Climatic extremes and their social impact in 17th-century Transylvania. A climate-historical reconstruction in the context of the Little Ice Age

The 17th century represented one of the most difficult climatic and social periods in the recent history of Europe, being marked by the transition to the Maunder Minimum, the peak of the Little Ice Age; marked by low thermal values, long and severe winters, rainy and cool summers, numerous dangerous climatic phenomena, a reduced number of normal years and seasons, famines, epidemics, etc. Taking these aspects into account, the present study aims to reconstruct, based on written historical sources, the climatic variability in the Principality of Transylvania during the 17th century. The emphasis is placed on the climatic phenomena generated by temperature and precipitation, as well as on the calamities associated with climate and their impact on society. The analysis identified a high prevalence of events associated with cold weather, 54 winters being mentioned as particularly cold in this century, of which 36 occurred during the Maunder Minimum (1645–1715). This interval was also characterized by numerous episodes of excessive precipitation and a clear imbalance between events associated with excessive humidity and drought. Variable climatic conditions caused poor harvests, famine, high prices and favoured the emergence of severe epidemics and social crises. Correlating historical sources with proxy data from the natural archive confirms the exceptional character of this century and validates the reconstruction based on historical information. They also indicate that natural factors such as solar activity and general atmospheric circulation generated the colder and wetter climate in 17th-century Transylvania, especially during the winters of the Maunder Minimum.