William Herschel E-Book

Günther Buttmann

• Herausgeber: Books on Demand
• Kategorie: Geisteswissenschaft
• Sprache: Englisch

Seitenzahl: 367

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2023

Beschreibung

This book was first published in 1961 under the title "Wilhelm Herschel - Leben und Werk". Günther Buttmann has written the first comprehensive German biography of the famous German-born astronomer, who spent most of his life in England. The book also covered the immense astronomical work of William Herschel (1738-1822), assisted by his talented sister Caroline and continued by his son John. In 1781 Herschel famously discovered the planet Uranus, and over decades of observations with large, self-constructed telescopes, he found about 2500 nebulae and star clusters, many double stars and determined the structure of the Milky Way. This important book has now been translated by the German astrophysicist and historian of astronomy Wolfgang Steinicke, with Günther Buttmann's blessings. It is unfortunate though that the original author passed away in Spring 2023 and was unable to see the English edition of his work.

Leseprobe

William Herschel, 1736–1822 (painting by J. Russel, 1794)

Content

FOREWORD

INTRODUCTION

PART ONE: THE LIFE

Herschel’s personality. The family. The youth years

Travels in England

Organist in Bath. The siblings. The Musician Astronomer

The new planet. Rise to fame. Farewell to music

The King’s Astronomer. Telescope construction. The Datchet years

The large telescope. The first years in Slough

The last two decades of Herschel’s life

Caroline Herschel

PART TWO: THE WORK

The astronomy before Herschel

Herschel’s optical works

Herschel’s research and discoveries in the solar system

The Sun

The planets

The Moon

Comets

The Sun’s proper motion

The world of fixed stars

Distance of stars, double stars, stellar brightness

Variable stars

Star clusters and nebulae

The “Construction of the heavens”

APPENDIX

Bibliography of Herschel’s works

Literature

Wilhelm Herschel’s life: a chronological overview

Biographical notes

Author and Translator

Name and Subject Index

FOREWORD

The purpose of this book is twofold. First of all, it was necessary to tell the reader the life story of William Herschel in such a way that not only the picture of the famous scholar was drawn, but also an attempt was made to convey an impression of the person, of the immensely attractive, lovable personality of Herschel and his sister and colleague Caroline. The second task was to present the work of this great astronomer and its significance then, as well as in the present astronomical worldview, with particular emphasis on the history of astronomy of the 17th and 18th centuries. It was necessary to remove an indepth presentation of his work from the actual biography so as not to overload the book and make it confusing and difficult to read. Of course, certain repetitions could not be avoided in such a classification, because the life and work of a person are inextricably linked by a chain of interactions. In the biographical section, however, I avoided going into technical details as far as possible and limited myself to citing Herschel’s discoveries and research in a purely biographical context. The content of the second part of the book is such that it does not require any special prior knowledge in the field of astronomy on the part of the reader. The technical terms that occur are either explained or their meaning is readily apparent from the textual context.

The reader will be pleased to find in the appendix, in addition to the bibliography, a compilation of all Herschel’s works (in chronological order). The overview of his life (also chronological) is intended to give a brief, summary overview of the most important dates and events in the life and work of Herschel, but also to provide some clues to characterize the cultural atmosphere in which Herschel lived. The biographical notes deal as concisely as possible with the people named in the text and are also intended in a certain sense to facilitate the understanding of the intellectual historical contexts.

The experts and connoisseurs among the readers will perhaps find that in this book some things have been treated somewhat succinctly, which, in view of their importance, may deserve more space. But one should remember; the complete edition of Herschel’s works contains about 70 treatises, some of which are very considerable, in two more than stately quarto volumes. It would have been impossible to spread out this rich, forty-year research career into one volume, the scope of which had to be limited to a certain degree from the outset. However, it was not the intention to provide an exhaustive account going into the minute scientific and biographical subtleties. Rather, I wanted to arouse interest and understanding of Herschel in a wider readership for all, as well as for the astronomer. The book is also intended to try to fill a gap in our history of astronomy literature. Since 1882, apart from a few minor works, no German-language biography of Herschel has been published. So, it may seem justified from this point of view that in a series of books whose volumes bear witness to the life and work of great naturalists, a volume should also be dedicated to one of the greatest and at the same time most humanly sympathetic and impressive representatives of astronomical science.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank all those who have supported me in my work with words and deeds, especially the editor of this book series, Dr Heinz Degen, as well as the publisher.

