November 1, 1755 Tsunami: Lisbon, Portugal

Ref #41:

11/1/ 1755, epicenter 38 N., 10 W, Portugal, Spain, Morocco, Azores, Madeira, and elsewhere. The Lisbon earthquake was very destructive. 3 waves 15-40 ft high, added to the destruction at Lisbon. 7 ft waves reported from Gibralter. Waves up to 18 ft high caused numerous deaths at Cadiz (36 32 N., 6 18 W.). High waves were reported from Tangier (35 47 N., 5 48 W.). At Safi (Saffe) (32 18 N., 9 14 W.) the sea inundated the town. Waves at Agadier (30 24 N., 9 36 W.) swept over the sea wall claiming innumerable victims. At Madeira the sea withdrew 100 paces and returned to the height of 15 ft above the highest tide inundating Funchal (32 38 N., 16 54 W.), and doing a great deal of damage on the N and E coast of the island, on the west scarcely anything being perceived. The tsunami was noted throughout the Azores. Angra de Heroismo (38 39 N., 27 13 W.), Ilha Terceira inundated. The water rose up to Praca Velha, a place situated 300 m from the sea at an elevation of 15 m. The reflux stranded vessels anchored in the roadstead. 3 waves destroyed 15 houses at Praia da Vitoria. The water rose 2 m at Porto Judeu (38 39 N., 27 07 W.). At Horta (36 32 N., 28 37 W.) Ilha de Fayal (38 34 N., 28 41 W.) the sea rose, then dropped, 3 times with increasing violence. The maximum wave height was 13 m.

Ref #2539:

The destruction was greatest in Algarve, southern Portugal, where the tsunami dismantled some coastal fortresses and, in the lower levels, razed house. In some places the waves crested at more than 30 m. Most coastal towns and villages of Algarve were heavily damaged, except Faro, which was protected by sandy banks. In Lagos, the waves reached the top of the city walls. For the coastal regions the destructive effects of the tsunami were more disastrous than those of the earthquake.

Ref #1201:

The great earthquake was accompanied by a tidal wave which destroyed Lisbon & devastated Marco, there were thousands of victims and enormous damage at Marrakech, Meknes, Ceuta, Tangier, Rabat, Casablanca, Safi and Agadir.

Ref #43:

Seiches occurred. Many lakes in the British Isles, in the Alps, in Germany, and in southern Scandinavia were disturbed, as were some fiords in Norway and lochs in Scotland.

Ref #9504:

All in all, the 1755 earthquake and the resulting tsunami and fires caused between 40,000 and 50,000 deaths in Portugal, Spain and Morocco.

Ref #3730:

The earthquake which struck on 11/1/1755 caused up to 100,000 deaths through destruction by ground shaking, from the ensuing fires and by tsunami waves of 5-15 m which devastated the coasts of Southwest Iberia and Northwest Morocco.

Ref #2702:

In Portugal the estimated number of casualties due to the earthquake, the tsunami and the fire points to 10,000 people, although several coeval documents refer to a larger number of victims; the number of casualties due exclusively to the tsunami is about 1000. Downtown Lisbon was completely flooded by the rise of the river Tagus; the penetration distance of the water from the river was 250 m. The 'wall' built by king Philip I of Portugal, I1 of Spain, to guard the city worked as an obstacle to the waters of the river Tagus.

Ref #2853:

This discovery raises the possibility that the tsunami was partly generated by an earthquake-triggered fault on the seabed and partly by submarine sediment sliding.

Ref #4139:

37 N 10 W, magnitude 8.5, intensity 11.5

Ref #9243:

The tsunami was not observed at Le Robert or Sainte-Marie, both on Martinique.