Robert Fulton is one of the most interesting names of the New Age. An eyewitness to many interesting events, a participant in wars, an inventor and a scientist. You can list the unique qualities of this man for a long time, but wouldn't it be better to turn to the legacy of what Robert Fulton left for posterity?
Biography
The future inventor spent his childhood and youth in America. Date of birth - 1765. Birthplace: Little Britain. Robert's father died when the boy was only three years old. Robert and his family had to move closer to his mother's relatives - in the small town of Lancaster. There Robert Fulton went to school.
The education of those times left much to be desired. The students were given long pieces of Greek and Roman works to memorize, stories from the life of distant European countries were told - all this did not represent the slightest interest for the future inventor. Much more willingly, he spent time in the old forge on the edge of the city, rummaging through the tools of the artisans, collecting all sorts of knick-knacks. At the age of thirteen he madehis first technical drawing, and a little later, according to his sketches, the world's first boat with a steam engine went down into the water.
After leaving school, Robert Fulton tries his hand at jewelry. Then he tried to become a draftsman. Realizing how much he lacks knowledge, he decides on a long journey to England - the capital of technical innovations. This is where everything that Robert Fulton invented begins to take shape - dreams become reality.
Stay in England
Robert Fulton lived with Benjamin West, one of the most famous artists of that time. He did not leave his dream to make a sea ship with a fundamentally new engine - not oar and not wind. Finally, the project was created. The first drawing of a steamboat was presented to the government of England in 1793.
In 1797 he moved to Paris, where he continued to work on his invention, which would immortalize his name - Robert Fulton. The biography of the inventor speaks of the most intense period of his life. In Paris, Fulton studies German and French, improves his own knowledge of chemistry, engineering and mathematics. Here he meets James Ramsay, an English inventor who in 1786 built a prototype of the first steamboat in West Virginia.
Opening Rejection
To Franklin's surprise, his discovery was considered a whim, a useless toy. The Admir alty has indicated that it has no intention of investing in a ship that is known to be non-existent. Frustrated Robert Fulton with hishe went to France with projects, where by that time the revolution had already died down, and Napoleon 1 came to power. Maybe his new projects will be needed in France?
Robert Fulton and Napoleon
In the notes of Count Mirabeau there is a mention of the meeting of the American inventor with Napoleon. Robert Fulton, the creator of the steamship, suggested to the emperor that the French fleet be replenished with new ships that would be driven by steam. He convinced the emperor that with such combat vehicles, Napoleon 1 would quickly defeat his eternal rival, France.
After listening to the inventor, Napoleon exclaimed:
- Every day, horrendous projects are put on my table, stupider than which it is impossible to invent. Only yesterday I was asked to land cavalry on the coast of England, mounted on tame dolphins. Go away - you must be one of those crazy people!
Interestingly, just eight years later, the English ship "Bellerophon" took Napoleon to the place of his first exile - to the island of St. Helena. On the high seas, the English ship met with the steamer "Fulton", which was moving with the help of steam engines.
The steamer overtook the Bellerophon and disappeared over the horizon. Watching the American steamer, Napoleon sadly remarked:
- By not listening to Fulton, I lost my crown.
First ships
In the meantime, Fulton is looking for sponsors to build the first ships with steam engines, in 1800, the Nautilus submarine was demonstrated in France, conqueringonlookers imagination.
But the Nautilus was not suitable for military purposes, it was too slow, and the enemy's fast sailing ships easily dodged the submarine. Further construction of such ships was suspended, and the importance of submarines was assessed only a hundred years later - during the First World War. Perhaps many years later, under the impression of this ship, Vern will write his immortal "Captain Nemo". In 1803, the first steamboat plied the waters of the Seine. But for large-scale production, there is still not enough time and money. And Robert Fulton decides to return to America.
Conquest of the Sea
In America, Robert Fulton spent several years perfecting the principles of steam-powered wheel engines. Three years later, after returning to his homeland at the end of the summer of 1807, the first steamboat was launched on the waters of the Hudson. Contemporaries called it the "Northern River steamer from Claremont", but in historical records it is known as the Claremont. In fact, Claremont is the name of the estate of a friend of Fulton, which was located 177 kilometers from New York. The first flight of the "Northern River" was made along the Hudson, on the route "Clermont-New York". Convinced of the economic potential of his invention, Fulton patented his discovery and launched the production of steamboats in the United States.
Steamboats in Russia
In 1813, Fulton turned to the Russian government with a request to grant the exclusive right toconstruction of river steamships on the territory of the Russian Empire. Emperor Alexander 1 granted him all the necessary rights, but Fulton could not fulfill the order of the government. For three years not a single ship was launched into the water. After the death of the inventor in 1815, the monopoly on the construction of ships was bought by Charles Byrd, who in the same year launched his first steam-powered ship. A report on this event was published in the magazine "Son of the Fatherland". The word "steamboat" was also used there for the first time, which later firmly entered the modern Russian language.
