LANDMARKS OF WORLD HISTORY
A Chronology of Remarkable Natural Phenomena
Eighteenth Century 1761-1770
Numbers show sources
Date
Location
Phenomenon
Description
1761 January 8
Vesuvius
Volcano
Eruption 8th. ‘Top of mountain fell in’ on 12th. (1)
1761 January 9 (reported)
South Carolina
Cold winter
Snow 2 feet deep, sharp frosts. (1)
1761 January 18
France
Earthquake
Zuyglius near Grenoble. 3 shocks. Some days later, ‘the earth opened and flames came out’. (89)
1761 January 20 (reported)
Ratisbon
Cold
River Danube froze over in 24 hours. (1)
1761 January 24 - 25
Sweden
Earthquake
Accompanied by aurora on 25th. (89)
1761 January 27
Mauritius
Hurricane?
French fleet wrecked, many lives lost. Most island houses fell. (107)
1761 February 7
Winbourne, Dorset
Anomalous phenomenon
‘Extraordinary appearance of light’ illuminated country for 5 minutes. (1)
1761 March 16 (reported)
Boston, Massachusetts
Earthquake
Whitish illuminated fog on horizon. (1, 21)
1761 March 31
Europe
Earthquake
Ireland, Scotland, Holland, Spain, Maderia, Lisbon: sea and lake disturbances. Damage in Lisbon. (23, 61)
1761 April 8?
Greece
Bolide
Large daylight meteor exploded over Thessalonica. (1)
1761 April 20
Azores
Volcano
'Three volcanoes formed’. (89)
1761 April 19
Bordeaux, France
Fall
Yellow powder fell and lay ¼ inch deep. Said to be pine pollen. (1)
1761 May 3
Equatorial Atlantic
Volcano
Eruption of a submarine volcano, 0.58° S., 15.83° W. (79)
1761 May 4
South Carolina
Tornado
As a waterspout did much damage to shipping, Charleston. See here (78)
1761 May 18
Europe
Lunar eclipse
Very dark eclipse; Moon vanished for half an hour even telescopically. (106)
1761 summer
China
Floods
Great summer rains drowned millions. (59)
1761 June
Durham
Tornado?
Storm ‘in the form of a current’ felled trees. (1)
1761 June 6
England, etc.
Planet
Transit of Venus. See here (28)
1761 June 23
Czechoslovakia
Fall
Fish fall followed thunderstorm. (108)
1761 July 17
Yorkshire
Sea disturbance
Tide rose and fell 4 times in 15 minutes. (29)
1761 July 28
England, Ireland
Sea disturbance
'Flux and reflux' all day. (29)
1761 July 29
Sowerby, Yorkshire
Thunderstorm
Violent rain scoured earth. (1)
1761 August 5
England
Hailstorm
1 lb. stones, Northampton. (29)
1761 August 14
Guernsey
Earthquake
Sea disturbance. (29)
1761 August 31
Lisbon, Portugal
Earthquake
Shock and sea disturbance. (110)
1761 October 4
New England
Storm
'Did incredible damage' on coast. (111)
1761 October 14
Great Malvern, Wiltshire
Tornado
Appeared as ‘a prodigious smoak’. (1)
1761 November 12
S. France
Meteor
Exploding fireball. (111)
1761 December 9
Mongolia
Earthquake
'Duration 20 minutes’. (89)
1762 February 21
England
Blizzard
Snow and gale killed many. (17, 30)
1762 March 16
Wexford, Ireland
Earthquake
With rumbling noise. (33)
1762 April 2
India
Earthquake
Great earth clefts round Chittagong. (64)
1762 May 16
Maubeuge, France
Hailstorm
Stones exceeding 1 lb. Cattle and houses ‘laid waste’. (32)
1762 May 26
Bilboa, Spain
Flood
Snowmelt inundation. (32)
1762 May 29
Bergen, Norway’
‘Waterquake’
Sea ebbed and flowed with great violence. (32)
1762 August 9
Basle and Sole
Anomalous phenomenon
Spindle-shaped body eclipsed Sun for 28 days; considerable parallax. (4)
1762 September 27
London
River disturbance
Thames rose suddenly; ships driven on wharfs. (58)
1762 October 19
Detroit
Day darkness
'Rain, sulphur and dirt' fell. (22)
1762 October 27
England
Floods
Great floods, Cambridge, Norwich, etc. (59)
1762 November 6
Rome
Hailstorm
Apple-sized stones, much damage. (59)
1762 November 19
Erlangen
'Vulcan'
Dark spot passed across Sun, naked-eye. (20)
1762 December 3
Chile
Earthquake
Landslide formed huge lake. (89)
1762 December 5
Dorset, Devon
Meteor
