How the year without summer gave us dark masterpieces

Clouds from a huge volcano plunged the world into endless winter in 1816. Crops failed, famine and disease spread – and great poets and composers of the day responded with works of gloomy genius

In April 1815, weeks before Napoleon was finally defeated at Waterloo, Mount Tambora, in what is now Indonesia, erupted. It was one of the largest volcanic incidents ever recorded and could be heard up to 1,600 miles off. Ash fell 800 miles away, and for two days following the explosion the 350 miles surrounding the mountain were in pitch darkness.

Many people feared that the world was facing its apocalyptic end

Mt Tambora fired up imaginations to interpret their environment, reflect the climate and capture the spirit of the age