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Scientist, Soldier, Statesman, Spy: Count Rumford: The Extraordinary Life of a Scientific Genius

International adventurer and inventor, whose life story sometimes reads stranger than fiction, Count Rumford has now found a superb modern biographer to rescue him from unjustified neglect. — ROY PORTER

...Brown nicely captures both the earnestness and eccentricity of the scientist who applied his science to himself...a beguiling account... — Times Higher Educational Supplement

President Roosevelt rated Count Rumford, along with Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Jefferson, as 'the greatest mind America has produced' and, though his inventions and philanthropy, Rumford brought more benefit to mankind tan most men of his age. Yet, though knighted by George III, he was vilified by Cobbett, ridiculed by Gillray and Cruickshank, and died almost alone. What is the real story of Count Rumford? Was he an insufferable genius, who treated those with whom he worked with contempt? A philanthropist and scientist whose remarkable ability and versatility inspired envy and malice rather than admiration? A hypocrite and philanderer, whose spying activities were the public face of a man who would do anything to ensure his own success?

A spy for Britain during the American War of Independence, Rumford fled to England and became Under-Secretary of State. This was followed by a stint in Bavaria where he reformed the Army. His over-riding passion, however, was for science. He revolutionised ideas on the nature of heat and his inventions brought dramatic improvements to the masses. He also set up a workhouse for beggars; originated soup kitchens; and, most famously, made benevolence fashionable through the establishment of the Royal Institution in 1800.

A tale of adventure, intrigue, ambition and lust for life, this compelling biography recognizes Rumford's unique place in science history and unravels the story of this perplexing and complex man.

  • Format
  • paperback
  • Pages
  • 182
  • Language
  • english
  • ISBN
  • 9780750926744
  • Genres
  • history, biography, science
  • Release date
  • 2001