It started in June 1783: the eruption of Iceland's Laki volcano (of which the crater pictured is all that's left). Rather, it was the unexpectedly cold winter that followed. In doing so, he probably burned a lot of the contents. Another research team traced a volcanic eruption to 539 or 540 and blamed El Salvador's now-inactive Ilopango volcano for piling onto the misery of the years that followed, particularly for the Maya, who suffered massively in the wake of the double whammy. Within the year, more than half of Iceland's livestock were dead, along with 20 percent of their population.Â. Indeed, there really is no right or wrong answer, no matter what some scientists or anthropologists might say. It gets worse: according to National Geographic, there were two volcanoes that erupted in a short time, with 536 being the first. People were still struggling in 542, and that's when the bubonic plague decided to take advantage of an already weakened world population. We'll start with the assassinations: 1968 saw the deaths of both Martin Luther King, Jr. and Robert F. Kennedy. It held an estimated half a million documents from all over the known world, and it also had gardens, a zoo, and space for more than 100 scholars to live, write, and research. During the summer of '43, white workers in Detroit halted production to protest the fact that their black coworkers had received promotions, and things spiraled into riots that were met with 6,000 army troops (via the Detroit Historical Society). Congratulations, humans, you've outdone yourselves.". 2007, 2013, or 2020… if we have a quick look at some news from previous years, it looks like it is perfectly okay to consider, “Yes, this has to be one of the worst years in history.”. Then, in an ominous reminder of the real enemy, a … What followed were layers and layers of terrible. You might think the worst year in history is the one with the most deaths, but that doesn't really narrow things down. Ships were stuck in ports, trade stopped, crops died in the fields, and meat spoiled as soon as it was slaughtered. This claim has never been fully substantiated, which is probably why there are other stories of the library's destruction. Determining the worst year in history is pretty complicated, and it turns out that picking the "worst" is pretty subjective. In February, the Viet Cong launched the Tet Offensive, and just the following month, there was another brutal headline: US troops had been involved with the My Lai massacre and the mass slaughter of civilians. They weren't going to stand for it anymore.Â. In 536, a massive volcano erupted in Iceland. So here we have 17 years that may well have been the worst in all of human history: Halfway through his reign, the Eastern Roman Emperor Justinian I fell seriously ill. For every great triumph, there has been great disaster. According to the Jewish Virtual Library, around 200,000 Jews were told to get out on July 30, 1492. And also, I … Then, the long-term effects of the impact — like muddy rains, darkened skies, wildfires, and the equivalent of a nuclear winter — would have been able to really get to work. Thanks to them, we know that the Justinian Plague not only killed millions, it also led to a massive spike in grain prices, causing huge numbers of people to go hungry. Geophysicists from Imperial College London and Purdue University put together a simulation that suggests what would have happened next, and most scenarios include 1,000-foot-high tsunamis, seismic activity that would register as a 10+ on the Richter scale, and 600-mph winds that scattered dirt, ash, debris, and — let's be honest — the charred remains of the dinosaurs across the entire planet. All in all, then, 542 was a bad year to be alive, even if you were lucky enough to be one of the 60% who survived the plague. Constantinople lost around 90 percent of their entire population in May 1347, and the spread continued its relentless march onwards. Things really started going bad in the summer of 1314: that's when it rained almost constantly, and the ensuing floods ruined crops. 1962 – year of the Cuban Missile Crisis; 2001 – American is shaken by the 9/11 terrorist attacks ; 2020 – America records more COVID-19 deaths than any country, as unemployment soars, political divides worsen and the election is supremely bitter; Here are the most stressful years in world history as ranked by historians: 1347 - Black Death . That might have been the end of the story, but throw in a little warfare (and some very literal throwing of diseased corpses) and it started to spread. It started with Australia on fire.By March, 46 million acres, an area roughly the size of Syria, had burned, destroying the habitats of more than 800 vertebrate species alone. This means that around a quarter of the world’s population was wiped out in the space of two years. Let's start with the Treaty of Versailles, signed in 1919. It created a permanent break in Christianity, with ripples that are still felt today (via History Today). No one's sure, but certainly, the year