1 00:00:02,279 --> 00:00:07,320 Speaker 1: Hey listeners, Happy Saturday. Today is Caroline Herschel's birthday, so 2 00:00:07,520 --> 00:00:10,039 Speaker 1: this seems like the perfect time to share our episode 3 00:00:10,080 --> 00:00:14,040 Speaker 1: about her. From Caroline Herschel is recognized as the first 4 00:00:14,080 --> 00:00:16,479 Speaker 1: woman to discover a comet, which we talked about in 5 00:00:16,520 --> 00:00:18,799 Speaker 1: this episode, but we also wanted to take just a 6 00:00:18,840 --> 00:00:23,040 Speaker 1: moment to recognize another woman, Maria Kirsch, also known as 7 00:00:23,120 --> 00:00:26,880 Speaker 1: Maria Winkleman, who discovered a comment in seventeen o two, 8 00:00:27,040 --> 00:00:31,000 Speaker 1: and that was decades before Herschel's first comment discovery, but 9 00:00:31,120 --> 00:00:33,560 Speaker 1: she's not often named as the first woman to discover 10 00:00:33,640 --> 00:00:36,880 Speaker 1: a comment, both because her husband initially took the credit 11 00:00:36,920 --> 00:00:40,680 Speaker 1: for it and because two other male astronomers had made 12 00:00:40,720 --> 00:00:43,680 Speaker 1: the same discovery just a few hours before in Rome. 13 00:00:44,400 --> 00:00:50,599 Speaker 1: So happy birthday, Caroline Herschel, and Happy Saturday, everybody. Welcome 14 00:00:50,640 --> 00:00:53,680 Speaker 1: to Stuff you missed in history class from how Stuff 15 00:00:53,720 --> 00:01:02,800 Speaker 1: Works dot com. Hello, and welcome to the podcast. I'm 16 00:01:02,840 --> 00:01:07,240 Speaker 1: Holly Frying and I'm Tray Wilson. Uh and today is 17 00:01:07,319 --> 00:01:11,680 Speaker 1: for me a whoa Astronomy Day because I love astronomy. 18 00:01:12,360 --> 00:01:16,240 Speaker 1: I love talking about space and all things astronomical, so 19 00:01:16,959 --> 00:01:20,560 Speaker 1: it's a special in my wheelhouse one. But also uh, 20 00:01:20,720 --> 00:01:23,160 Speaker 1: we're talking about a woman astronomer who really managed to 21 00:01:23,200 --> 00:01:27,039 Speaker 1: break the barrier of women in scientific fields way earlier 22 00:01:27,080 --> 00:01:30,240 Speaker 1: than you might anticipate. Uh, in part because she was 23 00:01:30,280 --> 00:01:33,080 Speaker 1: working alongside her brother and that sort of gave her 24 00:01:33,200 --> 00:01:35,720 Speaker 1: entree into the to the world of science and astronomy 25 00:01:36,120 --> 00:01:38,400 Speaker 1: and an equal measure though it was due to her 26 00:01:38,520 --> 00:01:41,959 Speaker 1: really steadfast dedication to her work. She was a very 27 00:01:42,000 --> 00:01:46,040 Speaker 1: no nonsense woman and completely focused uh. And as a consequence, 28 00:01:46,040 --> 00:01:49,240 Speaker 1: she had achieved a great deal. So we are talking 29 00:01:49,280 --> 00:01:54,000 Speaker 1: about Caroline Lucretia Herschel, who was born on March sixteenth 30 00:01:54,040 --> 00:01:56,840 Speaker 1: of seventeen fifty and she was born in Hanover, Germany. 31 00:01:57,440 --> 00:02:00,720 Speaker 1: Her parents were Anna ills Mortsen and i Isaac Herschel, 32 00:02:01,160 --> 00:02:03,920 Speaker 1: and when Caroline was born, the Herschels were already in 33 00:02:03,960 --> 00:02:06,440 Speaker 1: their eighteenth year of marriage, so they had already had 34 00:02:07,040 --> 00:02:09,600 Speaker 1: a pretty large family. They ended up having a total 35 00:02:09,680 --> 00:02:12,280 Speaker 1: of ten children, and Caroline was the eighth of them, 36 00:02:12,520 --> 00:02:15,720 Speaker 1: although four of their children did not live pastor early childhood, 37 00:02:15,960 --> 00:02:19,400 Speaker 1: and according to family records, the Herschel family line had 38 00:02:19,440 --> 00:02:23,440 Speaker 1: actually come from Moravia, where they left due to their 39 00:02:23,440 --> 00:02:27,880 Speaker 1: Protestant beliefs and ended up settling in Saxony. Isaac was 40 00:02:28,000 --> 00:02:31,000 Speaker 1: a musician and he played in a military regiment. He 41 00:02:31,120 --> 00:02:34,320 Speaker 1: educated his sons in music whenever he was home, and 42 00:02:34,360 --> 00:02:37,880 Speaker 1: it was during these lessons that Caroline's older brother, Williams, 43 00:02:37,919 --> 00:02:41,680 Speaker 1: started to show some natural gifts for music. He was 44 00:02:41,720 --> 00:02:45,320 Speaker 1: not only musically talented, but he was also extremely smart 45 00:02:45,400 --> 00:02:49,639 Speaker 1: and very quick to learn in other areas of study. Also, Yeah, 46 00:02:49,680 --> 00:02:51,280 Speaker 1: and one thing I feel like I should point out 47 00:02:51,760 --> 00:02:53,679 Speaker 1: I didn't include it in the notes when I say 48 00:02:53,840 --> 00:02:56,560 Speaker 1: that he was Isaac was able to educate his children 49 00:02:56,560 --> 00:03:00,440 Speaker 1: when he was home. Being a military musician in this 50 00:03:00,600 --> 00:03:05,200 Speaker 1: context is not uh as much of an easy ride 51 00:03:05,200 --> 00:03:08,639 Speaker 1: as you may think. These men had to travel with 52 00:03:08,680 --> 00:03:10,640 Speaker 1: the troops. They were in the trenches with the troops. 53 00:03:10,680 --> 00:03:15,440 Speaker 1: They were really part of a functioning, active military. It 54 00:03:15,520 --> 00:03:18,720 Speaker 1: wasn't like they just showed up to play trumpet before 55 00:03:18,760 --> 00:03:22,520 Speaker 1: things happened. So he really was traveling a lot. And 56 00:03:22,919 --> 00:03:25,560 Speaker 1: while William was urged into a musical career because of 57 00:03:25,680 --> 00:03:30,079 Speaker 1: his natural proclivity that exhibited itself very early on, Caroline 58 00:03:30,200 --> 00:03:32,920 Speaker 1: really felt when she looked back at their childhood, and 59 00:03:32,960 --> 00:03:35,680 Speaker 1: she mentions it in her memoirs and in letters that 60 00:03:35,760 --> 00:03:38,400 Speaker 1: if he had been allowed to pursue other interests other 61 00:03:38,440 --> 00:03:41,440 Speaker 1: than music, his genius and astronomy really would have been 62 00:03:41,440 --> 00:03:45,400 Speaker 1: revealed much earlier, and in her memoirs she mentions that 63 00:03:45,480 --> 00:03:49,320 Speaker 1: while her father Isaac was indeed devoted to