Günther Buttmann, Stockdorf, Summer 1960

INTRODUCTION

In October 2022 an international conference was held in Bath to commemorate the 200th anniversary of William Herschel’s death. After my lecture on his observations, I was asked by an English colleague, James Dawson, Librarian at the Society for the History of Astronomy, if I would be interested in translating one of Herschel’s classic biographies, published in 1961 by Günther Buttmann. In 1965 the German author had written a second book, treating the life and work of John Herschel. That book was soon translated by David Evans; the English version appeared in 1970 under the title “The Shadow of the Telescope”. Because of my years of research on William Herschel and his epochal work, I felt honoured in doing the same for Buttmann’s first book.

However, some preliminary work had to be done. First, I tried to contact the author. Born in 1929, I wasn’t sure if he was still alive. I was glad to hear that was the case! I reached Buttmann by phone, although the call showed me that his health was not the best. Fortunately, his son intervened and soon discussed my ideas for the translation with his 93-year-old father. He was very glad that his book about William Herschel would get a revival after about 62 years. I immediately contacted the German publisher, the Wissenschaftliche Verlagsgesellschaft, Stuttgart. Given I already had the author’s approval, they had no objection to the project.

I bought the book many years ago but no longer remembered the details of its content. So, when I read it again, I was amazed at the author’s knowledge and the detailed presentation, based on extensive research. Evidently, Buttmann had studied original documents (access was very limited in the 1950s) and published papers by Herschel as well as secondary sources of literature. In addition, his text reflects a great familiarity with astronomy and its history. The original book has 253 pages, printed in small format (approx. 21 cm × 13 cm). It contains 13 black and white figures; the graphical work was made by the author.

Thanks to modern technology, the start was easy. James Dawson scanned the original book and using “optical character recognition” (OCR) software the text was converted into a file that could be edited with a word processor. The translation was not a major problem, although the scholarly German used in the mid-20th century is different from what is commonly used today. But there was one significant issue to resolve.

Buttmann had quoted William Herschel and his sister Caroline many times. The text passages were mainly taken from the manuscripts and published papers of the Herschels, and originally written in English and then translated into German for the publication of the book in 1961. Because retranslating these quotes back into English would be a historic sin, I had to locate each of the original quotes, though in most cases Buttmann did not specify the exact source i.e. the publication and relevant page (as we see in scientific textbooks for example). As such, I had to locate each quote based on the context or content of the sentence. Sometimes this task was easy (when I remembered the text, for instance), but often it was a time-consuming investigation hunting for a quote in English (my second language) based on a 60-year-old scholarly German translation. In the end, I was able to discover all the original passages in Herschel’s work used by Buttmann. I have tried to keep the book original, only adding some footnotes and modern references.

In May 2023, I asked Buttmann’s son about his father’s state of health as I was attempting to finish the book in as short a time as possible with the aim of introducing the English translation to its original author. The answer was sad: Günther Buttmann had died on 14 April 2023 in his house near Munich. Unfortunately, he was not able to see the republication of the book. So, I have to resign myself to providing the book with an obituary of a great researcher and author in the field of the history of astronomy.

My thanks go to the late Günther Buttmann, his son Bernhard for his support of the project and James Dawson for checking the English text, being a native speaker.

Wolfgang Steinicke, Umkirch, August 2023

PART ONE: THE LIFE

Herschel’s personality. The family. The youth years.

In the history of astronomy, the figure of William Herschel1 has a very special, indeed one can justifiably claim, an epoch-making2 significance. Herschel’s work, which touches almost all areas of astronomical research, marks not only the great achievement of a creative spirit, but it opened up completely new fields of work of immense significance in astronomy – and therein lies his real “epoch-making” significance. Herschel became the founder of stellar astronomy and scientific cosmology through his research on the understanding of fixed stars and the construction of the universe. From its beginnings in antiquity until the middle of the 18th century, astronomical science had dealt almost exclusively with our solar system and only considered the fixed star sphere to provide reference points for determining the orbit of the Moon and the planets. It is true that some great thinkers of antiquity had already considered a system of fixed stars, for example, Hipparchus created the first star catalogue, but until Herschel’s day, there could hardly be any talk of stellar astronomy proper, i.e. of planned research in this literally “worldwide” field. Even famous observatories such as the Greenwich Observatory were engaged in nothing more than purely routine tasks of a nautical nature and meridian observations for location and time determination. There were enough astronomers who saw the sole purpose and the ultimate goal of their science in developing and perfecting the classical methods of determining the orbit of celestial bodies on the basis of the laws of Kepler and Newton, and who were inclined to dismiss any other effort as unscientific speculation.

