa] there is a "writing, dated 1300, makes mention of bulletins of health (bullettones sanitatis) with which ships from the littoral [shore region] of Corsica and Sardinia were required to be provided."¹⁶ A long period of time was to pass before they were next mentioned as being in use. "Bills of Health... were instituted [in Venice] in 1527; but they did not become general till 1665."¹⁷ Patrick Russel says that the Levant Company, an English chartered company formed to trade with the Ottoman empire, was using bills of health at least by 1596 when "an English traveller who was at Aleppo in 1596, mentions his having a clean patent, Syria being then free from the plague."¹⁸

Bills of heath were employed in England as well. Following an outbreak of the plague in London in 1636, the College of Physicians gave directions which stated "that neither men nor goods may come from any suspected places beyond the seas, or in the land, without certificate of health, or else either to be sent suddenly away, or to be put to the Pest-house, or such like place, for forty days (according to the custom of Italy)"¹⁹. Historian Justis Hecker notes, "Bills of health, however, were not general until the year 1665."²⁰ At this time, the College republished their directions, modifying the beginning to read "persons and goods coming from foreign countries and places infected"²¹

¹ Leviticus 13:4-5, King James Bible, 1611; ² Leviticus 13:46, King James Bible, 1611; ³ John Macauley Eager, The early history of quarantine, Yellow Fever Institute Bulletin No12, March, 1903, p. 15; ⁴ Neville M Goodman, International Health Organizations and Their Work, 1971, p. 31 ⁵ Paul S. Sehdev, “The Origin of Quarantine”, Clinical Infectious Diseases, 2002:35, p. 1072; ⁶ Guenter B Russe, Seventeenth-Century Pest Houses or Lazarettos, Jan. 1999, p. 25; ⁷ Proceedings and debates of the Third Annual Meeting of the Quarantine and Sanitary Convention, Baltimore, 1858, p. 259; ⁸ John Keevil, Medicine and Navy, Vol. 1, 1957, p. 84 & Russe, p. 25; ⁹ Russe, p. 26-7; ¹⁰ Keevil, p. 84; ¹¹ Russe, p. 25; Andrew Cliff, Matthew Smallman-Raynor & Peta Steven, Controlling the Geographical Spread of Infectious Disease - Plague in Italy: 1347-1851, 2009,p. 200-1;

¹² Goodman, p. 31; ¹³ Charles Savona-Ventura, Knight Hospitaller Medicine in Malta [1530-1789], 2015, p. 46; ¹⁴ Russe, p. 84; ¹⁵ Goodman, p. 31; ¹⁶ Eager, p. 18; ¹⁷ Johannes Noel, The Black Death: A Chronicle of the Plague, C. H. Clark, Translator, 1971, p. 73; ¹⁸ Patrick Russell, A Treatise on the Plague, Vol. 2, 179, p. 318; ¹⁹ Russell, p. 318; ²⁰ Justus Friedrich Carl Hecker, The Black Death in the Fourteenth Century, 1833, p. 167; ²¹ Russell, p. 318

History of Quarantine Regulations - Bubonic Plague: England

While England never built formal lazarettos, they did establish locations for crews to serve out quarantines on their ships as well as finding unoccupied land where cargoes could be opened and aired to remove any contagion. The history of the plague in England goes at least back to 1348, arriving in "the sea-port towns of Dorsetshire; thence to have palled into Devonshire and
Lazaretto Vecchio on Early Map, Wellcome Collection
Somersetshire, as far as Bristol; and though the Gloucestershire people cut off all communication with that city, yet at length it reached Gloucester, Oxford and London."¹ This was followed by England having to withstand numerous other significant bouts of the bubonic plague. A list of the major plague epidemics experienced in London and the surrounding liberties (outlying areas overseen by London) including mortality statics can be found in the chart at left.

Beginning in the 16th century action was taken to prevent the plague from being imported into the country. Regulations were introduced in England in 1585.² Other measures were implemented during the seventeenth century, although "imposition of quarantine was always short-lived, in response to perceived emergencies, and within the royal prerogative. There was as yet no question of permanent measure or of parliamentary involvement."³

At the beginning of the 17th century, "quarantines for foreign goods are recommended by the College of Physicians according to the custom of Italy, and... were enjoined by royal authority in 1664."⁴ The College of Physicians directed that incoming ships would have to have a bill of health or be quarantined. The 1664 regulations directed, "Infected ships were to be sent to sea and ships from infected ports were to be moored under guard in a named creek of the Thames estuary and only released if free from infection after forty days, the goods meanwhile being 'aired' on shore."⁵ The measures enacted followed the advice of the College.⁶

