801 Apennine earthquake
801 CE.
Shown on the map at 42.468°, 13.566°.
An earthquake originating in the Central Apennines was felt in Rome and Spoleto on 29 April 801. It is reported in two independent contemporary sources, Einhard's Royal Frankish Annals and the Liber Pontificalis. The information provided by the written sources has been augmented by archaeology. Both the Annals and the Liber date the event to 30 April according to contemporary Roman practice, whereby the day began at sundown. The Annals specify that it happened at the second hour of the night, which corresponds to 20:00 (8:00 p.m.) on 29 April by modern reckoning. The Annals record the event from the perspective of the Frankish king Charlemagne, who had been crowned Roman emperor on 25 December 800 and had left Rome on 25 April for Spoleto, where he was staying when the earthquake struck. They do not record the damage at Spoleto. Charlemagne was unharmed, but perhaps spooked. The quake was severe, with an estimated magnitude at Rome of VII–VIII on the modified Mercalli intensity scale and 5.4 on the energy magnitude scale. The epicenter was probably somewhere between Spoleto and Perugia. The Annals refer to its effects throughout Italy, but without specifics.
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