1213
A young Peter the Great of Russia toured Europe seeking help for his diplomatic, military and architectural plans.
Tsar Peter the Great’s attempt to bring Russia into the modern world of the West began with a ‘Grand Embassy’, touring the capitals of Europe to drum up support for his country, and acquire scientific and artistic knowledge. The tour included four hectic months in England.
Picture: Godfrey Kneller (1646-1723), via Wikimedia Commons. Licence: Public domain.. Source.
Posted January 16 2017
1214
Frederick Douglass, the American runaway slave turned Abolitionist, spent some of his happiest days in Britain.
Frederick Douglass escaped slavery in Maryland, and became one of America’s leading Abolitionists. Gently forgiving but firm of purpose, Douglass was a champion not only of Abolition but of freedom everywhere, suspicious of communism, committed to national sovereignty and free markets. And in 1845, he instantly fell in love with the British.
Picture: © Jeff Buck, Geograph. Licence: CC BY-SA 2.0.. Source.
Posted January 15 2017
1215
British statesmen were among those who inspired the career of one of America’s greatest men, Frederick Douglass.
At thirteen, escaped slave Frederick Douglass bought a schoolbook, ‘The Columbian Orator’, for fifty cents. It nurtured gifts of understanding and eloquence that brought Douglass to prominence as America’s leading anti-slavery campaigner, and among his favourite passages were speeches by great British statesmen of his day.
Picture: Photo from the National Parks Service (USA), via Wikimedia Commons. Licence: Public domain.. Source.
Posted January 14 2017
1216
William Hyde Wollaston discovered new elements and helped Faraday to greatness, all from the top of a tea-tray.
A Royal Commission observed in 1819 that while metric measurements do have clear advantages, for many practical purposes imperial measurements are actually more convenient. One of the members of this remarkably sensible Commission was Dr William Wollaston (1766-1828), a man of unimpeachable scientific pedigree.
Picture: © Jorge Royan, Wikimedia Commons. Licence: CC BY-SA 3.0.. Source.
Posted January 14 2017
1217
It is not educational institutions and methods that advance science or the arts, but people.
Holding a degree or some other officially-recognised paper qualification is not really a guarantee of very much; as Samuel Smiles repeatedly observed, there is no substitute for hands-on experience, the quirks of an interesting personality, and sheer determination.
Picture: From a self-protrait by John Opie, via Wikimedia Commons. Licence: Public domain.. Source.
Posted January 14 2017
1218
Faraday’s work on electromagnetism made him an architect of modern living, and one of Albert Einstein’s three most revered physicists.
American physicist Albert Einstein kept three portraits on his wall, men who had inspired his own world-changing study of physics. They were all British: Sir Isaac Newton, James Clerk Maxwell, and Michael Faraday (1791-1867).
Picture: Painted by Thomas Phillips in 1842, via Wikimedia Commons. Licence: Public domain.. Source.
Posted January 11 2017