STRANGE AND TERRIBLE WONDERS: CLIMATE CHANGE IN THE EARLY MODERN WORLD A Dissertation by CHRISTOPHER RYAN GILSON Submitted to the Office of Graduate and Professional Studies of Texas A&M University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY Chair of Committee, Chester S. L. Dunning Committee Members, R. J. Q. Adams Joseph G. Dawson III Peter J. Hugill Head of Department, David Vaught August 2015 Major Subject: History Copyright 2015 Christopher R. Gilson ABSTRACT The study of climate and climatic change began during the Little Ice Age of the early modern world. Beginning in the sixteenth century, European clerics, scientists, and natural philosophers penned detailed observations of the era’s unusually cool and stormy weather. Scouring the historical record for evidence of similar phenomena in the past, early modern scholars concluded that the climate could change. By the eighteenth century, natural philosophers had identified at least five theories of climatic change, and many had adopted some variation of an anthropogenic explanation. The early modern observations described in this dissertation support the conclusion that cool temperatures and violent storms defined the Little Ice Age. This dissertation also demonstrates that modern notions of climate change are based upon 400 years of rich scholarship and spirited debate. This dissertation opens with a discussion of the origins of “climate” and meteorology in ancient Greek and Roman literature, particularly Aristotle’s Meteorologica. Although ancient scholars explored notions of environmental change, climate change—defined as such—was thought impossible. The translation and publication of ancient texts during the Renaissance contributed to the reexamination of nature and natural variability. In the sixteenth century, most scholars interpreted weather phenomena through the lenses of theology, astrology, and meteorology. None of these provided a model for great winters or long-term climatic change. The first great storms of the Little Ice Age encouraged observant scholars to construct meteorological ii chronicles to facilitate the comparison of ancient and modern weather events. The first references to climatic change date to this era, though most observers concluded that contemporary phenomena were no worse than their predecessors. The Scientific Revolution transformed the practice of meteorology in seventeenth-century Europe. Professional scientific organizations encouraged careful observation, standardized reporting, and collaborative research. Late seventeenth-century scientists proposed the first natural, rather than theological, theories of climatic change, while eighteenth century geologists and historians worked to incorporate new weather records into their conclusions. By the early nineteenth century, most scholars acknowledged some degree of climatic change, and many concluded that human civilization bore some responsibility. iii DEDICATION To my parents. iv ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Many historians have reflected on the unusually personal nature of writing history. We invite ourselves into the lives of people we will never meet to explore the world in which they lived. It is a task that requires great caution and respect—especially when writing about the fear that accompanies natural disasters. The study of history, however, is personal in another way: It is always collaborative. This dissertation is based upon seven years of classwork, archival research, writing, and editing, and many individuals—some unknown—have contributed in measures small and great. Space sadly precludes a comprehensive list, but I would like to recognize the contributions of a few people and organizations who made this dissertation possible. I am indebted to Texas A&M University, the College of Liberal Arts, and the Department of History for the opportunity they provided me to accomplish my goals. I am particularly grateful to Chester S. L. Dunning, the chair of my committee, who has guided me through the completion of my thesis and dissertation. Most importantly, he has become a trusted advisor and dear friend. I am also grateful to professors Joseph G. Dawson III, R. J. Q. Adams, and Peter J. Hugill. Like Professor Dunning, these gentlemen have served as members of my committee for the entirety of my time at Texas A&M. I have learned much from their professionalism, scholarship, and good humor. Several other professors have provided guidance and friendship during my time in College Station. I would like to express my appreciation to Arnold Krammer, David Hudson, Walter Kamphoefner, Andrew Kirkendall, Olga Dror, Philip Smith, Sylvia v Hoffert, and Daniel Schwartz. I would be remiss to neglect the staff of the Department of History, who have provided invaluable guidance and assistance during my time in College Station. I am particularly grateful to Rita Walker, Barbara Dawson, Mary Johnson, Robyn Konrad, and Kelly Cook. Numerous organizations, institutions, and individuals have encouraged and supported my research. I have benefited from several travel-to-archive and research grants sponsored by the Department of History, the Melbern G. Glasscock Center for Humanities Research, and the College of Liberal Arts. I have also received kind assistance at numerous archives and museums, including the National Archives in Kew, the Museum of the History of Science in Oxford, and the Whipple Museum of the History of Science in Cambridge. Glyn Hughes, Joan Self, and the staff of the National Meteorological Archive and Library in Exeter were supportive of my research at its earliest phase, and they provided me with an opportunity to examine a variety of priceless documents and artifacts. I commend the Met Office and the Devon County Archives for their hospitality and excellent facilities. I am also grateful to Robert C. Leitz III, Martha Lawler, and the staff of the James Smith Noel Collection in Shreveport, Louisiana, who helped me find and examine several seventeenth-century publications. It is always a pleasure to find such resources so close to home. Dozens of librarians and archivists have assisted me in my research. Joel Kitchens at Texas A&M and Paula Craig at Northwestern State University have been particularly helpful in my search for unusual and hard-to-find sources. vi I completed this dissertation after returning home to Northwestern State University in Natchitoches, Louisiana. I am grateful for the opportunity Northwestern provided me to complete my dissertation while teaching geography and history. As an instructor, I have experienced the rare blessing of standing on the other side of the very classrooms where I began my studies more than a decade ago. My great-grandfather, Alexandros Egyptiades (Albert George Alexander), a Greek immigrant from modern- day Turkey, began his career as a literature professor in Natchitoches almost 100 years ago. It has been great fun to follow in his footsteps this year. I would like to express my kind regards to Joe Morris, head of the Department of Criminal Justice, History, and Social Sciences, Lisa Abney, Provost and Vice President for Academic and Student Affairs, and President James Henderson. While at Northwestern, I have been fortunate to study and work with several wonderful historians and geographers, including Susan Dollar, Kent Hare, Charles Pellegrin, Jeff Smith, Kathleen Smith, James MacDonald, Dean Sinclair, Greg Granger, the late Marietta LeBreton, and the late John Price. I am grateful for their friendship, guidance, and support. I have also been fortunate to study alongside dozens of kind, funny, and brilliant graduate students at Texas A&M. We have shaped each other’s work formally and informally, in class and at dinner, and I am grateful for that experience. Separation is bittersweet, but I expect many of these friendships to endure. Jared Donnelly, Jennifer Heth, Jessica Herzogenrath, and Matthew Yokell provided valuable encouragement and criticism of that most difficult chapter of any project—the first. I am grateful to Brandon Ward and Damon Chengelis for encouraging my research in its earliest phases, vii and I am thankful for the fellowship I have shared with numerous others, including Ralph Morales, Brad Cesario, Marshall Yokell, and Jeff Crean. I am thankful for the many friends and family who have supported and encouraged me during my time in College Station, and I am especially grateful to Chuck Bourg and Perry Johnson, who helped me return to Louisiana upon completion of my studies. Finally, I am grateful to my parents, Gil and Kay Gilson. There are no words capable of expressing the gratitude that I have for their support. I wrote most of this dissertation on their patio, surrounded by the sights, sounds, and scents of several spring and summer seasons. To my great amusement, several of those seasons were unusual, including one of the snowiest winters (2013-14), mildest summers (2014), and wettest springs (2015) in recent (and recorded) memory. Earning a Ph. D. in History is difficult, though, and my parents have supported my studies every step of the way. They have sacrificed nights and weekends to visit me in Texas or to read manuscripts of seminar papers and dissertation chapters. I am eternally grateful for their kindness, guidance, and love. Thank you. viii TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ABSTRACT .............................................................................................................. ii DEDICATION .........................................................................................................