40 Famous Inventors

A list of famous inventors from Archimedes to Tim Berners-Lee.

Archimedes (287 BCE – c. 212 BCE) Archimedes of Syracuse was an ancient

Greek mathematician, physicist, engineer, inventor, and astronomer. Amongst other things he
calculated pi and developed the Archimedes screw for lifting up water from mines or wells.

Cai Lun (50–121 CE), Chinese inventor of paper. Cai Lun was a Chinese
political administrator credited with inventing modern paper and inventing the paper-making
process. His invention included the use of raw materials such as bark, hemp, silk and fishing net.
The sheets of fibre were suspended in water before removing for drying.

Leonardo Da Vinci (1452–1519) Italian artist, scientist and polymath. Da Vinci

invented a huge range of machines and drew models that proved workable 3-500 years later.
These included prototype parachutes, tanks, flying machines and single-span bridges. More
practical inventions included an optical lens grinder and various hydraulic machines.

Galileo (1564–1642) Italian scientist. Galileo developed a powerful telescope

and confirmed revolutionary theories about the nature of the world. Also developed an improved
compass.
 Sir Isaac Newton (1642–1726) English scientist. Newton invented the reflecting
telescope. This greatly improved the capacity of telescopes and reduced optical distortion.
Newton was also a great physicist and astronomer.

Thomas Savery (c. 1650–1715) English inventor. Savery patented one of the
first steam engines which was pioneered for use in pumping water from mines. This original
Savery steam engine was basic, but it was used as a starting point in later developments of the
steam engine.

Thomas Newcomen (1664–1729) English inventor who created the first

practical steam engine for pumping water from mines. He worked with Savery’s initial design,
but significantly improved it, using atmospheric pressure which was safer and more effective for
use in mines to remove water.

Jethro Tull (1674–1741) English agricultural entrepreneur. Tull invented the

seed drill and horse-drawn hoe. The seed drill improved the efficiency of farming and led to
increased yields. It was an important invention in the agricultural revolution which increased
yields prior to the industrial revolution.
 Abraham Darby (1678–1717) English Quaker, inventor and businessman.
Darby developed a process for producing large quantities of pig iron from coke. Coke smelted
iron was a crucial raw material in the industrial revolution.

John Harrison (1693–1776) English carpenter and clockmaker. He invented a

device for measuring longitude at sea. This was a crucial invention to improve the safety of
navigating the oceans.

Benjamin Franklin (1705–1790) American polymath who discovered electricity

and invented the Franklin stove, the lightning rod and bifocals. Franklin was also an American
statesman and an influential figure in the development of modern America.

William Cullen (1710–1790) Scottish physician and chemist. He is credited with

inventing the basis for the first artificial refrigerator, although it took others to make his designs
suitable for practical use.

John Wilkinson (1728–1808) English industrialist. John ‘Iron Mad’ Wilkinson

developed the manufacture and use of cast iron. These precision-made cast iron cylinders were
important in steam engines.
 Sir Richard Arkwright (1732–1792) English entrepreneur and ‘father of the
industrial revolution.’ Arkwright was a leading pioneer in the spinning industry. He invented the
spinning frame and was successful in using this in mass-scale factory production.

James Watt (1736–1819) Scottish inventor of the steam engine, which was
suitable for use in trains. His invention of a separate condensing chamber greatly improved the
efficiency of steam. It enabled the steam engine to be used for a greater range of purpose than
just pumping water.

Alessandro Volta (1745–1827), Italian physicist, credited with inventing the

battery. Volta invented the first electrochemical battery cell. It used zinc, copper and an
electrolyte, such as sulphuric acid and water.

Sir Humphrey Davy (1778–1829) English inventor of the Davy lamp. The lamp
could be used by miners in areas where methane gas existed because the design prevented a
flame escaping the fine gauze.

Charles Babbage (1791–1871) English mathematician and inventor. Babbage

created the first mechanical computer, which proved to be the prototype for future computers.
Considered to be the ‘Father of Computers,’ despite not finishing a working model.
 Michael Faraday (1791–1867) English scientist who helped convert electricity
into a format that could be easily used. Faraday discovered benzene and also invented an early
form of the Bunsen burner.

Samuel Morse (1791–1872) American inventor Morse used principles of

Jackson’s electromagnet to develop a single telegraph wire. He also invented Morse code, a
method of communicating via telegraph.