Size of Moon, left 'smoke' trail. (83, 87)
1762 December 25
England
Cold
Severe frost with E’ly wind. (60)
1762 December 27
Berlin
Cold
Temp. of -4° F. (67)
1763 January 13
Sweden
Earthquake
Hissing sound in air, and meteors. (89)
1763 January 15
England
Meteor
Bright as Moon, Reading. (60)
1763 January 29
Europe
Cold
Seine and Rhine froze; lasted 6 weeks to date. (60)
1763 February
Etna
Volcano
Lava flows. (89)
1763 February 26
Broadway, Worcs., England
Tornado
Many trees destroyed. (66)
1763 March 8
Andalusia, Spain
Floods
Rain floods drowned many persons and cattle. (66)
1763 April 2
Decca, India
Earthquake
River Ganges rose 20 feet. Over 500 vessels lost, many drowned. Earth disturbances. (2)
1763 June 26
Maconnois, France
Hailstorm
From Beaujolois to Burgundy. (33)
1763 June 28
Hungary
Earthquake
Great damage, many killed in Post. (34)
1763 July 13
Ligny, France
Hailstorm
Hail 11 inches deep, great crop damage. (34)
1763 July 16
Denmark
Thunderstorms
Lightning and hail did much damage. (112)
1763 July 19
Presbourg, Hungary
Fall
Fog followed by shower with insect fall. (112)
1763 July 28
Brussels, Belgium
Thunderstorm
Rain, flood and fatal lightning. (112)
1763 August 2
Anderlicht, Belgium
Tornado
1,000 trees destroyed, girl killed. (60)
1763 August 3
Switzerland
Lake fluctuation
Lake of Geneva sank and rose several feet a number of times; possibly caused by waterspout on lake. (92)
1763 August 19
Kent, England
Hailstorm
Track 40 miles long, great damage. (80)
1763 September 1
Banda, Mollucca Is.
Volcano
Papenburg erupted; earthquake and sea wave; only 7 killed. (113)
1763 September 2
Sweden
Meteor
'Vast globe of fire and fiery tail’. (68)
1763 September 18
Weymouth, Dorset
Sea disturbance
Sea rose and fell 10 feet “instantly” Supposed “earthquake...somewhere’. (69)
1763 October 2
England, Ireland
Gale, floods
Many bridges in Ireland swept away, 70 drowned in Kilkenny. (68)
1763 October 17
Uppsala, Sweden
Aurora?
'Below clouds’. (102)
1763 October 30
North America
Earthquake
Violent shock at Philadelphia, no damage. (89)
1763 December 2
England
Gale
Several killed, London, many shipwrecks. (65)
1763 December 18
Westrobothnia, Sweden
Earthquake
'Fire in the air' during shock. (89)
1764 January 13
Europe
Gale and floods
England, Hamburg, Munster. (114)
1764 February 12
England
Tidal waves
Two tidal bores in River Severn in half an hour. (35)
1764 March (reported)
Italy
Landslide and flood
Rockfall near Naples released flood which inundated 2 villages; 150 killed. (14)
1764 April 1
Europe
Annular solar eclipse
Passed through Spain, France, Sussex, Essex, Kent, Suffolk, Holland and Norway. (98)
1764 May (early)
Europe
'Vulcan'
Spot crossed Sun from N to S; observed Hoffmann. (20)
1764 June 4
Ganges, India
Earthquake
'Great numbers perished’. (115)
1764 June 29
Germany
Tornado
Great forest destruction, Meklaenburg. (95)
1764 July 20
Philadelphia
Bolide
Meteor 'larger than Sun' exploded. (2)
1764 October 9
Cleves
Fall
‘Blood-rain’ fell on several days; also at Rhenen. (2)
1764 November 18
Konigsberg
Lightning
Lightning started a fire which destroyed the Old Town; great loss of life. (9)
1764 December 31
New England
Cold winter
Delaware River froze till end of February. (88)
1765 January 17
Ireland
Floods
Throughout Ireland. Many buildings and bridges swept away. (37)
1765 February 9
Siberia
Earthquake
Houses and fortifications destroyed, Irtyschstrom. (3)
1765 March 11
Snow & floods
England
Great snow all over England; many lives lost. Floods after sudden thaw. (3)
1765 April 1
Bermuda
Earthquake
Considerable damage. (3)
1765 April 6
Dominica
Earthquakes
Many shocks from February; 150 in 2 days from April 6. “Noisome vapour’. (3)
1765 April 20
Banda Neira, Mollucca Is.
