Black Death (Nick) Most infamous of all was the Black Death, a medieval epidemic that swept through Asia and Europe. It arrived in Europe in the late 1340s, by ship. Rats had fleas on them, which started the whole spread. Rats went on land, people handled them, which is how it got into contact with people. Killing an estimated 25 million. The Black Death remained for centuries, specifically in cities. Outbreaks included the Great Plague of London (1665-1666), in which one in every five residents died. The plague finally ended in Los Angeles in 1924.