Year 536 Was the Worst Year to Be Alive - What Happened?
Year 536 Was the Worst Year to Be Alive - What Happened?
Was the year 536 AD the worst ever? The 6th century boasted many exceptional events, people, and historical contributions. The exception, however, was one year that was particularly burdened with a level of tragedy and strife most historians say surpassed any other moment in history: 536 CE. This was the worst part of the Dark Ages.
#Pandemic #JustinianPlague #WeirdHistory
Content
0 ->
0.5 -> The term "worst year ever" gets
tossed around a lot these days,
4.26 -> mostly on the internet,
and for reasons like,
6.45 -> I was disappointed in the
latest Star Wars movie.
9.48 -> But scientists and
historians have actually
11.58 -> argued that no year in the
long history of this planet
14.58 -> was worse than the year 536.
17.64 -> While, sure, there
have been plenty
19.29 -> of worthy contenders
for the worst year
21.21 -> ever over the course of
history, no single year
24.09 -> has had more of a measurably
bad impact for the decades
27.15 -> that followed.
28.08 -> Today, we're going to explain
why the year 536 was the worst
31.8 -> year to be alive.
33.27 -> But before we get started,
be sure to subscribe
35.37 -> to the Weird History Channel.
36.578 -> Oh, and leave a
comment too and let
38.645 -> us know what piece
of history you
40.02 -> would like us to explain next.
42 -> OK, now let's settle
this once and for all--
45.06 -> year 536, worst year ever.
50.476 -> [MUSIC PLAYING]
53.37 -> While serving as
a military advisor
55.29 -> to Belisaurius, one of
the Byzantine Empire's
57.99 -> most distinguished generals,
Byzantine historian Procopius
61.69 -> noticed some trouble was brewing
in the air while traveling
64.23 -> with his boss in
Sicily in the year 536.
67.53 -> He wrote of a sun that gave
forth light without brightness,
70.95 -> during like the moon,
during this whole year.
73.68 -> And it seemed exceedingly
like the sun in eclipse
76.35 -> for the beams it shed were
not clear nor such as it
78.96 -> is accustomed to shed.
80.42 -> Translated, it was all dark
outside, like, all the time.
84.57 -> He, of course,
wasn't the only one
86.07 -> to notice the sun appeared
to be in a mood during 536.
90.12 -> Michael the Syrian,
a Byzantine scribe,
92.43 -> would later write of this
period, "The sun became dark
95.49 -> and its darkness
lasted for 18 months.
98.22 -> Each day it shone
for about four hours,
100.71 -> and still this light was
only a feeble shadow.
103.62 -> Everyone declared that
the sun would never
105.45 -> recover its full light.
106.95 -> The fruits did not ripen and the
wine tasted like sour grapes."
111.6 -> This wishy-washy
sun situation cast
114.54 -> a non-metaphorical dark
cloud over the globe
117.12 -> that darkened the sky for
at least a full year in 536.
121.14 -> Researchers later
discovered evidence
123 -> of a massive volcanic
eruption whose ash was likely
126.06 -> a major contributor to the
Seattle-like weather, minus all
128.699 -> the rain, spreading ash and
destruction on a global scale.
132.66 -> Not to mention, it made the
grapes sour and the wine bad.
135.56 -> So that's an easy
strike for the year 536.
139.208 -> [MUSIC PLAYING]
142.39 -> Basic biology teaches
us that plants
144.64 -> need the sun to aid in
their growth and survival.
148.333 -> So not having direct
sunlight for the duration
150.25 -> of at least a year did a real
number on the crop output
153.13 -> around the world and
sparked a widespread famine
156.28 -> around the globe.
157.433 -> And it's not just
that the plants wanted
159.1 -> to catch their rays, it
was just too darn chilly
161.53 -> for crops to grow.