William Henry Fox Talbot (1800–1877) British Victorian pioneer of

photography. He invented the first negative, which could make several prints. He is known for
inventing the calotype process (using Silver Chloride) of taking photographs.

Louis Braille (1809–1852) French inventor. Louis Braille was blinded in a

childhood accident. He developed the Braille system of reading for the blind. He also developed
a musical Braille, for reading music scores.

Kirkpatrick Macmillan (1812–1878) Scottish inventor of the pedal bicycle.

Kirkpatrick’s contribution was to make a rear wheel driven bicycle through the use of a chain,
giving the basic design for the bicycle as we know it today.
 James Clerk Maxwell (1831–1879) Scottish physicist and inventor. Maxwell
invented the first process for producing colour photography. Maxwell was also considered one of
the greatest physicists of the millennium.

Karl Benz (1844–1929), German inventor and businessman. Benz developed the
petrol-powered car. In 1879, Benz received his first patent for a petrol-powered internal
combustion engine, which made an automobile car practical. Benz also became a successful
manufacturer.

Thomas Edison (1847–1931) American inventor who filed over 1,000 patents.
He developed and innovated a wide range of products from the electric light bulb to the
phonograph and motion picture camera. One of the greatest inventors of all time.

Alexander Bell (1847–1922) Scottish scientist credited with inventing the first
practical telephone. Also worked on optical telecommunications, aeronautics and hydrofoils.

Nikola Tesla (1856–1943) American Physicist who invented fluorescent

lighting, the Tesla coil, the induction motor, 3-phase electricity and AC electricity.
 Rudolf Diesel (1858–1913), German inventor of the Diesel engine. Diesel sought
to build an engine which had much greater efficiency. This led him to develop a diesel-powered
combustion engine.

Édouard Michelin (1859–1940), French inventor of a pneumatic tire. John

Dunlop invented the first practical pneumatic tyre in 1887. Michelin improved on this initial
design to develop his own version in 1889.

Marie Curie (1867–1934) Polish-born French chemist and physicist. Curie

discovered Radium and helped make use of radiation and X-rays.

The Wright Brothers (1871–1948) American inventors who successfully

designed, built and flew the first powered aircraft in 1903.

Alexander Fleming (1881–1955), Scottish scientist. Fleming discovered the

antibiotic penicillin by accident from the mould Penicillium Notatum in 1928.
 John Logie Baird (1888–1946) Scottish inventor who invented the television
and the first recording device.

Enrico Fermi (1901–1954) Italian scientist who developed the nuclear reactor.
Fermi made important discoveries in induced radioactivity. He is considered the inventor of the
nuclear reactor.

J. Robert Oppenheimer (1904–1967), United States – Atomic bomb.

Oppenheimer was in charge of the Manhattan project which led to the creation of the first atomic
bomb, later dropped in Japan. He later campaigned against his own invention.

Alan Turing (1912–1954) English 20th century mathematician, pioneer of

computer science. He developed the Turing machine, capable of automating processes. It could
be adapted to simulate the logic of any computer algorithm.

Robert Noyce (1927–1990) American 20th-century electrical engineer. Along

with Jack Kilby, he invented the microchip or integrated circuit. He filed for a patent in 1959.
The microchip fueled the computer revolution.
 James Dyson (1947– ) British entrepreneur. He developed the bag-less vacuum
cleaner using Dual Cyclone action. His Dyson company has also invented revolutionary hand
dryers.

Tim Berners-Lee (1955– ) British computer scientist. Tim Berners-Lee is

credited with inventing the World Wide Web, which enabled the internet to display websites
viewable on internet browsers. He developed the http://protocol for the internet and made the
world wide web freely available.

Steve Jobs (1955–2011) American entrepreneur and developer. Jobs helped

revolutionise personal computer devices with the iPod, iPad, Macbook and iPhone. He is
credited with inventing the new wave of hand-held personal computer devices.

Famous Scientists
Biographies of famous scientists throughout the ages. This list of scientists includes Aristotle,
Leonardo Da Vinci, Galileo to modern-day scientists, such as Einstein, Tesla and James Watson.