that the world lost so much literature and knowledge has got to be up there among the worst. Eyewitness accounts were terrible, with one Franciscan monk recording: "[...] as it was impossible to bury the great number of dead, they pulled down the houses over them, so that their homes became their tombs. It was one of the most darkest eras of all. Slate asked historians to list some of the "worst" years in history. Here are five worst years in the history of mankind. Let's talk 1919. The worst years in human history, according to experts, include Indeed, there’s plenty of evidence to show that sometimes things can get worse – a lot, lot worse. The closest we've been able to get is "around 66 million years ago... give or take a bit," but what happened was something catastrophic: an asteroid — traveling at around 40,000 mph — hit the Earth in what we now call the Yucatan Peninsula. Let's go back to 1314, a "worst year" nominee because, according to Historic UK, that's when much of Europe was devastated by floods and famine. Deaths due to respiratory failure skyrocketed, and according to the Guardian, effects were far-reaching and long-lasting. The worst year in history. But that's not even the whole story, because according to researchers at Rutgers (via Science Daily), the hot summer wasn't the biggest problem or the result of the volcanic eruption. There were a few major events that made 1520 pretty terrible.Â, Let's talk about the one that happened very, very quickly first: the complete decimation of the Aztecs. However, despite being one of the most devastating plagues in human history, the Justinian Plague has largely been forgotten. 1348 The worst year of the Black Death which to date is the deadliest pandemic in human history with up to 200 million people killed 2. Some were standalone bad years – 12 months in which it all seemed to go wrong for humanity. There's been a ton of casualty-heavy wars, famines, and natural disasters. After all, a lot of people die — all of the time. Why? It was probably the tale of children abandoned during the famine, who were kidnapped and destined for the dinner plate. Liberal thinkers, who'd had it with the long-reigning governments, started demanding things like religious liberty and parliamentary rule. That ultra-hot summer gave way to an ultra-cold winter, and famine was widespread. It really doesn't matter which year we're in. It was also the peak of another kind of homegrown racism: America was busy confining Japanese citizens into internment camps, a decision History calls one of the biggest violations of civil rights in the country's history. Riots broke out in more than 100 cities, and politics was a mess. Riots and revolutions kicked off in earnest, starting in Milan and Sicily. ADVERTISEMENT After the results of the study were released, some commenters drew parallels between the events of 536 and the eruption of Indonesia’s Mount Tambora in 1815. Then, Hungary demanded control of Transylvania, but the Romanians who were living there weren't sure what gave them the authority to do that. Over the course of 1520, around 40 percent of the entire population of Tenochtitlan was dead. The height of the Black Death, 1348, when as many as 200 million people died, ranked No. It was unspeakably devastating. The pandemic cost the global tourism industry $1.3 trillion in lost revenue last year, more than 11 times the loss recorded during the 2009 global financial crisis. It should have been a good year: World War I ended on November 11, 1918, and it was smooth sailing from there on out, right? It’s not – not even close. If someone asked you what the worst year in human history was, what would you guess? As this happened, there were agreements to increase bombing runs, and fighting pretty much spread worldwide (via Historic UK). The years that saw terrible turning points for the world? That said, however, some years were certainly worse than others. ", While that was going on in the New World, something else was going on in the Old: Martin Luther was busy breaking Christianity.Â. Any of the years of the Holocaust, between 1941 and 1945. Perhaps the worst year in history was one of those during World War II, when more men killed each other than any other year. But we can be grateful for at least one thing this Thanksgiving: It’s been worse. This bad year's a little different, in that we don't know exactly when it happened. Famine in Europe was so bad, it was linked to causing 1789's French Revolution. A bad year, indeed. And finally, 640 also gets a shout-out as the year Alexandria was conquered by Muslim invaders, who supposedly burned the texts to heat the bathhouses — and there were so many that it took six months. Well, according to The Conversation, he took over in 1521 with the help of a smallpox epidemic they'd brought with them. The Holocaust, in 1944, ranked second, followed by 1816, when a volcano eruption in Indonesia blocked out the sun. Time magazine has declared 2020 the “worst year ever,” drawing a red “X” over the year on its latest