miasma could linger on the clothes and bedding of the infected as well (Slack, 437). However, there was debate about the origin of the miasma. Some said that God sent the miasma directly to Earth, others said that the miasma was due to certain alignments of the stars. German physician Konrad von Megenberg blamed the miasma on earthquakes caused by God. He believed that the earth held poisonous gases inside, and when God sent an earthquake, the poisonous air could escape through the cracks in the ground produced by the earthquake (Byrne 236). The belief that God brought the bubonic plague down upon the people of Europe led people to do drastic things to ask for His forgiveness. One of these groups was the flagellants, groups of people who
