Weird weather in Bristol during the Grindelwald Fluctuation (1560–1630)

The Grindelwald Fluctuation (1560-1630) was a cooling phase during the ‘Little Ice Age’ (c.1300-1850). Poor weather during the Fluctuation contributed to harvest failures, mass starvation and political crises across the globe. This paper examines information taken from Bristol chronicles that discuss some of the extreme weather events of the period. The entries support the notion that the Grindelwald Fluctuation featured some extraordinarily poor weather, such as great frosts, floods, severe storms, unseasonal snowfalls and droughts.