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Henry Winstanley is one of the unsung heroes of English history, an eccentric entrepreneur and engineer of 'wonders', an engraver, architect, shipping merchant, and chum of Charles II. He was also, as the first builder of the Eddystone Lighthouse, ultimately a tragic hero. In 1695 two of his ships sank off the coast of Cornwall. It was a familiar event down in the west country: far out in the English Channel a jagged set of rocks called the Eddy-stone bedevilled sailors for generations, invisible at high tide, always deadly. Only one man had the audacity to attempt the building of a lighthouse on these isolated rocks, and that was the indignant Winstanley. No one had ever built a lighthouse on rocks in the open sea before. But, just five years after completing the lighthouse, the Great Storm of 1703 swept across Britain, as famously recorded by Daniel Defoe: the fiercest storm ever suffered by these isles. Winstanley was in his lighthouse at the time. By morning he, and his lighthouse, had disappeared without trace. Adam Hart-Davis here brings his infectious enthusiasm to the tale of another vibrant genius from his Local Heroes television series. Both the man and his context are lucidly presented, opening up the colourful world on the late seventeenth century, a combination of hard- headed business, innocent excitement in the possibilities of engineering and navigation, as well as architectural and scientific tenacity. (Kirkus UK)
Product Description
On 26 November 1703, during the worst storm that Britain had ever seen, Henry Winstanley died in his pioneering lighthouse as it was blown apart. He had defied incredible odds to build the first Eddystone Lighthouse in 1698, saving the lives of many sailors from the fate of the thousands who previously died upon the rocks. The Great Gale not only destroyed the man and his lighthouse, but also saw complete devastation throughout the land. And at sea, some 8000 sailors were drowned that night, within yards of the land. Winstanley was an ingenious man. He owned a house of gadgets which was one of London's foremost attractions for decades. In 1695, two of his five ships were lost on Eddystone. He was determined that no more ships should founder and, though thwarted by weather and politics, he built a lighthouse, the first of its kind. It survived terrible winters and withstood devastating storms, guiding ships away from the treacherous rocks that lay ahead with its dim candlelight. After the great storm it was as if the lighthouse had never been. Ultimately, Winstanley's lighthouse led to the building of others on the Eddystone rocks and beyond, thus transforming the safety of shipping. This illustrated work vividly recreates the story of the Eddystone Lighthouse, the character of the man who built it with grim determination fighting against all odds, and the power of the elements that finally destroyed them both.
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Henry Winstanley is one of the unsung heroes of English history, an eccentric entrepreneur and engineer of 'wonders', an engraver, architect, shipping merchant, and chum of Charles II. He was also, as the first builder of the Eddystone Lighthouse, ultimately a tragic hero. In 1695 two of his ships sank off the coast of Cornwall. It was a familiar event down in the west country: far out in the English Channel a jagged set of rocks called the Eddy-stone bedevilled sailors for generations, invisible at high tide, always deadly. Only one man had the audacity to attempt the building of a lighthouse on these isolated rocks, and that was the indignant Winstanley. No one had ever built a lighthouse on rocks in the open sea before. But, just five years after completing the lighthouse, the Great Storm of 1703 swept across Britain, as famously recorded by Daniel Defoe: the fiercest storm ever suffered by these isles. Winstanley was in his lighthouse at the time. By morning he, and his lighthouse, had disappeared without trace. Adam Hart-Davis here brings his infectious enthusiasm to the tale of another vibrant genius from his Local Heroes television series. Both the man and his context are lucidly presented, opening up the colourful world on the late seventeenth century, a combination of hard- headed business, innocent excitement in the possibilities of engineering and navigation, as well as architectural and scientific tenacity. (Kirkus UK)
Product Description
On 26 November 1703, during the worst storm that Britain had ever seen, Henry Winstanley died in his pioneering lighthouse as it was blown apart. He had defied incredible odds to build the first Eddystone Lighthouse in 1698, saving the lives of many sailors from the fate of the thousands who previously died upon the rocks. The Great Gale not only destroyed the man and his lighthouse, but also saw complete devastation throughout the land. And at sea, some 8000 sailors were drowned that night, within yards of the land. Winstanley was an ingenious man. He owned a house of gadgets which was one of London's foremost attractions for decades. In 1695, two of his five ships were lost on Eddystone. He was determined that no more ships should founder and, though thwarted by weather and politics, he built a lighthouse, the first of its kind. It survived terrible winters and withstood devastating storms, guiding ships away from the treacherous rocks that lay ahead with its dim candlelight. After the great storm it was as if the lighthouse had never been. Ultimately, Winstanley's lighthouse led to the building of others on the Eddystone rocks and beyond, thus transforming the safety of shipping. This illustrated work vividly recreates the story of the Eddystone Lighthouse, the character of the man who built it with grim determination fighting against all odds, and the power of the elements that finally destroyed them both.
See all Product Description
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