Fifth Outbreak of Sweating Sickness in England
- When
- 1551
- Where
- Shrewsbury
- Episodes
- 1
The last major outbreak of sweating sickness in England occurred in 1551. John Caius, a physician in Shrewsbury, documented the disease's symptoms in his 1552 treatise, which serves as the primary historical source for the condition.
Episodes
Background and detail
Epidemic Context. Sweating sickness was a mysterious contagious disease affecting England from 1485 onward. Previous major outbreaks occurred in 1508, 1517, and 1528. The 1551 epidemic was the last major occurrence, after which the disease apparently vanished from the region.
Caius's Account. John Caius, practicing in Shrewsbury during the outbreak, published 'A Boke or Counseill Against the Disease Commonly Called the Sweate' in 1552. This work is the main historical source for the disease's symptoms and signs, distinct from Thomas Forestier's earlier 1485 account.
People involved
- John Caius · Physician in Shrewsbury and author of the 1552 treatise
Sources
- Sweating sickness Wikipedia, revision of 2026-08-23
- John Caius Wikipedia, revision of 2026-08-31
Machine-drafted from the cited Wikipedia passages and checked by a reviewing model, not by a human editor. Every passage cites the revision it was written from; dates and places follow those passages.