At 9:18 am the earthquake struck, centred mainly in the villages of Wivenhoe, Abberton, Langenhoe, and Peldon causing the surrounding area to rise and fall violently as the waves spread, lasting for around 20 seconds.

Measuring 4.6 on the Richter scale, the effects were felt across England, as well as in northern France and Belgium.

It is believed that the earthquake resulted from movement along a fault in the ancient Palaeozoic rocks that underpin most of Essex, causing waves to propagate through the overlying Cretaceous and Tertiary layers.

There are some reports that between three and five people were killed by the earthquake, but this has been disputed by other contemporary accounts and later analysis, which suggest that there were no fatalities directly caused by this event.

[2] The Times reported damage "in the many villages in the neighbourhood from Colchester to the sea coast", with many poor people made homeless, and estimated the cost of the disaster at £10,000.