The Brescia explosion occurred in 1769 in

Brescia Brescia (, locally ; lmo, link=no, label= Lombard, Brèsa ; lat, Brixia; vec, Bressa) is a city and ''comune'' in the region of Lombardy, Northern Italy. It is situated at the foot of the Alps, a few kilometers from the lakes Garda and Iseo. ...

(now part of

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

) when a large store of gunpowder exploded after a lightning strike, causing extensive destruction and many deaths. Claims that as many as 6,000 people died in the explosion (which may be an exaggeration), places the event high on lists of accidents and disasters by death toll.

The explosion

On August 18, 1769, the city of

in northern

was devastated when the Bastion of San Nazaro was struck by lightning. The resulting fire ignited about 90,000 kg (or about 200,000 lb) of gunpowder stored there by the

Republic of Venice The Republic of Venice ( vec, Repùblega de Venèsia) or Venetian Republic ( vec, Repùblega Vèneta, links=no), traditionally known as La Serenissima ( en, Most Serene Republic of Venice, italics=yes; vec, Serenìsima Repùblega de Venèsia, ...

, causing a massive explosion. Huge stones were hurled in a radius of a kilometer around the explosion, landing on people, houses and church buildings including Santi Nazaro e Celso. Doors of houses and shops and city gates were thrown open and broken glass showered down. This explosion destroyed about one-sixth of the city.Newton, Sara (22 December 2008)
7 Disasters Caused by Lightning
''

Mental Floss ''Mental Floss'' (stylized as ''mental_floss'') is an online magazine and its related American digital, print, and e-commerce media company focused on millennials. It is owned by Minute Media and based in New York City, United States. mentalflos ...

''Harris, W. Snow
On the nature of thunderstorms
p. 164 (1843)(December 1857)
The Destructive Agency of Lightning No I - Gunpowder Explosions by Lightning
''

The Nautical Magazine ''The Nautical Magazine'' was a monthly magazine containing articles of general interest to seafarers. The magazine was first published in 1832 by Simpkin, Marshall, and Co. (London) as ''The Nautical Magazine: A Journal of Papers on Subjects C ...

'', p. 659.Smith, John
A System of Modern Geography, Vol II
p. 466 (1811) (reporting lower death totals) Reports of death tolls vary, with 3,000 deaths often reported in later English sources, though an official account from two years after the event references 400 dead and 800 wounded.Ubiali, Mario (20 April 2007)
Il fulmine della notte di Sant’Elena
quibrescia.it (in Italian) French writer

Louis-Sébastien Mercier Louis-Sébastien Mercier (6 June 1740 – 25 April 1814) was a French dramatist and writer, whose 1771 novel ''L'An 2440'' is an example of proto-science fiction. Early life and education He was born in Paris to a humble family: his father was a ...

claimed in his popular 1770 novel '' L'An 2440, rêve s'il en fut jamais'', which was translated into English as ''Memoirs of the year two thousand five hundred'' that by 1772, 2,500 died in the explosion.Memoirs of the year two thousand five hundred
(1795 US ed, p. 40) Scipione Garbelli's ''Le Rovine di Brescia'' was published in 1771 and documented the tragedy.Ma che successe la notte del 18 agosto 1769?
bresciacity.it, Retrieved 13 April 2016

Reactions

Britain reacted to the tragedy by passing laws governing the private manufacture and storage of gunpowder. In determining how to protect the British government stores,

Benjamin Franklin Benjamin Franklin ( April 17, 1790) was an American polymath who was active as a writer, scientist, inventor, statesman, diplomat, printer, publisher, and political philosopher. Encyclopædia Britannica, Wood, 2021 Among the leading inte ...

advised the use of pointed lightning rods and prevailed in a debate over whether pointed rods or blunt rods should be used.Miller, Brandon Marie
Benjamin Franklin, American Genius
p. 72 (2010) The memory of the tragedy long remained with the people of the city. The fire and noise caused by the fall of a meteorite in nearby

Alfianello Alfianello (Brescian: ) is a ''comune'' in the province of Brescia, in Lombardy, northern Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle ...

in 1883 are said to have immediately caused recall of the long ago explosion.

References

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External links

Le rovine di Brescia
(1771), in Italian, at archive.org 18th-century explosions 1769 disasters in Europe 1769 in Italy Explosions in Italy

Explosion An explosion is a rapid expansion in volume associated with an extreme outward release of energy, usually with the generation of high temperatures and release of high-pressure gases. Supersonic explosions created by high explosives are known ...

History of Lombardy 18th-century disasters in Italy