Memoire presenté à l’academie Royale des Sciences à Paris au nom du Sieur Schultz, pour indiquer selon ses principes le moyen de trouver la Longitude par mer et par terre, 1767 / M. Schultz

MLMSS 9821/Box 1X

fonds

15 May 1767

1382477

0.16 metres of textual material (1 outsize box)

This manuscript is M. Schultz’s submission to the Royal Academy of Science. The document contains his system of measuring longitude on land and sea. Schultz claims his method preceded that of the French astronomer Alexandre-Guy Pingre by a year. Similarly to Pingre, Schultz's system advocates the calculation of longitude via lunar tables.

Copyright status:: In copyright
Research & study copies allowed: Author has been deceased for more than 50 years

In the period of European imperial expansion, navigating long sea journeys without accurately determining longitude had resulted in the loss of many ships, and lives. The British government launched the Longitude Prize in 1714, with a reward of £20,000 offered to the first to devise an accurate method of calculating longitude. The French Academy of Sciences also offered financial incentives to anyone who resolved its calculation. The problem attracted some of the great thinkers of the day.

European exploration, particularly journeys to Australia and the South Pacific, was directly impacted by the ability to accurately measure longitude. At the same time that Schultz and Pingre were working on the problem, Nevil Maskelyne and John Harrison were developing their own solutions in England. Maskelyne’s method was trialled on Cook’s first voyage, allowing them to chart the eastern coast of Australia.
Folder contains booksellers slip of Alain Brieux, Paris