cover. Last year was the worst in history for cord-cutting, according to a new analysis out Tuesday from MoffettNathanson.The state of play: Pay-TV lost 6 million subscribing households in 2020, "with total subscriptions falling by 7.3% over the course of the year, and with penetration dropping to a level not seen in nearly thirty years. Why 536 was ‘the worst year to be alive’ By Ann Gibbons Nov. 15, 2018 , 2:00 PM. More people died, and more than that? Just what happened to the library is still debated, but the first person who usually gets the blame is Julius Caesar. There were a few things going on here. The fated year of 1968 ended with the election of Richard Nixon as the country was quite literally on fire. The eruption lasted for a shocking eight months, and at the time, the world also experienced a surprisingly warm summer. The list is pretty shocking: according to Business Insider, Columbus brought things like measles, influenza, smallpox, cholera, typhus, chickenpox, scarlet fever, Lyme disease, and whooping cough along with him (and that's just a partial list). Is it the year with the most widespread suffering? The Worst Years In History According To Experts. While Winston Churchill was becoming the figurehead of the righteous Allied advance, he was also doing something horrible in India. History says that instead of helping the nation chill out, organized crime flourished on a massive scale. On the top of my list, I would put 536 AD era. Ask medieval historian Michael McCormick what year was the worst … Other bad years were simply nadirs set within a longer period of misery. Also in 1919? We’re on pace for that right now as the 10-year yield has moved up to 1.30% and US bonds are down 1.6% year-to-date. The year 2020 will undoubtedly go down in history as the worst year ever — at least to those of us living in it. 2016 hardly comes close. But is it really the worst? The Great Famine, as 1314 later came to be called, impacted around 30 million people across much of Europe, with areas like Britain and Scandinavian particularly hard hit, thanks to the addition of wars and revolts. According to a research team from the University of Nottingham and the Climate Change Institute of the University of Maine (via CNN), the very worst year in history was 536.Â. The Summer of Love refers to 1967 and the embrace of the hippie culture, says The Guardian. Here are some of the top contenders for the worst years in history. 2020 is now over, and many have the feeling that it was one of the worst years in history. While food rotted in the fields, livestock had it just as bad. The worst year in world history, by the way, was not even close, the panel said. Every year during World War II could arguably be one of the worst years in history, but let's talk about 1943. According to medieval historian Michael McCormick, 536 AD was ‘the beginning of one of the worst periods to be alive, if not the worst year.’ Falling in the time known as the 'Dark Ages', the year 536 AD fully embraced this moniker as Europe, the Middle East and parts of Asia were plunged into 24-hour darkness for 18 months. But still, pinpointing single years as being shining examples of badness is very difficult. 2020 Worst Year in History for Air Travel Demand. When considering the most stressful years in world history, 2020 ranked sixth in Bloom's survey. Unrest had been boiling for a long time — the 1840s saw Europe drop into an economic crisis that, according to The New York Times, hit the rural and urban poor the hardest. In Hispaniola, those diseases killed 236,000 people or about 95 percent of the population.Â. The title of the worst year in history is easily held by the year 536 AD. Average how many died throughout the year, and that clocks in at around 50 a day. This was also the same year that Prohibition was ratified, and that didn't work out for anyone. The worst years ever globally: 1. The impact kicked off a series of large-scale events that wiped out about 80 percent of life on the planet, and it started with a fireball that killed everything within 625 miles. Think 2020 is a bad year to be alive? 1, the Post reported. Oops. In 48 BC, he ordered the harbor and all the ships in it to be set on fire ...  and that fire spread to the library. Notably, this was the first time that contemporary historians recorded a plague as it spread and took root. That's the year the Black Death seriously hit Europe. It really doesn’t matter which year we’re in. Or something else? Protests and violent confrontations spread to France, where it got so bad that King Louis-Philippe fled to Britain. This is the idea that Columbus's voyage opened up an exchange between the New World and the Old (via the Journal of Economic Perspectives). Here’s a look at the ten worst years in human history. 