Thus, when Herschel began his great work, he had a largely uncultivated new ground ahead of him. But his life story is also important in another respect. Herschel’s life’s work is not only the result of a brilliant mind and favourable conditions (as they undoubtedly existed despite many external difficulties) but also of an untiring diligence and intense energy, a devoted love for research, also of an extraordinary practical and technical inclination (one need only think of the construction of his large telescopes), as well as an almost inexhaustible mental and physical resilience that lasted into his old age.

These factors alone make Herschel’s life, seen from a purely human point of view, appear in an interesting and endearing light. What’s more, Herschel was not a professional astronomer. For about half of his life, he was a professional musician, completely remote from astronomy, and as an astronomer he lacked all the conventional training prerequisites. Coming from a poor background, he had not been able to acquire any higher education and had already taken up his father’s profession as a musician at the age of fourteen, which tore him away from his home and led him towards an uncertain future. At the age of 18, barely a man, he had come to England completely destitute and struggled for years, living only a modest existence. When at last a somewhat more secure path offered him greater leisure and free time, and he began to occupy himself with astronomical things – at first more by chance and out of a general desire for education, his true purpose in life became apparent. Whatever traditional requirements he may have lacked for the profession of astronomer, his brilliant natural dispositions compensated for this deficiency to such a perfect degree that today we can count him among the greatest of astronomers and may regard him as an outstanding representative from that era in the history of science.

What lay behind this unusual man, who in his deep thirst for knowledge, had set himself no less a goal than to search the whole sky with his self-made telescopes to fathom the construction of the heavens?

William Herschel came, as I said, from a modest, even poor background. Because of their protestant faith, his ancestors had to leave their homeland, southern Moravia, at the beginning of the 17th century and settled in Saxony.3 William’s great-grandfather, Hans Herschel, had been a beer brewer in Pirna. He had two sons, one of whom, Abraham (1651–1718), enjoyed great prestige as a court and landscape gardener in the royal gardens of Dresden and must have been a most artistic, especially musically gifted man. Abraham’s eldest son, Eusebius, learned his father’s profession, but then turned to agriculture. The second son, Isaac, William’s father (born on 4 January 1707) initially also became a gardener, but the musical talent he inherited from his father came to light early on. He learned to play the violin using his own initiative and later received lessons from an oboist. At the age of 21 he gave up the gardening profession and went to Potsdam (southwest of Berlin), where he was trained as a musician by the conductor Pabrich. His elder brother Eusebius supported him, as their father had died, and this enabled Isaac to receive vocational training.

In 1731 Isaac Herschel received a position in the military band of the Hanoverian Guard. In August 1732 he married Anna Ilse Moritzen, a middle-class daughter from Hanover, a modest domestic girl who was to become a good housewife for him, but who had no intellectual abilities, and who could not even read or write. They had ten children, four of whom died in early childhood. The six surviving children were: Sophia Elisabeth (born 12 April 1733), Heinrich Anton Jacob (born 20 November 1734), Friedrich William (born 15 November 1738), Johann Alexander (born 13 November 1745), Caroline Lucretia (born 16 March 1750)4 and Johann Dietrich (born 13 September 1755).

So, it was a rather handsome group of children, whose maintenance and education must have caused some concern to the military musician who was not wealthy. But Isaac Herschel had a happy, life-affirming disposition and led a harmonious life with his family. Above all, he seems to have been a man of farsightedness in education, who knew how to appreciate and promote the musical talents of his children, but above all the extraordinary talents of his son William, who subsequently became a great astronomer.

