Michael Faraday was born on 22 September 1791 in Newington Butts. A British scientist, Faraday came from a poor London family and trained as a bookbinder before becoming an assistant to the chemist Humphry Davy at the Royal Institution. He discovered electromagnetic induction in 1831, the principle behind electric generators and transformers, and built early electric motors. He established the laws of electrolysis and introduced the idea of fields of force, which later influenced James Clerk Maxwell. He also discovered benzene and studied the liquefaction of gases. A gifted lecturer, he began the Royal Institution's Christmas Lectures for young people, which continue today.
Before and after
- 23 April 1791Birth of James Buchanan
- 27 April 1791Birth of Samuel Finley Breese Morse
- 3 May 1791Constitution of May 3, 1791
- from 14 August 1791 to 1 January 1804Haitian Revolution
- 22 September 1791Birth of Michael Faraday
- 5 December 1791Death of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
- 26 December 1791Birth of Charles Babbage
- 1792Publication of La Marseillaise
- 1792Publication of Dream of the Red Chamber
More in Science & technology
- 1774Discovery of chlorine
- 1789Discovery of uranium
- 1807Discovery of potassium
- 30 June 1808Discovery of boron
- 1810Discovery of fluorine
- 1823Discovery of silicon
The era
This moment belongs to the Industrial era (1760 CE to 1914 CE), steam, factories and revolutions. You can also browse everything in the 18th century.