The Catalan earthquake of February 2, 1428, known in

Catalan Catalan may refer to: Catalonia From, or related to Catalonia: * Catalan language, a Romance language * Catalans, an ethnic group formed by the people from, or with origins in, Northern or southern Catalonia Places * 13178 Catalan, asteroid #1 ...

as the ' because it took place during

Candlemas Candlemas (also spelled Candlemass), also known as the Feast of the Presentation of Jesus Christ, the Feast of the Purification of the Blessed Virgin Mary, or the Feast of the Holy Encounter, is a Christian holiday commemorating the presentati ...

, struck the

Principality of Catalonia The Principality of Catalonia ( ca, Principat de Catalunya, la, Principatus Cathaloniæ, oc, Principat de Catalonha, es, Principado de Cataluña) was a Middle Ages, medieval and early modern state (polity), state in the northeastern Iberian P ...

, especially

Roussillon Roussillon ( , , ; ca, Rosselló ; oc, Rosselhon ) is a historical province of France that largely corresponded to the County of Roussillon and part of the County of Cerdagne of the former Principality of Catalonia. It is part of the reg ...

, with an

epicentre The epicenter, epicentre () or epicentrum in seismology is the point on the Earth's surface directly above a hypocenter or focus, the point where an earthquake or an underground explosion originates. Surface damage Before the instrumental pe ...

near

Camprodon Camprodon (; from ''Camp Rodó'' "Round Field", ultimately from Latin ''Campus Rotundus'') is a small town in the comarca of Ripollès in Girona, Catalonia, Spain, located in the Pyrenees, near the French border. History The settlement of Campr ...

. The

earthquake An earthquake (also known as a quake, tremor or temblor) is the shaking of the surface of the Earth resulting from a sudden release of energy in the Earth's lithosphere that creates seismic waves. Earthquakes can range in intensity, from ...

was one of a series of related seismic events that shook

Catalonia Catalonia (; ca, Catalunya ; Aranese Occitan: ''Catalonha'' ; es, Cataluña ) is an autonomous community of Spain, designated as a ''nationality'' by its Statute of Autonomy. Most of the territory (except the Val d'Aran) lies on the north ...

in a single year. Beginning on February 23, 1427, tremors were felt in March, April, May 15 at

Olot Olot () is the capital city of the ''comarca'' of Garrotxa, in the Province of Girona, Catalonia, Spain. The city is known for its natural landscape, including four volcanoes scattered around the city center. The municipality is part of the Zon ...

, June, and December. They caused relatively minor visible damage to property, notably to the monastery of Amer; but they probably caused severe weakening of building infrastructure. This would account for the massive and widespread destruction that accompanied the subsequent 1428 quake. Modern estimates of the intensity are VIII (''Damaging'') or IX (''Destructive'') on the

Medvedev–Sponheuer–Karnik scale The Medvedev–Sponheuer–Karnik scale, also known as the MSK or MSK-64, is a macroseismic intensity scale used to evaluate the severity of ground shaking on the basis of observed effects in an area where an earthquake transpires. The scale was f ...

. The

rampart Rampart may refer to: * Rampart (fortification), a defensive wall or bank around a castle, fort or settlement Rampart may also refer to: * "O'er the Ramparts We Watched" is a key line from "The Star-Spangled Banner", the national anthem of the ...

s of

Prats-de-Mollo-la-Preste Prats-de-Mollo-la-Preste (; ) is a commune in the Pyrénées-Orientales department in southern France, near the border with Spain and the Autonomous Community of Catalonia. The name ''Prats-de-Mollo'' comes from Catalan "meadows of Molló". Mol ...

were destroyed. The

clocktower Clock towers are a specific type of structure which house a turret clock and have one or more clock faces on the upper exterior walls. Many clock towers are freestanding structures but they can also adjoin or be located on top of another buildin ...

Arles-sur-Tech Arles-sur-Tech (, literally ''Arles on Tech''; ca, Arles de Tec) is a commune in the Pyrénées-Orientales department in southern France. Geography Location Arles-sur-Tech is located in the canton of Le Canigou and in the arrondissement of C ...

collapsed. The monastery of Fontclara at

Banyuls-dels-Aspres Banyuls-dels-Aspres (; ca, Banyuls dels Aspres) is a commune in the Pyrénées-Orientales department in southern France. Geography Localisation Banyuls-dels-Aspres is located in the canton of Les Aspres and in the arrondissement of Céret. ...

was devastated. The damage sustained by the monastery of

Saint-Martin-du-Canigou The abbey of Saint-Martin-du-Canigou (Catalan: ''Sant Martí del Canigó'') is a monastery built in 1009 in the Pyrenees of Northern Catalonia on Canigou mountain in present-day southern near the Spanish border. Pau Casals wrote a composition ...

marked the commencement of its decline. The

belltower A bell tower is a tower that contains one or more bells, or that is designed to hold bells even if it has none. Such a tower commonly serves as part of a Christian church, and will contain church bells, but there are also many secular bell tower ...

and

lantern tower In architecture, the lantern tower is a tall construction above the junction of the four arms of a cruciform (cross-shaped) church, with openings through which light from outside can shine down to the crossing (so it also called a crossing lante ...

Sant Joan de les Abadesses Sant Joan de les Abadesses () is a town and municipality located in the south-east of the comarca of Ripollès, in the province of Girona, Catalonia, Spain. Geography and climate The town is located along the upper part of the River Ter, in the v ...

fell down. The

chapel A chapel is a Christian place of prayer and worship that is usually relatively small. The term has several meanings. Firstly, smaller spaces inside a church that have their own altar are often called chapels; the Lady chapel is a common ty ...

