SOCIAL SCIENCES

This Gulf of Fire: The Destruction of Lisbon, or Apocalypse in the Age of Science and Reason

by Mark Molesky
Knopf. Nov. 2015. 512p. illus. notes. bibliog. index. ISBN 9780307267627. $35; ebk. ISBN 9781101875827. HIST
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Molesky (history, Seton Hall Univ.) gives a well-researched account of the devastating trifecta of earthquake, tsunami, and firestorm that destroyed Portugal's capitol, Lisbon, in 1755. This natural disaster is rarely spoken about, being eclipsed by other events such as the San Francisco earthquake of 1906, but, says Molesky, it was a decisive moment in Portuguese history, precipitating the rise in a dictatorial government and future economic decline and obscurity for the once-prosperous empire. The book also traces how the event impacted intellectual thought of the time (e.g., the religious and scientific debate over the earthquake) and shows individual countries' reactions to the news, which includes information on Russia and Britain's North American colonies.
VERDICT For an academic-type tome, this is a thoroughly absorbing take on a momentous event. Molesky brings much-needed attention to a disaster that redefined a country's concept of itself as well as its cultural and historical progression. Anyone interested in history and especially disaster history will find this book enthralling.
Reviewed by Laura Hiatt-Smith, Conifer, CO , Oct 01, 2015
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