162.97 -> With the sun cloaked
in an endless cloud,
165.22 -> the temperature of the Earth
dropped between 1.6 and 2.5
168.82 -> degrees Celsius, or
34.88 to 36.5 degrees
173.26 -> Fahrenheit for all
the Americans thinking
175.12 -> that doesn't sound so bad.
177.05 -> But it also cooled temperatures
for decades to come.
179.86 -> Crop scarcities were reported
far and wide around this time
183.07 -> period, including
Ireland, who suffered
185.05 -> through their own horrible
sounding food depletion
187.36 -> they called "Bread Failure."
189.856 -> [MUSIC PLAYING]
193.24 -> A dusty veil covering the
sun wasn't the only bad thing
196.09 -> in the air for these
poor people just trying
198.31 -> to live their lives in 536.
200.53 -> There was also a plague or
two waiting in the wings
202.84 -> to strike on these vitamin
D-deprived immune systems.
206.2 -> Nobody was immune
to this infestation.
208.63 -> It swept through
the lower classes
210.16 -> all the way to the
Imperial Palace.
212.74 -> "Symptoms," as it was
lovingly described,
215.17 -> began with a sore that formed
on the palm of the hand
218.03 -> and progressed until the
afflicted one could not
220.03 -> take a step.
221.08 -> The leg swelled.
222.16 -> Then the buboes burst
and pus came out.
224.59 -> Obviously, if this same plague
were to infect the world today,
227.59 -> there would probably
be a TV show
229.27 -> called Doctor
Buboes, Pus Buster,
231.88 -> and with it a new contender
for the worst year to be alive.
235.057 -> With the plague beginning
to make the rounds
236.89 -> in Constantinople, the
city began to stink,
239.41 -> what with the piles
of dead sick bodies
241.57 -> just sort of being tossed
around into the sea,
243.61 -> only to resurface later.
245.23 -> There wasn't a lot of
burial planning going around
247.42 -> back then.
247.99 -> Bring out your dead!
250.438 -> There was more of a "wing
it" vibe around the Justinian
252.73 -> Plague.
253.69 -> Emperor Justinian
ordered the bodies
255.4 -> to be removed from the city.
257.04 -> I'm not dead.
257.98 -> Oh, he says he's not dead.
260.04 -> Yes, he is.
260.62 -> I'm not!
261.12 -> But all that did was expose
more people to the disease,
264.04 -> as healthy people were
responsible for moving
266.26 -> deceased, sickly bodies
out of the cities.
268.96 -> Things weren't all bad
for Emperor Justinian
271.3 -> though as the plague that
took all of these lives
273.515 -> and made the city a smelly
nightmare would later be named
275.89 -> the "Plague of Justinian."
277.18 -> So that was probably
nice for him.
279.28 -> Less so, for the estimated
50 million people
281.74 -> that died from it, however.
284.455 -> [MUSIC PLAYING]
286.36 -> Around 536, the climate in
China started its journey
289.51 -> into madness, doing
perfectly normal things
291.67 -> like raining dust you could
scoop into your hands.
294.64 -> Not only should
it not rain dust,
296.26 -> it certainly shouldn't be
measurable by the scoopful.
298.93 -> The Nan Shi, a sixth
century chronicle,
301.45 -> reported a yellow ash-like
substance falling from the sky.
304.96 -> They named their freak
weather hui, or dust,
307.75 -> and said it was yellow in color.
309.95 -> Whether this was
volcanic ash or just
311.92 -> some random unexplained
climate reaction is not known.
315.67 -> However, this was
just the beginning
317.17 -> of China's climate disruption.
319.66 -> The chronicles of the
southern dynasties
321.52 -> reported on a rare summer-winter
weather event with frost
324.76 -> in the mid-summer
and snow in August.
327.94 -> Like a Southern California
girl in Chicago in January,
330.91 -> the crops were not here
for this cold snap.
333.46 -> Summer crops were destroyed.
335.14 -> And the city of [? Xinzhou, ?]
along with others,
337.24 -> were thrown into a deadly
famine that lasted for two years
340.88 -> and resulted in the deaths
of around 70% to 80%
343.75 -> of the population.
