Laki eruption

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1783–1784 · Iceland · Europe · Nature

Toxic gases kill a fifth of Iceland and veil Europe in haze

Laki eruption — HansOosting at Dutch Wikipedia · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons

For eight months the Laki fissure poured out lava and toxic gases. Most livestock died, and famine killed about a fifth of Iceland's people. A sulphurous haze spread over Europe, bringing a scorching summer and a bitter winter. That year, Russia annexed Crimea.

State: Denmark-Norway

Wikipedia (Russian) · Wikipedia (English) · 18th century

Meanwhile around the world (±25 years)

Eastern Europe & Russia

1762 Accession of Catherine the Great — 21 years earlier
1764 Founding of the Hermitage — 19 years earlier
c. 1768 Extinction of Steller's sea cow — 15 years earlier
1772–1795 Partitions of Poland — 11 years earlier
1783 Russian annexation of Crimea (1783) — same year

Africa

1798 Battle of the Pyramids — 15 years later
1804–1903 Usman dan Fodio's jihad and the Sokoto Caliphate — 21 years later
1805–1848 Muhammad Ali becomes ruler of Egypt — 22 years later

Americas

1776 US Declaration of Independence — 7 years earlier
1787 US Constitution — 4 years later
1791–1804 Haitian Revolution — 8 years later
1803 Louisiana Purchase — 20 years later

Oceania

1768–1771 Cook's first voyage — 15 years earlier
1788 First Fleet arrives in Australia — 5 years later

Alive at the time