Hippocrates (460 – 377 BC) – Hippocrates was a great doctor of ancient

Greece. His pioneering techniques of health care significantly improved survival rates, and he
has become the father of modern medicine. His Hippocratic oath is still sworn by medical
practitioners today.
Aristotle (384 – 322 BC) Greek scientist who made investigations and
discoveries in the natural sciences including botany, zoology, physics, astronomy, chemistry,
meteorology and geometry. His prolific output had a significant impact on the study of science in
the West.

Euclid (c. 325 – 265 BC) Greek mathematician. Euclid is often referred to as the
‘father of modern geometry.’ His book ‘Elements‘ provided the basis of mathematics into the
Twentieth Century.

Archimedes (287 – 212 BC) Greek polymath. Amongst other things

Archimedes worked out Pi and developed the Archimedes screw for lifting up water from mines
or wells.

Leonardo Da Vinci (1452 – 1519) Italian artist and Renaissance man. Da Vinci
made many scientific discoveries and inventions. Da Vinci was so far ahead of his time, some of
his contributions were not actually used.

Nicholaus Copernicus (1473- 1543) Polish scientist. A Renaissance

mathematician and astronomer who formulated a heliocentric view of the universe. His book On
the Revolutions of the Celestial Spheres (1543) was one of the major moments of the Scientific
Revolution.

17th Century Scientists

Francis Bacon (1561 – 1626) English philosopher, statesman and scientist.

Bacon is considered the father of empiricism for his work and advocacy of scientific method and
methodical scientific inquiry in investigating scientific phenomena.

Galileo (1564 – 1642) Italian scientist. Created one of the first modern
telescopes, Galileo revolutionised our understanding of the world supporting the work of
Copernicus. His work Two New Sciences laid the groundwork for the science of Kinetics and
strength of materials.

Johannes Kepler (1571 – 1630) German mathematician, astronomer, and

astrologer. Kepler is best known for his laws of planetary motion. He formed a key figure in the
17th Century Scientific Revolution.

18th Century Scientists

Antonie van Leeuwenhoek (1632 – 1723) Dutch scientist and

trader. Leeuwenhoek is considered the father of microbiology for his work in discovering
single-celled organisms and also observing muscle fibres, blood flow and bacteria. He developed
the microscope which helped his own discoveries.

Sir Isaac Newton (1642-1726) English scientist. Newton made studies in

mathematics, optics, physics, and astronomy. In his Principia Mathematica, published in 1687,
he laid the foundations for classical mechanics, explaining the law of gravity and the Laws of
Motion.

John Harrison (1693 – 1776) English clockmaker and inventor of measuring

longitude.

James Watt (1736 – 1819) Scottish engineer. Watt improved the Newcomen
steam engine creating an efficient steam engine, which was essential for the industrial revolution.

Antoine-Laurent de Lavoisier (1743 – 1794) French Chemist and Nobleman.

Considered the ‘Father of Chemistry’ Lavoisier discovered hydrogen and Oxygen and showed
the role of Oxygen in combustion. He also made the first comprehensive list of Table of
Elements. He was guillotined shortly after the French Revolution.
Scientists 19th Century

Charles Babbage (1791 – 1871) – English inventor of the first mechanical

computers. Babbage is considered the ‘father of computers’ for his pioneering work on
mechanical computers.
 Michael Faraday (1791 – 1867) – English scientist who contributed to the fields
of electromagnetic induction, diamagnetism, electrolysis and electrochemistry. Discovered
Carbon and Chlorine.

Edward Jenner (1749 – 1823) English pioneer of smallpox vaccine. Jenner’s

breakthrough also enabled many other vaccines to be developed.

Charles Darwin (1809 – 1882) English scientist. Darwin developed the theory
of evolution against a backdrop of disbelief and scepticism. Collected evidence over 20 years,
and published conclusions in On the Origin of Species (1859).

Louis Pasteur (1822 – 1895) French biologist. Contributed substantially towards

the advancement of medical sciences developing cures for rabies, anthrax and other infectious
diseases. Also enabled the process of pasteurisation to make milk safer to drink.

Gregor Mendel (1822 – 1884) German scientist and Augustinian Friar. Mendel
is considered the founder of modern genetics for his discoveries about plant breeding and rules
of heredity.
 Joseph Lister (1827 – 1912) English surgeon. Lister pioneered the use of
antiseptic (Carbolic acid) and antiseptic surgery which dramatically improved survival rates.

