| Authorised form of name | Babbage; Charles (1791 - 1871); mathematician |
| Dates | 1791 - 1871 |
| Nationality | British |
| Place of birth | Teignmouth, Devon, England |
| Date of birth | 26 December 1791 |
| Place of death | London |
| Date of death | 18 October 1871 |
| Occupation | Mathematician |
| Research field | Mathematics |
| Computer logic |
| Computer technology |
| Activity | Education:
Holmwood School, Ponder's End (with Frederick Marryat (FRS 1819)); entered Trinity College, Cambridge (1811), but graduated from Peterhouse, Cambridge. BA (1814), MA (1817)
Career:
Lucasian Professor of Mathematics, Cambridge (1828-1839); developed calculating machine using his own money and government grants; involved in actuarial work
Memberships:
Statistical Society (Founder Fellow 1834); FRAS
|
| Membership category | Fellow |
| Date of election | 14/03/1816 |
| Relationships | Son of Benjamin Babbage |
| Sources | Sources:
Bulloch's Roll; DNB; DSB
References:
Alex D D Craik, 'James Ivory, FRS, mathematician: "the most unlucky person that ever existed"' in NR 2000 vol 54 pp 223-247
Maurice V Wilkes, 'The Ubiquitous Mr Babbage', review of Charles Babbage, Passages From the Life of a Philosopher, ed. M Campbell-Kelly, in NR 1995 vol 49 pp 341-342
Richard Sorrenson, 'Towards a History of the Royal Society in the Eighteenth Century' in NR 1996 vol 50 pp 29-46
M V Wilkes, 'Herschel, Peacock, Babbage and the Development of the Cambridge Curriculum' in NR 1990 vol 44 pp 205-219
Peter J Turvey, 'Sir John Herschel and the Abandonment of Charles Babbage's Difference Engine No. 1' in NR 1991 vol 45 pp 165-176
Lise Wilkinson, 'Three Drawings of Fellows by William Brockedon, FRS' in NR 1971 vol 26 pp 183-187, plate
Roy M MacLeod, 'Of Medals and Men: A Reward System in Victorian Science 1826-1914' in NR 1971 vol 26 pp 81-105
L Pearce Williams, 'The Royal Society and the Founding of the British Association for the Advancement of Science' in NR 1961 vol 16 pp 221-233
L F Gilbert, 'The Election to the Presidency of the Royal Society in 1820' in NR 1954-55 vol 11 pp 256-279
J A D Ackroyd, 'Sir George Cayley, the father of aeronautics, Part 1. The invention of the aeroplane' NR 2002 vol 56 pp 167-181
A Cook, 'A Roman tercentenary' by A Cook in NR 2002 vol 56 p273
M V Wilkes, 'Charles Babbage and his world' in NR 2002 vol 56 pp 353-365
K K Schwarz, 'Faraday and Babbage' in NR 2002 vol 56 pp 367-381
F C Moon, 'Robert Willis and Franz Reuleaux: pioneers in the theory of machines' in NR 2003 vol 57 pp 209-230
P Fara, 'Lucasian Professors. From Newton to Hawking: a history of Cambridge University's Lucasian professors of mathematics, ed K C Knox and R Noakes' in NR 2004 vol 58 pp 312-313
Notes:
Date of birth incorrect in DNB, DSB and Boase. Photograph of election certificate, RS Box 3; negative RS Box N101 |
| Virtual International Authority File | http://viaf.org/viaf/4963723 |
| Royal Society code | NA6626 |
| Reference number | Title | Date |
| EC/1815/32 | Babbage, Charles: certificate of election to the Royal Society | |
| DM/4/146 | Minute of a meeting of the Committee to consider Mr Stewart's letter respecting Mr Babbage's machine | 28 February 1831 |
| DM/4/136 | Minute of a meeting of the Babbage Engine Committee | 26 January 1829 |
| AP/34/18 | Unpublished paper, 'Sur la théorie de l'orientation du plan oscillatoire du pendule simple: et son application à la recherche d'aplatissement du sphéroïde terrestre' [On the theory of the orientation of the oscillatory plane of the simple pendulum: and its application to the search for flattening of the terrestrial spheroid] by Cândido Baptista d'Oliveira | 10 January 1853-14 December 1853 |
