How the Press Helped Build Europe’s Vampire Myth in the 18th Century

A historical book explores how fear of mysterious diseases helped fuel the wave of mass hysteria known as Europe’s “vampire epidemics” in the 18th century.

The account examines the role of official authorities and the printed press in turning those fears into a wider phenomenon. It places the vampire myth within a climate of uncertainty over illnesses people struggled to explain.

At the heart of the story is the relationship between public anxiety, institutional influence and the circulation of frightening claims. The book considers how fear could become a trade, with authorities and print media helping to sustain it.

Rather than treating vampires solely as figures of folklore, the account approaches the panic as a historical episode shaped by disease, power and publicity. It asks how the channels meant to inform the public could also help build a terrifying legend.