James Clerk Maxwell (1831-1879) Scottish physicist. Maxwell made a

significant contribution to understanding electromagnetism. His research in electricity and
kinetics laid the foundation for quantum physics.

Emil Fischer (1838–1914) – German. Fischer was the outstanding chemist of the
modern age. He synthesised many products to show their constituent parts. Won the Nobel Prize
in Chemistry in 1902 for his research into the chemical composition of purines and sugars.

Scientists 20th Century

Alfred Nobel (1833 – 1896) Swedish chemist, engineer, innovator, and

armaments manufacturer. Nobel invented dynamite and held 350 other patents, including for a
gas meter. Perhaps most famous for his legacy of Nobel awards.

Dmitri Mendeleev (1834 – 1907) Russian Chemist. Formulated the Periodic

Law and standardised the Periodic Table of Elements which is still used today. Mendeleev
wrote Principles of Chemistry (1868–1870) a classic textbook for many decades.
 Alexander Bell (1847 – 1922) – Scottish inventor of the telephone and
developments in understanding hearing.

Sigmund Freud (1885 – 1939) Austrian physician – the leading figure in the
new science of psychoanalysis. Freud made an extensive study of dreams and the subconscious
to try and understand better human emotions.

Marie Curie (1867 – 1934) Polish physicist and chemist. Discovered radiation
and helped to apply it in the field of X-ray. She won Nobel Prize in both Chemistry and Physics.

Albert Einstein (1879 – 1955) German/US physicist. Einstein revolutionised

modern physics with his general theory of relativity. Won Nobel Prize in Physics (1921) for his
discovery of the Photoelectric effect, which formed the basis of Quantum Theory.

Alexander Fleming (1881-1955) Scottish biologist who discovered penicillin.

Shared Nobel Prize in 1945 with Howard Florey and Ernst Boris Chain, who helped produce
penicillin on a large scale.
 Otto Hahn (1879-1968) – German chemist who discovered nuclear fission
(1939). Pioneering scientist in the field of radiochemistry. Discovered radio-active elements and
nuclear isomerism (1921). Awarded Nobel Prize in Chemistry. (1944)

Nikola Tesla (1856 –1943) Serbian/American – Worked on electromagnetism

and AC current. Credited with many patents from electricity to radio transmission.

Sri Jagadish Chandra Bose (1858 – 1937) Bengali / Indian polymath. Bose
took an interest in a wide range of sciences. He made contributions to plant physiology,
microwave optics and radio waves.

Max Plank (1858 – 1947) German theoretical physicist who contributed to the
development of Quantum Mechanics. Awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1918.

Ernest Rutherford (1871 – 1937) New Zealand-born British physicist /

Chemist. In 1908, Rutherford was awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for his work in
radioactivity and the disintegration of elements. In 1917, credited with being the first person to
split the atom, discovering the proton.
 Niels Bohr (1885 – 1962) Danish physicist. Bohr developed a structure of the
atom, recognising electrons revolving around a stable nucleus. His work was important for
atomic structure and quantum physics. Awarded Nobel Prize for Physics 1922.

John Logie Baird (1888 – 1946) was a Scottish engineer and inventor, who
demonstrated the first televised moving objects.

Satyendra Nath Bose (1894 – 1974) Indian physicist who worked on quantum
mechanics. Collaborated with Albert Einstein to found Bose-Einstein statistics and Bose-Einstein
condensate.

Paul Dirac (1902-1984) English physicist – One of the early exponents of

quantum physics and quantum electrodynamics. Dirac developed theories of the electron and the
special theory of relativity.

Rosalind Franklin (1920 – 1958) British Chemist who made significant

contributions to understanding the structure of DNA and RNA, which led to the discovery of the
DNA double helix. Franklin also worked on the chemistry of coal and viruses.
 James Watson (1928 – ) American molecular biologist, geneticist and zoologist,
with Francis Crick discovered DNA. Was awarded the Nobel Prize in 1962
21st Century Scientists

Stephen Hawking (1942 – 2018) English theoretical physicist, cosmologist.

Hawking has authored The Theory of Everything, and A Brief History of Time.