| MM/21/24 | Drawings by Charles Babbage | 1859 |
| DM/4/143 | Letter from J F W Herschel, Slough, to P M Roget | 23 February 1831 |
| DM/4/137 | Part of a report or resolution of the Babbage Engine Committee | 9 February 1829 |
| DM/4/140 | Copy of letter from Charles Babbage, Dorset Street, to the Chancellor of the Exchequer | 21 December 1830 |
| DM/4/131 | Letter from Charles Babbage, Devonshire Street, to the Chancellor of the Exchequer | December 1828 |
| DM/4/145 | Minute of a meeting of the Committee to consider Mr Stewart's letter respecting Mr Babbage's machine | 24 February 1831 |
| DM/4/144 | Letter from Bryan Donkin to James Hudson, Assistant Secretary, Royal Society | 21 February 1831 |
| DM/4/149 | Report of the Committee to consider Mr Stewart's letter respecting Mr Babbage's machine | 26 March 1831 |
| DM/4/141 | Letter from J Stewart, Treasury, to the Secretary of the Royal Society | 24 December 1830 |
| DM/4/134 | Minute of a meeting of the Babbage Engine Committee | 26 January 1829 |
| DM/4/130 | Charles Babbage, "Copies of the correspondence between the Lords Commissioners of the Treasury and the President and Council of the Royal Society relative to an Invention of Mr Babbage" | 1823 |
| DM/4/138 | Extract from a Treasury Minute no 2964 | 28 April 1829 |
| DM/4/132 | Charles Babbage, "Statement respecting Mr Babbage's Calculating Machine" | 11 December 1828 |
| DM/4/139 | Letter from J Stewart, Treasury, to the Secretary of the Royal Society | 6 May 1829 |
| DM/4/129 | Letter from George Harrison, Treasury Chambers, to Sir Humphry Davy, President, Royal Society | 1 April 1823 |
| DM/4/133 | Letter from F Stewart, Treasury, to Davies Gilbert, President, Royal Society | December 1828 |
| DM/1/23 | Letter from Charles Babbage, Dorset Street, Manchester Square, to P M Roget | 10 March 1831 |
| DM/4/142 | Copy of report from M I Brunel, Bryan Donkin and Field to Viscount Althrop | 15 February 1831 |
| IM/005208 | Babbage, Charles | 2001 |
| DM/4/150 | Letter from Henry Warburton | 25 May 1831 |
| DM/4/147 | Letter from M I Brunel to Henry Warburton | 28 February 1831 |
| NLB/37/215 | Copy letter from Robert William Frederick Harrison to Sir Archibald Geikie, KCB, Secretary of the Royal Society | 17 February 1908 |
| NLB/37/217 | Copy letter from Robert William Frederick Harrison to Professor Sidney [Harris Cox] Martin FRS, Chairman of the Physiology Sectional Committee | 17 February 1908 |
| RR/4/7 | Referee's report by Charles Lyell, on a paper 'Observations on the discovery in various localities of the remains of human art mixed with the bones of extinct races of animals' by Charles Babbage | 3 June 1859 |
| RR/4/8 | Letter from Hugh Falconer, on a paper 'Observations on the discovery in various localities of the remains of human art mixed with the bones of extinct races of animals' by Charles Babbage | 11 June 1859 |
| MS/426/534 | Copy letter from C R [Charles Richard] Weld, the Assistant Secretary of the Royal Society; to [Charles] Babbage | 13 December 1854 |
| MS/426/208 | Copy letter from C R [Charles Richard] Weld, the Assistant Secretary of the Royal Society; to C [Charles] Babbage | 11 June 1846 |
| MS/426/533 | Copy letter from C R [Charles Richard] Weld, the Assistant Secretary of the Royal Society; to [Charles] Babbage | 28 November 1854 |
| MC/5/64 | Letter from C [Charles] Babbage, Dorset Street, Manchester Square, to the Secretary of the Royal Society | 1 December 1852 |
