The paper focuses on floods in Europe derived from documentary evidence during the past millennium. The beginnings of early-instrumental and systematic-instrumental hydrological observations in Europe are discussed. Basic sources of documentary evidence related to floods and the problems that may be encountered in the use of historical source materials are described. An overview of documentary-based flood research in the form of long-term frequency and severity series, as well as a summary of the most disastrous floods in the Mediterranean, Western, Central and Northern Europe, is presented. The role and value of floods described in the documentary record to better understanding current flood risks in Europe are discussed.