Caroline Herschel, William’s sister, sketches in her memoirs5 a vivid picture of the life of the Herschel family and of the father’s efforts to provide his children with a solid education despite external difficulties. For example, Isaac Herschel seems to have gathered his children around him in the evenings for stimulating conversations. Caroline writes: “Often I would keep myself awake that I might listen to their animating remarks, for it made me so happy to see them so happy. But generally, their conversation would branch out on philosophical subjects, when my brother William and my father often argued with such warmth, that my mother's interference became necessary when the names Leibnitz, Newton, and Euler sounded rather too loud for the repose of her little ones, who ought to be in school by seven in the morning. But it seems that on the brothers retiring to their own room, where they shared the same bed, my brother William had still a great deal to say; and frequently it happened that when he stopped for an assent or reply, he found his hearer was gone to sleep, and I suppose it was not till then that he be thought himself to do the same.”

In addition to philosophical conversations, astronomical matters were also discussed. It may perhaps be an early reference to William Herschel’s later life when Caroline continues in her account: “My father was a great admirer of astronomy, and had some knowledge of that science; for I remember his taking me, on a clear frosty night, into the street, to make me acquainted with several of the most beautiful constellations, after we had been gazing at a comet which was then visible. And I well remember with what delight he used to assist my brother William in his various contrivances in the pursuit of his philosophical studies, among which was a neatly turned 4-inch globe, upon which the equator and ecliptic were engraved by my brother.”

Thus, in the house of the Hanoverian military musician, there was a rather joyful intellectual life and one cannot overestimate the importance of Isaac Herschel in the emotional and intellectual development of his son William. The focus of Isaac’s educational influence, however, was the music lessons he gave to his children, almost all of whom were highly musical. He had to laboriously manage the time to do so. He was a sickly man and had contracted severe rheumatism and asthma whilst with his regiment in the campaigns of 1743, which worsened in later years to such an extent that it forced him to practice his profession at home as a music writer and music teacher. Nevertheless, he devoted himself with zeal and perseverance to the musical education of his children. According to Caroline’s reports, Dietrich, for example, once played a violin solo in a concert as a four-year-old boy standing on a table to the great applause of all listeners.

Nearly all of Isaac’s children became excellent musicians. In 1759 Jacob received a position as first violinist at the Royal Orchestra in Hanover, William himself was a professional musician until he was 44 years old, Alexander later became a celebrated cellist in England and Dietrich, like Jacob, belonged to the Hofmusikkapelle, Hanover. Caroline finally began a successful career as a concert and oratorio singer in England under the guidance of her brother William, who was interrupted only by the fact that she soon became his astronomical assistant. The only unmusical member of the family seems to have been the eldest daughter Sophia. But in 1753 she married a musician, Griesbach, and her six children also became musicians and later went to England, where they got jobs in the Royal Orchestra in Windsor. The musical talent of the Herschels seems to have passed on even to the eldest granddaughter of William, who is described by Freiherr von Bunsen in his letters as a “musical genius”.

But let’s go back to William Herschel’s youth. In addition to his father’s charitable educational influence, he found in his teacher, Hofschläger, at the Hanoverian garrison school, which he attended until the age of fourteen, an understanding educator, friend and supporter. He took private lessons in French, mathematics and philosophy subjects with Hofschläger and studied with such enthusiasm and perseverance that he soon outgrew what his teacher was able to offer him.

On 1 May 1753, William Herschel, who at that time already had great skill as an oboist and violinist, joined his father’s music band, in which his brother Jacob was already active. In the spring of 1756, the regiment and with that Isaac Herschel and his sons were transferred to England, where they remained garrisoned until the autumn. William Herschel, who did not speak a word of English on his arrival, learned the local language so fluently in a very short time that on his return to Hanover, he could easily read John Locke’s “An Essay Concerning Humane Understanding”, which he had bought from his meagre salary. It is no surprise, given his father’s upbringing as well as the philosophical training by the teacher that the then barely 18-year-old young man had come across this profound philosophical work, one of the most important works of the day of the English philosophy of the Enlightenment.

William Herschel’s stay in England was also valuable in other respects. He had made some friends in London through music so that when he finally settled in England a year later, he was not to be completely isolated in a foreign country.

A few months after returning to Hanover, in the spring of 1757, the regiment went into the Seven Years’ War, in which England and Hanover fought on the side of Prussia against the allies of Austria and France. Isaac and William Herschel accompanied the troops into the war with their band. When the campaign took a significant turn in July 1757 after the Battle of Hastenbeck with a victory for the French, Isaac Herschel made the understandable, but nevertheless somewhat strange decision to simply send his son home in view of the dangerous situation, an act that cannot really be reconciled with our current ideas of military service and obedience. William Herschel himself gives the following brief description of this process: “About the time of the battle of Hastenbeck we were so near the field of action as to be within the reach of gunshot; when this happened, my Father advised me to look to my own safety.”