| DM/4/135 | Babbage Engine Committee, "Report of the Committee...to consider the subject referred to in Mr Stewart's letter, relative to Mr Babbage's calculating engine, & to report thereon" | 1829 |
| IM/000171 | Babbage, Charles | 2001 |
| IM/005209 | Babbage, Charles | 2001 |
| DM/4/148 | Incomplete minute of a meeting of the Committee to consider Mr Stewart's letter respecting Mr Babbage's machine | 26 March 1831 |
| IM/005309 | Brunel, Marc Isambard | 2001 |
| IM/000170 | Babbage, Charles | c 1864 |
| PT/13/20 | Paper, 'On some new methods of investigating the sums of several classes of infinite series' by Charles Babbage | 25 March 1819 |
| MC/5/83 | Letter from Charles Babbage, Dorset Street, Manchester Square, to the Secretary of the Royal Society | 21 February 1853 |
| PT/11/14 | Paper, 'Observations on the analogy which subsists between the calculus of functions and other branches of analysis' by Charles Babbage | 5 March 1817 |
| PT/9/23 | Paper, 'An essay towards the calculus of functions' by C [Charles] Babbage | [1815] |
| MC/1/194 | Letter from Charles Babbage, Dorset Street, Manchester Square, to the Council and [Davies Gilbert], President of the Royal Society | 27 January 1830 |
| PT/73/12/17 | Diagrams, apparatus and graphs of magnetic rotation by [Charles Babbage] | [1826] |
| PT/18/16 | Paper, 'On electrical and magnetic rotations' by C [Charles] Babbage | 29 May 1826 |
| MC/1/257 | Letter from Charles Babbage, Dorset Street, Manchester Square, to [Davies Gilbert], President of the Royal Society and to the Council | 3 November 1830 |
| MC/1/318 | Letter from [James K.] Stewart, [Assistant Secretary at the] Treasury Chambers, to Dr. [Peter Mark] Roget, [Secretary of the Royal Society] | 11 July 1831 |
| PT/10/11 | Paper, 'An essay towards the calculus of functions, Part II' by C [Charles] Babbage | 8 January 1816 |
| MC/1 | Volume 1 of miscellaneous correspondence regarding business matters, sent to the Royal Society | 1800-1831 |
| MS/426/476 | Copy letter from S H [Samuel Hunter] Christie, Secretary of the Royal Society; to C [Charles] Babbage | 16 December 1852 |
| MC/5/75 | Letter from C [Charles] Babbage, Dorset Street, Manchester Square, to the Secretary of the Royal Society | 21 December 1852 |
| MS/426/478 | Copy letter from S H [Samuel Hunter] Christie, Secretary of the Royal Society; to C [Charles] Babbage | 24 January 1853 |
| MC/5/88 | Letter from [Earl of] Rosse, [President of the Royal Society], Castle Parsonstown, to [Edward] Sabine, [Treasurer of the Royal Society] | 4 March 1853 |
| MS/426/481 | Copy letter from Edward Sabine, Vice President and Treasurer of the Royal Society; to Lord Rosse [William Parsons], President of the Royal Society | 28 February 1853 |
| MC/5/187 | Letter from C [Charles] Babbage, Dorset Street, to [Charles Richard Weld], Assistant Secretary of the Royal Society, Somerset House | 27 November 1854 |
| MC/5 | Volume 5 of miscellaneous correspondence regarding business matters, sent to the Royal Society | 1851-1858 |
| AP/9/3 | Unpublished paper, 'On the solution of some problems relating to games of chance' by Charles Babbage | 25 September 1818 |
| AP/34/18/1 | Unpublished manuscript, 'Sur la théorie de l'orientation du plan oscillatoire du pendule simple: et son application à la recherche d'aplatissement du sphéroïde terrestre' [On the theory of the orientation of the oscillatory plane of the simple pendulum: and its application to the search for flattening of the terrestrial spheroid] by Cândido Baptista d'Oliveira | 10 January 1853 |