# Tornados and Ancient History
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tornados-and-ancient-history/583331
**Category:** Factual Questions
**Created:** [May 26, 2011, 6:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tornados-and-ancient-history/583331 "2011-05-26T18:39:50Z")
**Posts on this page:** 10
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@Meatros](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Meatros)
#### Post date: [May 26, 2011, 6:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tornados-and-ancient-history/583331/1 "2011-05-26T18:39:50Z")
With all the crazy weather and the tornadoes hitting the US recently, I was curious: Did the ancients ever leave any writings indicating anything about the existence of tornadoes? Hurricanes?
Ancients is kind of vague, but I basically mean anyone from before the Dark ages.
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### Author:  [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)
#### Post date: [May 26, 2011, 7:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tornados-and-ancient-history/583331/2 "2011-05-26T19:03:13Z")
> [@Meatros](#):
>
> With all the crazy weather and the tornadoes hitting the US recently, I was curious: Did the ancients ever leave any writings indicating anything about the existence of tornadoes? Hurricanes?
>
> Ancients is kind of vague, but I basically mean anyone from before the Dark ages.
In Europe the first recorded tornado was in 1054 in Rosdalla, Ireland. ([cite](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_tornadoes_and_tornado_outbreaks)) (Note “recorded”…certainly they occurred before that)
Certainly tornadoes happen elsewhere in the world and were not unknown to the ancients but tornadoes outside the US are comparatively rare (tornado alley in the US has by far the majority of the world’s tornadoes). Also, when you consider population densities were far, far lower than they are today is was even more unlike a tornado would hit a high population area and cause damage that people would take note of and write something about.
I do not know if native Americans wrote about tornadoes or not. When European settlers started settling in those areas we were well beyond the Dark Ages.
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### Author:  [@Lukeinva](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lukeinva)
#### Post date: [May 26, 2011, 7:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tornados-and-ancient-history/583331/3 "2011-05-26T19:09:31Z")
Bit a long read but you will learn [how a tornado helped to defeat the British](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Burning_of_Washington) in the war of 1812.
The story was on the History Channel recently.
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### Author:  [@Derleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Derleth)
#### Post date: [May 26, 2011, 7:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tornados-and-ancient-history/583331/4 "2011-05-26T19:13:34Z")
> [@lukeinva](#):
>
> Bit a long read but you will learn [how a tornado helped to defeat the British](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Burning_of_Washington) in the war of 1812.
>
> The story was on the History Channel recently.
There’s that, there’s the _kamikaze_ wind, and… what else? How often do hurricanes or tornadoes influence the course of wars?
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### Author:  [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)
#### Post date: [May 26, 2011, 7:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tornados-and-ancient-history/583331/5 "2011-05-26T19:26:12Z")
> [@Derleth](#):
>
> There’s that, there’s the _kamikaze_ wind, and… what else? How often do hurricanes or tornadoes influence the course of wars?
I dunno about hurricanes or tornadoes and such influencing wars but weather has repeatedly changed the course of wars (ask Napoleon for starters).
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### Author:  [@Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_T-Bonham.net)
#### Post date: [May 26, 2011, 11:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tornados-and-ancient-history/583331/6 "2011-05-26T23:00:34Z")
> [@Whack-a-Mole](#):
>
> I dunno about hurricanes or tornadoes and such influencing wars but weather has repeatedly changed the course of wars (ask Napoleon for starters).
Or the Spanish Armada against England.
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### Author:  [@Dr.Drake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Drake)
#### Post date: [May 27, 2011, 12:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tornados-and-ancient-history/583331/7 "2011-05-27T00:22:16Z")
> [@Whack-a-Mole](#):
>
> In Europe the first recorded tornado was in 1054 in Rosdalla, Ireland. ([cite](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_tornadoes_and_tornado_outbreaks)) (Note “recorded”…certainly they occurred before that)
Just to note, this is from an entry in the Irish annals that talks about a “belltower of fire” (online translations mostly read “steeple”) with a bunch of black birds flying in and out of it. It’s not impossible to read it as a description of a tornado, but obvious tornado-related words like “wind” and “circular” don’t occur anywhere in the description.
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### Author:  [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)
#### Post date: [May 27, 2011, 12:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tornados-and-ancient-history/583331/8 "2011-05-27T00:32:29Z")
Water Spouts were described in some early writings. Does that count?
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### Author:  [@Shagnasty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shagnasty)
#### Post date: [May 27, 2011, 12:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tornados-and-ancient-history/583331/9 "2011-05-27T00:37:08Z")
> [@Whack-a-Mole](#):
>
> I dunno about hurricanes or tornadoes and such influencing wars but weather has repeatedly changed the course of wars (ask Napoleon for starters).
See [Crack.com](http://Crack.com)’s article on [Six Real Historic Wars Decided By Divine Intervention.](http://www.cracked.com/article_18894_6-real-historic-battles-decided-by-divine-intervention.html)
Tornadoes occur all over the world but the U.S. is the main place where you get the suck you out of your brick house and kill all your pets kind. The Native Americans that lived in tornado alley weren’t much for writing stuff down plus most of them died off. They might have mentioned that history of the area to the early white settlers as they pushed west but who listens to them?
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### Author:  [@tomwindsor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tomwindsor)
#### Post date: [April 2, 2014, 4:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tornados-and-ancient-history/583331/10 "2014-04-02T04:06:04Z")
> [@Meatros](#):
>
> With all the crazy weather and the tornadoes hitting the US recently, I was curious: Did the ancients ever leave any writings indicating anything about the existence of tornadoes? Hurricanes?
>
> Ancients is kind of vague, but I basically mean anyone from before the Dark ages.
The biblical record states ( before 800 B.C.)
“and Elijah \*\*went up \*\*to heaven in a whirlwind.” (2 King 2:11 ) There is also the **“pillar of cloud”** the people of Israel witnessed at the Red Sea. It was said to be a “whirlwind” in Psalm 77
Tom Windsor (author) “Life is Like a Weather Forecast”