Here, however, he was by no means safe. He had scarcely returned to his parent’s house when the people began to set up a kind of vigilante to defend the city with great haste and anticipation. Every man of military age had to reckon with his immediate conscription, and since William Herschel had no discharge certificate, the same fate would have befallen him if he had not preferred to return voluntarily to his regiment, and join his father a few weeks later.

Once there, amidst the general confusion of a retreat, his absence did not seem to have been noticed. This is the only explanation for the fact that, after taking part in the regiment’s retreat marches for a short time, he was able to leave the troops unnoticed for the second time, this time for good. Hanover was soon occupied by the French, though he was on his way to Hamburg, where he met with his brother Jacob. At the end of October 1757, the two brothers embarked for England, hoping to build up a modest existence as musicians there, away from the noise of war and the occupation hardship that Hanover expected.

The end of William Herschel’s military career has repeatedly given rise to regard him as a deserter, especially in older literature. This view must now be regarded as refuted. The fact is that Herschel, as a military musician, was not a soldier in the true sense and thus had not taken an oath of allegiance. A few years later (1762), Herschel’s father obtained the formal dismissal notice for his son from the commander of the Guards Regiment, General Spörcken. In the document, which was first published by Dreyer in the introduction to the Scientific Papers of Sir William Herschel6 the word “soldier” is crossed out and replaced by “oboist”. Under these circumstances, therefore, one cannot speak of a desertion of Herschel. The above-mentioned certificate of dismissal also refutes the rumour that Herschel had received a kind of pardon from King George III on the basis of his scientific achievements and had been rehabilitated in order to become presentable.

So, Herschel was not a deserter. Of course, he was not a war hero either. And yet, albeit in a very different field, he fought battles that have brought mankind greater gain and glory than any military battle.

Travels in England.

When William Herschel and his brother Jacob set foot on English soil in November 1757, he had nothing more than a small bundle of clothes and bedlinen, Locke’s book (which his mother had sent to him in Hamburg before the crossing) and a paltry amount of money, barely half a Guinee. But he had the confidence that his musicality would allow him to overcome the obstacles and difficulties that awaited him.

First, the two brothers visited some friends and acquaintances from their garrison time the previous year. They played in various private concerts, Jacob gave music lessons and William earned his living as a music writer for a London music shop. But it was a rather miserable existence that the two of them lived. William Herschel wrote in his memoirs: “London was so overstocked with Musicians that we had but little chance of any great success.”

For two years, the Herschel brothers just got by. In September 1759, Jacob was offered a position in the court orchestra of Hanover. He seized the opportunity and returned to his hometown. William, however, was determined to continue along his chosen path in England. He gave his brother almost all of his money for the journey home leaving William in a serious financial situation. But his fate would soon take a favourable turn. Soon after, he received an offer from the Earl of Darlington, who commanded a militia in the northern English town of Richmond and was looking for a capable musician and instructor for his small military band.

Herschel accepted this offer without hesitation and set off for the North. On his arrival, however, he found that the whole chapel he was to lead consisted of only two oboists and two horn players, but he was very happy with the appointment, even if it was quite modest. It relieved him at least of the most oppressive financial difficulties, without tying him down permanently, and left him a certain amount of personal freedom and independence.

He took a small flat in Sunderland. From that time, we hear about his first compositions, military marches for use by the Count’s troops. But other works soon followed. He wrote to Jacob that he had composed seven ”symphonies” in the period from June 1760 to January 1761. However, these were hardly symphonies in the actual sense of the word, but rather orchestral music on a smaller scale. Unfortunately, none of these works have been published.7

In the letters to Jacob, with whom he had a lively correspondence for the next two or three years, there is much talk of musical things that occupied him most of the time. But he also developed his own views on philosophical and religious problems in these letters. Although his remarks sometimes still seem quite youthfully “unfermented” – he was just 22 years old at the time – they are nevertheless important in understanding William’s nature. They are a faithful insight of his thoughts and feelings, which in those years were filled with the writings of great philosophers, whom he studied with a true zeal. He read the works of Epictetus8 and the great thinkers of modern times, like Leibniz and John Locke. William made extensive excerpts of their works, which were sent to his brother. His religious stance is also repeatedly expressed in the letter, which despite all his probing and desire to understand the world around him in scientific terms, strangely could be described as a simple piety, an unquestioning respect for religion which accompanied him throughout his life.

