From the ancient story of Noah's deluge to the China floods of 1931 that killed more than 3million people, from the broken levees in New Orleans to submerged streets and homes all over Britain, floods have many causes: rain, melting ice, storms, tsunamis and the failures of dams and dikes. They have been used as deliberate acts of war causing thousands of casualties and have often been seen as punishments visited by vengeful gods. Flooding kills more people than any other type of natural disaster. This cultural and natural history of floods tells of the deadliest floods the world has seen while also exploring the role of the deluge in religion, mythology, literature and art.