{{Short description|Tropical cyclone in the North Indian Ocean}} {{Use dmy dates|date=December 2022}} {{Use Indian English|date=December 2022}} {{Infobox weather event | formed = 9 October 1737 | dissipated = 13 October 1737 }}{{Infobox weather event/IMD | winds = 140 <!-- based on the Dvorak scale ---> }}{{Infobox weather event/SSHWS | winds = 145 }}{{Infobox weather event/Effects | areas = [[Mughal Empire]] (modern day [[Bangladesh]] and [[West Bengal, India]]) | year = 1737 | fatalities = 300,000+ }}{{Infobox weather event/Footer | season = [[Pre-1890 North Indian Ocean cyclone seasons|1737 North Indian Ocean cyclone season]] }} The '''1737 Calcutta cyclone''', also known as the '''Hooghly River cyclone of 1737''' or the '''Great Bengal cyclone of 1737''', was the first [[Tropical cyclone|super cyclone]] on record in the North [[Indian Ocean]] and is regarded as one of the worst natural disasters in Indian history. It hit the coast near [[Kolkata]] on the morning of 11 October 1737 and has been reported to have killed over 300,000 people in Calcutta, and caused widespread catastrophic damage. The cyclone hit land over the [[Ganges|Ganges River Delta]], just southwest of Calcutta. Most deaths resulted from the storm surge and happened on the sea: many ships sank in the [[Bay of Bengal]] and an unknown number of livestock and wild animals were killed from the effects of the cyclone. The damage was described as "extensive" but numerical statistics are unknown.
== Meteorological history == Based on inland observations that the cyclone's tidal effects were felt as far as {{cvt|130|km}} inland south-southwest of [[Calcutta]], the storm likely formed near the coast of [[Burma]], supported by observations of ships passing in the area.<ref name="imd">{{Cite report |url=https://metnet.imd.gov.in/mausamdocs/14718_F.pdf|title=Reconstructing the Great Bengal Cyclone of 1737|pages=67–72|author=A.K Sen Sarma|volume=47|date=1996|access-date=3 May 2021|publisher=[[India Meteorological Department]]|location=[[Kalyani, West Bengal]]}}</ref> The cyclone presumably moved northwest before turning northward, paralleling the coast of [[Calcutta]] between 10 and 11 October.<ref name="imd"/> The storm then began to slow down before turning north-northeastwards, making landfall over the [[Ganges|Ganges River Delta]], just south of Calcutta.<ref>{{Cite web|title=In the Line of Cyclones: Worst Bengal cyclones since 1737|url=https://www.getbengal.com/details/in-the-line-of-cyclones-worst-bengal-cyclones-since-1737|access-date=2021-05-03|publisher=Get Bengal}}</ref> It slowed down while crossing the [[West Bengal]], entering modern-day [[Bangladesh]] on or by 13 October before being last noted that day, far to the north of [[Dacca]].<ref name="imd"/>
=== The track === [[File:Track of the 1737 Calcutta cyclone.png|thumb|Presumed track of the 1737 Calcutta cyclone (as Illustrated by the track of the [[1864 Calcutta cyclone]] that devastated comparable areas)]] [[India Meteorological Department]] researchers conducted a study about the storm's track, finding similar storms that passed on or near [[Calcutta]] to cause similar damage and the same date when they passed.<ref name="imd"/> The [[1864 Calcutta cyclone]] is an example they used, as the storm also had caused similar aftermath to the area nearly 127 years before.<ref name="imd"/> The full brunt of the 1864 storm was felt at Calcutta from 10:00 pm to 4:00 am ([[Indian Standard Time|IST]]) on 4 and 5 October (14:30 pm to 20:30 pm, [[Universal Standard Time|UTC]]).<ref name="imd"/> Meanwhile, the storm started to brush the coast of the area on "the night of October 11 and 12", presumably between the same time as the 1864 storm but using the date of the 1737 storm.<ref name="imd"/> Researchers then adjusted the landfall time of the 1737 storm to match the time where the residents inland experienced the storm's fury.<ref name="imd"/>
== Impact == The cyclone is regarded as one of India's worst natural disasters since reliable statistics began to be recorded.<ref name="imd"/>
Rain accumulation of the [[Ganges]] was estimated at 381 mm (15 in) over six hours.<ref name="colorado"/> In his official report, Thomas Joshua Moore, the [[British East India Company]] duties collector, said that almost all the thatched buildings had been destroyed by the storm and flood.<ref name="colorado">{{Cite report |url=http://cires1.colorado.edu/~bilham/gif_images/1737Calcutta.pdf|title=The 1737 Calcutta Earthquake and Cyclone evaluated |pages=1–10 |first=Roger |last=Bilham |location=Boulder, Colorado |date=1994 |access-date=2021-05-03}}</ref> An estimated 3,000 inhabitants of the town have been killed.<ref name="colorado"/>
A contemporary account of the cyclone, from the [[The Gentleman's Magazine|Gentleman's Magazine]] of London, stated that an earthquake had destroyed some 20,000 ships in the harbour and killed some 300,000 people.<ref name="colorado"/> Given the population of Calcutta was 20,000 at the time, the 300,000 figure is either an error or, less probably, a figure relating to the whole of Bengal. Although there would appear to be little evidence for the widely reported figure of 300,000 deaths, or for an earthquake at all, this number shows up recurrently in popular literature.<ref name="colorado"/> At the same time, the figure of 3,000 is only an estimation of the number of deaths inside the city itself.<ref name="colorado"/>
Many cattle, tigers, and rhinoceroses were drowned in a storm surge with an estimated height of 10–13 meters (or 30–40 feet) from the storm and the "earthquake".<ref name="colorado"/> Many crocodiles were also drowned by the strong river currents, and birds were plunged into the river by the winds, drowning them.<ref name="colorado"/> Two 500-ton ships were thrown by large waves into a populated village, which further broke into pieces.<ref name="colorado"/> Many people and cattle were killed.<ref name="colorado"/> Two more ships of 60 tons were wrecked and found over the high grounds, destroying large trees.<ref name="colorado"/> Eight out of nine ships were lost in the [[Ganges River]] and most of their crews drowned in the high seas.<ref name="colorado"/> Three out of four [[List of ships of the line of the Dutch Republic|Dutch ships]] also sank in the Ganges River and Bay of Bengal, respectively.<ref name="colorado"/> The spire of the Govindaram temple was also destroyed by the cyclone.<ref name="amphan"/>
In the aftermath of [[Cyclone Amphan]] on [[Kolkata]], many people, including Chief Minister of [[West Bengal]] [[Mamata Banerjee]] compared the catastrophe of the storm to this cyclone due to its similar effects and impact.<ref name="amphan">{{Cite web|last=Mohapatra|first=Samhati|date=2020-05-22|title=Amphan's fury conjures up memories of 1737 Bengal cyclone|url=https://thefederal.com/states/east/west-bengal/amphans-fury-conjures-up-memories-of-uncanny-cousin-1737-bengal-cyclone/|access-date=2021-05-03|website=The Federal|language=en-US}}</ref>
== See also == {{portal|Tropical cyclones}} *[[1864 Calcutta cyclone]] - a deadly tropical cyclone that devastated the same area nearly 130 years after. *[[1970 Bhola cyclone]] - the deadliest tropical cyclone worldwide.
== References == {{reflist}}
== External links == * [http://cires.colorado.edu/~bilham/gif_images/1737Calcutta.pdf The 1737 Calcutta Earthquake and Cyclone Evaluated by Roger Bilham, BSSA, Vol. 84, No. 5, October 1994] * [http://www.imdmumbai.gov.in/cycdisasters.htm Cyclone-Related Disasters on India] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20051025071035/http://www.imdmumbai.gov.in/cycdisasters.htm |date=2005-10-25 }} *
{{Super cyclonic storms}}
[http://cires.colorado.edu/~bilham/1737Earthquake.html The report on the 1737 Earthquake]
{{DEFAULTSORT:1737 Calcutta cyclone}} [[Category:18th century in Kolkata]] [[Category:1737 in India]] [[Category:Tropical cyclones in India]] [[Category:Bay of Bengal]] [[Category:1737 disasters]] [[Category:1730s natural disasters]] [[Category:18th-century disasters in India]]