On August 22, 1709, the Privy Council of England, advisors to the sovereign, decided that "The navy was to prevent any goods, seamen or passengers from those areas being landed in London or the outports 'untill they be under the Care of the Officers of the Customes who are to
Queen Anne's Privy Council, From Cassells Illustrated
History of England, Vol. 4 (1864)
take Care ... according to the Intention of this Order'."⁷ This was too vague to be practicable, so another order was issued on September 5th, which added that such landing was to occur at locations "'provided for airing the ... Persons and Goods for 40 Days appointed for performing their Quarantain"⁸. This was also confusing because available locations were not identified. A third order was issued eight days later which did nothing to clarify the second, but added that the 'Baltic Seas' were considered an infected area.

Quarantine was made official by Queen Anne's 'Act to oblige Ships coming from Places infected more effectually to perform their Quarantine' in 1710, passing both Houses of Parliament in only eight days. The Act was created because "several Places on or near the Baltick Sea are and have been, for some Time past, infested with the Plague, and her Majesty... required a Quarantine to be performed by all Ships and Persons coming from Places infected, as herein is directed". This act advised that quarantine was to be served "in such Place, &c. as shall be directed by her Majesty". Those leaving the ship before quarantine ended were simply ordered to be put back aboard to finish their term. Those in charge of overseeing the quarantine were to keep watches and could "seize any Boat belonging to the Ship, and detain it during the Quarantine"⁹ Once the quarantine was completed, the ship was given a Certificate costing 1 s. Similar to the rules established at Mediterranean lazarettos, the act ended with a quick mention of opening and airing imported goods which had been tacked on following discussion in Parliament.

Like the Privy Council orders, the act was vague, not providing specifics such as the term or place of quarantine. It also lacked effective punishments for those breaking quarantine and didn't provide money to pay those in charge of overseeing it and the watches. "A clumsier piece of legislation could scarcely have been imagined."¹⁰

For the British Navy "the imposition of quarantine was a thorough nuisance" because it tied up fleets who were needed to fight the French during the War of Spanish Succession, escort merchant fleets past French privateers, and take French merchant ships for England.¹¹ The new ruling saddled the navy with the additional tasks of supporting Customs officers enforcing the law and providing guard-ships at the quarantine stations. In addition, the already undermanned naval vessels which had been in the Baltic were now required to perform quarantine, putting them out of action for forty days. Because news of plague in the Baltic continued through 1711, the bill remained in place until 1714.¹²

Due in some measure to the problems experienced with the 1710 Act combined with the alarm raised by a
Artist: Sir Godfrey Kneller - King George I (1714)
serious plague outbreak in Marseilles, France, the need for rules of quarantine in England resurfaced in 1720. Since the King was out of the country, "the Lords Justices issued an Order which was a virtual resurrection of the texts used in the Baltic crisis"¹³. The justices asked physician Mead for his advice, which resulted in the writing of his A short discourse concerning pestilential contagion.

In October of 1720, the Privy Council specified the establishment of quarantine ports for London, Portsmouth, Plymouth, Falmouth and Bristol, and airing grounds were to be summarily appointed by local Customs."¹⁴ To enforce these orders, parliament's backing was needed. On December 17th, 1720, the quarantine bill was ordered, the result of which which was read the 10th of January. It passed the 21st of January, and was endorsed by King George I on the 25th. "More pains and deliberation had been employed in preparing this act, than the former; and it consequently came out not only enlarged, but much improved."¹⁵.

The 1721 act began by explaining that the 1710 "Act is defective and insufficient for the Purposes intended, and the Penalties inflicted by the same not adequate to the Offences thereby prohibited". With this in mind, the new act spelled out more stringent penalties for men and ships who failed to work with the government and properly serve their quarantine. Those in charge "of any Vessel coming from infested Places, or having on board Persons visited with the Plague, and not discovering the
Artist: Claude Lorrain
Ship at Anchor, From The Abduction of Europa by Jupiter (17th c)
same, [were] Guilty of Felony." Failure to 'discover' such information to officials was also fined £200. Men who left the ship before their quarantine period expired were similarly fined, put back on the ship to serve out the rest of their quarantine and then jailed for 6 months. If the ship's master or captain let men leave a ship under quarantine or didn't take his ship to the place specified for quarantine, he forfeited his ship and was fined £200. Anyone not under quarantine who boarded a ship under quarantine was required to stay and serve. Ships with infected people or goods or coming from infected areas could also be burned at the king's discretion. Most chilling of all, people who escaped from quarantine and left the quarantine area, "shall suffer Death."¹⁶

The king could further set up 'Lines' around infected areas "and prohibit Persons, Goods, &c. to pass such Lines. Persons offering to pass without Licence, may be compelled back, and actually passing, shall suffer Death." Like the previous act, watches were to be set up around quarantine area. Watchmen failing to perform their duty or not following the quarantine rules would fired and fined 100 £. The act also allowed for the creation of lazarettos upon an outbreak of plague in England. This read, "In Times of Infection the King may cause Ships and Lazarets to be provided for the Performance of Quarantine, and Entertainment of Persons infected; likewise proper Places for airing of Goods, &c."¹⁷ Fortunately, plague never again visited England, so no lazarettos were ever built there.

