Nowhere near comparable to some of the suggestions above - but broadly in line with Pripyat - there’s the case of Roman London. Estimates for the population at its height run in the range 40-60,000, yet it seems to have collapsed to virtually empty following the withdrawal of civil administration. Archaeologists argue about whether the abandoned city was ever truly empty, but as a generalisation there are several centuries where there’s essentially no evidence of occupation.
An example of a major centre of political administration emptying, then later re-emerging as a significant city again.
Please note that the undamaged portions of New Orleans still have pretty much the same population density as before. But there’s a huge section of the 9th Ward and New Orleans East (all in the city limits of New Orleans) that are completely abandoned. Basically the suburbs within the city limits have no population. The suburbs outside the city limits are now more densely populated than before the storm. There’s been about a 10 mile population shift to the west.
People STILL live in Chernobyl, according to the wikipedia entry. :eek: That must be a very strange existence.
In 1327 Muhammad bin Tughlaq, ruler of the Delhi Sultanate, ordered the entire population of Delhi to clear out. Then as now Delhi must have been one of the most populous cities of the world (how would one find 14th-century population estimates?). A couple years later he changed his mind about moving the capital, but the historian says “A vast amount of the population died during the moves due to the inadequate travel arrangements. It was said that Delhi was a ghost town for years after the move back.”
I nominate Delhi, 1327 as the most populous city ever depopulated all at once. :eek:
Crap, I should have thought of that. I am reminded however, of the town just down the river.
According to this site:
It was effectively empty for 2 years.
See for yourself. Just pick the listings on the left to see the Chernobyl pics.
I cannot remember the name of it, but on the island of Cyprus there is an abandoned holiday resort which has been deserted since the war in the 1970’s. It’s just inside the Turkish part of the island on the east coast.
I have now found the name of the town in Cyprus , it’s Famagusta
For most of the 7th century BCE, Nineveh, the capital of the Assyrian empire, was one of the greatest cities in the world with a population of perhaps 150,000. The city was razed to the ground in 612 BCE, was rebuilt on a much smaller scale several centuries later, and eventually faded away. The Iraqi city of Mosul was built near the city’s ruins.
Quick, somebody tell Sir Robin!
I think in many cases, it’s too hard to tell what the original population was for many early abandoned cities. Tiahuanacu has estimates up to nearly a million and a half people, but more likely “between 570,000 and 1,111,500.”
Damn you, JetBlue!
I thought that site had been debunked? Something to the effect that the pictures weren’t taken anywhere near Chernobyl?
Ys probably doesn’t belong here since it’s pretty much a myth. However, after reading one version about how the city supposedly met its soggy demise, if there’s ever a “Largest City to be Completely Abandoned Due to An Act of Drunken Stupidity” Thread, Ys would certainly be near the top.
As for more recent examples, there are a number of ghost towns in the Western U.S. that had significant populations that dwindled down to nothing (or near-nothing) once the mines gave out. Virginia City, Nevada (which may not be the best example since it’s not completely abandoned) had 30,000 when it was at its peak in the late 19th century. It’s now 1,500 (and that was after a recent increase in its population).
Bodie, California, on the other hand, is abandoned (except maybe for a few state park employees). At its most populous, it had about 10,000.
You’re welcome.
Merv, in what is now Turkmenistan, was said to be the largest city in the world at one point in the 12th century.
Then in the 13th century Genghis Khan razed it to the ground. It’s definitely a candidate for this thread. Might well be the winner.
Merv? Was its heraldic animal the griffin?
The World Trade Center, not a city, but they did have their own zip code.
There’s been some fabrication on her part and exaggeration, but it’s Chernobyl and the surrounding area, IIRC.
Speaking of India, I was thinking of Fatehpur Sikri, capital of Mughal India from 1571 to 1585. I don’t know how populous it was, though, or whether the entire population bailed or only the court and administration. But it’s remarkable for so much resources poured into building a city that only lasted 14 years.
The Wiki article states the population was 200,000 people at its height. I’m still sticking with Angkor and its 750,000 population as the winner.
(Mostly because I’m kind of psyched that I was the first to throw out Angkor, dammit!)