FAMOUS MATHEMATICIANS
A list of the greatest and most influential mathematicians.
 Thales (c. 624 – c.547 BC) Greek philosopher who is considered one of the first
mathematicians. Thales made pioneering use of geometry to calculate height and distance. He
also used deductive reasoning in creating ‘Thales’ theorem. Thales was an important figure in
the ‘Scientific Revolution of Ancient Greece, which rejected the use of mythology and
developed science and reason.

Pythagoras (c. 570 BC – c 495 BC) Greek philosopher, spiritual leader and
mathematician. Pythagoras is believed to be one of the first Western men to describe himself as a
philosopher – ‘lover of wisdom’ His philosophy was based on the mystic traditions of Egypt and
Greece. He is also credited with ‘Pythagoras theorem’ – about the relation of triangles in
geometry.

Euclid (c. 325 – 265 BC) Greek mathematician. Euclid is often referred to as the
‘father of modern geometry.’ His book ‘Elements‘ provided the basis of mathematics into the
Twentieth Century.

Archimedes (287 B.C – 212) Mathematician, scientist and inventor. Archimedes

made many contributions to mathematics, such as a calculation of pi, geometrical theorems and
developing a concept of exponentiation for very large numbers.
 Ptolemy (c. 90 – c. 168 AD) Greek / Roman mathematician, astronomer, poet
and geographer. Ptolemy wrote one of the few surviving ancient works on astronomy –
the Almagest.

Aryabhata (c. 476 – c. 550) Indian mathematician and astronomer. Aryabhata

was influential in the development of trigonometry. In astronomy, he made accurate explanations
of lunar eclipses’ and the circumference of the earth. His great works include: Āryabhaṭīya and
the Arya-Siddhanta

Omar Khayyám (1048-1131) Persian poet, philosopher, astronomer and

mathematician. Khayyam wrote an influential work on algebra – Treatise on Demonstration of
Problems of Algebra (1070)

Leonardo Pisano Bigollo (1170-1250) Italian mathematician. Bigollo helped

standardise the Hindu–Arabic numeral system – through his Liber Abaci (Book of Calculation)
(1202). Bigollo is considered the greatest mathematician of the medieval ages.

Rene Descartes (1596 – 1650) French philosopher and mathematician. Descartes

made important discoveries in analytical geometry (bridging algebra and geometry), calculus and
other fields of mathematics.
 Pierre de Fermat (1601-1665) French lawyer and amateur mathematician.
Fermat helped develop infinitesimal calculus. Best known for his ‘Fermat’s Last Theorem, which
he described in a margin of a copy of Diophantus’ Arithmetica.

Blaise Pascal (1623-1662) French mathematician, philosopher and inventor.

Pascal worked on projective geometry and corresponded with Pierre de Fermat on probability
theory. Pascal’s Triangle is a term given to his presentation on binomial coefficients, (“Treatise
on the Arithmetical Triangle”) of 1653.

Sir Isaac Newton (1642-1726) English scientist. Newton made studies in

mathematics, optics, physics, and astronomy. In his Principia Mathematica, published in 1687,
he laid the foundations for classical mechanics, explaining the law of gravity and the Laws of
Motion. In mathematics, he also studied power series, binomial theorem, and developed a
method for approximating the roots of a function.

Gottfried Wilhelm von Leibniz (1646-1716) German mathematician, innovator

and philosopher. Leibniz developed mechanical calculators and worked on theories of calculus.
In philosophy, he was a leading rationalist philosopher – also noted for his optimism about the
universe.
 Leonhard Euler (1707-1783) Swiss mathematician and physicist. Euler made
important discoveries in infinitesimal calculus, graph theory mechanics, fluid dynamics, optics,
astronomy, and music theory. Euler also formalised many mathematical notations.

Joseph Louis Lagrange (1736 – 1813) Italian mathematician and astronomer.

He made significant contributions to the fields of analysis, number theory, and both classical and
celestial mechanics.

Carl Gauss (1777 – 1855) German mathematician. Often referred to as Princeps

mathematicorum – “the Prince of Mathematicians” Gauss was influential in a range of
mathematics, including number theory, algebra, statistics, analysis, differential geometry,
geophysics, electrostatics, astronomy, matrix theory, and optics.

