Bovine Epidemics in Northern France in the XVIIIth century

In the XVIIIth century, four major epidemics strike the bovine herds of the European continent. The herds of North-West Europe suffer severe casualties, and among them, those of the extreme north of the Kingdom of France, which is here studied: maritime and Walloon Flanders, Hainaut and the Cambrai territory. The point of this article is to make out with accuracy the geographical sectors that were hit, to date as precisely as possible the periods of mortality and to analyze how our region and the rest of North-West Europe diverge both from the point of view of chronology and that of the consequences of these epidemics. The modes of propagation and the methods of fighting the diseases are thus highlighted.