music, he 64 00:03:49,440 --> 00:03:52,400 Speaker 1: too was also interested in the stars. And here's a 65 00:03:52,480 --> 00:03:56,280 Speaker 1: quick excerpt from one of her memories from childhood. She says, 66 00:03:56,320 --> 00:03:58,920 Speaker 1: my father was a great admirer of astronomy and had 67 00:03:58,960 --> 00:04:02,120 Speaker 1: some knowledge of that science. For I remember his taking 68 00:04:02,120 --> 00:04:04,520 Speaker 1: me on a clear frosty night into the street to 69 00:04:04,560 --> 00:04:07,800 Speaker 1: make me acquainted with several of the most beautiful constellations 70 00:04:07,840 --> 00:04:09,920 Speaker 1: after we had been gazing at a comment which was 71 00:04:09,960 --> 00:04:12,880 Speaker 1: then visible. And I well remember with what delight he 72 00:04:12,960 --> 00:04:16,320 Speaker 1: used to assist my brother William in his various contrivances 73 00:04:16,360 --> 00:04:19,880 Speaker 1: in the pursuit of his philosophical studies, among which was 74 00:04:19,920 --> 00:04:23,080 Speaker 1: a neatly turned four inch globe upon which the equator 75 00:04:23,160 --> 00:04:27,400 Speaker 1: and ecliptic were engraved by my brother. Caroline was also 76 00:04:27,839 --> 00:04:30,840 Speaker 1: very attached to her brother William, who was twelve years 77 00:04:30,839 --> 00:04:32,800 Speaker 1: older than she was, from the time she was really 78 00:04:32,920 --> 00:04:37,240 Speaker 1: very young. Yeah, she speaks of him so lovingly and 79 00:04:37,279 --> 00:04:42,039 Speaker 1: with great adoration. Uh. In her memoirs, it's it's easy 80 00:04:42,080 --> 00:04:44,159 Speaker 1: for me to identify with because my siblings are all 81 00:04:44,240 --> 00:04:46,240 Speaker 1: much older than me, and I look at them and 82 00:04:46,560 --> 00:04:49,159 Speaker 1: prettating my oldest sister almost as a parent figure. And 83 00:04:49,200 --> 00:04:51,640 Speaker 1: it's a very similar relationship that she had with William, 84 00:04:51,800 --> 00:04:55,800 Speaker 1: especially because Isaac traveled so much. Uh And while Isaac 85 00:04:55,880 --> 00:04:58,640 Speaker 1: wanted his children to learn music and French and philosophy, 86 00:04:59,400 --> 00:05:02,720 Speaker 1: particularly all of his children his wife uh and I 87 00:05:02,800 --> 00:05:05,680 Speaker 1: had a really much more strict and sensible path in 88 00:05:05,760 --> 00:05:09,080 Speaker 1: mind for Caroline. When she was quite young, it became 89 00:05:09,120 --> 00:05:12,080 Speaker 1: Caroline's job to knit all of the socks and stockings 90 00:05:12,080 --> 00:05:14,880 Speaker 1: for her brothers, and as the male siblings of the 91 00:05:14,920 --> 00:05:19,440 Speaker 1: family pursued their musical careers, Caroline learned how to care 92 00:05:19,480 --> 00:05:21,839 Speaker 1: for a home. She really did not get the benefit 93 00:05:21,880 --> 00:05:26,600 Speaker 1: of kind of the more philosophical education. In seventeen sixty one, 94 00:05:26,720 --> 00:05:31,120 Speaker 1: Caroline got really severe typhus fever and it nearly killed her. 95 00:05:31,800 --> 00:05:34,159 Speaker 1: Even after she got better, it took a really long 96 00:05:34,200 --> 00:05:37,400 Speaker 1: time for her to regain her strength, and she recounted 97 00:05:37,600 --> 00:05:40,760 Speaker 1: having to crawl up and downstairs on all fours for 98 00:05:40,920 --> 00:05:43,240 Speaker 1: months because she was too weak to walk up and 99 00:05:43,279 --> 00:05:47,719 Speaker 1: down them. Uh So this illness also pretty significantly stunted 100 00:05:47,760 --> 00:05:52,039 Speaker 1: Caroline's growth. She was extremely diminutive even when she was 101 00:05:52,480 --> 00:05:54,680 Speaker 1: in her adulthood and not growing anymore. She was less 102 00:05:54,720 --> 00:05:57,599 Speaker 1: than five ft tall, uh, and you know, it left 103 00:05:57,640 --> 00:05:59,919 Speaker 1: her not particularly pleasing to the eye in their opinion, 104 00:06:00,000 --> 00:06:02,480 Speaker 1: And so her parents sort of came to this conclusion 105 00:06:02,520 --> 00:06:05,919 Speaker 1: that she was never really going to have any marriage prospects, 106 00:06:06,000 --> 00:06:08,520 Speaker 1: and so she should hope for a career as a 107 00:06:08,560 --> 00:06:11,320 Speaker 1: scullery made like that. That was they were trying to 108 00:06:11,360 --> 00:06:14,640 Speaker 1: be very practical. It sounds really rough for a parent 109 00:06:14,720 --> 00:06:17,359 Speaker 1: to do, particularly and to the modern era, where you know, 110 00:06:17,440 --> 00:06:19,960 Speaker 1: children are encouraged to really follow their dreams and pursue 111 00:06:20,000 --> 00:06:24,440 Speaker 1: their heart's desires um. But in this instance, this meant 112 00:06:24,560 --> 00:06:28,480 Speaker 1: that Caroline's mother Anna basically doubled down on her insistence 113 00:06:28,520 --> 00:06:31,640 Speaker 1: that her daughter really needed to stick to learning useful 114 00:06:31,680 --> 00:06:35,080 Speaker 1: skills and leave the life of the mind to her brothers. 115 00:06:35,560 --> 00:06:38,839 Speaker 1: In the early seventeen sixties, Caroline's brother William traveled to 116 00:06:38,960 --> 00:06:41,839 Speaker 1: England to pursue work as a music teacher in organist 117 00:06:41,880 --> 00:06:47,120 Speaker 1: after he deserted his position with the Hannovarian Guards. Even 118 00:06:47,120 --> 00:06:50,719 Speaker 1: while he spent time in various towns traveling far away people. 