536 Was The Worst Year Ever - Trust Me
536 was hands down the WORST year to be alive. And as a society we’ve had A LOT of bad years. In fact, it feels like every year is kind of the worst. But sorry folks, year 536 has got you beat.
For 18 months a mysterious fog covered Europe, the Middle East and parts of Asia for 18 months. 18 MONTHS OF MYSTERIOUS DARKNESS. Imagine living during that time and being like…what the actual fuck is going on? You can’t google it. You can’t text your friends in America and be like, bro you seeing this fog? Nope. You just had to chill in your village surrounded by fog wondering if this was how the world ends.
Makes our drama seem a little less….dramatic.
Medieval historian Michael McCormick shared this historic moment after discovering a writing from a Byzantine historian named Procopius; For the sun gave forth its light without brightness, like the moon, during the whole year.
The source of the fog has been a confusion for a long time but now because of a ultra-precise analysis of ice from a Swiss team led by McCormick they have their answer. A cataclysmic volcanic eruption in Iceland sent out ash across the Northern Hemisphere in 536.
Because of this historic event it fucked up the world for the next few years. Temperatures plunged from 1.5 C to 2.5 C which was the coldest decade for 2300 years. In China snow hit and crops failed. In Ireland it was noted there was a “failure of bread from 536 to 539.” There were two more massive eruptions in 540 and 547. This was then followed by a plague in 541 that lasted until 640 and ruined Europe. It was called the Plague of Justinian and wiped out one third of the population in the Eastern Roman Empire which helped the eventual collapse. About 100 million people died! That’s one in every five!
And of course, for 18 months a big chunk of the world was covered in ash.
How fucking crazy is that?
Want to learn more about this real life horror event? Check out these two links HERE and HERE.
