1783 Calabrian earthquakes
 February 5
 February 6
February 7
 March 1
March 28
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| Tsunami | Yes |
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| Casualties | 32,000–50,000 |
The 1783 Calabrian earthquakes were a sequence of five strong earthquakes that hit the region of Calabria in southern Italy (then part of the Kingdom of Naples), the first two of which produced significant tsunamis. The epicenters form a clear alignment extending nearly 100 km from the Straits of Messina to about 18 km SSW of Catanzaro. The epicenter of the first earthquake occurred in the plain of Palmi. The earthquakes occurred over a period of nearly two months, all with estimated magnitudes of 5.9 or greater. Estimates of the total number of deaths lie in the range 32,000 to 50,000.
The southwestern part of Calabria and the eastern part of Sicily are areas of active crustal extension within the Siculo–Calabrian Rift Zone. This 350 km long zone developed within the Apennine chain during the and takes up WNW-ESE directed extension.
This earthquake, with an estimated magnitude of 7.0, affected a large area including most of the southern Italian peninsula and shook the whole island of Sicily. Many villages were damaged and as many as 180 almost completely destroyed, with more than 25,000 casualties. A tsunami affected the coastline on both sides of the Straits of Messina, destroying the harbour walls at Messina. The earthquake had already caused widespread death and destruction in Messina. Homes were razed to the ground, the medieval Duomo was badly damaged and most of the historic buildings were reduced to rubble.
Near the epicenter the ground shaking was so intense that people were knocked off their feet and heavy stones were found to be dislodged and upturned. Large landslides caused major destruction at Terranova and Molochio but even well-constructed buildings not thus affected were almost completely destroyed, such as in Oppido Mamertina and Casalnuovo.
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