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Irish History Podcast

The Cork tsunami & other historic natural disasters

Irish History Podcast

Fin Dwyer

Great Hunger, Great Famine, Norman Invasion, War Of Independence, Vikings, Irish History, History, Interviews, Ireland

4.71.8K Ratings

🗓️ 12 September 2023

⏱️ 28 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

This podcast looks at forgotten story of the tsunami that hit Cork in 1755, the volcanic winter of 1816 and a meteor that was way to close for comfort in 1908. Although they dont feature prominently in history, they had huge impact at the time.

Articles referenced in the show


A seismic tsunami in the Irish annals, recorded at Iona in October 720 https://arxiv.org/abs/2211.05224

Folklore about the Cork tsunami http://www.deepmapscork.ie/past-to-present/climate/1755-lisbon-earthquake-tsunami-west-cork-coast/

The Tunguska impact event and beyond https://academic.oup.com/astrogeo/article/50/1/1.18/201316


Narrations - Aidan Crowe


Sound - Kate Dunlea.



My new book a book a lethal legacy is out this Thursday. You can still pre-order and get 10% off when you use the discount code FD10 at Eason.


*The launch takes place Thursday September 14th in Hodges Figgis on Dawson Street in Dublin at 6pm*.

If you are in Dublin drop in if you are around. It would be lovely to put a face to a listener! 




Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0

Hey folks, just a quick heads up before you dive into the episode.

0:03.6

My new book, Alita Legacy, a history of Ireland in 18 murders is coming out on September

0:08.4

the 14th.

0:09.5

You can still pre-order your copy today, or if you're going to be in Dublin next week,

0:13.8

it will be great to see you at the launch.

0:16.2

It's on at 6pm on Thursday, September the 14th in Hodges figures.

0:20.8

That's 6pm on September the 14th in Hodges figures on Dawson Street in the city centre.

0:26.2

Swing in on your way home from work, it'll be a great event.

0:28.9

Sure I'll see you there.

0:33.0

All things considered.

0:34.8

Ireland is one of the best places to live when it comes to natural disasters.

0:40.3

The climate is relatively predictable, and might it can be west,

0:44.0

we rarely have extremes of heat or cold.

0:47.0

Partly destructive phenomena like hurricanes and earthquakes are extremely rare.

0:52.0

However, there have been exceptions to this, and that's what this show is about.

0:57.3

Over the course of this episode, we're going to look at a couple of really fascinating

1:01.5

stories from the past.

1:03.6

Like in the 1750s, when cork was struck by a tsunami, I'll also explore a fascinating

1:09.8

event between 1815 and 1816 when the biggest volcanic eruption in recorded history actually

1:17.1

led to a spate of murders and starvation across Ireland.

1:21.4

Then to finish up, I'm going to look at a meteor strike in 1908 that was humanity's

1:26.6

greatest escape arguably in the 20th century.

...

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