Year 1222 (MCCXXII) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Julian calendar.
Salimbene di Adam, O.F.M., was an Italian Franciscan friar, theologian, and chronicler who is a source for Italian history of the 13th century.
The 1857 Basilicata earthquake occurred on December 16 in the Basilicata region of Italy southeast of the city of Naples. The epicentre was in Montemurro, on the western border of the modern province of Potenza. Several towns were destroyed, and estimated fatalities were around 10,000. At the time it was the third largest known earthquake, and has been estimated to have been of magnitude 7.0 on the moment magnitude scale.
An earthquake, rated at VII on the Mercalli intensity scale, struck northern Italy and Germany on 3 January 1117. The epicentre of the first shock was near Verona, the city which suffered the most damage. The outer wall of the amphitheatre was partially felled, and the standing portion was damaged in a later earthquake of 1183. Many other churches, monasteries, and ancient monuments were destroyed or seriously damaged, eliminating much of Verona's early medieval architecture and providing space for a massive Romanesque rebuilding. After the first shock of 3 January, seismic activity persisted for months, striking on 12 January 4 June, 1 July 1 October, and 30 December.
The 1976 Friuli earthquake, also known in Italy as Terremoto del Friuli, took place on May 6, 1976, with a moment magnitude of 6.5 and a maximum Mercalli intensity of X (Extreme). The shock occurred in the Friuli region in northeast Italy near the town of Gemona del Friuli. 990 people were killed, up to about 3,000 were injured, and more than 157,000 were left homeless.
This list of 20th-century earthquakes is a global list of notable earthquakes that occurred in the 20th century. After 1900 most earthquakes have some degree of instrumental records and this means that the locations and magnitudes are more reliable than for earlier events. To prevent this list becoming unmanageable, only those of magnitude 6 and above are included unless they are notable for some other reason.
The 1348 Friuli earthquake, centered in the South Alpine region of Friuli, was felt across Europe on 25 January. The earthquake hit in the same year that the Great Plague ravaged Italy. According to contemporary sources, it caused considerable damage to structures; churches and houses collapsed, villages were destroyed and foul odors emanated from the earth.
Striking southern Italy on September 8, the 1905 Calabria earthquake had a moment magnitude of 7.9 and a maximum Mercalli intensity of XI (Extreme). The first major earthquake of the 20th century, it severely damaged parts of Lipari, Messina Province and a large area between Cosenza and Nicotera and killed between 557 and 2,500 people.
The 1912 Mürefte earthquake occurred at 03:29 local time on 9 August. It had an estimated magnitude of 7.4 and a maximum intensity of X (Extreme) on the Modified Mercalli intensity scale, causing from 216–3000 casualties.
On 5 February AD 62, an earthquake of an estimated magnitude of between 5 and 6 and a maximum intensity of IX or X on the Mercalli scale struck the towns of Pompeii and Herculaneum, severely damaging them. The earthquake may have been a precursor to the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in AD 79, which destroyed the same two towns. The contemporary philosopher and dramatist Seneca the Younger wrote an account of the earthquake in the sixth book of his Naturales quaestiones, entitled De Terrae Motu.
The 1627 Gargano earthquake struck Gargano and part of Tavoliere, southern Italy, at about mid-day on 30 July 1627. A "very large earthquake" caused a major tsunami, the largest seismic event ever recorded in the Gargano region, which "produced severe damage in the whole promontory", killing about 5000 people. Four aftershocks were documented. The most extensive damage was noted between San Severo and Lesina.
The 1511 Idrija earthquake occurred on March 26 with a maximum Mercalli intensity of X (Extreme). The epicenter was around the town of Idrija in present-day Slovenia, although some place it some 15-20 kilometers to the west, between Gemona and Pulfero in Friulian Slovenia. The earthquake affected a large territory between Carinthia, Friuli, present-day Slovenia and Croatia. An estimated twelve to fifteen thousand people were killed and damage was considered severe. The earthquake was felt as far as in Switzerland and present-day Slovakia. A number of castles and churches were razed to the ground in a large area from Northeastern Italy to western Croatia. Among the destroyed buildings were the castles of Udine and Škofja Loka, the monastery of the Teutonic Knights in Ljubljana; the Zagreb cathedral was severely damaged. Blaž Raškaj, commander of the Jajce fortess, in modern Bosnia, reported to the Hungarian Estates that the earthquake had severely damaged the fortifications.
The area around Constantinople was affected by a major earthquake in AD 447. It caused serious damage to the recently completed Theodosian Walls in Constantinople, destroying 57 towers and large stretches of the walls. The historical records contain no mention of casualties associated directly with this earthquake, although many thousands of people were reported to have died in the aftermath due to starvation and a "noxious smell".
