Medical Endorsement for Dancing

In the preface to his book "An Analysis of Country Dancing," published in 1808, the London dancing master Thomas Wilson, in his panegyric on the merits of dancing, says, " We have too in modern times the authority of the great Buchan, who particularly recommends Dancing and Riding as highly conducive to preserve a healthy constitution."

The Buchan Wilson refers to is the Scottish physician William Buchan. Since 1769, he has been publishing regular editions of his book Domestic Medicine, an early example of a medical self-help book. It was a huge bestseller, and a new edition was published two years before, in 1806.

Buchan placed a great emphasis on exercise as a way of preventing disease.

Wilson somewhat exaggerates Buchan's endorsement of dancing to achieve this. Buchan is clear that he favours exercise in the open air, particularly riding, which he suggests should be done for three hours a day or a similar amount of walking. He even gives a plug to golf and cricket.

However, Buchan does say that if outdoor exercise is not available, then "various methods may be contrived for exercising the body within doors, as the dumbbell, dancing, fencing, &c."

The popularity of Buchan's books and his regime may have had another impact on the crowded assembly rooms of the late eighteenth and early nineteenth century. Buchan saw cleanliness and frequent change of clothing as necessary for good health. As he says, "The want of cleanliness is a fault which admits of no excuse."

William Buchan (1729 - 1805)