345.68 -> [MUSIC PLAYING]
348.59 -> Researchers discovered
evidence deep
350.45 -> in the ice sheets of
Iceland and Greenland
352.4 -> that indicated a major volcanic
event occurred around 536.
356.54 -> Volcanic eruptions in
Iceland in 540 and 547
360.38 -> thrust people into
the literal Dark Ages,
363.11 -> with ash lining the skies and
blocking out the shiny, hot sun
366.44 -> thing in the sky that the
people of the 6th century
369.11 -> were starting to get
used to having around.
371.87 -> Based on a tropical volcanic
ash later discovered,
374.72 -> some scholars have suggested
a volcano in El Salvador
377.69 -> went blasting off around
the year 535 or 536.
381.62 -> Still others pointed
to a volcanic eruption
383.9 -> in North America
as a contributor
385.67 -> to the dark skies
around the world.
387.77 -> When combined with the two
Icelandic volcano eruptions,
390.53 -> it kicked off it was adorably
called the "Late Antique Little
393.5 -> Ice "Age.
394.5 -> This cute little
ice age cooled off
396.2 -> the planet for at least
a decade and resulted
398.48 -> in the death of crops
and, subsequently, people.
401.27 -> Both directly through
starvation and indirectly,
403.82 -> a malnourished
population was more
405.71 -> susceptible to diseases,
of which there were plenty
408.26 -> running around.
408.922 -> Well, there's one thing
that certainly couldn't
410.88 -> claim it had a bad year--
412.34 -> exploding volcanoes.
413.69 -> [PEOPLE SCREAMING]
416.075 -> [MUSIC PLAYING]
418.94 -> By the time the 6th
century rolled around,
421.07 -> the Roman had migrated
east to Constantinople.
424.76 -> And, under the guiding
hand of Emperor Justinian,
427.55 -> the Romans sought to get back
to the glory days of the empire,
430.79 -> much like a high school graduate
who still hangs around campus
433.85 -> and wears their
letterman jacket.
436.07 -> I mean, it is pretty cool.
437.92 -> Though some of
Justinian's generals
439.43 -> saw success in this cool goal--
441.38 -> most notable,
Belisaurius, who fought
443.215 -> against several
different armies,
444.59 -> including Goths,
Vandals, and others--
446.66 -> Justinian himself
couldn't mirror
448.28 -> the success due to
constant uprisings
450.38 -> and imperial instability.
452.18 -> Those pesky uprisings, always
getting in the way of success.
456.35 -> To add sickness to war
defeats, the Byzantine Empire
459.29 -> would never fully recover from
the disease and famine sparked
462.23 -> by the events of 536.
464.45 -> The Byzantine Empire
lost between 35% to 55%
467.81 -> of their population
in the year 541.
470.33 -> Once the bubonic
plague moved in,
471.77 -> it did what the
plague did best--
473.48 -> kill depressingly
high percentages
475.4 -> of entire populations.
477.345 -> Historians believe the plague
could have been transported
479.72 -> by plague-infested rats hitching
a ride on military trains
482.737 -> during this attempt to
bring the Roman Empire back
484.82 -> to its peak, which
clearly backfired.
487.26 -> [MAN SCREAMING]
490.098 -> [MUSIC PLAYING]
493.89 -> The horribleness of 536
didn't discriminate.
497.04 -> The Moche civilization of
Peru wouldn't count 536
500.31 -> as their banner year either.
502.41 -> The Moche civilization-- a once
dominant force in the region--
505.8 -> were known to be avid
fishermen and developers
508.08 -> of an advanced irrigation system
that allowed a variety of crops
511.02 -> to grow.
512.37 -> Their agricultural talents were
the backbone of their economy.
515.25 -> But the weather conditions
in the 6th century
517.409 -> caused their pocketbooks
to take a deep hit.
