Typically when you read books about the Tudors, the Sweating Sickness is always lurking, mentioned in varying amounts of detail depending on who it is impacting, when it pops up time and time again with no rhyme or reason. Hundreds or thousands are carried off at any given time and then it is gone as quickly as it appeared.

The Sweat might truly have been as, if not more, terrifying as The Plague. Of all of the diseases that those living in Tudor times, and through Henry VIII's reign in particular, had to deal with, it was the most mysterious. It remains that way today. We know almost nothing about it, what caused it first in 1485, why it struck England and Wales ALMOST exclusively, and why it nearly completely disappeared after the last major outbreak in 1551 during Edward VI's short reign.

Anyone familiar with the Tudors knows that Henry VIII was a big ol' baby and massive hypochondriac. At the first sniffle or sneeze, he was off from London to the supposed safety of the countryside. Yet the Sweat was something he rightly feared, as it would cross all class boundaries and no one was safe, no matter the precautions they were able to take due to their wealth or lack of it. In the times where the disease was ravaging England, Henry would reduce his household and move only with the most necessary of men needed to run his government as they tried to outrun death. Yet it continued to strike everywhere, from cities to villages to the open countryside.

The text is massively well-researched and makes fantastic use of available historical documentation to give a more concrete understanding of just how devastating this disease was to England. The sheer amount of people who died is staggering, even if we do not have exact figures. It's kind of hard to be exact when everyone in the village is dead. I also appreciate so much that where info was not availabe, the author did not speculate or fill the book with 'maybe' and 'possibly'. Sometimes, especially when we are 500 years off, it is better to just present what we have and say we don't know for the rest.

Instead. Dr. Porter deals only in facts. We simply do not know anything about it except that it struck quickly and indiscriminately, so there was no time to prepare any kind of defense. Attempts were made as it appeared, but these remedies were ineffective at best, and aided the disease at worst.

Dr. Porter also notes the differences between the Sweat and the Plague, comparing symptoms, chances of survival, remedies, etc. I think this is important in helping people understand that it was not just one disease all the time, as sometimes happens to those unfamiliar with the period.

Very informative, highly recommended.

I had heard of the sweating sickness but found this book so much more detailed than anything I have read before. I also knew of Henry VIII's fear of it but again this also tells of that with a greater detail. So very well researched which made it a much easier read than I thought it would be

The Sweating Sickness, written by Stephen Porter argues that this mystery illness had a significant impact on King Henry VIII and his anxiety about secession and a male heir. The sweating sickness, also known as the English disease, is an unidentified illness that killed nearly a forth of London's population in 1485, and continued to ravaged England through the first half of the sixteenth century. The illness did not expand much beyond England, with a few potential chases in Ireland and some speculate a few may have reached northern Europe. Porter's examination of the event is thorough and concise. I found his argument that the sickness had a significant impact on King Henry VIII and his concerns around secession compelling, but think they would be better situated as part of a larger discussion around the political and religious events of the time as well as the King's ideas of masculinity. Porter's writing style makes this book very accessible - would be a easy read for history undergraduate students.

Sweating Out a Killer Disease

Between 1485 and 1551, a series of epidemics hit England. The disease was called the sweating sickness. Then it disappeared, never to return. Even today, doctors are uncertain of what microbe caused it.

“The Sweating Sickness Epidemic: Henry VIII’s Great Fear,” by Stephen Porter tells the story. It traces its march across England, shows its impact on English life, and follows modern scientific studies of what caused the disease and why it disappeared.

Less deadly than the Black Death, it was more feared because it appeared and killed suddenly. A man in good health at dinnertime, would suddenly start sweating, and be dead by morning. It terrified Henry VIII. He feared chaos would result if the English sweats cut him down before he had an heir old enough to take over.

It first appeared in 1485, shortly after Henry VII wrested the throne from Richard III. It might have been brought to England from the Continent by his army. (Some in England viewed it as God’s curse against the Tudor dynasty.) After that, it periodically reappeared. Major outbreaks occurred in 1498-1506, 1528-29, 1533, and finally in 1551. Prince Arthur died suddenly of disease in 1502. It probably was not due to the sweating sickness, but many believed, including the future Henry VIII believed it was.

