Catalogue description The papers of Henry Cavendish (1731-1810) natural philosopher

This record is held by Devonshire Collection Archives, Chatsworth

Details of HY
Reference: HY
Title: The papers of Henry Cavendish (1731-1810) natural philosopher
Description:

The largest surviving collection of papers and letters of the natural philosopher Henry Cavendish (1731-1810). The collection consists of Henry Cavendish's scientific papers, his correspondence, his journals, his library catalogue and the "White Book": his only known notebook to survive. His scientific papers cover descriptions and explanations of experiments, preliminary research notes and data, figures and diagrams, analytical tables, drafts of Papers and Propositions, algebraic calculations, formulae and computations.

The collection is organised by subject matter of his scientific research. His scientific papers are followed by his personal papers: HY/10 contans his journals and his correspondence, including correspondence with several leading scientists such as Dr Joseph Priestley, John Michell, Nevil Maskelyne and William Herschel. HY/11 is concerned with the administration of his estates, including correspondence with his agents. Two manuscript items, Henry's Library Catalogue and his White Book, with corresponding loose pages, are contained in HY/12. The scientific papers are written by Cavendish unless otherwise stated. Any title in inverted commas are made on the papers themselves by Cavendish or a later commentator.
Note:

Cavendish's life has been subject to several biographies: he has an entry in Lord Brougham's "Lives of Men of Letters and Science Who Flourished in the Time of George III" Vol. I (1845). Brougham had personally met Cavendish and had access to his papers. The first full biography was Wilson, George, "The Life and Works of Cavendish, including Abstracts of his more important scientific papers, and a critical inquiry into the claims of all the alleged discoverers of the composition of water" (1851; London). This biography focuses on Cavendish's role in the discovery of the composition of water and quotes from his papers relating to that topic.This was the only biography until Berry, AJ "Henry Cavendish: His Life and Scientific Work" (1960). Berry viewed Cavendish's papers, whcih were then at Chatsworth. Only the first chapter is a biography of Cavendish with the remainder of the book concerning his scientific work. Jungnickel, Christa and McCormmach, Russell "Cavendish" (1996; American Philosophical Society), updated and re-published as "Cavendish: The Experimental Life" (1999; Bucknell University Press is an extensive view of Cavendish and his father Lord Charles' lives with the latter publishing the majority of Cavendish's letters. McCormmach went on to publish two further books on Cavendish: "Speculative Truth: Henry Cavendish, Natural Philosophy and the Rise of Modern Theoretical Science" (2004, OUP) which published Cavendish's manuscript on a theory of heat; and "The Personality of Henry Cavendish: A Great Scientist with Extraordinary Peculiarities" (2014; Springer) which focuses on Cavendish's personality and theories suggesting that he was an autistic person. Finally, there is a small booklet by Jonathan Powers "The Hon Henry Cavendish FRS FSA: The Man who Weighed the World" (2012; iOpening Books), a publication based on a lecture he gave on the 200th anniversary of Cavendish's death.

These published works are referenced throughout this catalogue.
Date: c.1761-1810
Arrangement:

The papers were arranged by subject matter shortly after Henry Cavendish's death (between 1810 and 1840) by Reverend William Vernon Harcourt and William Snow Harris. This arrangement was sustained through various examinations by subsequent scientists and academics, including in the typescript Royal Commision on Historical Manuscripts list of The Scientific Papers of Henry Cavendish at Chatsworth completed in 1977. The 2024 project to catalogue the collection retained the arrangement by subject matter with the addition of sub-fonds for Cavendish's personal and estate papers. The arrangement is thus: HY/1 Electricity; HY/2 Chemical; HY/3 Physics (mainly heat); HY/4 Meterological: instruments and measurements; HY/5 Meterological: Optics; HY/6 Mathematics, dynamics and mechanics; HY/7 Geology; HY/8 Astronomy; HY/9 Magnetism; HY/10 personal papers; HY/11 estate papers; HY/12 manuscript items.
Related material:

Within the Devonshire Collections: Currey Papers - L/31, L/34, L/36, L/38, L/44, L/49, L/86, L/114; Cavendish Family and Associates First Correspondence Series - CS1/260.119 (mention of Frederick); Correspondence of Duchess Georgiana and the 5th Duke of Devonshire - CS5 (several of Duchess Georgiana's letters mention Henry Cavendish). There are also his desk and eight scientific instruments in the Devonshire collections.

At the Royal Society: CB/1/3/276-279 Letter from Georgiana, Duchess of Devonshire, to Charles Blagden; CB/3 Diaries of Charles Blagden contain many references to Henry Cavendish; MM/10/17-21 Letters discussing the papers of Henry Cavendish; MM/16/124-125 Letter and abstract written by William Snow Harris in relation to the papers of Henry Cavendish.

In the Public Archives of Canada reference MG23-L6: manuscript written by Henry Cavendish on heat.

At the British Museum: sketch by William Alexander of Cavendish, is the only known drawing of Henry Cavendish. Museum number I,8.137. Turned into engraving by Tomlinson (Museum Number 1854,0913.1)

In the British Library: Add MSS 75917 Letter from Countess Spencer to Earl Spencer mentioning Henry Cavendish's respect for the scientific abilities of Georgiana, Duchess of Devonshire.

