Michel Ferdinand d'Albert d'Ailly
Encyclopedia
Michel Ferdinand d'Albert d'Ailly (31 December 1714 – 23 September 1769), Duke of Picquigny
and then Duke of Chaulnes
from 1744, was a French
astronomer
and physicist
.
(King's Household). In 1750 he became the king's commissioner in Brittany
and persuaded the assembly to accept the Vingtième
tax. He married Anne-Josephe Bonnier, one of Marie Leszczynska's ladies-in-waiting
and their son Louis Joseph
inherited the family dukedom.
As an astronomer and physicist he was particularly interested in scientific instruments and used most of his income to build and collect them. His estate contains a remarkable amount of rare and curious items collected from Egypt
, Greece
, China
, including Etruscan vases of all types, antique bronzes and natural history
specimens.
At a time at which physicists were abandoning glass globe electrostatic generator
s, which used sulphur or resin, to use glass plates instead, the Duke of Chaulnes built the largest machine of this type that had yet been seen. He used it to produce the effects of lightning for the first time in France.
In 1743, he was made an honorary member of the Académie des sciences. Two years after that, he published a memoir
in article form which described his experiments, and was included at the beginning of Newton's
Opticks
Bk. IV. In this work, he described his discovery of the peculiarities of the diffraction of light rays reflected by a concave mirror and how they might be stopped by a board pierced in the middle. In 1765, he introduced an astronomical instrument fitted with two achromatic lenses. He also invented a new microscope which he built in England
and he gives a description of it, illustrated with several plates. He first thought of the manufacture of artificial mineral water
.
He died in Paris in 1769 and a eulogy to him was published in the 1769 volume of the anthology of the Académie des sciences.
Picquigny
Picquigny is a commune in the Somme department in Picardie in northern France.-Geography:Picquigny is situated at the junction of the N235, the D141 and D3 roads, on the banks of the Somme River, some northwest of Amiens...
and then Duke of Chaulnes
Duke of Chaulnes
The title of Duke of Chaulnes , a French peerage, is held by the Albert family beginning in 1621.-History:The Duchy of Chaulnes was established by a letters patent of January 1621, registered on 6 March 1621 at the Parliament of Paris in favour of a younger brother of Charles d'Albert, Duke of...
from 1744, was a French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
astronomer
Astronomer
An astronomer is a scientist who studies celestial bodies such as planets, stars and galaxies.Historically, astronomy was more concerned with the classification and description of phenomena in the sky, while astrophysics attempted to explain these phenomena and the differences between them using...
and physicist
Physicist
A physicist is a scientist who studies or practices physics. Physicists study a wide range of physical phenomena in many branches of physics spanning all length scales: from sub-atomic particles of which all ordinary matter is made to the behavior of the material Universe as a whole...
.
Biography
The son of Louis Auguste d'Albert d'Ailly (1676–1744), the Duke of Chaulnes, Michel Ferdinand d'Albert d'Ailly commanded the light cavalry of the Maison du RoiMaison du Roi
The Maison du Roi was the name of the military, domestic and religious entourage around the royal family in France during the Ancien Régime and Bourbon Restoration; the exact composition and duties of its various divisions changed constantly over the Early Modern period...
(King's Household). In 1750 he became the king's commissioner in Brittany
Brittany
Brittany is a cultural and administrative region in the north-west of France. Previously a kingdom and then a duchy, Brittany was united to the Kingdom of France in 1532 as a province. Brittany has also been referred to as Less, Lesser or Little Britain...
and persuaded the assembly to accept the Vingtième
Vingtième
The vingtième was an income tax of the ancien régime in France. It was abolished during the French Revolution.-First Proposition:It was first proposed by the minister of finance, Jean-Baptiste de Machault, comte d'Arnouville, in 1749. The War of the Austrian Succession had just ended, with the...
tax. He married Anne-Josephe Bonnier, one of Marie Leszczynska's ladies-in-waiting
Lady-in-waiting
A lady-in-waiting is a female personal assistant at a royal court, attending on a queen, a princess, or a high-ranking noblewoman. Historically, in Europe a lady-in-waiting was often a noblewoman from a family highly thought of in good society, but was of lower rank than the woman on whom she...
and their son Louis Joseph
Louis Joseph d'Albert d'Ailly
Louis Joseph d'Albert d'Ailly , seventh Duke of Chaulnes and son of Michel Ferdinand d'Albert d'Ailly, was a chemist and French aristocrat.-Biography:At the death of his father in 1769, Louis Joseph inherited the title of Duke of Picquigny...
inherited the family dukedom.
