Original: Outbreaks German and French troops carried the plague to the city of Mantua in 1629 , as a result of troop movements associated with the Thirty Years ' War ( 1618 -- 1648 ) .
Simplified: German and French troops carried the plague to the city of Mantua in 1629 , as a result of troop movements associated with the Thirty Years ' War ( 1618-1648 ) .