Medieval People Slept Twice Every Night – Here’s Why

Ever wake up at 3 AM and can't fall back asleep? For hundreds of years, that was completely normal. In the Middle Ages, people didn't sleep in one block. They had a "first sleep" and a "second sleep" – and in between, they got up in the dark. They tended the fire, prayed, thought about their dreams, visited their neighbors… and thieves and night watchmen walked the streets. So why did it disappear? Street lighting, lamps, factories and clocks slowly squeezed two sleeps into one. Historian Roger Ekirch found hundreds of mentions of "first sleep" in old diaries, letters and court records – and in the 1990s, psychiatrist Thomas Wehr ran an experiment where volunteers' sleep split in two all on its own. Maybe nothing is wrong with you. Maybe your body just remembers. ⏱️ Chapters 0:00 2 AM in a medieval village 1:04 Sunset, candles & curfew 2:30 The first sleep 3:03 Everyone wakes up 3:21 What they did in the dark 5:57 So what happened? 7:06 The historian who found it 7:33 The experiment 8:24 What this means for you 👍 Like & subscribe for more forgotten history, explained simply. #history #medieval #sleep #middleages #historyfacts