119 00:06:51,200 --> 00:06:53,120 Speaker 1: The family was really hoping that he would come back 120 00:06:53,160 --> 00:06:56,680 Speaker 1: to Hanover to settle down, and he didn't make an 121 00:06:56,680 --> 00:06:59,479 Speaker 1: appearance back in Germany in seventeen sixty four, but it 122 00:06:59,600 --> 00:07:02,360 Speaker 1: was more than anything else, just to tell the family 123 00:07:02,760 --> 00:07:05,240 Speaker 1: that he was not coming back to live. He was 124 00:07:05,279 --> 00:07:09,440 Speaker 1: moving to England permanently, and Caroline's memoir details this is 125 00:07:09,480 --> 00:07:13,280 Speaker 1: a time of joyful reunion, but also sadness that she 126 00:07:13,440 --> 00:07:16,560 Speaker 1: was too busy with scullery work, uh and with her 127 00:07:16,600 --> 00:07:20,520 Speaker 1: first communion to really see him, and this bittersweet knowledge 128 00:07:20,560 --> 00:07:23,240 Speaker 1: that they all shared that it would likely be quite 129 00:07:23,240 --> 00:07:25,200 Speaker 1: some time before anyone in the family was going to 130 00:07:25,280 --> 00:07:29,200 Speaker 1: see him again. And in this particular part of her memoir, 131 00:07:29,360 --> 00:07:33,200 Speaker 1: she is really extremely clear and does not hide the 132 00:07:33,240 --> 00:07:35,640 Speaker 1: fact that he is her very favorite brother. She calls 133 00:07:35,680 --> 00:07:40,280 Speaker 1: him her dearest brother. So when William left, and as 134 00:07:40,320 --> 00:07:43,560 Speaker 1: we mentioned, it conflicted with her first communion, she was 135 00:07:43,640 --> 00:07:47,520 Speaker 1: really heartbroken that her goodbye was cut short, and so 136 00:07:47,600 --> 00:07:51,440 Speaker 1: she wrote this about his departure, it's effect on my 137 00:07:51,480 --> 00:07:54,800 Speaker 1: shattered nerves. I will not attempt to describe nor what 138 00:07:54,920 --> 00:07:57,560 Speaker 1: I felt for days and weeks after. I wish it 139 00:07:57,600 --> 00:08:00,000 Speaker 1: were possible to say what I wished to say without 140 00:08:00,120 --> 00:08:04,440 Speaker 1: feeling a new that feverish wretchedness which accompanied my walk 141 00:08:04,440 --> 00:08:07,160 Speaker 1: in the afternoon with some of my school companions and 142 00:08:07,240 --> 00:08:10,840 Speaker 1: my black silk dress and bouquet of artificial flowers, the 143 00:08:10,920 --> 00:08:13,560 Speaker 1: same which had served my sister on her bridal day. 144 00:08:13,920 --> 00:08:16,200 Speaker 1: I could think of nothing that on my return I 145 00:08:16,240 --> 00:08:22,040 Speaker 1: should find nobody but my disconsolate father and mother. So sad. Uh. 146 00:08:22,200 --> 00:08:24,600 Speaker 1: She really just adored her brother, and you know, he 147 00:08:24,680 --> 00:08:26,520 Speaker 1: was like a ray of sunshine when he came home, 148 00:08:26,560 --> 00:08:28,640 Speaker 1: and knowing that he was gone really broke her heart. 149 00:08:29,520 --> 00:08:33,720 Speaker 1: And the following August, their father, Isaac, had a seizure 150 00:08:33,760 --> 00:08:38,319 Speaker 1: which left his right side almost entirely paralyzed, and so 151 00:08:38,480 --> 00:08:41,000 Speaker 1: his inability to play or teach music at the level 152 00:08:41,000 --> 00:08:42,920 Speaker 1: that he once had, which had been his great joy, 153 00:08:43,480 --> 00:08:46,040 Speaker 1: and the various problems several of his children were having 154 00:08:46,040 --> 00:08:48,440 Speaker 1: in their lives. You know, again, Caroline was one of many, 155 00:08:48,480 --> 00:08:51,800 Speaker 1: and there were a number of struggles happening in the family, 156 00:08:52,320 --> 00:08:54,640 Speaker 1: and the fact that he had kind of as a 157 00:08:54,679 --> 00:08:58,920 Speaker 1: consequence of being uh left with this paralysis. He couldn't 158 00:08:58,960 --> 00:09:00,600 Speaker 1: do this thing that they had been doing, which was 159 00:09:00,640 --> 00:09:04,640 Speaker 1: teaching Caroline on the sly from her mother. Uh. You know, 160 00:09:04,679 --> 00:09:07,240 Speaker 1: when her mother was not around, he would secretly be like, common, 161 00:09:07,240 --> 00:09:09,240 Speaker 1: will teach you a little bit of music. Uh. And 162 00:09:09,559 --> 00:09:12,400 Speaker 1: they just couldn't pull that off anymore with his infirm state, 163 00:09:13,280 --> 00:09:15,720 Speaker 1: and all of this sort of conspired to leave this 164 00:09:15,760 --> 00:09:19,440 Speaker 1: once boisterous man really quite depressed and suffering in his 165 00:09:19,520 --> 00:09:24,079 Speaker 1: final several years. He ended up dying on March seventeen 166 00:09:24,120 --> 00:09:28,719 Speaker 1: sixty seven. While her father's attempts to offer her instruction 167 00:09:28,880 --> 00:09:32,679 Speaker 1: were cut short, Caroline did get some lessons from the 168 00:09:32,760 --> 00:09:35,240 Speaker 1: daughter of a family who lived in the same house 169 00:09:35,280 --> 00:09:38,080 Speaker 1: as the Herschels. When she was a teenager. Her friend 170 00:09:38,120 --> 00:09:41,720 Speaker 1: died of consumption, which shut yet another door for education 171 00:09:41,800 --> 00:09:45,320 Speaker 1: for Caroline, and she just really abhorred the thought of 172 00:09:45,360 --> 00:09:48,520 Speaker 1: life as a maid. She really really wanted intellectual and 173 00:09:48,600 --> 00:09:52,800 Speaker 1: creative stimulation. So she was trying to figure out how 174 00:09:52,840 --> 00:09:55,599 Speaker 1: she could get a slightly higher position like that of 175 00:09:55,640 --> 00:09:58,520 Speaker 1: a governess quote, where the want of a knowledge of 176 00:09:58,559 --> 00:10:02,200 Speaker 1: French would be no object action. Yeah, she knew she 177 00:10:02,320 --> 00:10:05,200 Speaker 1: was not stupid and that she was fairly bright, but 178 00:10:05,280 --> 00:10:07,960 Speaker 1: that she hadn't had all the educational opportunities that would 179 00:10:07,960 --> 00:10:11,160 Speaker 1: really prepare her for a much better position than I made. 180 00:10:11,200 --> 00:10:13,680 Speaker 1: But she was just trying to think sort of practically 181 00:10:13,679 --> 00:10:16,640 Speaker 1: about Okay, what could I do that's better than this? Uh, 182 00:10:16,640 --> 00:10:19,199 Speaker 1: And she did at one point managed to convince her 183 00:10:19,200 --> 00:10:22,840 Speaker 1: mother and her brother's after her father had died, that 184 00:10:22,920 --> 00:10:24,800 Speaker 1: she should be sent for a short time to a 185 00:10:24,880 --> 00:10:28,800 Speaker 1: school to learn millinery and sewing, and she describes this 186 00:10:28,920 --> 00:10:31,840 Speaker 1: as a very happy time, although her brothers were very 187 00:10:31,840 --> 00:10:34,200 Speaker 1: clear that they were sending her just so she could 188 00:10:34,200 --> 00:10:36,679 Speaker 1: make things for herself, that this was not going to 189 00:10:36,800 --> 00:10:50,520 Speaker 1: be a professional um stepping stone at all. Once she 190 00:10:50,559 --> 00:10:53,760 Speaker 1: returned home, however, from this short time away where she 191 00:10:53,800 --> 00:10:57,000 Speaker 1: was learning new things and meeting new people, she really 192 00:10:57,040 --> 00:10:59,240 Speaker 1: just fell back into the same patterns of you know, 193 00:10:59,360 --> 00:11:03,000 Speaker 1: constant chore wors in schedule and drudgery that she so despised. 