March 6, 1737 Earthquake: NW, Biga, Turkey

Name: March 6, 1737 Earthquake: NW, Biga, Turkey
Start: 1737-03-06
Location: NW, Biga, Turkey

March 6, 1737 · Deaths: many

An earthquake struck NW, Biga, Turkey on March 6, 1737.

Map

Where it struck, with the other significant earthquakes within 200 km. Circles are sized and colored by magnitude; select one for its page.

The earthquake

Date: March 6, 1737
Place: NW, Biga, Turkey
Tsunami: None recorded
Epicenter: 40.200° N, 27.200° E
Country: Turkey

The toll

Deaths: Many (about 101 to 1,000)
Damage: Severe (about $5 to $25 million)

Where the literature gives no number, NCEI records a description on a scale of 1 to 4, printed here in its words. Damage is in millions of US dollars of the year of the event, not adjusted for inflation.

What the record says

NCEI’s account, from the sources it cites.

1737 Mar 6. A destructive shock in the kaza of Biga. Between Ezine and Giaurkiiy, villages were completely destroyed with great loss of life, while in Giaurkoy itself, the ground was opened up; the town of Ezine was totally demolished. The castles of Plaghiari(Bolayir), Kilid ulbahr, Sultanhisar, Sedd ul-bahr and Bozcaada (Tenedos) were heavily damaged, and in part destroyed. The shock was very strongly felt in Athos, in Chios- where it caused damage- and in Istanbul and Thessaloniki. (reference #14000)

Note: lat/long approximate based on descriptive accounts

Other significant earthquakes nearby

Within 200 km, the deadliest first.

Significant earthquakes of 1737 The 1700s Recent earthquakes near here This day in weather history

Sources

Significant earthquakes from NOAA’s National Centers for Environmental Information, Global Historical Hazard Database, cited as NCEI/WDS, doi:10.7289/V5PN93H7. Public domain. Read 2026-09-24. NCEI earthquake 10838.