Volcano
Eruption till June 4th. (76)
1765 May 3
Rome, Italy
Meteor
Large fireball as bright as Sun. (116)
1765 May 19
Pyrenees
Earthquake
Violent shock; landslides. (116)
1765 May (end)
Canton, China
Sea wave
30 foot wave, 10,000 killed. ‘No earthquake mentioned’. (89)
1765 June 25
Italy
Storm
Tempest with heavy rain, torrent at Montepiano engulfed 2,000 persons. (3)
1765 July 11
Italy, France
Floods
Great damage, many 'washed away’.
1765 August 18
Brescia
Lightning
Lightning exploded magazine with 2 million pounds of gunpowder. City ruined, 3,000 persons killed. (123)
1765 October 2
France
Tornado
Fireball followed by tornado, Brilhac; great damage. (3)
1765 October 22
Dauphiny, France
Flood
'Multitudes perished’. (117)
1765 November 11
Germany
Meteor??
“Torrent of fire’ for 5 minutes; became serpentine, then a globe. (3)
1766
Greenland
Sea ice
Denmark Strait between Iceland & Greenland filled by ice. (81)
1766 January 3
Florida
Cold
20°F, Jacksonville. ‘Hard snow’ at Charleston, S. Carolina. (88)
1766 January 13
Naples, Italy
Cold
Vesuvius snow-covered while erupting. (74)
1766 January 17
Spain
Cold
Skating at Madrid. Hills snow-covered. (4)
1766 January 28
Halland, Sweden
Earthquake
Buildings fell, several killed. (75)
1766 January 30
Gibraltar
Hail and flood
Torrent from Rock drowned 60. (75)
1766 February 13
Oxfordshire
Glazed frost
Great tree damage. (74)
1766 March 8
Sanriku, Japan
Earthquake
Seismic sea wave drowned 1,335. (96)
1766 March 27
Vesuvius, Italy
Volcano
Lava flows. (73)
1766 March 31 (reported)
Greek Archipelago
Storms
Many ships lost. (4)
1766 April 5
Hekla, Iceland
Volcano
Darkness 50 leagues from volcano. Rivers poisoned by flourine; many starved. (84)
1766 April 21
England
Sunspot
Spot, ‘quite round’, in centre of disc; 3½ times size of Earth. (4)
1766 April 26
Etna, Sicily
Volcano
Violent eruption. (89)
1766 May 22
Constantinople
Earthquake
Sea agitated, city 'suffered severely’. (89)
1766 May 31
Cephalonia
Tornado?
Storm lasting 13 minutes wrecked buildings and uprooted trees. Sea rose. Earthquake followed. (4)
1766 June 11
Cuba
Earthquake
Many houses fell, felt Jamaica. (89)
1766 July
Italy
Meteorite
A 26 lbs. stone fell at Albareto. (82)
1766 July 25 (reported)
Verdun-sur-Garonne, France
Storm flood
Hail ruined harvest in half an hour; flood drowned many. (4)
1766 July 30 (reported)
Italy
Rains and floods
Public prayers for ‘cessation of rains’. (4)
1766 August 5
Hungary, Turkey
Earthquake
Vienna, Constantinople, etc. (89)
1766 August 13
Martinique
Hurricane
St. Pierre wrecked; 90 killed, 35 ships lost. (104)
1766 September 13-15
West Indies
Hurricane
Dominica, St. Kitt’s, etc.
Flood from mountains destroyed half town, Montserrat. (4)
1766 October 21
Venezuela
Earthquake
City of Cumana destroyed. (101)
1766 October 23
Mayon, Phillipines
Volcano
Ashfalls and mudflows killed 2,000. (96)
1766 November 14
Montauban, France
Flood
1,200 houses ruined, water rose 30 feet. (41)
1766 November (end)
Wales
Flood
Usk flood swept away ‘vast numbers of cattle’. (4)
1766 December 17
New Hampshire
Earthquake
Rumbling noise. (40)
1766 December 26 (reported)
Germany
Drought
Longest drought ‘in memory of man’. Rhine forded. (4)
1767 January 1
England, Scotland, Europe
Line squall?