194 00:11:03,600 --> 00:11:06,640 Speaker 1: That changed when the family got a letter from William 195 00:11:06,720 --> 00:11:09,839 Speaker 1: in the fall of seventeen seventy one. In this letter, 196 00:11:09,960 --> 00:11:12,760 Speaker 1: he proposed that Caroline come to live with him and 197 00:11:12,800 --> 00:11:16,680 Speaker 1: service as housekeeper and also as a singer to accompany 198 00:11:16,760 --> 00:11:19,840 Speaker 1: him in concerts. He proposed a two year trial and 199 00:11:19,880 --> 00:11:21,720 Speaker 1: said that if it didn't work out, he would send 200 00:11:21,720 --> 00:11:26,640 Speaker 1: her back, and Caroline was so super excited by this 201 00:11:26,679 --> 00:11:30,400 Speaker 1: prospect that even before it was all approved by her 202 00:11:30,480 --> 00:11:33,520 Speaker 1: mother and the rest of the family, she started to 203 00:11:33,520 --> 00:11:38,600 Speaker 1: practice singing in secret um so that William had actually 204 00:11:38,600 --> 00:11:41,200 Speaker 1: asked another of their brothers who was musically skilled, to 205 00:11:41,240 --> 00:11:44,880 Speaker 1: tutor her. But there were some siblings skirmishes that really 206 00:11:44,880 --> 00:11:47,160 Speaker 1: made that fall apart. Her brother kind of made fun 207 00:11:47,200 --> 00:11:49,080 Speaker 1: of her and she didn't like it, so she just 208 00:11:49,160 --> 00:11:52,560 Speaker 1: practiced on her own. And she also just in trying 209 00:11:52,600 --> 00:11:54,280 Speaker 1: to lay the groundwork so that they would have no 210 00:11:54,360 --> 00:11:58,680 Speaker 1: excuse to keep her. She knitted enough socks and stocking 211 00:11:58,760 --> 00:12:00,840 Speaker 1: so the whole family would be covered for at least 212 00:12:00,840 --> 00:12:03,120 Speaker 1: two years. She was really trying to make it as 213 00:12:03,160 --> 00:12:06,760 Speaker 1: easy as possible to make her case to go. In 214 00:12:06,840 --> 00:12:09,679 Speaker 1: the end, when William went to Germany to get Caroline, 215 00:12:09,760 --> 00:12:13,120 Speaker 1: he also gave their mother a small annuity which she 216 00:12:13,160 --> 00:12:16,160 Speaker 1: could use to hire some help to replace Caroline's work 217 00:12:16,200 --> 00:12:19,240 Speaker 1: around the house. Yeah, I mean they were in effect 218 00:12:19,240 --> 00:12:21,640 Speaker 1: losing a maid as well, So I feel like I 219 00:12:21,640 --> 00:12:24,839 Speaker 1: should note that while Caroline hated this idea of being 220 00:12:24,840 --> 00:12:26,960 Speaker 1: a maid in this life that her mother had planned 221 00:12:26,960 --> 00:12:30,440 Speaker 1: for her, she did not seem to hate her mother. Um. 222 00:12:30,520 --> 00:12:34,120 Speaker 1: She when She talks in her journals about leaving Hanover. 223 00:12:35,000 --> 00:12:37,800 Speaker 1: She refers to her her mother as her dear mother, 224 00:12:38,040 --> 00:12:42,120 Speaker 1: and you know the difficulty of leaving her so uh 225 00:12:42,440 --> 00:12:45,360 Speaker 1: she hated the ideas that her mother had. She did 226 00:12:45,400 --> 00:12:48,040 Speaker 1: not relish the plans that had been made on her behalf, 227 00:12:48,240 --> 00:12:51,520 Speaker 1: but she really didn't seem to hold them as a 228 00:12:51,600 --> 00:12:56,079 Speaker 1: negative against her relationship with her mother, particularly, So Caroline 229 00:12:56,080 --> 00:13:00,000 Speaker 1: and Williams set out for England together and and Caroline's 230 00:13:00,160 --> 00:13:03,560 Speaker 1: uh Med bours. She describes this trip at great length 231 00:13:03,640 --> 00:13:06,120 Speaker 1: and with lots of details, and she talks about all 232 00:13:06,160 --> 00:13:08,200 Speaker 1: the stages of the journey and all the trials and 233 00:13:08,280 --> 00:13:12,280 Speaker 1: discomfort that they often encountered because travel was extremely difficult. 234 00:13:13,000 --> 00:13:16,720 Speaker 1: Um Williams Jourtle, on the other hand, just says, August sixteen, 235 00:13:16,800 --> 00:13:20,120 Speaker 1: seventeen seventy two, set off on my return to England 236 00:13:20,120 --> 00:13:23,320 Speaker 1: and company with my sister. That just cracked me up 237 00:13:23,360 --> 00:13:27,240 Speaker 1: when I found it in her in her memoir, It 238 00:13:27,320 --> 00:13:31,480 Speaker 1: was it's so funny. So once Caroline and William got 239 00:13:31,520 --> 00:13:34,520 Speaker 1: to England, Caroline did indeed learn to sing, and she 240 00:13:34,640 --> 00:13:37,640 Speaker 1: developed her soprano voice so she could accompany her organist 241 00:13:37,679 --> 00:13:40,640 Speaker 1: brother and performances She also took two or three lessons 242 00:13:40,640 --> 00:13:42,600 Speaker 1: a day from her brother, because remember, at this point 243 00:13:42,679 --> 00:13:46,240 Speaker 1: he was pretty successful music teacher. But that was not 244 00:13:46,280 --> 00:13:48,080 Speaker 1: the only thing that William was up to in Bath. 245 00:13:48,640 --> 00:13:52,040 Speaker 1: While he was successful in music, he had already turned 246 00:13:52,080 --> 00:13:55,680 Speaker 1: his interest to science. He had astronomy students as well 247 00:13:55,720 --> 00:13:58,640 Speaker 1: as music students, and he had been writing scientific papers 248 00:13:58,679 --> 00:14:02,840 Speaker 1: for the Bath Philosophical Society. Uh, there's part of me 249 00:14:02,880 --> 00:14:04,560 Speaker 1: that wonders if this is not why he was like, 250 00:14:04,600 --> 00:14:07,599 Speaker 1: I'm never coming back to Germany, Like he knew he 251 00:14:07,640 --> 00:14:10,240 Speaker 1: would be kind of locked into the music career there, 252 00:14:10,280 --> 00:14:13,080 Speaker 1: and he had already started to toy with this really 253 00:14:13,120 --> 00:14:17,360 Speaker 1: significant career change, and Caroline arrived in the midst of 254 00:14:17,360 --> 00:14:20,280 Speaker 1: William kind of making this transition in his life. And 255 00:14:20,320 --> 00:14:23,200 Speaker 1: so for her, going from a life of repetition and 256 00:14:23,240 --> 00:14:27,720 Speaker 1: predictability and menial duties to one of assisting her whirlwind 257 00:14:27,800 --> 00:14:30,480 Speaker 1: brother was a huge change for this woman who was 258 00:14:30,520 --> 00:14:33,600 Speaker 1: only twenty two at the time. So she was suddenly 259 00:14:33,600 --> 00:14:36,360 Speaker 1: responsible for the budget of the household and taking care 260 00:14:36,400 --> 00:14:38,880 Speaker 1: of trips to the market, and she performed with her 261 00:14:38,880 --> 00:14:41,920 Speaker 1: brother as a featured singer often, and she apparently also 262 00:14:41,960 --> 00:14:44,680 Speaker 1: had a lot of arguments with her brother's hired servant. 