Ada Lovelace (1815-1852) English mathematician. Daughter of Lord Byron,

Lovelace developed an interest in maths and logic and worked with Charles Babbage writing one
of the first computer algorithms – Work on the Analytical Engine. Lovelace saw the potential of
computers to be more than just calculating machines.

Bernhard Riemann (1826-1866) German mathematician, who made substantial

contributions to analysis, number theory, and differential geometry. His work was a precursor to
the general theory of relativity.

David Hilbert (1862-1943) German logician/mathematician. Hilbert was

influential in the Twentieth Century study of maths. He was one of the founders of proof theory
and mathematical logic. He created the invariant theory, the axiomatization of geometry and the
theory of Hilbert spaces.

Albert Einstein (1879 – 1955) German/ US. Revolutionised modern physics

with his general theory of relativity. Won Nobel Prize in Physics (1921) for his discovery of the
Photoelectric effect, which formed the basis of Quantum Theory.

Srinivasa Ramanujan (1887-1920) Indian. Self-taught mathematician,

Ramanujan developed highly original and insightful theorems in number theory, infinite series
and continued fractions. Credited with Ramanujan prime and the Ramanujan theta function.
Worked with G.W. Hardy (Cambridge)

Alan Turing (1912-1954) British computer scientist. Considered the father of

computer science and one of the most brilliant minds of Twentieth Century. Cracked the enigma
code during the Second World War.
 John Forbes Nash, Jr. (1928 – ) – American mathematician. Worked on game
theory, partial differential equations and differential geometry. He made great insights into the
maths of chance and complex decision making. Awarded Nobel Prize in Economics 1994. His
life was the source material for film ‘A Beautiful Mind’

FAMOUS PHILOSOPHERS
A list of the greatest philosophers who have made original contributions to the field of
philosophy.

Pythagoras (c. 570 BC – c 495 BC) Greek philosopher, spiritual leader and
mathematician. Pythagoras is believed to be one of the first Western men to describe himself as a
philosopher or ‘lover of wisdom’ His philosophy was based on the mystic traditions of Egypt
and Greece and included a seeking for the soul.

Laozi (Lao Tsu) (c 571 BC – ) Chinese poet and philosopher. Laozi was the
author of the Tao Te Ching and the founder of philosophical Taoism. His philosophy tries to seek
an underlying unity and order in the universe – despite seeming contrasts.
 Confucius (551 – 479 BC) Chinese philosopher, political writer, reformer and
author of The Analects. Confucius was a conservative philosopher, stressing family loyalty, duty,
the importance of family and tradition. He also emphasised the well-known maxim. “Do not do
to others what you do not want done to yourself”

Socrates (469 – 399 BC) Athenian philosopher, famous for the Socratic method
of questioning every preconception. He sought to draw his followers into thinking about
questions of life through a series of question. His philosophy was spread by his pupil Plato and
recorded in Plato’s Republic.

Plato (424 – 348 BC) – Greek philosopher. A student of Socrates, Plato founded
the Academy in Athens – one of the earliest seats of learning. His writings, such as ‘The
Republic’ form a basis of early Western philosophy. He also wrote on religion, politics and
mathematics.

Aristotle (384 BC – 322 BC) – Greek philosopher and polymath. A student of

Plato, Aristotle examined a diverse range of scientific and philosophical concepts, working on a
branch of his own ethics.
 Marcus Aurelius (121 – 180) – Roman Emperor and philosopher. Famous for
his book ‘Meditations‘ which offer short aphorisms of wisdom and advice.

Adi Shankara (9th Century AD) Shankaracharya was an Indian spiritual teacher
and philosopher. He advocated and spread a philosophy of Advaita Vedanta, which stresses the
underlying unity of creation.

Thomas Aquinas (1225 – 1274) Italian friar and influential Roman Catholic
priest, philosopher and theologian. Aquinas attempted to synthesize Aristotle’s philosophy with
the principles of Christianity. Aquinas also developed a theory of natural theology – proving the
existence of God through reason.

Francis Bacon (1561 – 1626) English philosopher, statesman, orator and

scientist. Bacon is considered the ‘father of empiricism’ for his advocacy of scientific methodical
inquiry in investigating scientific phenomena. Bacon’s approach was important both
philosophically and practically.