In addition to profound observations, Herschel’s letters also contain descriptions of his daily life and professional work. Aside from his duties as an instructor of the military band, he seems to have given vast numbers of private music lessons. To this end, he often had to undertake long and arduous journeys, usually on horseback, to the wider area of Sunderland. From the proceeds brought in by these hours, he supported his relatives in Hanover. They suffered greatly from the consequences of the war and the French occupation. When his father was finally discharged from military service in 1760 and returned home, he was a sick man who could barely practice his profession or feed his family. Thus, the money that William sent home was vital.

At first, William Herschel felt quite lonely and abandoned in his small dwelling in Sunderland. Then one day the organist Dr Miller from Doncaster became aware of the young German, whose high musical talent had been told in the officers’ mess of the count in which Miller frequented. He invited Herschel to his home and introduced him into various musical circles, including to house of Mr. Copley, where he enjoyed a social life and much music. Several of Herschel’s compositions were also performed there and his reputation as a composer quickly spread.

In February 1761, Herschel travelled to Edinburgh. He had learned that the concert director there wanted to give up his post and William hoped to succeed him. He took part in a concert in which some of his works, “symphonies and solo-concertos”, as he writes - were performed, and had the good fortune to make the personal acquaintance of the philosopher David Hume. Hume even invited William to dine with him in the midst of an illustrious company of Edinburgh’s celebrities and gave him friendly recognition as a composer.

So, everything was very hopeful. In any case, Herschel had firm confidence that he would be successful in obtaining the post. Contrary to expectations, however, the concert director decided to remain in his office after all. Disappointed, Herschel returned to Sunderland. He suddenly found himself transported back to the old insecure life he had once led in London after his arrival. In view of the expected employment in Edinburgh, he had somewhat prematurely terminated his contract with the commander of the militia force in Richmond, thus burning the bridges behind him. So now he had to start all over again. For a while, he thought of returning to Germany and applying for a position in the Hanoverian court orchestra, but he soon gave up that idea, because in Hanover, impoverished by war and occupation, his career prospects would certainly have been much worse. In any case, Jacob’s letters from home did not sound very encouraging.

He finally came to terms with his fate of staying in England. He soon had employment again, and he gave a lot of music lessons and his musical friends provided him with plenty of students. He also attended house concerts, which enjoyed extraordinary popularity in England at the time, and not only his talent as a musician was appreciated, but also his winning and humble demeanour. He frequented the house of Lord Milbank, a respected landed gentry in Halnaby near Sunderland.9 Lord Milbank kept a very hospitable house and maintained a lively relationship with the highest circles of English society. It was here that Herschel was introduced to the Duke of York, the King’s brother, during such a house concert. He writes to Jacob about this encounter: “My vanity was not a little flattered when I was summoned by a messenger to see Lady Milbank. I hastened at once, and was introduced to the Duke of York, the King's brother. We made music together all week because His Royal Highness is an excellent cello player. I had the honour not only of playing him several solos, which he applauded, but also of being accompanied by him. Whether this acquaintance with the duke will be of any use to me I cannot yet say.”

At that time, however, Herschel could not have imagined that two decades later – albeit under completely different circumstances – he would enter into close relations with the Royal House again and receive an honourable appointment as court astronomer to George III, which formed the starting point for his brilliant rise in science.

Incidentally, a first hint of Herschel’s later astronomical career can be identified from those years. In a letter written many years later to Dr Hutton, who had asked Herschel for some biographical information, we find the passage: “The theory of music being connected with mathematics, had introduced me very clearly to read in Germany all what had been written upon the subject of harmony; and when, not long after my arrival in England, a valuable book of Dr Smith’s Harmonics came into my hands, I perceive my ignorance and had recourse to other authors for information, by which I was drawn from one branch of mathematics to another.”

