5 Crazy Cures For the Great Plague OF LONDON

You think it’ll be hot this summer holidays? The summer of 1665 was a scorcher and the people of London also had the great plague to deal with.

“Ring – a – ring of roses, a pocketful of posies, Atischo, Atischo, We all fall DOWN.”

It’s the Dungeon Keeper, ‘ere and I’ve great secrets to share far better than any old nursery rhyme.

I bet you twisted lot have been dyin’ to find out about the crazy cures for the Great Plague of 1665. So it’ll be my pleasure to share the DELIGHTFUL treatments that Doctors gave to poor sick Londoners.

Leech Blood-Letting

If you have a few pennies spare, leeches are ideal for a spot of blood-letting. Why? It was believed that bursting buboes by letting blood gave sufferers a better chance of survival. 

Human Excrement Paste

Some took blood-letting a bit further by cutting open the sores and then smearing the sores with a mixture of tree resins, flower roots and human POO. Then the sores were bandaged tightly to keep the concoction inside.

Spoonful of Crushed Emeralds

Got some spare emeralds lying around? These precious stones were ground to a fine powder in a trusty pestle and mortar, and then mixed with a liquid. Bottom’s up!

Urine Bath

Can’t afford emeralds? This was another popular method for relieving the symptoms of the plague. Multiple baths in urine were encouraged per day. Some doctors even recommended a glass of the stuff…down the hatch!

Rub Your Wounds With a Live Chicken

My personal favourite of the lot. A live hen’s bottom was shaved and strapped to swollen lymph nodes. If the chicken fell ill, one would wash it and repeat the process until nursed to full health

So there you have it, traitors. Want to experience what it was like to live during the Great Plague of London without needing to rub poop in your sores? Visit the London Dungeon for this and 18 other ‘orrible shows.   

The Dungeon Keeper