520.35 -> It was around this time that
an unusually strong El Niño
522.96 -> weather system caused
waters to warm,
525.03 -> which decimated the fish supply.
527.07 -> The freak weather system
also caused heavy flooding,
529.42 -> which ruined their
irrigation systems
531.39 -> and devastated their
ability to grow enough food
533.49 -> to feed their people.
535.725 -> [MUSIC PLAYING]
538.52 -> People, probably tired of
listening to Twitter users
541.43 -> claim X and X was
the worst year ever,
544.07 -> a group of scholars set out
to set the record straight
546.41 -> once and for all.
547.4 -> Harvard historian
Michael McCormick
549.2 -> and a group of scholars decided
to science their way out
551.81 -> of the age-old question, what
was the worst year to be alive?
555.53 -> Initially, however, this was not
the ultimate goal of McCormick
558.44 -> and his group of 12
interdisciplinary scholars.
561.38 -> The group came together to
study metal usage, coinage,
564.08 -> and changes to the 7th
century monetary systems.
567.14 -> Somewhere in this
thrilling subject matter,
569.24 -> one probably began to ponder if
they were living in the worst
572.27 -> year to be alive.
573.47 -> Their findings included an
analysis of volcanic fragments
576.41 -> from an Icelandic volcano
in ice core samples
579.02 -> from Swiss glaciers that, yes,
dated back to 536, confirming
583.61 -> the volcanic event that
thrusted a good portion
585.86 -> of the northern hemisphere
into unprecedented darkness,
588.74 -> setting off a
global catastrophe.
591.15 -> Yeah, but in 1998, both
Armageddon and Deep Impact
595.16 -> were released.
596.12 -> And people had to choose between
which two asteroid-based action
599.3 -> movies they liked best.
600.83 -> That's a tough year.
602.704 -> [MUSIC PLAYING]
605.54 -> The planet left behind plenty
of evidence of climate trauma
608.18 -> that resulted in a
chain of climate events
610.07 -> that spiraled over into
real human suffering.
612.98 -> Remember, we only get
one Earth, everyone.
615.44 -> Please recycle.
617.15 -> Dendrochronologists, people who
study tree rings to determine
620.45 -> a tree's age since that's a
science and not a wild guess,
623.84 -> noticed some disturbing
patterns emerging
625.76 -> when examining Icelandic trees.
627.95 -> The rings indicated a period
when the tree's growth had
630.41 -> slowed, suggesting a
significant cool down
632.63 -> had occurred around the
middle of the sixth century.
635.21 -> This, combined with the
newly unearthed ice core
637.37 -> evidence discovered in
2018, helped date the time
640.58 -> of the catastrophic event that
ruined Earth, for a little bit,
643.4 -> to the year 536.
645.722 -> [MUSIC PLAYING]
648.37 -> In researching for the
worst year to be alive,
650.5 -> things weren't always so bleak.
652.087 -> In fact, the research
started by our friends
653.92 -> at Harvard ended
on a positive note.
656.02 -> While the events of
536 were the spark
658 -> for some truly literal dark
days in our planet's history,
661.06 -> the researchers were also able
to find the moments things
663.67 -> really started to turn around.
665.26 -> When researching coinage,
they noticed the reappearance
667.72 -> of lead in the ice core
samples, indicating
669.85 -> that people were producing
silver again for money.
672.1 -> Ah, capitalism, the
life force of us all.
676.09 -> Experts argued the
prevalence of silver
677.942 -> meant more coins were
being produced, which was
679.9 -> a sign of a thriving economy.
681.79 -> The lesson being, as
bad as it may seem,
683.89 -> it will almost always get
better, almost always.
688.18 -> So what do you think?
689.063 -> Would you like to go
into a time machine
690.73 -> and play the ultimate
game of Survivor?
692.83 -> Let us know in the
comments below.
694.28 -> And, while you're at it, check
out some of these other videos
696.822 -> from our Weird History.
698.02 -> [MUSIC PLAYING]
Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s3YTfhJmh1I