The disease affected England many ways. It was an airborne disease. Evacuating a city to escape it spread the disease because humans, not rats and fleas, were the vector. Oddly, it was confined to England. It never spread to the Continent. Sick English travelers brought it to Europe several times, but it always died out without spreading.

Henry VIII isolated himself and his family when the disease was rampant, refusing to admit visitors from affected areas. It led to techniques now commonly used in public health. Quarantine of households with illness and public reporting of mortality and cause of death emerged in England due to the disease.

As mysteriously as it arrived, it disappeared. Even modern scholars do not know what caused it or why it disappeared. Twentieth-century researchers speculate it could be an enterovirus, arbovirus, or hantavirus – even anthrax. Its symptoms do not entirely fit any of these, and its cause remains speculation.

“The Sweating Sickness Epidemic” is a fascinating study of the effect of disease on society. It also shows the limits of medicine, today as much as in the 16th century.

Mark Lardas, an engineer, freelance writer, historian, and model-maker, lives in League City. His website is marklardas.com.

“The Sweating Sickness Epidemic: Henry VIII’s Great Fear,” by Stephen Porter, Pen and Sword History, 2023, 192 pages, $39.95 (Hardcover), $19.99 (ebook)

This review was written by Mark Lardas, who writes at Ricochet as Seawriter. Mark Lardas, an engineer, freelance writer, historian, and model-maker, lives in League City, TX. His website is marklardas.com.

The Sweating Sickness Epidemic is nonfiction about the mysterious disease that was the horror of the Tudor court. I really enjoy books that intersect disease, history, and culture and didn't know much about the actual sickness outside of historical references, so I thought it would be interesting to learn more about the disease.

Turns out, we don't know a lot about it! This book compared and contrasted several different plagues throughout the time period and how they differed in symptoms, length, spread, and impact. I figured that we would know much more about the sweating sickness with modern medicine, but it turns out that since it happened so long ago and hasn't really appeared in modern times, we really don't. Much of the book talks about how one mysterious plague might be the sweating sickness or it might have been one of the other mysterious plagues that we also don't know a lot about. I was reminded that this disease was present over 500 years ago and we are going off of writings from people who thought that disease was caused by bad air. The result is not a ton of concrete evidence about the actual sickness.

Overall, I found parts of this book interesting but had a hard time getting through it. Since we don't know a lot about the sickness, there isn't a lot of specific things to say about the sickness. If you're super interested in disease and the time period, I'd give this book a try! 2.5 stars rounded up to 3 from me. Thank you to Pen & Sword and NetGalley for the electronic advanced reader's copy of this book in exchange for my honest review!

The Sweating Sickness Epidemic by Dr Stephen Porter is a fascinating and detailed look into a disease that has so often been overlooked in favour of the plague. By presenting primary accounts of people who lived in the shadow of the disease, either as physicians or residents of cities under siege by the disease, Dr Porter allows the audience to sympathise with the horrors of the epidemic - particularly in the wake of our current global pandemic.

Though not much is really known about the disease, Dr Porter's analysis offers a new perspective and new suggestions as to the origins, source, and epidemiology of the sweating sickness.

This is a brilliant book which fills a gap in the history of the 16th century.

This book contained lost of historical insights and contextualising information. Would definitely turn to this if researching the sweating sickness

This was an interesting account of the sweating sickness, something that stuck around for decades, off and on, and the likes of which we have no exact match for in our current array of illnesses.

I can understand why Henry VIII might be a little bit paranoid about catching it, when you hear how rapidly those affected succumbed to it. I find it fascinating that even though England wasn't all that far away from continental Europe, it remained mostly sweating sickness free (although, it had plenty of plague, so there was that).

When you read accounts of the various diseases that afflicted our ancestors, it is a wonder any of them survived for long enough to ensure that those of us living now, made it into the world!

4.5 stars from me.

And a special shout out to Mrs Porter, who completed this book after her husband's passing. My sincerest condolences to you.

Thank you to NetGalley and Pen & Sword.

For those interested in Tudor History with a unique focus this book is it. The focus on how Henry VIII feared this disease makes this a multidimensional history of disease, mental health, and, of course, the Tudors.

