The Horde's Caffa Plague: How the Black Death Escaped Mongol Crimea

In 1346, a Mongol army under Khan Janibeg besieged the Genoese trading colony of Caffa in Crimea. When plague broke out in the Mongol camp, Janibeg's catapults launched infected corpses over the walls — possibly the first known instance of biological warfare. But did that really spread the Black Death to Europe? This episode digs into the contested accounts, the role of Genoese merchants, the plague's journey from Central Asia via the Silk Road, and how Caffa became a cauldron of commerce, slavery, and contagion. We examine the primary sources: Gabriele de' Mussi's eyewitness narrative, the competing theories of plague transmission, and the archaeological evidence from Sarai and other Jochid sites. Lucas and Luna also explore the broader context of the Horde's trade empire, the Genoese-Mongol alliance that frayed under Janibeg, and how the pandemic reshaped the balance of power on the steppe. This is history at its most intimate and consequential — a single siege that may have changed the world. #GoldenHorde #Caffa #BlackDeath #KhanJanibeg #MongolSiege #GenoeseTrade #BiologicalWarfare #Crimea #Plague #YersiniaPestis #SilkRoad #GabrieleDeMussi #Sarai #JochidUlus #14thCentury #PandemicHistory #History #FexingoHistory Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo