What were Portugal's natural disasters?

Answer 1

The great Lisbon earthquake happened Saterday, Nov.1 close to 9:40 AM. This was followed by fires and a tsunami. Between the three they almost destroyed Portugals Kingdom and it's surrounding areas. This earthquake has been estimated to have been around a 8.5--9.0 on the moment magnitude scale. The death toll was estimated to have been between 10,000 to 100,000 people making it one of the worlds most devastating earthquakes in the history of our planet.

Answer 2

Portugal's most famous natural disaster was the Lisbon Earthquake of 1755. The earthquake began mid-morning on November 1, 1755. The earthquake was centered in the Atlantic Ocean about 124 miles [200 kilometers] west-southwest of Cabo de São Vicente [Cape St. Vincent] in the Algarve region of southern Portugal. It began with three distinct jolts. Shortly thereafter three tsunamis inundated Portugal's coast. The four elements of earth, fire, water, and wind all combined to wreak havoc on one of the most beautiful cities in the world for five days. Seismologists today estimate its magnitude at 9.0 on the moment scale [successor to the Richter scale].

A recent book in English on this natural disaster is 'The Last Day: Wrath, Ruin, And Reason In The Great Lisbon Earthquake Of 1755' [Viking, 2008]. It's by journalist Nicholas Shrady. It's 240 pages in length and thoroughly covers the earthquake.