The Bizarre Plague That Made People Dance to Death

In 1518, in the city of Strasbourg (then part of the Holy Roman Empire), something deeply unsettling happened: people began to dance uncontrollably.

It started with a woman named Frau Troffea, who stepped into the street and began dancing. Not joyfully. Not intentionally. She danced for days without stopping—her body moving against her will. Within a week, dozens of others joined her. Within a month, hundreds were dancing.

They danced until their feet bled, until their muscles failed, until some collapsed and died from heart attacks, strokes, or exhaustion. Witnesses described faces twisted in pain and terror—people begging for help while their bodies refused to stop moving.

Even more bizarre? Authorities didn’t stop it. They believed the dancers were cursed and that dancing was the cure, so they built stages and hired musicians—unknowingly making it worse.

There were no signs of celebration. No laughter. Just relentless motion.

Historians still debate the cause:

• Mass psychogenic illness triggered by extreme stress, famine, and disease

• Ergot poisoning, a hallucinogenic mold found in rye bread

• Or a combination of psychological terror and social collapse

What makes the Dancing Plague especially bizarre is that it wasn’t unique. Similar outbreaks occurred across Europe for centuries—suggesting something fragile and dangerous about the human mind under pressure.

To this day, there is no definitive explanation...

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