Most men living in the 20th century were unlucky enough to have to fight in both the First and Second World Wars. Do you think that the period we live in is the darkest period in human history? At first glance, we can think of today's world, where a new global crisis emerges every day, as the most disastrous years in human history. Let's not go too far. Even today, we feel very unlucky because the corona virus epidemic coincided with the period we live in. Every day we face a new political crisis or a new environmental problem.
What about historical periods of war, famine, pestilence, or a combination of the three? The current global problems are relatively unimportant, especially when it comes to the triple combination. Maybe we want to trivialize existing problems by looking at history. Here are the worst years in history and the most tragic events that humanity has experienced.
1) EUROPE - BLACK DEATH PERIOD
When we say the worst years in history, we immediately think of the plague epidemic. Almost all of us know that the life in the Middle Ages was quite abrasive and cruel under normal conditions. Consider, on top of that, a plague epidemic.
The arrival of Genoese merchant ships to the European continent in October 1347 marked the beginning of perhaps the most difficult period in human history. Inside the ship were microscopic passengers whose death would spread across the continent. The plague caused by Yersinia pestis bacterium In October 1347, the arrival of Genoese merchant ships to the European continent marked the beginning of perhaps the most difficult period in human history. Inside the ship were microscopic passengers whose death would spread across the continent.
The Black Death pandemic, known as one of the deadliest epidemics in human history, has reduced the world population by approximately 22%. In the 14th century alone, 200 million people died in the epidemic. The impact of the epidemic on the population was so strong that it took 300 years for the world's population to reach the pre-plague era. People were trying to understand what caused the epidemic. What was the reason for all this? Was it astrological forces, earthquakes, or God's punishment? Many people wanted to go to the other world to find answers to these questions.
You could go to the other world only by dying. For this reason, many people chose to kill themselves to find answers to their questions. At that time, it was never predictable who might be infected. People did not trust each other. Patients were leaving their homes, dying on the roadside. There was a shortage of food because the fields could not be plowed. People had to fight not only disease but also famine. Death was so close to people that it was not possible to find people willing to work in the field. People were aware that there was a possibility that they would die tomorrow.
Therefore, they did not want to spend their last remaining days working. It took 400 years for the disease to disappear. These 400 years meant utter gloom, distress, death, sadness and grief for humanity.
2) CHINA – MONGOLIAN INVASION PERIOD
It is possible to define the Mongol invasions, which started in the 13th century and ended in the 14th century, as a chain of conquests that covered a large part of Eurasia and resulted in the establishment of a very powerful Mongolian Empire. Historians consider this chain of conquest as one of the deadliest events in human history. When the Mongol invasions began in 1205, unlucky people living in Eurasia – regardless of their origins – paid a heavy price. The conquest started by Genghis Khan was continued by his son Ögeday Khan and finally his grandson Kublai Khan completed it.
During the Mongol invasion, the great cities of China looked like a pile of rubble. Estimates of the people who lost their lives during this invasion vary widely. Some historians claim that out of 120 million Chinese citizens, only 60 million remain. Being a Chinese citizen during this time period, which is considered to be the worst years in history, was an extremely dangerous existence.
The Mongol invasion, which started in the 13th century, affected not only China but also Europeans and Turks. Genghis Khan brought death wherever he stepped. Many Turks living in Siberia and Central Asia had begun to migrate to Anatolia.
Looting, rape, massacre, war and immigration negatively affected many states that existed at that time. The Mongol invasion was so strong that by the 14th century the Mongols had reached India. Over time, the Empire weakened due to throne fights and internal conflicts, and this was the end of the Mongol invasion.
3) AMERICA – COLONIZATION PERIOD
Before Columbus' voyage in 1492, approximately 70 million people lived in the Americas. Exact numbers are not known, but when European settlers went to the Americas, they massacred almost all Native Americans. Before Europeans went to the New World, Americans lived in isolation from the rest of the world. Therefore, the people living there were never exposed to epidemic diseases. This meant that they were not immune to diseases.
