With the eclipse coming up, it got me thinking. Have there ever been historical accounts and writings on such an event? What were the reactions? Was it shock and awe? Terrifying?
Yes, during the reign of Richard III of England.
When Edward IV first came to the throne, he had two brothers, George and Richard. He started a propaganda campaign about the "Three Sons of York," as his younger brother, Edmund, had died along with their father, Richard. Right before one of Edward's battles with the Lancasters, The Battle of Mortimer's Cross, both sides observed what's called a Parhelion, which is an atmospheric optical phenomenon that consists of a bright spot to the left or right of the sun. In this case, bright spots appeared on both sides. Normally this would have scared people, as meteorological phenomena were seen as harbingers of doom. Edward, thinking quickly, instead claimed that it was a sign from God that the three sons (suns) of York were favored. He ended up using the Three Sons/Suns of York as one of his emblems.
As for an eclipse, one was observed near the end Richard's reign and was seen as a sign from God that Richard had fallen from grace (at least, that's what the Tudor propaganda machine claimed). In fact, it occurred the very day that his wife, Anne Neville, died, and rumors were spread that he had poisoned his wife in order to marry his neice, Elizabeth of York.
He died a few months later in The Battle of Bosworth between the Yorks and the Tudors, ushering in the Tudor dynasty with the reign of Henry VII.