the black death; introduction; chapter i--general observations; chapter ii--the disease; chapter iii--causes--spread; chapter iv--mortality; chapter v--moral effects; chapter vi--physicians; the dancing mania; chapter i--the dancing mania in germany and the netherlands; sect. A native of Erfurt, Justus Friedrich Karl Hecker, wrote a book published in 1888, titled The Black Death and the Dancing Mania, in which he collected numerous accounts of Dancing Mania, relating it to the horrific consequences of the Bubonic plague that reached its peak in Europe in the mid-14th century. Many died of strokes and heart attacks, after pushing their bodies to extreme limits of endurance. The Kölbigk incident is a contender for the first of the dancing plagues. The earliest outbreak of dancing plagues known in history took place during the 7th century reappearing several times before ceasing around the 17th century. A dance mania overtook Germany in the 1300s, immediately after the Black Death. 15 people were dying each day from sheer exhaustion, heart attacks and strokes. The Black Death / The Dancing Mania book. The death toll was rising, as the “dancers” fell like flies after a while of non-stop jumping and dancing. Till some have dropped along the way, and some are met by death. The most well known cases happened in Germany in 1374 and France in 1518. Read 11 reviews from the world's largest community for readers. Join 1000s of subscribers and receive the best Vintage News in your mailbox for FREE, J. R. R. 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Manic dancing was first mentioned in the 14th C., and sporadic outbreaks are described in the 15th, 16th, and 17th C. The first major outbreak of dancing mania was in Aix-la-Chapelle in July of 1374. The dancing mania killed 15 people from the town! Once they reached their destination, they fell to the ground, as a result of exhaustion. The dancing plague, also known as the dancing mania, St John's Dance or chreomania was a societal phenomenon that primarily occurred on the mainland of Europe between the 14th and 17th centuries. The dancing mania by Eugen Holländer (1867-1932). How Many Serial Killers Are Active In The UK Now? Citizens by the hundred became compelled to dance, seemingly for no reason — jigging trance-like for days, until unconsciousness or, in some cases, death. 1--st. john's dance; sect. In 1518, Strasbourg was experiencing disease and famine, which, when combined with the St Vitus myth is believed to have set off a stress induced- hysteria which affected most of the city. In the year 1237 upwards of a hundred children were said to have been suddenly seized with this disease at Erfurt, and to have proceeded dancing and jumping along … Ergotism is known to trigger delusions and spasms, but results to hardships in coordinated movements therefore disqualifying it as a substantial cause for the phenomenon. Several thousand frenzied people danced in fits that lasted for weeks. The names St. Vitus’ Dance, or St. John’s Dance, were soon accepted, and the people begged the ancient saints for forgiveness. As if in some sort of trance, sometimes the dancing mania would possess a person for days, weeks, and in some cases months. In order to soothe their sufferings, music was played, and in order to keep them off the streets, huge guild halls were adapted to fit a large number of people. One the largest outbreaks of the mysterious dancing “sickness” happened in Aachen, Germany, in 1374. The dancing hysteria involved masses dancing hysterically, sometimes the numbers reaching thousands at a time. The Church was suspicious of these events right from the start. The dancing plague, also known as the dancing mania, St John's Dance or chreomania was a societal phenomenon that primarily occurred on the mainland of Europe between the 14th and 17th centuries. A native of Erfurt, Justus Friedrich Karl Hecker, wrote a book published in 1888, titled The Black Death and the Dancing Mania, in which he collected numerous accounts of Dancing Mania, relating it to the horrific consequences of the Bubonic plague that reached its peak in Europe in the mid-14th century. Other theories include a mass outbreak of hysteria however, none of the theories fully explain the dancing plague of 1518. Some researchers have attributed the phenomenon to ergotism which suggested that the dancers had ingested ergot, a psychotropic mold that grows on stalks of rye. The Dancing Mania was a strange social phenomenon that escapes clear explanation to this day. The “sick” would then be herded into these structures, together with musicians, as if the entire spectacle resembled a modern musical concert. The Black Death and the Dancing Mania 2nd Edition by J. F. C. Hecker and Publisher AUK Classics. One of the first major outbreaks of the phenomenon took place in the Holy Roman Empire in 1374 rapidly spreading to the whole of Europe including the Netherlands, England, and Germany. In Italy, a similar social phenomena called the tarantella was attributed to spider bites. St. John’s Dance, known historically as St. Vitus Dance, was a social phenomenon involving a type of dance mania that gripped mainland Europe between the 14 th and 17 th centuries. There was no music to dance to as her face showed no expression of enjoyment, she seemed unable to stop herself from the delirium. A tale of those who danced themselves to death. Later chronicles speak of a bout of unstoppable, and sometimes fatal, dancing in the German town of Erfurt in 1247. The frenzy affected people of all demographics, including adults and children who would dance until they collapsed from exhaustion. The Dancing Mania of the year 1374 was, in fact, no new disease, but a phenomenon well known in the Middle Ages, of which many wondrous stories were traditionally current among the people. It’s likely that it was this or a similar story from which the legend of the Pied Piper of Hamelin sprung―a folk tale about a piper with supernatural powers who leads a group of children to their death, as an act of revenge against the townsmen who refused to pay him for his services of eradicating rats in times of plague. He believed that the hardships brought by the disease indirectly manifested themselves in the form of a collective madness. Ned Pennant-Rea on one of history's most bizarre events. One of the most prominent theories claims that the main reason behind this mass mania was poisoning by Claviceps purpurea, a fungus known to infect rye and other cereals, a condition called ergotism. The dancing mania, which caused hoards of people to dance until they died, starts right after the black death is over and continues up until the late 1700s. Accounts dating from the 7th century Embed this Item highly unlikely since dancers! 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