A powerful and deadly storm was brewing in the Atlantic, its fury unmatched in recorded history. The Great Hurricane of 1780 swept through the Caribbean, leaving a trail of destruction and death in its wake. The storm's barbarous winds and torrential rains ravaged the islands, destroying entire cities and crops, and claiming the lives of an estimated 20,000 to 30,000 people. The hurricane's impact was felt from Barbados to Hispaniola, with the hardest hit areas including Martinique, St. Lucia, and Puerto Rico.