An interesting read if you are interested in this sort of thing. I enjoyed it as it gave me a deeper insight into king Henry the eighth who I am obsessed with currently. It was very informative and well researched by the author and flowed easily

This book made me discovery a piece of medical history and it was both informative and fascinating.
I read some articles on science site and discovered that the causes are still unknown.
I liked the style of writing and how this illness
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this arc, all opinions are mine impacted the people in XVI century.

I received an ARC of “The Sweating Sickness Epidemic: Henry VIII’s Great Fear” by Stephen Porter from NetGalley and Pen & Sword Books Ltd. in exchange for an honest review.

The author died prior to the book’s publication, so readers have Porter’s wife to thank for ensuring that this book was published.

This succinct book is arranged into 8 chapters and includes 2 appendixes: Appendix 1: The Household Orders of 1539 and Appendix 2: The Sweating Sickness in Holinshed’s Chronicles. Along with notes arranged by chapter, an excellent bibliography was included.

Called the Sweating Sickness, the English Disease, the English King’s Disease, and the English Sweat, among other names, this now non-existent disease has baffled scientists, and particularly those interested in mortality, for centuries. The disease first appeared in 1485, and the last infection in the UK was recorded in 1551, though the author acknowledged that the disease could have lingered as late as the early 1580s.

Death by the Sweating Sickness usually occurred in under 24 hours, and sometimes in just a few hours. The author took great pains to explain this sudden onset disease. What I really admire about Porter is the fact that he can easily explain things for lay people to understand. For example, on pages 15-16, he clearly explained how another disease, Yersinia pestis, multiplied so quickly because the fleas, who were unable to eat despite their starvation, continued to try to feed and became ravenous.

Even though scientists still have not been able to identify the origins of the Sweating Sickness, Porter’s account reveals how this disease changed the course of British history, particularly during the Tudor era.

What I thought was really fascinating was how Porter revealed that the Sweating Sickness was primarily a disease that infected the UK. Although he acknowledged that the disease appeared in Northern and Central Europe circa 1529, it was in Great Britain were it appeared numerous times during the sixteenth century.

As I read this book, I found myself continuously looking back at our own COVID-19 Pandemic. The way that the Tudor government reacted was really not so different from how modern governments reacted, with a few small caveats. For example, houses with infected individuals first used whisps of straw on their doors to warn others of an infection, and later began attaching T crosses to the doors. The Tudors understood that household under quarantine needed provisions, so Porter revealed that those members could leave the house to shop, but were required to carry a long, white stick so that other members of the community could give the shopper a wide berth.

Porter really made our recent pandemic resonate with me when he revealed that the Tudor government instituted weekly taxes in order to help financially support the households of infected victims.

Although citations were included in the book, there were instances when the author quoted other people and/or works but did not include citations. However, I believe that this may have been due to the author’s death. Regardless, this book is extremely important not just for understanding the history of the United Kingdom, but mortality and the history of disease around the world. This is the reason why I recommend that libraries—both university libraries and general public libraries—purchase this book. Although written by an academic, this book can be easily read and understood by everyone.

A fascinating look at the sweating sickness that influenced Henry VIII’s already-known hypochondria. It gives a new context to that period.
Dr Stephen Porter examines the reign of the Tudors through the unique and mysterious Sweating Sickness, a disease still not fully
understood even today.
A timely look at how a disease can affect all of society, much like the recent Covid outbreak. Scary but brilliant Non-fiction read.

Thank you NetGalley for sending me the ARC to read. I have always enjoyed learning about The Tudors and often dive into historical books and this didn’t disappoint. To be able to learn in more depth about a sickness I have read so much about was eye opening. I would definitely recommend this book.

When king Henry VIII became the ruler of his kingdom his biggest fright beside someone taking over his kingship was the sweating sickness a disease that came and killed quickly The disease was blamed on the immigrants the poor the dirty ET see and although they really had no cure for it that didn’t stop many notable people from coming out and giving advice. From not drinking water until the disease has passed to not changing your clothes keeping warming stones in your bed to sweat it out and on and on because some did survive the disease but most however did not they even came up with a system to let neighbors know if your house was affected by the sweating sickness and it was so tied to England it was even known as the English disease that didn’t mean only England suffered from it just thought the main sufferers were in England. Not unlike modern day diseases it’s victims were the young in the very old and although they never quite knew exactly what disease this was it’s still makes for a very interesting story in time in England the middle ages has always been my favorite era in history and although I knew about the sweating sickness I never knew or read anything in such great detail as in this book. The sweating sickness epidemic by Dr. Stephen Porter is detailed interesting and reads like historical drama I loved it and hardly recommend it if you love the history of England the middle ages then you’ll love this book I certainly did and highly recommend it. I received this book from NetGalley and Pen and Sword History but I am leaving this review voluntarily please forgive any mistakes as I am blind and dictate my review.