263 00:14:44,760 --> 00:14:46,480 Speaker 1: She does not speak very well of that woman in 264 00:14:46,480 --> 00:14:51,600 Speaker 1: her letters here her memoirs. She was also initially pretty homesick. 265 00:14:52,240 --> 00:14:54,680 Speaker 1: Her English wasn't good enough to bond with anyone else 266 00:14:54,720 --> 00:14:58,720 Speaker 1: in Bath, and her brother was incredibly busy. Her sister 267 00:14:58,880 --> 00:15:01,920 Speaker 1: had been left a widow with six children, and Caroline 268 00:15:01,960 --> 00:15:04,440 Speaker 1: also felt badly that there wasn't anything she could do 269 00:15:04,560 --> 00:15:08,120 Speaker 1: to help. But on the upside, you know, while she 270 00:15:08,240 --> 00:15:11,640 Speaker 1: is in this whirlwind, crazy world, the learning that she 271 00:15:11,680 --> 00:15:14,720 Speaker 1: had yearned for back in Germany but had been denied 272 00:15:15,160 --> 00:15:18,520 Speaker 1: was certainly abundant in England. She was mentally stimulated at 273 00:15:18,520 --> 00:15:21,320 Speaker 1: all times. She had to learn the bookkeeping, as we 274 00:15:21,320 --> 00:15:23,920 Speaker 1: were saying, she was learning English as quickly as she 275 00:15:23,960 --> 00:15:26,560 Speaker 1: could uh, and she had to learn a lot more 276 00:15:26,600 --> 00:15:30,280 Speaker 1: about music in pretty short order. And in some ways 277 00:15:30,320 --> 00:15:35,480 Speaker 1: this isolation of this transition and her homesickness really likely 278 00:15:35,560 --> 00:15:38,480 Speaker 1: bonded her to William more than ever, although she really 279 00:15:38,520 --> 00:15:40,480 Speaker 1: didn't get as much of his time and attention as 280 00:15:40,520 --> 00:15:43,200 Speaker 1: she wished because he had so many students to see 281 00:15:43,240 --> 00:15:47,840 Speaker 1: in addition to his extracurricular studies in astronomy. She was 282 00:15:47,920 --> 00:15:50,240 Speaker 1: making a really good name for herself as a singer, 283 00:15:50,280 --> 00:15:53,440 Speaker 1: though she was even approached by other music companies to 284 00:15:53,480 --> 00:15:56,680 Speaker 1: perform with them, but she declined, saying that she really 285 00:15:56,680 --> 00:15:59,720 Speaker 1: needed to stay with her brother and his work. And 286 00:15:59,760 --> 00:16:03,840 Speaker 1: as William turned his attention progressively more and more to astronomy, 287 00:16:04,000 --> 00:16:08,280 Speaker 1: Caroline followed suit. Uh, she assisted her brother in the 288 00:16:08,320 --> 00:16:11,960 Speaker 1: assembling of telescopes and analyzing the heavens, and we could 289 00:16:11,960 --> 00:16:14,080 Speaker 1: do a whole podcast just about William and sort of 290 00:16:14,080 --> 00:16:17,200 Speaker 1: how his music to astronomy transition happened. So I don't 291 00:16:17,200 --> 00:16:18,880 Speaker 1: want people to think I'm just leaving that out, but 292 00:16:19,160 --> 00:16:22,000 Speaker 1: Caroline's really the focus here. But while she's doing all 293 00:16:22,000 --> 00:16:25,240 Speaker 1: of this and helping him assemble things and polishing lenses 294 00:16:25,280 --> 00:16:27,800 Speaker 1: and mirrors, she ended up learning a great deal about 295 00:16:27,800 --> 00:16:32,920 Speaker 1: astronomy herself. William is credited with discovering Uranus in one 296 00:16:32,960 --> 00:16:36,680 Speaker 1: while he was actually searching for double stars. Incidentally, the 297 00:16:36,720 --> 00:16:40,320 Speaker 1: planet was initially named George or at the Georgian Star, 298 00:16:40,760 --> 00:16:42,920 Speaker 1: after the King of England, which sounds a lot more 299 00:16:43,040 --> 00:16:48,040 Speaker 1: majestic than just calling a star George. As a return 300 00:16:48,080 --> 00:16:51,040 Speaker 1: for his work, William Herschel was indited and appointed to 301 00:16:51,040 --> 00:16:53,640 Speaker 1: the position of Court astronomer for King George the Third, 302 00:16:54,720 --> 00:16:57,440 Speaker 1: and this new appointment meant that the Herschels had to 303 00:16:57,440 --> 00:17:00,280 Speaker 1: move closer to Windsor Castle. And while he was making 304 00:17:00,360 --> 00:17:02,760 Speaker 1: less money as the royal astronomer than he had as 305 00:17:02,760 --> 00:17:07,240 Speaker 1: a musician and teacher, uh William Herschel was now making 306 00:17:07,359 --> 00:17:09,480 Speaker 1: enough that he didn't have to kind of have this 307 00:17:09,560 --> 00:17:12,960 Speaker 1: double career situation, so he could focus entirely on his 308 00:17:13,040 --> 00:17:16,760 Speaker 1: scientific endeavors. And William used this new position to build 309 00:17:16,760 --> 00:17:19,719 Speaker 1: a bigger telescope, and he launched a long term survey 310 00:17:19,760 --> 00:17:22,199 Speaker 1: of the sky that would turn into a project that 311 00:17:22,240 --> 00:17:26,440 Speaker 1: really ran two decades. And initially, as he would observe 312 00:17:26,480 --> 00:17:29,520 Speaker 1: heavenly bodies through his telescope, he was up on this 313 00:17:29,640 --> 00:17:32,320 Speaker 1: ladder and he would call them out to Caroline, who 314 00:17:32,359 --> 00:17:34,360 Speaker 1: would be down on the ground, and she would carefully 315 00:17:34,359 --> 00:17:37,399 Speaker 1: record everything that he said. So he really trusted her 316 00:17:37,440 --> 00:17:41,639 Speaker 1: to keep track of everything that they were witnessing and identifying. 