Before Europeans went to the New World, Americans lived in isolation from the rest of the world. Therefore, the people living there were never exposed to epidemic diseases. This meant that they were not immune to diseases. Europeans In the wake of the epidemics, the population of Native Americans had declined significantly. The fields could not be planted because the number of people to work decreased. People's food supplies dwindled and they became more vulnerable to the next epidemics.
Some sources suggest that after Europeans set foot in the New World, 90% of the population died due to epidemics. As if deadly diseases weren't bad enough; Many Native Americans died in wars and miserable slavery. Apart from diseases and poor living conditions, Native Americans suffered mass genocides. the Spaniards Tayno Genocide; British and French Kalinago Genocide; again, the British were responsible for the Pequot Genocide.
4) CHINA – PERIOD OF GREAT FAMINE
When we say the worst years in history, one of the first periods that comes to our minds was undoubtedly the period of China's great leap forward. Towards the end of the 1950s, Chairman Mao, the leader of China, prepared a new economic and social plan for rapid modernization. But instead of modernizing the country, the plan turned into a terrible nightmare, costing the lives of 55 million people. Private ownership was abolished for a return from an agricultural economy to an industrial economy. Therefore, after 1958, 25000 communes were established, each containing an average of 5000 households. The people were forced to produce products that could be exported and brought foreign currency to the country.
Money had been replaced by a work point system. That's why people weren't working for more wages. Everything was communal property. Individuals' lives were controlled by the commune of which they were a part. Traditional ceremonies such as funerals and weddings were banned because they were considered counter-revolutionary. The idea of personal freedom became a faint memory in the new system established by the Communist party. The results of the great breakthrough period were utterly disastrous. Millions of farmers were shifted from the agricultural sector to industrial jobs. This caused much of the agricultural harvest to rot.
Natural disasters such as floods and locust infestations, combined with all the problems, caused a great famine that left millions of people to starve. Ironically, the locust invasion was solely due to Mao's plans. Mao classified sparrows as pests because they ate grain seeds and wanted them killed. However, sparrows also fed on grasshoppers. As the sparrow population disappeared, there was no power left to control the locusts.
jews in concentration camps
- EUROPE - FIRST HALF OF THE 20TH CENTURY
The 20th century witnessed perhaps the worst periods in human history. The world has seen two separate wars in just 30 years. During this period, hundreds of millions of people were killed for the sake of political ideologies. Genocides took place and humanity witnessed mass murders. All of these events were terrible. But a group of people born in the wrong place and time lived a worse life than the others. In just one lifetime, humanity has packed all the pain that history has ever seen. The worst years in history were undoubtedly the 20th century. Wars, Spanish Flu, holocaust, great depression, massacres.
Great deprassion
World War I was the first "modern" war in which technology was used effectively in warfare. During this period, 28 million soldiers lost their lives. A nasty surprise awaited the survivors of the war. In 1918, the Spanish Flu had begun to spread across the planet. Everyone was in danger, not just the soldiers. While the world was still under the shock of war, 100 million people died from the flu in 1920. This new strain of influenza virus targeted healthy, young adults. That's why the vast majority of surviving veterans during the First World War died of the flu. Those who managed to survive all these disasters had to face the Great Depression, which broke out in 1929, this time.
The economic collapse was so severe that the unemployment it brought with it led to countless suicides. Undoubtedly, the biggest link in the chain of disasters experienced in a row is II. It was World War II. This war caused the death of 60 million people worldwide.
Brandenburg gate, WW2
Most men were unlucky enough to have to fight in both the First and Second World Wars. This time the world met with more advanced tanks, planes, atomic bombs and rockets. Especially the European continent was in ruins after the war. Not only soldiers but also millions of civilian citizens of the world lost their lives in the war. Historians state that 60 million people lost their lives, including 20 million soldiers and 40 million civilians.