Preprints
https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-2021-117
https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-2021-117
20 Sep 2021
 | 20 Sep 2021
Status: this discussion paper is a preprint. It has been under review for the journal Climate of the Past (CP). The manuscript was not accepted for further review after discussion.

Climate history of the principality of Transylvania during the Maunder Minimum (MM) years (1645–1715 CE)

Martin Stangl and Ulrich Foelsche

Abstract. This paper deals with the climate in the former Grand Duchy of Transylvania, now one of the three major geographical provinces of Romania, within the so-called Maunder Minimum (MM) (1645–1715), an astrophysically defined part of the Little Ice Age (LIA), which was characterized by reduced solar activity. The historical data from Transylvania are compared with that from Germany, Austria and Switzerland. This comparison for the period 1645–1715 shows good agreement but also reveals geographic characteristics of the region. For the first time, we present here a comparison between the four geographic areas in text and tabular form. Quotes from mostly German-language sources are reproduced in English translation. Furthermore, we examine for a longer period (1500–1950) the extent to which the climate of Transylvania might have been affected by long-term fluctuations in solar activity, as deduced from isotopic reconstructions from ice cores. This comparison suggests a certain solar influence but the agreement is not very pronounced. Future investigation in a pan-European context is needed to reach reliable statements. Some results are unexpected – like an unusually small number of severe winters during the last decades of the MM, where extreme cold was restricted to a few years, like the extreme winters 1699/1700 and 1708/1709.

Publisher's note: Copernicus Publications remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims made in the text, published maps, institutional affiliations, or any other geographical representation in this preprint. The responsibility to include appropriate place names lies with the authors.
Martin Stangl and Ulrich Foelsche

Status: closed

Comment types: AC – author | RC – referee | CC – community | EC – editor | CEC – chief editor | : Report abuse
  • RC1: 'Comment on cp-2021-117', Anonymous Referee #1, 29 Nov 2021
    • AC1: 'Reply on RC1', Martin Stangl, 07 Jan 2022
  • RC2: 'Comment on cp-2021-117', Anonymous Referee #2, 14 Feb 2022

Status: closed

Comment types: AC – author | RC – referee | CC – community | EC – editor | CEC – chief editor | : Report abuse
  • RC1: 'Comment on cp-2021-117', Anonymous Referee #1, 29 Nov 2021
    • AC1: 'Reply on RC1', Martin Stangl, 07 Jan 2022
  • RC2: 'Comment on cp-2021-117', Anonymous Referee #2, 14 Feb 2022
Martin Stangl and Ulrich Foelsche
Martin Stangl and Ulrich Foelsche

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Short summary
We selected the Maunder Minimum (1645–1715), an astrophysically defined section of the Little Ice Age, and compared the historical data from the Grand Duchy of Transylvania with those from Germany, Austria and Switzerland. For a larger period (1500–1950), we examined on a decadal basis the extent to which an influence on the climate through long-term fluctuations in solar activity, as was inferred from isotope reconstructions from ice cores, can be seen.