Rene Descartes (1596 – 1650) French philosopher and mathematician. Dubbed

the father of modern philosophy, Descartes was influential in a new rationalist movement.
Descartes set a precedent for examining issues and trying to avoid any presumption. Descartes
offered one of the most famous philosophic statements ‘Cogito ergo sum’ – “I think, therefore I
am”
 Baruch Spinoza (1632 – 1677) Spinoza was a Jewish-Dutch philosopher. He
was an influential rationalist, who saw the underlying unity in the universe. He was critical of
religious scriptures and promoted a view that the Divine was in all, and the Universe was
ordered, despite its apparent contradictions. In his work ‘Ethics’ he opposed the mind-body
dualism of Descartes. Contributed to Ethics, Epistemology, Metaphysics.

John Locke (1632 – 1704) Locke was a leading philosopher and political
theorist, who had a profound impact on liberal political thought. He is credited with ideas, such
as the social contract – the idea government needs to be with the consent of the governed. Locke
also argued for liberty, religious tolerance and rights to life and property.

Gottfried Wilhelm von Leibniz (1646 -1716) German mathematician, innovator

and philosopher. In philosophy, he was a leading advocate of rationalism. He was also noted for
his optimism about the universe. – the Universe being the best God could have created.

Voltaire (1694 – 1778) – French philosopher and critic. Best known for his work
Candide (1762) which epitomises his satire and criticisms of social convention.
 Jean Jacques Rousseau (1712 – 1778) Rousseau was a Swiss-born French
philosopher. He expanded on Hobbes notion of a social contract to state it should be more
egalitarian. He was critical of some aspects of formal religion but believed in the inherent
divinity of man’s soul. Rousseau sought to prevent the corruption of this natural man, through
better civil government and promotion of virtue.
“Man is born free, but everywhere in chains” – Social Contract (1762)

Immanuel Kant (1724 – 1804) Immanuel Kant was an influential German

philosopher whose ‘Critique of Pure Reason’ (Kritik der reinen Vernunft, 1781) sought to unite
reason with experience and move philosophy on from the debate between rationalists and
empiricists. Kant’s philosophy was influential on future German idealists and philosophers, such
as Shelling and Schopenhauer. A central concept of Kant’s philosophy was the ‘Categorical
imperative’ – evaluating motivations for action.

Tom Paine (1737- 1809) English-American author, philosopher and social

activist. Wrote ‘Common Sense‘ (1776) and the Rights of Man (1791). Important tracts
supporting the principles of American and French revolutions.

Thomas Hobbes (1588 – 1679) English Political philosopher. His book

Leviathan (1651) expounded the idea of a ‘social contract’ – limiting the power of those ruling
society. This had a big bearing on Western political thought.
 David Hume (1711 – 1776) – Scottish enlightenment philosopher. Hume was an
important empiricist and sceptic. He argued against innate ideas, but stressed the importance of
experience.

Thomas Jefferson (1743- 1826) American statesman and philosopher. Third

president of the US, and principal author of the Declaration of Independence, which stressed the
innate rights of man.

Jeremy Bentham (1748–1832) British philosopher. Bentham is credited with

being the founding father of Utilitarianism. The philosophy that actions should be evaluated on
the extent to which they increase happiness for the maximum number of people. He was also a
leading social critic, advocating universal suffrage, animal rights, the abolition of slavery and
penal reform.

Mary Wollstonecraft (1759-1797) – English author and early advocate of

women’s rights. Her work, A Vindication of the Rights of Woman (1792) is one of earliest works
which argues women have right to make full participation in society.
 John Stuart Mill (1806 – 1873) – English political philosopher. J.S. Mill wrote a
famous treatise – ‘On Liberty’ which defined the limits of state involvement in human liberty. He
was also a utilitarian philosopher and advocate of women’s rights.

Karl Marx (1818 – 1883) German Marxist philosopher. Author of Das

Kapitaland The Communist Manifesto (with F.Engels) Marx argued that a Communist revolution
to overthrow Capitalist society was an inevitable consequence of historical progress.

Sri Aurobindo (1872 – 1950 ) Spiritual teacher, philosopher and poet. His great
works – The Life Divine and Savitri – describe man’s spiritual evolution from a limited ego to
the Supramental consciousness

Bertrand Russell (1872 – 1970) English Mathematician and logician, Russell

was one of the founders of analytical philosophy. Russell was also a pacifist and peace
campaigner.