Soon Herschel acquired Robert Smith’s textbook of optics, which was well-known in the scientific literature of the time, and finally, a few years later, Ferguson’s astronomy. The path from musician to astronomer was already outlined. But, as said, it would be another two decades before Herschel finally gave up his profession to follow the calling. It was probably initially nothing more than an inexhaustible thirst for knowledge and hunger for education that led Herschel to reach for these works, a passion for intellectual possession, for knowledge and truth. Herschel had fulfilled this aspiration since his childhood days. It is therefore significant that during his time in Sunderland, in addition to his strenuous work as a music teacher, to his compositions and philosophical studies, he also devoted himself to the study of three foreign languages: he practised Italian, the knowledge of which he considered necessary for his profession, French, Latin and for a time even Greek, “but soon dropped the pursuit of that as leading me too far from my favourite studies, by taking up too much of my leisure.”

Thus, the year 1761 passed without any change in his restless, wandering life. But in January 1762 he seems to have had more favourable prospects. In a letter to Jacob from Pontefract,10 where he spent some time as a music teacher, he writes optimistically: “I am at present looking about for some sort or other of a place either as organist or any other fixed kind, which it is not at all unlikely I may find, as I have good luck to make friends everywhere.”

A few weeks later he also got a job as concert director in Leeds. His task was to compile the music for the seasonal concerts there and to hold the orchestral rehearsals and seems to have continued to give private music lessons throughout this time. He travelled a lot between Leeds, Doncaster, Halifax, Pontefract and other cities to visit his pupils. Despite this disruption, his life was moving in a somewhat calmer direction. In Leeds he found a comfortable home, which he shared with his housekeepers, Mr. and Mrs. Bulman. Here he could relax and pursue his musical and philosophical inclinations during his free time. Gradually, a warm friendship developed between him and the Bulmans, and when Herschel moved to Bath a few years later, he took his housekeepers and shared his household with them, which Mrs. Bulman took care of.

Herschel’s work in Leeds seems to have been very well received in the musical circles of the town, for he writes to his brother in Hanover: “On the 16th [April 1762] there was a concert here, such as they have weekly, when I played for the first time; and though usually 20 to 30 listeners in the audience, the news that I was to be there that evening brought over a hundred. I played two solos and though these were much praised I got more pleasure from finding that my symphony had such a success that I heartily congratulated on being the composer.” After a lengthy account of another concert at which he was enthusiastically celebrated, he continues: “Some of the leading and richest people in this town have interested in themselves so much in me that there is talk of retaining me here; and if their intention succeeds (as I greatly hope) this town will put a pleasant end to my restless weary life.”

Herschel was 23 years old when he wrote this! At the time, he seemed firmly convinced that Leeds was a kind of final destination for him and that he would end his days there as a musician and composer. But he also seems to have felt, at least at that time, full satisfaction in his profession and regarded it as the life’s work assigned to him. While he believed and hoped to make a career as a composer, it must nevertheless be stated that his abilities as a performing musician far surpassed his compositional talent and that his compositions in particular had no particular artistic value. After all, Herschel had a pleasing and easy-to-understand way of musical expression. He loved harmony in the guise of the simple, convincing melody and had an aversion to the fugue, a somewhat strange finding given his other preferences for logic and clear thought structure. In other words, he composed appealing and unproblematic entertainment music in the typical Rococo style. Unfortunately, with the exception of one song (titled “The Echo Catch”), none of his works have been published and most of the manuscripts have been lost during his numerous moves.11 On the other hand, his sacred music12 seems to have been filled with deep religious content, according to organist Ozias Linley, his successor at Bath. Unfortunately, Linley’s admiration for Herschel’s music went so far as to take all the manuscripts he had found in Bath after Herschel’s departure. They are now missing.13

In summary, however, it can be said with some certainty that Herschel would not have achieved great fame as a composer. Astronomy, which finally led him to give up his profession as a musician, cannot therefore be accused of having deprived the musical world of a second Haydn or Mozart.

Herschel lived in Leeds for four years. In February 1763 he received news that his father had succeeded in obtaining formal discharge for him from military service. He was thus able to reclaim his honour in the eyes of those who might have regarded him as a kind of deserter. In the spring of the following year, he travelled to Hanover to visit his parents and siblings. For his father, it was the last reunion with the son of whom he was so proud. Isaac Herschel died on 22 March 1767, at the age of sixty. He was not to witness the splendid ascent of his son and see the nurturing inheritance, which he had invested in William, unfold.