As an astronomer and physicist he was particularly interested in scientific instruments and used most of his income to build and collect them. His estate contains a remarkable amount of rare and curious items collected from Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
, Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
, China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
, including Etruscan vases of all types, antique bronzes and natural history
Natural history
Natural history is the scientific research of plants or animals, leaning more towards observational rather than experimental methods of study, and encompasses more research published in magazines than in academic journals. Grouped among the natural sciences, natural history is the systematic study...
specimens.
At a time at which physicists were abandoning glass globe electrostatic generator
Electrostatic generator
An electrostatic generator, or electrostatic machine, is a mechanical device that produces static electricity, or electricity at high voltage and low continuous current...
s, which used sulphur or resin, to use glass plates instead, the Duke of Chaulnes built the largest machine of this type that had yet been seen. He used it to produce the effects of lightning for the first time in France.
In 1743, he was made an honorary member of the Académie des sciences. Two years after that, he published a memoir
Memoir
A memoir , is a literary genre, forming a subclass of autobiography – although the terms 'memoir' and 'autobiography' are almost interchangeable. Memoir is autobiographical writing, but not all autobiographical writing follows the criteria for memoir set out below...
in article form which described his experiments, and was included at the beginning of Newton's
Isaac Newton
Sir Isaac Newton PRS was an English physicist, mathematician, astronomer, natural philosopher, alchemist, and theologian, who has been "considered by many to be the greatest and most influential scientist who ever lived."...
Opticks
Opticks
Opticks is a book written by English physicist Isaac Newton that was released to the public in 1704. It is about optics and the refraction of light, and is considered one of the great works of science in history...
Bk. IV. In this work, he described his discovery of the peculiarities of the diffraction of light rays reflected by a concave mirror and how they might be stopped by a board pierced in the middle. In 1765, he introduced an astronomical instrument fitted with two achromatic lenses. He also invented a new microscope which he built in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
and he gives a description of it, illustrated with several plates. He first thought of the manufacture of artificial mineral water
Mineral water
Mineral water is water containing minerals or other dissolved substances that alter its taste or give it therapeutic value, generally obtained from a naturally occurring mineral spring or source. Dissolved substances in the water may include various salts and sulfur compounds...
.
He died in Paris in 1769 and a eulogy to him was published in the 1769 volume of the anthology of the Académie des sciences.
Publications
- Nouvelle Méthode pour diviser les instruments de mathématiques, in Description des arts et métiers, published by the Académie des sciences, 1768, in-fol. 44 p. with 15 illustrations.
- Description d'un microscope et de différents micromètres destinés à mesurer des parties circulaires ou droites avec la plus grande précision, Paris, in-fol. 18 p. with 6 illustrations. With this method, the Duke managed to obtain, from a quadrantQuadrant (instrument)A quadrant is an instrument that is used to measure angles up to 90°. It was originally proposed by Ptolemy as a better kind of astrolabe. Several different variations of the instrument were later produced by medieval Muslim astronomers.-Types of quadrants:...
with a radius of 11 inches, almost the same precision as from a quadrant with a radius of six feet which was at the observatory. He had already published the principles of this work in a thesis of 1755. Some parts of it were also in the Journal de Physique. - Six works in the anthology of the Académie des sciences.
- His final work was a thesis on a new TriquetrumTriquetrum (astronomy)The triquetrum was the medieval name for an ancient astronomical instrument first described by Ptolemy in the Almagest . Also known as Parallactic Rulers, it was used for determining altitudes of heavenly bodies...
which was stronger and easier to use than previous models.