317 00:17:42,520 --> 00:17:45,480 Speaker 1: As their list got bigger and became more detailed, took 318 00:17:45,480 --> 00:17:49,080 Speaker 1: on the name New General Catalog. This name persists in 319 00:17:49,200 --> 00:17:53,320 Speaker 1: codified for him today as the many astronomical objects are 320 00:17:53,400 --> 00:17:57,680 Speaker 1: still identified by their NC number. And William also gave 321 00:17:57,720 --> 00:18:00,880 Speaker 1: Caroline her own what he called her quote seven foot 322 00:18:00,960 --> 00:18:04,840 Speaker 1: Newtonian sweeper, and this was a telescope that she would 323 00:18:04,880 --> 00:18:08,040 Speaker 1: often use to observe the night sky, uh just on 324 00:18:08,080 --> 00:18:10,440 Speaker 1: her own or when she was filling in for William 325 00:18:10,480 --> 00:18:12,400 Speaker 1: while he was traveling, so that they wouldn't have any 326 00:18:12,440 --> 00:18:26,120 Speaker 1: gaps in their project. On February three, she identified an 327 00:18:26,119 --> 00:18:28,480 Speaker 1: open cluster which is on the record as n g 328 00:18:28,680 --> 00:18:33,399 Speaker 1: C sixty. The same year, she observed and recorded n 329 00:18:33,440 --> 00:18:37,960 Speaker 1: GC to fifty three, also known as the Sculptor Galaxy, 330 00:18:38,200 --> 00:18:40,720 Speaker 1: and one of her claims to fame is that she 331 00:18:40,840 --> 00:18:44,720 Speaker 1: was the first woman credited with discovering a comet. So 332 00:18:45,000 --> 00:18:49,840 Speaker 1: on August one and again on following nights of s six, 333 00:18:50,240 --> 00:18:52,760 Speaker 1: she saw an object that was moving across the night 334 00:18:52,840 --> 00:18:55,800 Speaker 1: sky and she identified it as a comet, and she 335 00:18:55,920 --> 00:18:59,720 Speaker 1: immediately sent word by mail to all of their fellow 336 00:18:59,760 --> 00:19:02,720 Speaker 1: is anomers about her discovery in the hopes that they 337 00:19:02,760 --> 00:19:05,120 Speaker 1: too would study it. She wanted to share this information 338 00:19:05,160 --> 00:19:09,560 Speaker 1: as rapidly as possible. After the comment discovery, William, who 339 00:19:09,680 --> 00:19:13,040 Speaker 1: was the King's astronomer, lobbied for his assistant Caroline to 340 00:19:13,080 --> 00:19:15,800 Speaker 1: be paid for her work. This made her the first 341 00:19:15,880 --> 00:19:19,119 Speaker 1: woman to actually be paid as a professional scientist in 342 00:19:19,160 --> 00:19:23,679 Speaker 1: Great Britain, and she would go on to discover a 343 00:19:23,680 --> 00:19:26,880 Speaker 1: total of eight commets uh in a little longer than 344 00:19:26,880 --> 00:19:30,600 Speaker 1: the decade following that first comet identification. And this was 345 00:19:30,640 --> 00:19:33,080 Speaker 1: all happening during a sort of comic craze that was 346 00:19:33,119 --> 00:19:37,080 Speaker 1: happening in post enlightenment Georgian England. So it gave Caroline 347 00:19:37,080 --> 00:19:40,640 Speaker 1: a certain degree of celebrity, although as a woman astronomer, 348 00:19:40,720 --> 00:19:43,560 Speaker 1: which was you know, certainly an odd duck for the times, 349 00:19:43,600 --> 00:19:46,520 Speaker 1: she was sometimes lampooned in comics, just as she was 350 00:19:46,560 --> 00:19:50,160 Speaker 1: also being lauded as something of a visionary. In seventeen 351 00:19:50,240 --> 00:19:54,160 Speaker 1: eighty six, Williams started courting a wealthy widow neighbor, Mary 352 00:19:54,200 --> 00:19:58,880 Speaker 1: Bernie Pitt. When when William married her in seventeen eighty eight, 353 00:19:58,960 --> 00:20:03,400 Speaker 1: his partnership with Aline changed really considerably and became somewhat strained. 354 00:20:04,160 --> 00:20:06,800 Speaker 1: Uh the household duties that Caroline had been taking care 355 00:20:06,840 --> 00:20:09,280 Speaker 1: of all of this time. We're past to William's bride, 356 00:20:09,800 --> 00:20:12,280 Speaker 1: and the sister was then freed up to pursue her 357 00:20:12,320 --> 00:20:15,760 Speaker 1: astronomy work full time. And this certainly sounds like a 358 00:20:15,800 --> 00:20:19,800 Speaker 1: good thing. She was likely much more passionate about the astronomy, 359 00:20:19,840 --> 00:20:22,760 Speaker 1: but the loss of control and her sense of place 360 00:20:22,920 --> 00:20:27,520 Speaker 1: in her brother's life really affected Caroline quite deeply. After 361 00:20:27,680 --> 00:20:31,399 Speaker 1: sixteen years living and working with William, Caroline moved to 362 00:20:31,440 --> 00:20:33,840 Speaker 1: her own lodgings and she started having to go to 363 00:20:34,000 --> 00:20:37,119 Speaker 1: his place to work. She no longer had keys to 364 00:20:37,200 --> 00:20:40,840 Speaker 1: the home or to the observatory, and we actually don't 365 00:20:40,880 --> 00:20:44,640 Speaker 1: know exactly what Caroline's feelings were at this time. There 366 00:20:44,720 --> 00:20:47,360 Speaker 1: was actually a ten year gap in her personal journals 367 00:20:47,359 --> 00:20:52,080 Speaker 1: from s to sevent those documents were destroyed. There are 368 00:20:52,160 --> 00:20:56,359 Speaker 1: journals with ripped out pages. Um When her personal notes 369 00:20:56,400 --> 00:20:58,920 Speaker 1: and narratives start up again near the end of the century, 370 00:20:59,160 --> 00:21:01,280 Speaker 1: she speaks of her sister in law, who by all 371 00:21:01,280 --> 00:21:04,760 Speaker 1: accounts was a really gentle and amiable woman. Everyone really 372 00:21:04,800 --> 00:21:07,399 Speaker 1: liked her with a great deal of kindness, and the 373 00:21:07,440 --> 00:21:10,639 Speaker 1: two did eventually become very close. But I think it 374 00:21:10,680 --> 00:21:12,880 Speaker 1: was a rough ride for those ten years. She probably 375 00:21:12,880 --> 00:21:15,520 Speaker 1: wrote some things down she did not want to be 376 00:21:15,600 --> 00:21:19,520 Speaker 1: kept on record. Those ten years were still spent working 377 00:21:19,560 --> 00:21:22,800 Speaker 1: both with her brother and on her own, and this 378 00:21:22,880 --> 00:21:25,639 Speaker 1: was when