EUROPE/Holocene 157 Table Summary of the climatic and historical development during the European Holocene Calendar years BP Environmental Period 200 Subatlantic General climatic features Selected historical events Stages of the Baltic Sea’s development Modern climatic optimum, warm World War I and II Mya Sea French Revolution Little Ice Age, mean annual temperature in Europe 1 C lower than today, cold winters, but pronounced fluctuations, glacier advances 400 Less brackish Thirty Years’ War Renaissance and reformation Mya Sea Lymnaea Sea Brackish 600 Bubonic plague kills about one third of the European population Transition to colder conditions 800 Brackish Medieval climatic optimum, mean annual temperature 1.5 C higher than today, winegrowing as far north as to the British Isles, first dry, later wet Subatlantic 1000 Expansion of Norman people as far as Iceland, Greenland, North America and southern Russia 1200 Cold and wet period, many glacier advances 1400 Subatlantic End of the Roman Empire Slightly brackish Invasion of the Huns forces the emigration of nations Lymnaea Sea 1600 1800 2000 Roman climatic optimum, as warm as the Medieval optimum, mostly very wet, towards the end more dry Foundation of the Roman Empire First southward migrations of Gothic tribes 2200 Pronounced cold period, mean annual temperature 1.5 C lower than today, very cool summers, very wet, large glacier advances Celtic La Te`ne culture in big parts of Europe 2400 2600 Subatlantic Subboreal 2800 3000 Beginning of the Greek classic period Formation of the Roman Republic Celtic Hallstatt culture in central and western Europe introduces the iron age Greek Archaic period First Celtic tribes in eastern and central Europe Brackish 3200 (Continued)