1944 While it peaked in the year 542, the plague lingered for another 200 years, and not just in the densely-populated city of Constantinople, the capital of the Eastern Roman Empire and where as many as 5,000 people a day were perishing. Then, in addition to the widespread death, there was also a massive rise in antisemitism, as a conspiracy theory started to spread. And here's the thing: the first strain of Black Death hit Europe in 1347, too, but things got really, really bad with the arrival of a second strain in January 1348. What makes for the "worst" year in history? Which is true? You decide which calendar year was the most undeniably awful. According to Medievalists, the flooding was so bad that rising seas swallowed entire coastal communities, sending newly homeless people farther inland to already strained communities. The uber-Catholic rulers of Spain — Columbus supporters Ferdinand and Isabella — had gotten sick of non-Catholics in their country. Consider 1177 B.C., when many of the great civilizations of the Mediterranean Sea and Mideast collapsed , and the survivors struggled through a pre-modern Dark Ages. That was just the main library — there was also a "daughter" library, housed at the Temple of Serapis. We start from Ancient Greece, which could also include 1628 BC among its worst years, with the famous Minoan Eruption, on which, however, science has … Russia stepped on their revolution before it could really gain momentum, but liberal rebels had all kinds of problems. But this hasn’t been the only worst year we have known. And yep, he's one of the things that made this a contender for the worst year in history. Entire Jewish communities were destroyed by rampaging, violent mobs. The 14th century was pretty rough, but 1348 gets a special mention. Discussions were dominated by the US, Britain, France, and Italy, and at the end of the day, the world found itself under a contract that no one was happy with. It was his condemnation of the church's habit of making money by selling forgiveness. You could also argue that it set a dangerous precedent: Spain told Muslims the same thing about 100 years later (via The Guardian). When it comes to scientists, though, they don’t bother with guesses or estimates, and have calculated the exact year it was the worst time to be alive in history; the year 536. Luther wasn't excommunicated for his views until 1520 — the point of no return, and the point where the Reformation kicked off in earnest. What’s more, history isn’t necessarily linear, with things getting better all the time. Have a quick glance at the news cycle and it seems like it's completely legit to think, "Well, this has to be it. Not done yet! According to the BBC, his policies of exporting food from India to the warfront and to Britain resulted in large-scale famine, and the deaths of around 3 million people.Â, Back on the homefront, the US saw an outbreak of race riots. He pulled through and went on to stay in power for another decade. The doomed year kicked off a devastating series of events, starting with a volcanic eruption that spewed so much ash into the air that the resulting temperature change led to mass crop failures and widespread starvation. All we can do is put forward suggestions and back up our claims with facts and other historical evidence. By putting a massive burden on Germany, the treaty laid the groundwork for German discontent — which would ultimately lead to helping put Hitler into power. That bit of success encouraged German workers to start their own revolts, along with Austria and Prussia. Another happened in 391 AD when then-ruler Theophilus converted the Temple of Serapis into a Christian Church. Or 1918, the year of the st But are you really sure? That is, they were the real low points, the worst years of famines or wars or genocide. Then, they did more than talk. Apart from the falling empires the world over and general political chaos, the year 536 also marked one of the worst global famines in human history. Desegregation protests and the Orangeburg massacre, which left three dead and dozens wounded after a confrontation between black citizens and police. According to History, it wasn't as well-thought-out as they'd hoped. International tourist arrivals fell by one billion, or 74 percent, in 2020, according to the UNWTO, which called it "the worst year in tourism history." Indeed, the plague that ravished large parts of the world between 541 and 542 led to an estimated 25-50 million deaths. How's that for perspective? In the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, global tourism had its worst year ever in 2020, with international arrivals down 74% compared to 2019. the first strain of Black Death hit Europe in 1347, The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Christopher Columbus stumbling on the New World. In history’s immense tapestry of human misery, it’s not even in the top 100 worst years. What else? However, many of his citizens were not so lucky. The same panel of 28 historians ranked the following years ahead of … History tells us about more such horrible years. Photo by Elena Mozhvilo on Unsplash. I do not remember hearing about millions of people killed in World Wars or concentration camps in 2013 or 2014.

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