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2 years ago in History , Public Health By Adi

What was the 1555 Tudor ordinance regarding mortality data in London, and what was its purpose?

I've encountered references to a 1555 law requiring London parishes to record weekly burials. Was this specifically for plague monitoring? What form did the records take (the "Bills of Mortality"), and how did this early data collection influence governance or demographic understanding?

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By Ria Desai Answered 1 year ago

The 1555 ordinance, strengthened in later years, mandated London parishes to compile weekly "Bills of Mortality." Its primary purpose was indeed plague surveillance—to provide early warning of outbreaks so the wealthy could flee. The bills listed christenings and burials, with causes of death. This was a seminal moment in public health history, creating a continuous statistical series. While crude, this data allowed for basic mortality trends to be observed. It represents a shift towards using empirical information for governance, laying groundwork for later demographic study and the more scientific public health interventions of the 17th and 18th centuries.

 

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