Significant earthquakes of 1861

December 26, 1861 Earthquake: Achaie,valymitika,tripolis, Greece

December 26, 1861 · M7.3 · Deaths: few

A magnitude 7.3 earthquake struck Achaie,valymitika,tripolis, Greece on December 26, 1861 at 05:00 UTC. It caused a tsunami.

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
December 26, 1861
Time
05:00 UTC
Place
Achaie,valymitika,tripolis, Greece
Magnitude
7.3 (Ms)
Intensity
10 on the Modified Mercalli scale
Epicenter
38.200° N, 22.200° E
Country
Greece

The toll

Deaths
Few (about 1 to 50)
Damage
Limited (under about $1 million); Moderate (about $1 to $5 million) with its tsunami and other effects
Houses destroyed
Many (101 to 1,000)

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.

Reference #1198 lists December 26, 06 49 UT, epicenter 38.3N, 22.3E, intensity XI.

The earthquake occurred at 8 h 28m local time and affected the central part of the Gulf of Corinth, particularly the regions of Aigion, on the southern coast of the Gulf, and Galaxidi, on the northern coast. The earthquake was recorded by a magnetometer in Munich [5], and in Athens the shock stopped a Kassel pendulum clock at the Observatory at 8 h 50m. (reference #9116)

Other significant earthquakes nearby

Within 200 km, the deadliest first.

More

Significant earthquakes of 1861The 1800sRecent earthquakes near hereThis 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 2052.