William Herschel seems to have been greatly depressed by the poor conditions in which he had found his family in Hanover, and he intensified his efforts to support his relatives from his own, by no means lavish income. His days were filled to the brim with music lessons, and he also had obligations as a concert director, which he could not neglect. For two years he maintained this routine and one day passed like another in strenuous monotonous professional work, and he hardly made any entries in his diary. It was not until 1766 that we learn of something significant again. On 19 February of this year, the short note appears in his diary: “Observation of Venus”, and on 24 February: “Eclipse of the Moon at 7 o’clock AM. Kirby”.14 These are his first – and for a long time, only astronomical entries. As short and minor as they may be, they should be noted. The fact that Herschel wrote these two insignificant events in his otherwise extremely brief journal seems to be proof that he was interested in astronomical matters. He also reports that at that time he thoroughly studied mathematical books such as the works of Emerson, McLaurin, Hodgson, Dr Smith’s Harmonics, etc.

His other entries are mainly devoted to musical matters such as music lessons, concert dates, compositions, etc. In March 1766 he changes his post in Leeds for a post as organist in Halifax. A new organ was to be used and a small musical competition was organized to select the most suitable of several applicants. Herschel entered and was unanimously elected organist. According to an anecdote in Southey’s book “The doctor”, he is said to have used a little trick in the competition by placing two lead weights on the two lower octaves giving the instrument an unusually full sound (the English organs had no registers at that time).

Herschel’s work as an organist in Halifax was not permanent. Through the mediation of a music student, Mme de Chair, he received a similar position at the newly built Octagon Chapel in Bath a few months later. Although he was kept in Halifax by the promise of a financial improvement, he resigned in the autumn of 1766 and moved to Bath on 9 December. In his diary on November 30, he wrote: “The last Sunday of playing the organ. For the 13 Sundays of my being organist I was payed 12 Guineas.”

Bath ushered in a new chapter in Herschel’s life. The troubled years of travel, so rich in hardship and exertions of all kinds, were now behind him and he had finally gained a firm foothold in his adopted home of England. It was also this time in Bath which opened the way to his astronomical career.

1 “William” is used throughout this translation instead of his German name “Wilhelm”, which he didn’t use in England. [WS]. – The sign [WS] signifies a comment by the translator, Wolfgang Steinicke.

2 All italics are due to the author (Buttmann). [WS]

3 Moravia is now part of the Czech Republic; Saxony is now part of eastern Germany; Pirna is a city south east of Dresden, Germany. [WS]

4 “Caroline” is used instead of her German name “Karoline”. [WS]

5 Mrs. J. Herschel. Memoir and Correspondence of Caroline Herschel. J. Murray, London 1876. [WS]

6 J. L. E. Dreyer. The Scientific Papers of Sir William Herschel, Vol. I. Royal Society, London 1912, p. XVI f.

7 Online versions can be purchased. [WS]

8 Epictetus was a Greek Stoic philosopher. [WS]

9 This is Sir Ralph Milbank; his wife, Lady Elizabeth, played the harpsichord. [WS]

10 The small town is about 10 miles south east of Leeds. [WS]

11 This claim should be corrected. Today many of Herschel’s symphonies are known and have been recited. [WS]

12 William composed organ works, hymns and an oratorio taken from John Milton’s “Paradise lost”. [WS]

13 Herschel did look after his manuscripts and the sets in the British Library and Berkeley have all been well cared for - by him and the family after his death. There is quite a lot from the Bath period but I suspect a good deal that is lost. [WS]

14 William wrongly noted “AM” instead of “PM”. [WS]

Organist in Bath. The siblings. The Musician Astronomer.

Bath, within whose walls Herschel’s life would take place for the next decade and a half, was one of the most beautiful and elegant cities in England in the 18th century. Stretching either side of the River Avon and framed by gentle hills, it formed a gathering place for the noble with its magnificent buildings, shopping streets, facilities and, above all, its famous mineral springs. In Herschel’s time, Bath was at the height of its expansion. During the musical season, which lasted from October to March, there was a sumptuous life and bustle everywhere.15 The weekly concerts and theatre, then the best outside of London, were crowded and everyone who had rank and name met in the city’s game rooms and exclusive clubs.

Herschel rented a house in Beaufort Square with the Bulmans, his friends from Leeds. Soon many pupils flocked to him – mostly the sons and daughters of the spa guests of Bath – and it was not uncommon for him to have to give 35 to 40 music lessons a week. Since his position as organist at the newly built Octagon Chapel was not to commence until the autumn, he accepted an offer from the concert director of Bath, Derrick,16