‘Blast of wind’ with lightning , snow and hail. “Went all over Europe’. (103)
1767 January 8
Britain
Snow
Deep snow in 'whole kingdom'; many froze. (41)
1767 January 14
Europe
Cold
Denmark,Germany,Russia, Italy etc. (40)
1767 February 9 (reported)
Scotland, Wales, Ireland
Floods
Snowmelt floods did ‘incredible damage’. (40)
1767 February 24
Naples, Italy
Earthquake
Houses thrown down. City alarmed, Carnival suspended. (118)
1767 April 12
Germany
Earthquake
‘Thick exhalation’ before shock. (5)
1767 June 3
Derbyshire, England
Summer snow
Snow 1½ days, 1½ feet deep. (42)
1767 July 24
Cephalonia
Earthquake
‘Many inhabitants swallowed up’. (45)
1767 August
Martinique
Earthquake
16,000 killed. (96)
1767 August 4
Cephalonia, Greece
Earthquake
'Island ruined’; people warned by earlier shocks were living in tents. (43)
1767 August 5
Scotland
Flood
River Slitterick rose 22 feet above usual level, Hawick. Leeds (Yorkshire) flooded on same day. (5, 39)
1767 August 6
France
Thunderstorm flood
30 parishes under water, Mantes. (39)
1767 September 4
Santry, Ireland
Tornado
Marquee with people lifted. (19)
1767 September 5
Ostend, Ireland
Sea disturbance
Sea returned in 3 minutes at low tide. River Liffey near Dublin sank 2 feet, rose 4 feet. (45)
1767 September 18
Caithness, Scotland
Meteor?
Meteor ‘illuminated heavens for 8 minutes’. Luminous trail? (44)
1767 September 28
Speleta, Italy
Tornado?
'Hurricane' unroofed all houses. (89)
1767 September 30
Scotland
Tornado
Waterspout destroyed bridge, Blairgowerie. (45)
1767 October 17
Vesuvius, Italy
Volcano
Eruption ended Oct. 27th. (99)
1767 November 16
Tyrol
Rain floods
Torrents from mountains washed down boulders; town of Neumark destroyed. (5)
1768
Shetland
Sea disturbance
‘Marine eruption’ off Shetland. Sea turned black and muddy, many fish died. (86)
1768 January?
Hungary
Volcano??
'Mt. Salga burst into a flame’. (47)
1768 January 5
London
Cold
London Bridge much damaged by ice. (105)
1768 January 13
Lancaster, England
Glory
'Rainbow arch' in mist. (10)
1768 January 16
Shrewsbury, England
Thaw
Archam Bridge destroyed by ice floes in river. (6)
1768 January 17
Mississippi
Ice
Ice on river, Natchez, New Orleans. (88)
1768 February 3 (reported)
Somerset
Snow
Over 30 persons froze to death. (6)
1768 February 9
Scotland
Blizzard
“Storm of wind and snow’ in S. and W. Scotland, many lives lost. (46)
1768 February 9
England
Floods
Leeds,Hereford,Shrewsbury,Wales, etc. (46)
1768 February 27
Vienna
Earthquake
City ‘thrown into consternation’. (48)
1768 March 18
Koningsberg
Thundersnow
S. and SW. gale with thunder and deep snow all night. Most houses untiled. (6)
1768 April 4
Cotopaxi
Volcano
Great eruption; dark until 3 p.m. at Hambato and Tacunga. (124)
1768 April 25 (reported)
Constantinople
Cold
Severe winter, much hail and snow. (6)
1768 July 2
Mentz, Germany
Flood
‘Cloudburst’ swept away most houses in Herxheim. (6)
1768 July 25
Shropshire, England
Tornado
Buildings and trees destroyed. (15)
1768 August 6
Paris
Aurora
Streamers to tail of Ursa Major. (90)
1768 September 1
London
Flood
Rain flood in Highgate and Knightsbridge. (50)
1768 September 12
Laval, France
Hailstorm
2 lb. hailstones ruined crops in 5 parishes. (49)
1768 September 17
Scotland
Flood
Heavy rains caused sudden floods in Bamf; ‘incredible damage’. (50)
1768 September 17
Cogniac, France
Flood
200 drowned. (50)
1768 October 25
Havana, Cuba
Hurricane
4,000 buildings fell, 1,000 killed. (104)
1768 November 20
Austria
Meteorite
38 lbs. stone fell at Mauerkirchen. (97)
1768 December 29
Herefordshire
Earthquake
Earth cleft, river disturbed. (51)
1769
1769 January 12
London
Ball lightning?
