Baron Humboldt
1769–1859
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Hailed as the ‘second discoverer of Cuba’ because of the amount of time and energy he poured into researching that particular colony, Humboldt’s discoveries are hardly limited to that one country. Although his scientific discoveries and honors are too numerous to list here, his expeditions gained him world-wide fame and acclaim. They also created a furor among the scientific community to whom they were presented, as people learned that there was yet more to the New World than met the eye. Humboldt died in bed at the age of 89. He was granted great honors posthumously, but his most lasting legacy was his contribution to the sciences.
Key events during the life of Baron Humboldt:
| Born. Father was Royal Chamberlain at the time. | |
| Death of father, Alexander Georg von Humboldt. Mother takes over education. | |
| Sudied finance for six months at University of Frankfurt. | |
| Matriculated at Göttingen (comprehensive research university). | |
| Goes on scientific expedition up the Rhine, writes treatise Mineralogic Observations on Several Basalts on the River Rhine. | |
| Visits England in the company of Georg Forster. | |
| Visits Vienna. Obtains official employment by appointment as assessor of mines at Berlin. | |
| Publishes Florae Fribergensis Specimen. | |
| Admitted to 'Weimar coterie'. | |
| Contributes to Friedrich Schiller's new periodical, Die Horen. Makes geological and botanical tour through Switzerland and Italy. | |
| Publishes Experiments on the Frayed Muscle and Nerve Fibres. | |
| Death of mother, Maria Elizabeth. Severs official connections in preparation to travel. | |
| With Aimé Bonpland, obtains patronage from Don Mariano Luis de Urquijo, Secretary of State to Spain. Sails for Latin America, June 5th. | |
| July 16th, land at Cumaná, Venezuela. Discovers oil-bird in Guácharo cavern. | |
| Leaves the coast with Bonpland to explore the course of the Orinoco River and its tributaries. Trip lasts four months and covers 1,725 miles of mostly uninhabited country. | |
| November 24th, set sail for Cuba. Meet fellow botanist and plant collector John Fraser. | |
| Arrive at Quito, Ecuador, January 6th. Leave for Lima, Peru, via the Amazon River. Goes to Mexico and resides there for a year. | |
| Visits America. Guest of President Thomas Jefferson for six weeks. Leaves America from Delaware, arrives at Bordeaux, August 3rd. | |
| Elected a foreign member of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences. Frederick William III of Prussia conferrs the honour attached to the post of royal chamberlain and a pension of 2,500 thalers. Refuses the appointment of Prussian minister of public instruction. | |
| Accompanies Allied sovereigns to London. | |
| Summoned by king of Prussia to attend him at the congress of Aachen. | |
| Elected a Foreign Honorary Member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. Accompanied King of Prussia to Congress of Verona. | |
| Returns to Paris. | |
| Settles permanently at Berlin. | |
| Expedition to Russia; too rapid to be profitable | |
| Employed in diplomatic missions to the court of Louis Philippe of France. | |
| Death of brother Wilhelm von Humboldt, April 8th. | |
| Ascension of Frederick William IV, favor at court increases. | |
| First two volumes of the Kosmos published; a comprehensive work about geography and the natural sciences. | |
| Fourth and third volumes of the Kosmos published. | |
| Suffers from minor stroke. | |
| Health declines during the winter. Dies May 6th, peacefully in bed. | |
| A fragment of the fifth volume of the Kosmos is published posthumously. |
Other Resources
| Adventures of Baron Humboldt in | The Struggle for Sea Power by M. B. Synge |
| Humboldt and Nature in the New World in | Children's Stories of the Great Scientists by Henrietta Christian Wright |
Image Links | ||
|---|---|---|
Alexander Von Humboldt in Back Matter |
 Alexander von Humboldt in Children's Stories of the Great Scientists |
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| Thomas Jefferson | Third President. Author of the Declaration of Independence. Founder of Democrat-Republican Party. |