The central European flood of 1572 and its local-scale effects as revealed by a damage inventory

Abstract

A cyclone in July 1572 caused a catastrophic flood in the catchments of the Upper Danube and Vltava rivers. A previously unpublished inventory dating to 1574 enabled local-scale insight into the effects of the cyclone. The degree of destruction was inventoried for 355 subjects of the Benedictine Abbey of Admont, Austria. The location of 150 damaged buildings was possible due to registers, cadastres and other geographical sources. Spatial analysis revealed that most of the properties damaged were located near watercourses at alluvial fans. A significantly greater amount of damage was revealed for properties, which would be nowadays located in moderate- and high-risk hazard zones. Only 18.7% of the properties damaged in 1572 were located inside modern hazard zones. By using methodological approaches of history, environmental history and geography, we show that it is possible at local scale to reconstruct the spatial pattern, magnitude and intensity of a cyclone ca. 450 years after the event.