In episode 22 the of 5 Minute Mysteries podcast, we explore one of history’s strangest and most inexplicable events—the Dancing Plague of 1518. In the summer of that year, dozens of people in Strasbourg, France, were suddenly struck by an uncontrollable urge to dance, continuing for days and even weeks without rest. As the bizarre phenomenon spread, some collapsed from exhaustion, while others reportedly danced to their deaths. Was it mass hysteria, a reaction to ergot poisoning, or something even more mysterious? Join us as we uncover the theories behind one of history’s most puzzling outbreaks.

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