The plague of Egypt crossing the Red Sea: The arrival and focalisation of plague in the southern Red Sea region in the 1430s

Abstract

Drawing on textual, archaeological, and palaeoclimatic evidence, this article reconstructs the broad patterns of plague’s arrival in the southern Red Sea region during the 1430s. It contends that this initial introduction led to the formation of a medium-term reservoir that generated recurrent epidemic waves over the subsequent 150–200 years. This development is attributed to the interplay of environmental and human-driven factors acting together. The study adopts a dual approach: first, it examines how commercial networks across the Red Sea facilitated the spread of the plague; second, it investigates the environmental and topographical shifts in the southern Red Sea between 1370 and 1470 to understand how these conditions allowed the disease to become endemic to the region.