At the Science Museum: battery of Leyden jars, eudiometer, dip circle (large) and variation compass (standing, large) belonging to Henry Cavendish donated by the 9th Duke of Devonshire in 1930. The battery is currently (2024) on display at the Science Museum, London while the other instruments are in storage.
Held by: Devonshire Collection Archives, Chatsworth, not available at The National Archives
Language: English
Creator:

Cavendish, Henry (1732-1810)
Physical description: 5 boxes (42 folders and 3 volumes, total 641 items)
Access conditions:

The collection is open for consultation. Access to the archive at Chatsworth is by appointment only. For more information please visit: https://www.chatsworth.org/art-archives/access-the-collection/archives-and-library/. Copies of material in the archive can be supplied for private study and personal research purposes only, depending on the condition of the documents. Much of the material is in the copyright of Chatsworth House Trust, and researchers must obtain permission from the Trust before reproducing material for purposes other than research or private study.
Immediate source of acquisition:

Henry Cavendish's main heir was his cousin's son Lord George Augustus Henry, 1st Earl of Burlington, 2nd creation (1754-1834). Lord George gifted Henry's library to the 6th Duke. Henry's papers were retained and passed to Lord George's sons. Some therefore came into the Devonshire collection when his grandson William Cavendish became the 7th Duke. The 7th Duke also inherited Henry's desk and some instruments (including two universal equinoctial dials, telescope, pantograph, and portable barometer). Other items (notably the White Book) passed down the line of Lord George's younger son and were purchased at auction in 1969. Other papers (HY/10/2/19-56) appear to have orginated from the family lawyers, Curreys and Co.
Accruals:

Not accruing
Publication note:

Cavendish's electrical papers were published in Maxwell, James Clerk (ed.) "The Scientific Papers of Henry Cavendish: Electrical Researches" (1879; Cambridge, Cambridge University Press). These were re-published along with much of his remaining scientific papers in Thorpe, Edward (ed.) "The Scientific Papers of Henry Cavendish: Chemical and Dynamical" (1921; Cambridge, Cambridge University Press).

All of Henry Cavendish's correspondence at Chatsworth, together with other letters at the Royal Society, British Library and elsewhere, are published in Part IV of Jungnickel, Christa and McCormmach, Russell "Cavendish: The Experimental Life" (2nd ed, 1999; Bucknell).
Subjects:
  • Henry Cavendish
  • Science
  • Estate Management
  • Captain James Cook
  • Exploration
  • Physics
  • Chemistry
Administrative / biographical background:

Henry Cavendish (10 October 1731-24 February 1810) was the elder son of Lord Charles Cavendish (1704-1782), the third son of William, the 2nd Duke of Devonshire. Lord Charles Cavendish was a politician then a scientist, elected Fellow of the Royal Society in 1727. Henry was born in Nice, France where his mother Lady Anne de Grey, fourth daughter of the Duke of Kent, was residing for her health. The family returned to England before his younger brother Frederick was born in 1733. The same year, their mother died.

Henry was sent to school at Hackney Academy. He then attended St Peter s College, Cambridge (now Peterhouse) from 1749-1753, leaving without a degree. His brother attended Cambridge for some of the same time and suffered a life-changing accident when he fell from the upper window of college, landing on his head. Lord Charles had purchased 13 Great Marlborough Street in London in 1738, setting up the stables as a laboratory and workshop. Henry lived there with his father until his father's death in 1783.

In 1758, Henry started attending Thursday meetings of the Royal Society s Dining Club with his father. He was elected a member of that club and a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1760. He was elected to the council of the Royal Society thirty-four times, the first being in 1765 (Jungnickel and McCormmach 1999, p256). He served on various committees for the Royal Society, including those responsible for the organisation of the observation of Venus, another examining ways to secure powder stores against lightning, and those associated with care and upkeep of instruments at the Royal Society and the Royal Observatory. During his lifetime, Henry published 16 papers in Philosophical Transactions, the journal of the Royal Society. His most prominent were his three papers on fictitious air ("Containing Experiments on Factitious Air", published 31 December 1766 Vol. 56), which earned him the Society s Copley Medal, and "Experiments to Determine the Density of the Earth" (31 December 1798 Vol. 88). The latter details his most well-known experiment to calculate the mass of the earth, an experiment that still bears his name and earned him the posthumous moniker of  the Man who weighed the World .

In 1773, he was elected a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries and, like his father, appointed as a Trustee of the British Museum.

After his father's death, Henry inherited substantial property and wealth. He rented 11 Bedford Square (which he used as his library) and a house at Clapham Common (which he used as a laboratory and observatory). In 1800, he became a proprietor of the Royal Institution before becoming its manager later the same year. He died aged 78 at Clapham Common and is buried in the Devonshire family vault in Derby Cathedral.

After his death, an examination of his papers revealed the scope, depth and genius of his scientific work. Despite publishing only two papers relating to electricity in his lifetime, his manuscripts showed he had anticipated most discoveries about electricity that were to be  re-discovered over the coming years. In his works in chemistry, his papers on factitious airs could be said to represent the discovery of hydrogen and methane, as well as measuring the composition of oxygen in atmospheric air to a high level of accuracy. His experiments in 1781 led to his conclusion that water was a combination of oxygen and hydrogen. He completed some work in Geology in the period 1785-1793, perhaps under persuasion from Rev. John Michell (Thorpe 1921 Vol. II, p431). This work formed the basis of a series of driving tours with Sir Charles Blagden around central and southern England and Wales through 1785-1787 and 1793.

In addition to his scientific work, Henry was a large estate holder. His father Lord Charles had received farms and tithes in Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire as part of his marriage settlement. His father passed on the management of these estates to him in 1782.

His main heir was his cousin's son Lord George Augustus Henry, 1st Earl of Burlington (1754-1834). Lord George's grandson, William, the 7th Duke of Devonshire, was interested in mathematics and science. He attended Cambridge and became that university's Chancellor. He funded the building of the Cavendish Laboratory of Physics. It was at his instigation that led to the publication of some of Cavendish's papers.

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