It needs to be said up front that this book was partially written by the late Stephen Porter and had to be finished by a friend for publication. As such, the book is not incredibly long and does not have the depth of Porter's others works (which are quite good). That said, I've seen other posthumous books which were clearly money grabs and this is not one of those. The book still stands on its own and I think an admirable job was done to complete it.

The book focuses on the sweating sickness which afflicted England particularly during the reign of Henry VIII. Historically, it is a mysterious disease which was never fully identified and studied like the plague is. If you want a quick book which explains the culture and facts that are known around the sweating sickness, then this will provide you with a lot of great information. While the circumstances of the finished work means it feels disjointed at times, it still delivers.

(This book was provided as an advance copy by Netgalley and Pen & Sword Books.)

Thank you netgalley and Pen & Sword for the eARC to review.

I went into this book with zero knowledge about what the Sweating Sickness was. All I knew was that it was a contemporary to the Tudor plagues. Unfortunately, I came out of reading this book with not much more knowledge on the Sweating Sickness than going into it.

There was little medical information on what the Sweating Sickness is or any type of contemporary medical study on it. Half of the book actually discussed the plague mixed in with discussions of the Sweating Sickness so it felt very jumbled and confusing to tell which illness was being talked about in certain passages. I've recently been studying Tudor succession history and if I didn't already have that under my belt, I would have been absolutely lost for the history sections.

If this book doesn't do a great job detailing either the scientific/medical information or give the reader a solid understanding of the Tudor dynasty & how the Sweating Sickness affected it (as promised by the title), then I don't see this as a successful non-fiction.

This is one disease that I had never heard of, and read a lot about plague in Europe, How is it that a person gets this and sweats out to death in 24 hours? No one still knows what it was nor what caused it but it was deadly and took many lives, Reading this history account makes me aware of the short lives and lack of medical care my ancestors had. Dr Porter has written a book that is interesting and very shocking too in that so little is known about this. I found it interesting that the sickness didnt seem to make it across the Alps due to the cold weather there, Well written and researched, a part of history that has been overlooked.

The Sweating Sickness Epidemic by Stephen Porter is about two things that I’m always up for, Tudor history and (this is really weird I know) epidemics and pandemics. Whether you are reading nonfiction or historical fiction regarding the Tudors illness and how the court would be on the move will inevitably come up but it’s always just in the general background. This book puts the topic front and center covering the timeline of the sweating sickness and how while it dovetailed around the same times as the plague. How it was quite different from the plague and it was the speed of the illness that was absolutely terrifying. We read accounts about the measures that were taken, the remedies people tried and the countless people it affected in all levels of society.

The theories about what exactly the illness was and what caused it towards the end of the book were super interesting. Also one of the things I really loved was in the appendix where it includes the household orders for the management of Prince Edward the sixth’s household. It’s so interesting to read, things like who was allowed to kiss his hand and all the protocol to prevent infection, I was absolutely nerding out reading it and really happy it was included. The book is incredibly well researched but one thing I wished was included was more focus on the women of the time. All in all a really interesting read for fans of Tudor history.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Dr Stephen Porter examines the reign of the Tudors through the lens of the unique and mysterious Sweating Sickness, a disease still not fully understood even today, and a terror to the people of Tudor England.

Dr. Porter examines when it started and its subsequent outbreaks, digging up and quoting from the many primary sources of people breathlessly reporting to each other the death tolls and offering up all sorts of possible sources and cures. There isn't much on the science of the disease, but that would be, understandably, just guess work. Porter instead focuses on the social, political, economic, etc. consequences of the disease - showing how there were dramatic shifts in history when high ranking people died of the diseases, how the disease effected public policy, architecture, medical studies, religion, and more.

A fascinating and all too timely look at how a disease can affect all of society.