2 balls of fire fell, no storm mentioned. (51)
1769 May 1
Baghdad, Iraq
Earthquake
2,000 houses fell. 'Hurricane' at time. (7, 89)
1769 June 3
Pacific, Europe
Transit of Venus
Observations resulted in first accurate Sun distance. See here
1769 June 15
Wales
Earthquake
Water poured from Cader Iris, Dolgelly. Pont y Bonddigion bridge fell. (7)
1769 August 4
Germany
Earthquake
“Lasted 17 minutes’. Walls breached, Eichited; towers fell, Neurenberg. (7, 89)
1769 August 8
France, etc.
Comet
Tail over 90° long on Sept. 10. (18)
1769 August 15
Hartford, Connecticut
Fall?
Great numbers of small fish found in street after thunderstorm. (121)
1769 August 18
Brescia
Lightning
Lightning exploded 207,600 lbs. of gunpowder in church; 3,000 killed. (53)
1769 August 20
France
Anomalous phenomenon
4 horses and 2 persons suddenly killed, no lightning seen. “Smoking hole’ in ground. (7, 27)
1769 September 7
Hurricane?
Virginia
Storm of wind and rain levelled woods, threw down houses, wrecked ships. (7)
1769 September 15 (reported)
Sweden
Tornado
“Hurricane with thunder’ shook carriage of the Prince Royal. (7)
1769 September 20
Dominica
Flood
‘Torrents poured from mountains’; many lives lost. (7)
1769 October 25
Europe
Aurora
Vivid belt from E. to W., Hampshire, England. Also seen from Gibraltar. (85)
1769 October 31
Europe
Aurora
Arch, then corona. (51)
1769 November 14 (c.)
Inverness, Scotland
Earthquake
Houses thrown down, 1 killed. (24)
1769 December 12
Glasgow
Sunspot
Wilson observes sunspot in the form of an ‘amazing cavity’. (119)
1770
Mauritius
Ball lightning
'Large globes of fire' in storm.
1770 January
Schemnitz, Hungary
A globe of fire ‘as large as a barrel’ struck a church tower. (122)
1770 January 1?
Bohumlitz
Meteorite
57 Kg iron fell. (82)
1770 January 18
Hampshire, England
Aurora
'Vast red fiery belt' from E to W. (85)
1770 January 20
St. Maue Is., Greece
Earthquake
'Most inhabitants buried' in ruins. (55)
1770 January 29 (or 22)
York, England
Meteor
Seen also at Margate, Kent. (8, 55)
1770 February 7
Hampshire
Tornado
Fordingbridge Church roof stripped. (8)
1770 February 17
Italy
Gale
Storm blew off most roofs in Leghorn; many shipwrecks. (8)
1770 March 23
Hampshire, England
Aurora
'Great Northern aurora’. (85)
1770 April 21
France
Floods
Great thaw floods from mountains in S. France ‘laid waste country’. (8)
1770 June 3
St. Domingo
Earthquake
Over 400 killed. (11)
1770 June 28
North Carolina
Hurricane?
Many ships lost in Charleston harbour. (54)
1770 July
Ternate, Molucca Is.
Volcano
Lava and explosions. (58)
1770 July 1
Europe
Comet
Lexell's Comet 1½ million miles from Earth. (25)
1770 July 25
France
Flood
Thunderstorm flood swept away 17 houses, Plnmbiers; many drowned. (54)
1770 August 31
Hampshire, England
Aurora
'Great N. aurora' despite moonlight. (85)
1770 September 16
Timor
Aurora australis
Seen by Capt. Cook. (26)
1770 October 25
Rasgrad, Roumelia
Meteorites
2 stones fell, one of 44 lbs. (120)
1770 November 3
Voightland, Saxony
Earthquake
Many shocks, 'some persons crushed’. (89)
1770 November 19
Coventry, England
Flood
Over 70 drowned. (56)
1770 November 21
Italy
Gale
Venice, Naples, etc. Storm surge 2 storeys high, Umago. (9)
1770 December 13 (reported)
Vesuvius
Volcano
Eruption and lava flow. (57)
