A magnitude 8.5 earthquake triggered a tsunami and fire that nearly flattened Lisbon. Before and after the quake, many parts of Europe reported anomalous clouds, auroras, and atmospheric optical phenomena. Religious circles viewed it as the beginning of the Last Judgment. Voltaire and Kant used it to reflect on divine will and natural law; Kant wrote On Earthquakes, a precursor to modern seismology.
Account
A magnitude 8.5 earthquake triggered a tsunami and fire that nearly flattened Lisbon. Before and after the quake, many parts of Europe reported anomalous clouds, auroras, and atmospheric optical phenomena. Religious circles viewed it as the beginning of the Last Judgment. Voltaire and Kant used it to reflect on divine will and natural law; Kant wrote On Earthquakes, a precursor to modern seismology.
Contested
The earthquake and its effects are historically confirmed. The celestial signs before and after are not causally related to the earthquake.
Sources
- European diaries and church records of the period
- Kant, On Earthquakes (1756)
- modern history of seismology