Caroline was discovering her many comments and she 379 00:21:25,720 --> 00:21:29,240 Speaker 1: was keeping records of her work. The seven comments which 380 00:21:29,320 --> 00:21:32,920 Speaker 1: followed the first were observed and identified in December seventeen 381 00:21:33,000 --> 00:21:41,120 Speaker 1: eighty eight, January seventeen ninety, April seventeen, December sevente October seventeen, 382 00:21:42,280 --> 00:21:47,919 Speaker 1: November seventeen, and August seventeen ninety seven, and the first 383 00:21:48,000 --> 00:21:51,880 Speaker 1: Royal Astronomer of England, who was named John Flamsteed, had 384 00:21:51,920 --> 00:21:55,840 Speaker 1: compiled an existing star catalog in the late sixteen hundreds 385 00:21:55,840 --> 00:21:59,479 Speaker 1: in early seventeen hundreds, and so in addition to using 386 00:21:59,720 --> 00:22:02,679 Speaker 1: this new free time that Caroline had at her disposal 387 00:22:02,760 --> 00:22:06,040 Speaker 1: after her brother's marriage to search for comets, she also 388 00:22:06,520 --> 00:22:09,920 Speaker 1: used it to cross index the Flamsteed catalog with the 389 00:22:10,000 --> 00:22:13,439 Speaker 1: data that she and William had compiled, and she was 390 00:22:13,520 --> 00:22:16,119 Speaker 1: able to add more than five hundred additional stars to 391 00:22:16,160 --> 00:22:20,159 Speaker 1: the existing record as a consequence. William died in eighteen 392 00:22:20,200 --> 00:22:23,200 Speaker 1: twenty two, and after her brother was gone, Caroline went 393 00:22:23,200 --> 00:22:26,239 Speaker 1: back to Germany, where she continued her work entirely on 394 00:22:26,280 --> 00:22:29,439 Speaker 1: her own. So on her own after William's death, and 395 00:22:29,560 --> 00:22:32,800 Speaker 1: also working with her nephew, who was also an astronomer, 396 00:22:33,320 --> 00:22:38,560 Speaker 1: Caroline cataloged nebulae along with her brother. Caroline was instrumental 397 00:22:38,600 --> 00:22:41,760 Speaker 1: in expanding the number of known star clusters from one 398 00:22:41,840 --> 00:22:46,800 Speaker 1: hundred to two thousand, five hundred. And those are rough numbers. 399 00:22:46,800 --> 00:22:49,679 Speaker 1: It's you know, more than that. But she went on 400 00:22:49,880 --> 00:22:54,080 Speaker 1: to get many many accolades uh as she aged. She 401 00:22:54,160 --> 00:22:57,280 Speaker 1: won a gold Medal from the Royal Astronomical Society in 402 00:22:57,400 --> 00:23:00,919 Speaker 1: eighteen twenty eight for her work in nebulae. In eighteen 403 00:23:00,960 --> 00:23:03,359 Speaker 1: thirty two, the King of Denmark honored her with the 404 00:23:03,440 --> 00:23:07,280 Speaker 1: medal for her work. She was made an honorary member 405 00:23:07,320 --> 00:23:10,399 Speaker 1: of the Royal Society in eighteen thirty five, and she 406 00:23:10,440 --> 00:23:13,240 Speaker 1: actually shared the honor of being the first woman to 407 00:23:13,560 --> 00:23:17,439 Speaker 1: be named an honorary member of the Society with Mary Somerville, 408 00:23:17,440 --> 00:23:21,680 Speaker 1: who also worked in astronomy, and she was also given 409 00:23:21,680 --> 00:23:25,720 Speaker 1: this honorary membership the same year. In eighteen thirty eight, 410 00:23:25,760 --> 00:23:28,320 Speaker 1: she was made a member of the Royal Irish Academy. 411 00:23:29,640 --> 00:23:32,400 Speaker 1: In eighteen forty six, she was given the Gold Medal 412 00:23:32,480 --> 00:23:35,800 Speaker 1: for Science by the King of Prussia. Caroline wrote her 413 00:23:35,880 --> 00:23:38,479 Speaker 1: last entry in her day book in September of eighteen 414 00:23:38,520 --> 00:23:41,840 Speaker 1: forty five, and in the winter of eighteen forty seven 415 00:23:41,920 --> 00:23:45,639 Speaker 1: eighteen forty eight, Caroline became ill as the cold of 416 00:23:45,680 --> 00:23:49,320 Speaker 1: the season swept in. She initially refused a neighbor friend's 417 00:23:49,359 --> 00:23:51,440 Speaker 1: offer to move to her bed to a warmer room 418 00:23:51,440 --> 00:23:54,720 Speaker 1: than it existed in And she was already an elderly 419 00:23:54,760 --> 00:23:57,240 Speaker 1: woman and somewhat freel at this point, and as a 420 00:23:57,280 --> 00:24:00,639 Speaker 1: consequence of, you know, staying in this cold with a 421 00:24:00,680 --> 00:24:03,520 Speaker 1: compromised immune system already, she just got sicker and sicker. 422 00:24:04,160 --> 00:24:07,280 Speaker 1: She did eventually allow them to move her bed, and 423 00:24:07,359 --> 00:24:10,560 Speaker 1: while she rallied now and again, she never really recovered. 424 00:24:11,119 --> 00:24:14,000 Speaker 1: Her spirit remained until the end, though, And in a 425 00:24:14,119 --> 00:24:17,560 Speaker 1: letter from the same bed moving friend to Caroline's nephew, John, 426 00:24:18,160 --> 00:24:20,720 Speaker 1: it's reported that when a male friend sent his love 427 00:24:21,080 --> 00:24:23,280 Speaker 1: and hopes that Caroline would soon be well enough for 428 00:24:23,359 --> 00:24:25,280 Speaker 1: him to visit and give her a kiss, as he 429 00:24:25,320 --> 00:24:28,840 Speaker 1: had on her previous birthday, she replied by saying, tell 430 00:24:28,920 --> 00:24:31,560 Speaker 1: the general that I have not tasted anything I liked 431 00:24:31,600 --> 00:24:34,760 Speaker 1: so well. I just love that She kind of was 432 00:24:34,760 --> 00:24:36,840 Speaker 1: a little flirty even at the very end. It was 433 00:24:36,960 --> 00:24:40,280 Speaker 1: very sweet, uh. And the letter in which that story 434 00:24:40,400 --> 00:24:45,840 Speaker 1: was relayed to John was dated January six, and Caroline 435 00:24:45,840 --> 00:24:48,680 Speaker 1: died just three days later on January ninth. She was 436 00:24:48,800 --> 00:24:52,119 Speaker 1: ninety seven at the time. A letter written by Caroline's 437 00:24:52,200 --> 00:24:55,359 Speaker 1: niece to a cousin reads, I felt almost a sense 438 00:24:55,359 --> 00:24:58,359 Speaker 1: of joyful relief at the death of my aunt, and 439 00:24:58,440 --> 00:25:00,679 Speaker 1: the thought that now the un why at heart was 440 00:25:00,720 --> 00:25:03,440 Speaker 1: at rest. All that she had of love to give 441 00:25:03,680 --> 00:25:07,119 