The Erfurt Latrine Disaster

About this episode

Kelli discusses the Erfurt Latrine Disaster of 1184, detailing the collapse of a building during a noble gathering.

Join Kelli as she goes over a very stinky situation that happened in 1184 in Erfurt, part of the Holy Roman Empire and home base of King (and later Emperor) Henry VI. As Henry gathered some squabbling nobles to deal with a petty land dispute, the building they were in collapsed under the weight of 60+ people. And two stories below, in the basement of the building, was a cesspit full of... well, you know. It was a putrid predicament, a malodorous mess, a nauseating nightmare. Get ready for ano...

People in this episode

Host: Kelli Beard

Topics covered

• historical disasters
• medieval history
• cultural anecdotes
• societal norms
• architecture failures

Keywords

• Erfurt
• Latrine Disaster
• Henry VI
• medieval
• history
• cesspit
• collapse
• Holy Roman Empire

Mentioned in this episode

Places: Erfurt, Holy Roman Empire

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