In September of 1721, the Privy Council took specific action against France, telling the Attorney General, "to prepare an Order obliging all persons arriving in the country from the French coast north of Biscay, to bring a bill of health or be subject to quarantine."¹⁸ The King issued and Order and Proclamation to this effect in October
A Sloop Being Used as Packet Boat (1825)
which directed that "All persons on packet boats (vessels carrying mail and packages between places) ‘of what Condition or Quality soever they be’ were to produce their bill to the master before sailing, or the whole ship would be quarantined."¹⁹ As a result, "all ships arriving from the French Mediterranean and Atlantic coasts [were put] under quarantine, and all person crossing the Channel [were] under the necessity to prove that they, and their port of departure, were healthy."²⁰

Curiously, this created new problems for the English navy who were trying to stop smuggling: they could not board ships coming from these regions who did not have bills of health, so if they caught a ship suspected of smuggling, all the master had to do was say that they did not have the required health documents. At the same time, it hindered legitimate trading vessels who had to either show bills of health or go through the quarantine process and have their goods aired, delaying them from landing and possibly having their goods and packages spoil. It was eventually ruled that perishable products such as currants, prunes, lemons and wine "could discharge without airing"²¹. Over time, a number of similar exceptions were eventually required to accommodate trade, undermining the spirit of the act.

Today, we are familiar with the idea that quarantined locations are specifically indicated so that people do not accidentally wander into them, requiring them to serve out the quarantine themselves. On land in England, such indications were posted. Physician Richard Mead wrote that during the 1665 plague epidemic, the
Artist: Paul Bril
Yellow Flag at Top Mast Head (Note: Original Image Altered)
College of Physicians 'Directions for the Cure of the Plague' ordered houses containing infected individual were to be "shut up, with a large red Cross, and Lord have Mercy upon us on the Door; and Watchmen attending Day and Night to prevent any one's going in or out, except Physicians, Surgeons, Apothecaries, Nurses, Searchers, &c. allowed by Authority: And this to continue at least a Month after all the Family was dead or recovered."²¹

At sea, however, the situation was different. Many people think of a yellow quarantine flag in association with vessels under quarantine restrictions. Unfortunately, quarantine ships during this period were not identified by any particular symbol. The description of the 'yellow jack' first didn't appear in England until the quarantine act of 1788. This act specified that such ships were "to hoist a particular signal, to denote that this vessel is liable to quarantine; such signal, for the day time, to be a large yellow flag at the main top-mast head; and, for the night time, to be a light at the same mast-head"²². This was still more than 60 years in the future at the end of the golden age of piracy.

¹ Patrick Russell, A Treatise on the Plague, Vol. 2, 1791, p. 325; ² Neville M Goodman, International Health Organizations and Their Work, 1971, p. 12; ³ John Booker, Maritime Quarantine: The British Experience c. 1650 -1900, 2007, p. 30; ⁴ Russell,p. 323; ⁵ Goodman, p. 31; ⁶ John Booker, Maritime Quarantine: The British Experience c. 1650 -1900, 2007, p. 89; ^7,8 Booker, p. 30; ⁹ Great Britain and Owen Ruffhead, Statutes at Large, Vol. 4, (1699-1713), 1763, p. 420-1; ¹⁰ Booker, p. 38; ¹¹ Booker, p. 48; ¹² Booker, p. 39 & 85; ¹³ Booker, p. 88; ¹⁴ Booker, p. 94; ¹⁵ Russell, p. 442; ^16,17 Great Britain and Owen Ruffhead, Statutes at Large, Vol. 5, (1714-1728), 1763, p. 330; ¹⁸ Booker, p. 107-8; ^19,20 Booker, p. 108; ²¹ Booker, p. 109; ²¹ Richard Mead, A short discourse concerning pestilential contagion, 4th ed, 1720, p. 32-3; ²² Great Britain and Danby Pickering, Statutes at Large, Vol. 36, (1787-1789), 1761, p. 379

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