Speaker 1: was concentrated on her beloved brother. At his death, she 442 00:25:07,200 --> 00:25:12,880 Speaker 1: felt herself alone. And Caroline wrote her own tombstone inscription, 443 00:25:13,400 --> 00:25:16,440 Speaker 1: and it reads, the eyes of her who is glorified 444 00:25:16,480 --> 00:25:20,360 Speaker 1: here below turned to the starry heavens. She had very 445 00:25:20,400 --> 00:25:24,200 Speaker 1: pragmatically made all of the arrangements for her burial and 446 00:25:24,320 --> 00:25:27,320 Speaker 1: her funeral years before her death, so when she passed 447 00:25:27,359 --> 00:25:29,760 Speaker 1: it was basically like, nope, everything's taken care of already, 448 00:25:30,320 --> 00:25:32,440 Speaker 1: because she didn't want to burden her nephew or any 449 00:25:32,480 --> 00:25:36,240 Speaker 1: of her other relatives with dealing with it. She also wrote, 450 00:25:36,280 --> 00:25:39,560 Speaker 1: I am nothing, I have nothing. All I am all 451 00:25:39,600 --> 00:25:41,840 Speaker 1: I know I owe to my brother. I am only 452 00:25:41,880 --> 00:25:44,440 Speaker 1: the tool which he shaped to his use. A well 453 00:25:44,520 --> 00:25:47,320 Speaker 1: trained puppy dog would have done as much. So some 454 00:25:47,359 --> 00:25:51,040 Speaker 1: people interpret this as devotion to a sibling, and others 455 00:25:51,080 --> 00:25:54,200 Speaker 1: have read it read it almost as resentful, the words 456 00:25:54,200 --> 00:25:56,960 Speaker 1: of a woman who's bound by obligation to do this 457 00:25:57,520 --> 00:26:00,080 Speaker 1: because her brother was her benefactor and told her to. 458 00:26:00,720 --> 00:26:04,320 Speaker 1: But given her obvious love for astronomy and the work 459 00:26:04,359 --> 00:26:06,480 Speaker 1: they did together, it seems more in line with the 460 00:26:06,560 --> 00:26:09,520 Speaker 1: thinking of someone who wishes to brush away praise and 461 00:26:09,600 --> 00:26:14,720 Speaker 1: credit and instead focus the spotlight on someone else. Yeah, 462 00:26:14,760 --> 00:26:20,000 Speaker 1: she seemed generally uncomfortable with kind of talking about herself 463 00:26:20,040 --> 00:26:23,639 Speaker 1: in any sort of personal way, or you know, with accolades. 464 00:26:23,720 --> 00:26:25,880 Speaker 1: She was always very quick to kind of shrug them off. 465 00:26:26,800 --> 00:26:30,000 Speaker 1: There's a really lovely intro written in her memoir and 466 00:26:30,160 --> 00:26:33,280 Speaker 1: about her, and it says her own recollections go back 467 00:26:33,280 --> 00:26:35,840 Speaker 1: to the great earthquake of Lisbon. She lived through the 468 00:26:35,880 --> 00:26:39,200 Speaker 1: American War, the Old French Revolution, the rise and fall 469 00:26:39,240 --> 00:26:42,240 Speaker 1: of Napoleon, and all manner of lesser events and wars. 470 00:26:42,840 --> 00:26:45,680 Speaker 1: She saw all the improvements and inventions, from the lumbering 471 00:26:45,720 --> 00:26:48,440 Speaker 1: post wagon in which she made her first journey from Hanover, 472 00:26:48,880 --> 00:26:52,120 Speaker 1: to the railroads and electric telegraphs which have intersected all 473 00:26:52,160 --> 00:26:55,919 Speaker 1: Europe for she lived well down into the reign of Victoria, 474 00:26:56,080 --> 00:26:58,359 Speaker 1: but her work of minding the heavens with her brother 475 00:26:58,480 --> 00:27:02,560 Speaker 1: engrossed all her thoughts, and she scarcely mentions any public event. 476 00:27:04,320 --> 00:27:08,520 Speaker 1: Several comments are named after her, including thirty Herschel Rigole 477 00:27:09,119 --> 00:27:12,960 Speaker 1: as his lunar crater C. Herschel, and an asteroid called Lucretia, 478 00:27:12,960 --> 00:27:17,159 Speaker 1: which is her middle name. One of William's telescopes is 479 00:27:17,160 --> 00:27:20,200 Speaker 1: on display at the Adler Planetarium in Chicago, and another 480 00:27:20,280 --> 00:27:22,480 Speaker 1: is on display at Cambridge, and there are several other 481 00:27:22,560 --> 00:27:27,879 Speaker 1: pieces of telescopes um at various observatories and museums throughout 482 00:27:27,920 --> 00:27:31,439 Speaker 1: the world. The Herschel Museum of Astronomy now stands at 483 00:27:31,520 --> 00:27:34,280 Speaker 1: nineteen New King Street in Bath, and that is where 484 00:27:34,320 --> 00:27:38,720 Speaker 1: William and Caroline lived together, and I would love to 485 00:27:38,720 --> 00:27:41,600 Speaker 1: go visit, so Tracy, let's do that, Okay. So yeah, 486 00:27:41,680 --> 00:27:45,080 Speaker 1: that it's such an interesting story because she really she's 487 00:27:45,119 --> 00:27:49,199 Speaker 1: often called the Cinderella of astronomy because she started in 488 00:27:49,240 --> 00:27:52,360 Speaker 1: this sort of scullery made path and then ended up 489 00:27:52,400 --> 00:27:57,000 Speaker 1: being really illuminary in her field, especially bizarre when you 490 00:27:57,040 --> 00:27:59,480 Speaker 1: consider that on top of the fact that she was 491 00:27:59,520 --> 00:28:02,440 Speaker 1: a woman at a time when men were really running 492 00:28:02,480 --> 00:28:05,240 Speaker 1: the show in terms of science. I love it so much. 493 00:28:11,640 --> 00:28:14,000 Speaker 1: Thank you so much for joining us on this Saturday. 494 00:28:14,080 --> 00:28:17,040 Speaker 1: If you have heard an email address or a Facebook 495 00:28:17,080 --> 00:28:19,199 Speaker 1: you are l or something similar over the course of 496 00:28:19,240 --> 00:28:21,960 Speaker 1: today's episode, since it is from the archive that might 497 00:28:22,000 --> 00:28:24,560 Speaker 1: be out of date. Now, you can email us at 498 00:28:24,680 --> 00:28:27,480 Speaker 1: History podcast at how stuff works dot com, and you 499 00:28:27,520 --> 00:28:30,600 Speaker 1: can find us all over social media at missed in History. 500 00:28:30,960 --> 00:28:33,959 Speaker 1: And you can subscribe to our show on Apple Podcasts, 501 00:28:33,960 --> 00:28:37,200 Speaker 1: Google podcast, the I Heart Radio app, and wherever else 502 00:28:37,240 --> 00:28:43,960 Speaker 1: you listen to podcasts. For more on this and thousands 503 00:28:44,000 --> 00:28:51,480 Speaker 1: of other topics, is it how stuff works dot com,