Núria Núria () is a Catalan girls' name taken from the Virgin of Núria, a Marian shrine located in the eponymous valley, the Vall de Núria. The name also occurs in Spanish without the accent as Nuria, given that the Spanish name of the valley is ''el ...

was destroyed. The villages of

Tortellà Tortellà is a village in the Provinces of Spain, province of Province of Girona, Girona and autonomous community of Catalonia, Spain. References External links Government data pages
Municipalities in Garrotxa {{Girona-geo-stub ...

and

Queralbs Queralbs () is a municipality in the ''comarca'' of the Ripollès in the province of Girona, Catalonia, Spain. It is situated in the Pyrenees to the north of Ribes de Freser, near the peaks of Puigmal (2909 m), Infern (2896 m) and ...

were entirely destroyed. Among the damaged structures were

Santa Maria de Ripoll The Monastery of Santa Maria de Ripoll is a Benedictine monastery, built in the Romanesque style, located in the town of Ripoll in Catalonia, Spain. Although much of the present church is 19th century rebuilding, the sculptured portico is a renown ...

and

Sant Llorenç prop Bagà Sant Llorenç prop Bagà is a former Benedictine monastery in Catalonia, Spain. The Romanesque building is located near Guardiola de Berguedà in comarca Berguedà. History Documented in the year 898 is a donation of land to a community of monks ...

. As far away as

Perpignan Perpignan (, , ; ca, Perpinyà ; es, Perpiñán ; it, Perpignano ) is the prefecture of the Pyrénées-Orientales department in southern France, in the heart of the plain of Roussillon, at the foot of the Pyrenees a few kilometres from the ...

and

Barcelona Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within ci ...

the populace was gripped by panic. In the latter, the intensity was estimated at VI (''Strong'') or VII (''Very strong''). The

rose window Rose window is often used as a generic term applied to a circular window, but is especially used for those found in Gothic cathedrals and churches. The windows are divided into segments by stone mullions and tracery. The term ''rose window'' w ...

of the

Gothic Gothic or Gothics may refer to: People and languages *Goths or Gothic people, the ethnonym of a group of East Germanic tribes **Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths **Crimean Gothic, the Gothic language spoken b ...

church of Santa Maria del Mar was destroyed. Robin de Molhet, lord of

Peyrepertuse Peyrepertuse (Languedocien dialect, Languedocien: ''Castèl de Pèirapertusa'') is a ruined fortress and one of the so-called Cathar castles located high in the French Pyrénées in the commune in France, commune of Duilhac-sous-Peyrepertuse, in th ...

, who was travelling in his domains when the earthquake struck, quickly came to the aid of victims, which earned the recognition of

Alfonso V of Aragon Alfonso the Magnanimous (139627 June 1458) was King of Aragon and King of Sicily (as Alfonso V) and the ruler of the Crown of Aragon from 1416 and King of Naples (as Alfonso I) from 1442 until his death. He was involved with struggles to the t ...

, who was away in

Valencia Valencia ( va, València) is the capital of the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Valencian Community, Valencia and the Municipalities of Spain, third-most populated municipality in Spain, with 791,413 inhabitants. It is ...

at the time of the tremors. He was informed by the

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...

of the

Generalitat de Catalunya The Generalitat de Catalunya (; oc, label=Aranese, Generalitat de Catalonha; es, Generalidad de Cataluña), or the Government of Catalonia, is the institutional system by which Catalonia politically organizes its self-government. It is formed b ...

Felip de Malla Felip de Malla (; 1370 – 12 July 1431) was a Catalan prelate, theologian, scholastic, orator, classical scholar, and poet. He was a confidant of the kings Martin the Humane, Ferdinand of Antequera, and Alfonso the Magnanimous. He was the sevente ...

, in a letter.The letter can still be read in

Josep Perarnau i Espelt Josep is a Catalan language, Catalan masculine given name equivalent to Joseph (Spanish ''José''). People named Josep include: * Josep Bargalló (born 1958), Catalan philologist and former politician * Josep Bartolí (1910-1995), Catalan painter ...

(2002)
"La lletra de Felip de Malla informant el rei Alfons del terratrèmol de la Candelera, 1428"
''Arxiu de textos catalans antics'', 21:665–670. It is estimated that hundreds of people were killed in the disaster: two hundred are estimated at Camprodon, one to three hundred at

Puigcerdà Puigcerdà (; es, Puigcerdá) is the capital of the '' Catalan comarca'' of Cerdanya, in the province of Girona, Catalonia, northern Spain, near the Segre River and on the border with France (it abuts directly onto the French town of Bourg-Ma ...

(due to the collapse of the church), twenty to thirty at Barcelona (in Santa Maria del Mar), and almost the entire population of Queralbs. The fallout lasted well over a year. The quake was probably the worst in the history of the

Pyrenees The Pyrenees (; es, Pirineos ; french: Pyrénées ; ca, Pirineu ; eu, Pirinioak ; oc, Pirenèus ; an, Pirineus) is a mountain range straddling the border of France and Spain. It extends nearly from its union with the Cantabrian Mountains to C ...

, though the first recorded only occurred in 1373. It remains to this day a point of reference for the study of seismic risk.

Notes

{{earthquakes in Spain Catalonia earthquake Earthquakes in Spain Earthquakes in France 15th-century earthquakes Medieval Catalonia Geography of Catalonia 15th century in Catalonia 15th century in Aragon Olot

See also

Notes