The Little Ice Age and its effects

1. The Little Ice Age

2. Big Chill
(From Documentary: Little Ice Age)
 In the summer 0f 1653, high in
the French Alps a titanic glacier
creeps toward the defenseless
village of Nautesay
 Began just seven centuries ago –
from the 14th – 19th centuries
 Two ft of snow fell on New
England in June and July, and
some men froze to death in early
September’
 The Alpine peasants and priests
believed that the glaciers had
become possessed by the devil
 The priests sprinkled holy water
and performed exorcisms

3. Effects
(From Documentary: Little Ice Age)
 Millions perished as the cold triggers a
chain reaction across civilization
 Disprupted society and reshaped the world
 New York Harbor froze for five weeks
allowing people to walk from Manhattan to
Staten Island
 A summer storm desimated the Spanish
Armada
 Famines drove Frances masses to Paris
demanding affordable bread, fueling the
chaos which led to the French Revolution
 Mass hysteria took root. Witch hunts
became common practice as many women
were burnt at the stake
 George Washington’s Victory in the Battle
of Trenton can also be attributed to the
Little Ice Age

4. More Information
(From other sources)
 The Little Ice Age (LIA) was a period of cooling that
occurred after a warmer era known as the Medieval
Warm Period
 Timeline:
 1595: Gietroz (Switzerland) glacier advances, dammed
Dranse River, and caused flooding of Bagne with 70
deaths.
1600-10: Advances by Chamonix (France) glaciers
cause massive floods which destroyed three villages
and severely damaged a fourth. One village had stood
since the 1200's.
1670-80's: Maximum historical advances by glaciers in
eastern Alps. Noticeable decline of human population
by this time in areas close to glaciers, whereas
population elsewhere in Europe had risen.
1695-1709: Iceland glaciers advance dramatically,
destroying farms.
1710-1735: A glacier in Norway was advancing at a rate
of 100 m per year for 25 years.
1748-50: Norwegian glaciers achieved their historical
maximum LIA positions.
 Theoretical Causes:
 Scientists have tentatively identified four causes of the
Little Ice Age: decreased solar activity, increased
volcanic activity, internal variability of the climate
system, and man made influences.

5. Sources:
 Documentary Film: Little Ice Age
 Wikipedia: Little Ice Age
 The Little Ice Age in Europe
 The Little Ice Age: When Global
Cooling Gripped the World, By Alan
Cutler