January 1607 will be the 400th anniversary of one of the worst natural disasters to occur in Great Britain. Most of the low land around the Severn estuary from Barnstaple to Gloucester was flooded. The effects were also seen from Merionethshire to the Gwent Levels and as far away as Norfolk. A number of acounts of the event were written at the time, but they are now quite hard to get hold of. This site aims to provide the text of the main records (see Sources page), and some other information on the subject. A number of churches in the area bear marks showing the height of the water, or plaques commemorating the flood. Some details of where these can be seen are given in the Churches page. There is confusion as to whether it happened in 1606 or 1607. The reason for this (due to a change of calendar) is explained in the Calendar page. In 1607, James I (James VI of Scotland) was the new king of England and Wales, at the start of the Stuart dynasty. Shakespeare was still writing - he published Macbeth in 1606. Guy Fawkes had attempted to blow up the Houses of Parliament just over one year earlier. There were no newspapers as we know them, but pamphlets describing notable events, such as this, would be printed for sale from shops in London.

Possible causes of the flood include high tides, crumbling sea walls, storm surge or a tsunami. The tide was certainly at its highest, but this alone would not be enough. The sea defences may have been in a poor state of repair, but are unlikely to have given way on such a scale right across the estuary. A storm surge is quite likely, especially combined with high tides, but there is also evidence that there may have been a tsunami. See the Causes page for details.

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sources

calendars

causes

memorials