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Erhard Weigel (16 December 1625 – 20 March 1699) was a German
mathematician A mathematician is someone who uses an extensive knowledge of mathematics in their work, typically to solve mathematical problems. Mathematicians are concerned with numbers, data, quantity, structure, space, models, and change. History ...
,
astronomer An astronomer is a scientist in the field of astronomy who focuses their studies on a specific question or field outside the scope of Earth. They observe astronomical objects such as stars, planets, moons, comets and galaxies – in either ...
and
philosopher A philosopher is a person who practices or investigates philosophy. The term ''philosopher'' comes from the grc, φιλόσοφος, , translit=philosophos, meaning 'lover of wisdom'. The coining of the term has been attributed to the Greek th ...
.


Biography

Weigel earned his M.A. (1650) and his
habilitation Habilitation is the highest university degree, or the procedure by which it is achieved, in many European countries. The candidate fulfills a university's set criteria of excellence in research, teaching and further education, usually including a ...
(1652) from the
University of Leipzig Leipzig University (german: Universität Leipzig), in Leipzig in Saxony, Germany, is one of the world's oldest universities and the second-oldest university (by consecutive years of existence) in Germany. The university was founded on 2 Decem ...
. From 1653 until his death he was professor of mathematics at Jena University. He was the teacher of
Leibniz Gottfried Wilhelm (von) Leibniz . ( – 14 November 1716) was a German polymath active as a mathematician, philosopher, scientist and diplomat. He is one of the most prominent figures in both the history of philosophy and the history of mat ...
in summer 1663,Richard T. W. Arthur, 2014. ''Leibniz''. John Wiley & Sons. p. 16. and other notable students. He also worked to make science more widely accessible to the public, and what would today be considered a populariser of science. He concurred with Jakob Ellrod's "Mittel-Calendar", and with the advocacy of
Leibniz Gottfried Wilhelm (von) Leibniz . ( – 14 November 1716) was a German polymath active as a mathematician, philosopher, scientist and diplomat. He is one of the most prominent figures in both the history of philosophy and the history of mat ...
and others, that the date of
Easter Easter,Traditional names for the feast in English are "Easter Day", as in the ''Book of Common Prayer''; "Easter Sunday", used by James Ussher''The Whole Works of the Most Rev. James Ussher, Volume 4'') and Samuel Pepys''The Diary of Samuel ...
should be based on the astronomical measurement of the spring equinox and the next full
moon The Moon is Earth's only natural satellite. It is the fifth largest satellite in the Solar System and the largest and most massive relative to its parent planet, with a diameter about one-quarter that of Earth (comparable to the width ...
. He followed Jakob Ellrod to the Imperial Diet in
Regensburg Regensburg or is a city in eastern Bavaria, at the confluence of the Danube, Naab and Regen rivers. It is capital of the Upper Palatinate subregion of the state in the south of Germany. With more than 150,000 inhabitants, Regensburg is t ...
to advocate the use of the Mittel-Calendar or New
Gregorian calendar The Gregorian calendar is the calendar used in most parts of the world. It was introduced in October 1582 by Pope Gregory XIII as a modification of, and replacement for, the Julian calendar. The principal change was to space leap years diff ...
.


