Table of Contents
The Importance of John Herschel, and of his correspondence
Contemporaries of Sir John F. W. Herschel (&#;) recognized that he was among the most important figures in nineteenth-century science. Writing during the late s, John Ruskin remarked that through his acquaintance with William Buckland, "I met the leading scientific men of the day, from [John] Herschel downward"[1] In an obituary notice on Herschel, T. Romney Robinson Lamented: " British science has sustained a loss greater than any which it has suffered since the death of Newton"[2] That many of Robinson's contemporaries shared his sentiments is shown by the fact that Herschel was interred next to Newton in Westminster Abbey. The significance of Herschel for nineteenth-century British science is also suggested by the conclusion reached by W. F. Cannon in a study of Herschel's place in nineteenth-century science; after asking what it meant to be scientific in the early Victorian period, Cannon marshaled abundant evidence to support the conclusion that it meant: "be as much like Herschel as possible."[3]
Herschel's reputation among his contemporaries derived not only from the importance of hi
John Herschel
William Herschel married at age 50 and had one son, John Frederick William Herschel, who in many respects surpassed his father. Though he did not make as many fundamental discoveries, he extended his famous father’s astronomical work enormously, and achieved excellence in other fields as well. Also, his Christian faith appeared to be deeper and more sincere. John Herschel became the most eminent scientist in Britain during the first half of the 19th century, and a highly respected philosopher of science. In his senior years, he witnessed the rise of Darwinism. Though he opposed evolutionary theory, some of his scientific philosophy may have lent unwitting support to it, as we shall see.
Youth and Education
It was a hard act to follow, growing up at Observatory House in the shadow of his father William. An only child with few playmates, John found himself more often in the company of his father’s scientific friends. Aunt Caroline loved him and provided a balance to the boy’s intellectual upbringing; the two remained close into her old age. It is a credit to his father that he was able to inspire his son to continue the work rather than rebel against i
Dictionary of National Biography, /Herschel, John Frederick William
&#;HERSCHEL, Sir JOHN FREDERICK WILLIAM (–), astronomer, only child of Sir William Herschel [q. v.], was born at Slough on 7 March He was educated at Dr. Gretton's school at Hitcham, Buckinghamshire, then for a few months at Eton, and afterwards at home by Mr. Rogers, a Scottish mathematician. He entered St. John's College, Cambridge, at the age of seventeen, graduated thence in as senior wrangler and first Smith's prizeman, and was immediately elected to a fellowship in his college. He was at this time described by the poet Campbell as ‘a prodigy in science, and fond of poetry, but very unassuming’ (Beattie, Life of Campbell, ii. ). He proceeded M.A. on 3 July , and in occasional residences at the university during the interval formed a lifelong intimacy with Whewell. Their Sunday mornings' ‘philosophical breakfasts’ in were long remembered (Todhunter, Account of the Writings of Dr. Whewell, i. 6). Herschel's youthful compact with George Peacock [q. v.] and Charles Babbage [q. v.] to ‘do their best to leave the world wiser than they found it’ began to be fulfilled by their formation in of the ‘Analytic
Sir John Frederick William Herschel, 1st Baronet KH (March 7, – May 11, ) was an Englishmathematician, astronomer, chemist, and experimental photographer/inventor, and the son of astronomer William Herschel. He published several star catalogs based on his own observations, and contributed to the development of photography when it first emerged in Herschel believed that the study of nature was an avenue to the understanding of God's creation, and was supportive of the design theories of Charles Babbage.
Biography
Early years
Herschel was born in Slough, Buckinghamshire, the son of William and Mary Herschel. Herschel's father was a world-famous astronomer who had discovered the planet Uranus in , and who continued to make many contributions to astronomy and physics until his death in When Herschel was seven, he was briefly enrolled at a boarding school at Eaton, but his mother feared the rough treatment he endured there at the hands of the students. He was later placed in a local school, where he made more progress, particularly in languages, although he lagged somewhat in mathematics, not demonstrating an innate proficiency in the subject
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