Dancing Plague of 1518

Dancing Plague of 1518

In the sweltering summer of 1518, the streets of Strasbourg erupted in a frenzy of uncontrollable dancing. What began with a single woman's inexplicable urge to dance soon spread like wildfire, engulfing hundreds in its grip. For days on end, men, women, and children danced without rest, their bodies contorting in a manic spectacle that defied reason. As the city watched in horror, the dancers' feet bled, and some collapsed from exhaustion, only to rise again and continue their relentless choreography. This bizarre phenomenon, known as the Dancing Plague of 1518, remains one of history's most perplexing mysteries. What drove these people to dance themselves to the brink of death? Was it mass hysteria, a strange illness, or something far more sinister?

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