For the benefit of the doubt, I reviewed the book “Pinkas Va’ad Arba Ha’aratzot” for the years 1660-1680. According to a post above, Rabbi Meisel’s book (which I never saw) mentioned that takanah regarding shaving heads was decreed in 1670. This takanah is nowhere to be found in those years. Just for the record, the takanot in those years were about much more serious issues, whether they were kidnappings and murders, Shabtai Zvi, or blood libels .
I maintain that this alleged takanah “lo hayah v’lo nivra”. Lahada”m. It has not been mentioned in any Eastern European posek in the hundreds of years of the ‘Arba Ha’aratzot’. Remember that these takanot were decreed by the Gedolei Olam who “m’pihem anu chayim”, the Taz, Be’er Hagolah, Chelkas M’chokek, to mention just a few. And not a word about shaved heads in the seforim.
Attributing this purely chassidish custom to gedolei Ashkenaz is tantamount to demanding why the vast majority of Ashkenazim do not adhere to it. Ths is manipulative minhagic coercion, aside from it being false.
Furthermore, it raises serious doubts regarding the reliablity in general of such proclamations lacking in proper footnotes and references, regardless of the popularity of the specific book. If a bombastic claim such as the above is made, it better be verifiable. Maybe the average BY girl or Mesivta boy will buy into it, but it doesn’t work on me. Show me the proof.
If someone brings me a verifiable source, I will retract everything I have written here.