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The Lunar Society of Birmingham was formed in the 1760s, and included (among others) Matthew Boulton and his partner James Watt (of steam engine fame), the potter Josiah Wedgwood, Erasmus Darwin, theorist of evolution and ancestor of Charles Darwin. Later came Joseph Priestley, discoverer of oxygen. They formed the Lunar Society (so-called because it met at each full moon) to talk, swap discoveries and plan their great idea. Jenny Uglow, described by Michael Holroyd as one of the most talented of contemporary biographers, has written a fascinating and vivid account of these famous men and their friendships, love of knowledge and power. It is a splendid look at 'The Friends who Made the Future' between 1730 and 1810, and deserves to be very successful.
Biographer Jenny Uglow has already written extensively and brilliantly on 18th and 19th literature and culture, notably in biographies of Hogarth and Mrs Gaskell, and this new work can only add to her reputation for meticulous scholarship lightly worn. The 18th century was one of clubs, and the like-minded men of the title belonged to the Lunar Society of Birmingham, which met on the nearest Monday to the full moon, so that their various ways home would be well-lit. But this was no ordinary gathering, and Uglow describes how these gifted individuals nudged their whole society and culture towards today's world. Most of the Lunar men were provincial men, gifted amateurs and Nonconformists, the latter fact being a strength which freed them from the tyranny of tradition and established institutions; they were also united by a love of science and of the new. With astonishing energy, they built factories and canals, discovered new minerals, gases and medicines, created beautiful porcelain, added to the knowledge of botany, coined new words and wrote poetry. Considering themselves to be 'natural philosophers', they acknowledged no division between the sciences and humanities and were interested in politics, religion and education. They were usually dedicated family men and equally dedicated friends. The core of the Society was the quintet consisting of Erasmus Darwin, doctor, inventor and poet, manufacturer Matthew Boulton and his business partner James Watt, a pioneer of steam power, potter Josiah Wedgwood and Joseph Priestley, the chemist responsible for the soda-water taken on Captain Cook's voyages, and a preacher and leader of Radical Dissent. But there were others equally talented who joined them in the exchange and cross-fertilization of ideas and information and in their love of invention and experiment. It is Uglow's great achievement to bind individual lives and the narrative together in a fascinating and memorable book. (Kirkus UK)
Biographer Jenny Uglow has already written extensively and brilliantly on 18th and 19th literature and culture, notably in biographies of Hogarth and Mrs Gaskell, and this new work can only add to her reputation for meticulous scholarship lightly worn. The 18th century was one of clubs, and the like-minded men of the title belonged to the Lunar Society of Birmingham, which met on the nearest Monday to the full moon, so that their various ways home would be well-lit. But this was no ordinary gathering, and Uglow describes how these gifted individuals nudged their whole society and culture towards today's world. Most of the Lunar men were provincial men, gifted amateurs and Nonconformists, the latter fact being a strength which freed them from the tyranny of tradition and established institutions; they were also united by a love of science and of the new. With astonishing energy, they built factories and canals, discovered new minerals, gases and medicines, created beautiful porcelain, added to the knowledge of botany, coined new words and wrote poetry. Considering themselves to be 'natural philosophers', they acknowledged no division between the sciences and humanities and were interested in politics, religion and education. They were usually dedicated family men and equally dedicated friends. The core of the Society was the quintet consisting of Erasmus Darwin, doctor, inventor and poet, manufacturer Matthew Boulton and his business partner James Watt, a pioneer of steam power, potter Josiah Wedgwood and Joseph Priestley, the chemist responsible for the soda-water taken on Captain Cook's voyages, and a preacher and leader of Radical Dissent. But there were others equally talented who joined them in the exchange and cross-fertilization of ideas and information and in their love of invention and experiment. It is Uglow's great achievement to bind individual lives and the narrative together in a fascinating and memorable book. (Kirkus UK)
Literary Review, 1 September 2002
An astonishing feat of research, inquiry and fact-collecting. It is also a superbly original idea ... a considerable historical achievement.
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