Timeline

* 1625 born in
Weiden in der Oberpfalz Weiden in der Oberpfalz (official name: Weiden i.d.OPf.; Northern Bavarian: ''Weidn in da Owapfalz'') is a district-free city in Bavaria, Germany. It is located east of Nuremberg and west of the Czech border. A branch of the German Army is loca ...
, son of clothier Michael Weigel and Anna Weigel * 1627–28 seizures of the
Upper Palatinate The Upper Palatinate (german: Oberpfalz, , ) is one of the seven administrative districts of Bavaria, Germany, and is located in the east of Bavaria. Geography The Upper Palatinate is a landscape with low mountains and numerous ponds and lake ...
through imperial troops starting with recatholicization; escape of the Weigel family from Wunsiedel to Ansbach-Bayreuth * 1638–44 teen years at grammar school in Wunsiedel * 1644–46 Lutheran high school in
Halle (Saale) Halle (Saale), or simply Halle (; from the 15th to the 17th century: ''Hall in Sachsen''; until the beginning of the 20th century: ''Halle an der Saale'' ; from 1965 to 1995: ''Halle/Saale'') is the largest city of the German state of Saxony-An ...
and simultaneous activity with the astronomer Bartholomäus Schimpfer, who teaches him mathematics * 1646 temporary return to Wunsiedel; mathematics and astronomy instruction with archdeacon Jakob Ellrod * 1647–50 studies at the
University of Leipzig Leipzig University (german: Universität Leipzig), in Leipzig in Saxony, Germany, is one of the world's oldest universities and the second-oldest university (by consecutive years of existence) in Germany. The university was founded on 2 Decem ...
* 1650 MA in philosophy: ''De ascensionibus et descensionibus astronomicis dissertatio'' (''Astronomical dissertation on risings and settings'') * 1652
habilitation Habilitation is the highest university degree, or the procedure by which it is achieved, in many European countries. The candidate fulfills a university's set criteria of excellence in research, teaching and further education, usually including a ...
in Leipzig with ''Dissertatio Metaphysica Prior (De Existentia); Dissertatio Metaphysica Posterior (De Modo Existentiae, qui dicitur Duratio)'' * 1653 post as mathematics professor in Jena * 1653 (16 July) begins lectures ''De Cometa Novo'' (regarding the comet of December 1652) * 1653 (12 September) marries Elisabeth Hartmann (a widow) * 1654 appointment as ''Stipendiarorum et Alumnorum Inspector'' (supervision over the Collegium Jenense) * 1658 publishes the analysis ''Aristotelica ex Euclide restituta, genuinum sciendi modum, & nativam restauratae Philosophiae faciem per omnes disciplinas & facultates ichnographicè depingens''; the work brings him into conflict with the philosophical faculty * 1660 publishes ''Theodixis Pythagorica'' (revised edition 1675) * 1661 publishes ''Himmelsspiegels (Speculum Uranicum / Aquilae Romanae Sacrum...)'' * 1663
Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz Gottfried Wilhelm (von) Leibniz . ( – 14 November 1716) was a German polymath active as a mathematician, philosopher, scientist and diplomat. He is one of the most prominent figures in both the history of philosophy and the history of mat ...
, studies one semester in Jena, among others under Erhard Weigel * 1664 publishes of the ''Speculum Temporis Civilis'', containing explanation of the calendar * 1665 publishes ''Speculum Terrae'' * 1667–70 Weigel's house, in Jena, for its time has remarkable technical interior facilities—among others an elevator and a water pipe * 1669 publishes ''Idea Matheseos Universae cum Speciminibus Inventionum Mathematicarum'' * 1673 publishes ''Universi Corporis Pansophici Caput Summum'' * 1673 publishes ''Tetractys, Sumum eum Arithmeticae eum Philosophiae discursivae Compendium'' * 1674 publishes an arithmetic description of morals ''Arithmetische Beschreibung der Moral-Weissheit von Personen und Sachen worauf das gemeine Wesen bestehet'' * 1679 Weigel's work on "the mystery of Holy Trinity demonstrated from the principle of geometry", brings him in conflict with the theological faculty and he is forced to retract his work * 1683 wife Elisabeth dies * 1688 appointed imperial advisor * 1691 goes to England to describe research results to the Royal Society, but only reaches the coast where the weather prevents crossing the British Channel * 1691 calls on the Dutch naturalist
Christiaan Huygens Christiaan Huygens, Lord of Zeelhem, ( , , ; also spelled Huyghens; la, Hugenius; 14 April 1629 – 8 July 1695) was a Dutch mathematician, physicist, engineer, astronomer, and inventor, who is regarded as one of the greatest scientists ...
at his estate * 1693 publishes ''Philosophia Mathematica, Theologia Naturalis Solida'' * 1695 becomes chancellor of the University of Jena * 1699 dies in Jena (Source:)


Legacy

Weigel was arguably one of the earliest German PhD holders. Through Leibniz, Weigel is the intellectual forefather of a long tradition of mathematicians and mathematical physicists that connects a great number of professionals to this day (see Academic genealogy of theoretical physicists: Erhard Weigel). The
Mathematics Genealogy Project The Mathematics Genealogy Project (MGP) is a web-based database for the academic genealogy of mathematicians.. By 31 December 2021, it contained information on 274,575 mathematical scientists who contributed to research-level mathematics. For a ...
lists more than 50,000 "descendants" of Weigel's, including
Lagrange Joseph-Louis Lagrange (born Giuseppe Luigi LagrangiaEuler Leonhard Euler ( , ; 15 April 170718 September 1783) was a Swiss mathematician, physicist, astronomer, geographer, logician and engineer who founded the studies of graph theory and topology and made pioneering and influential discoveries in m ...
, Poisson and several
Fields Medal The Fields Medal is a prize awarded to two, three, or four mathematicians under 40 years of age at the International Congress of the International Mathematical Union (IMU), a meeting that takes place every four years. The name of the award ...
ists. The crater Weigel on the
Moon The Moon is Earth's only natural satellite. It is the fifth largest satellite in the Solar System and the largest and most massive relative to its parent planet, with a diameter about one-quarter that of Earth (comparable to the width ...
is named after him. In 1999 a colloquium was held in Jena on the 300th anniversary of his death.


See also

* Doctor of Philosophy: History


Notes


References

* Katharina Habermann, Klaus-Dieter Herbst (Hrsg.): ''Erhard Weigel (1625–1699) und seine Schüler. Beiträge des 7. Erhard-Weigel-Kolloquiums 2014''. (Göttingen iedersachsen : Universitätsverlag Göttingen, 2016. – 376 pp. . * Stefan Kratochwil, Volker Leppin (Hrsg.): ''Erhard Weigel und die Theologie.'' orträge des 3. Erhard-Weigel-Kolloquiums, Jena, 11. & 12. Dezember 2003 Berlin: LIT-Verlag, 2015 (''Arbeiten zur Historischen und Systematischen Theologie'', Band 12), . * Schielicke, Reinhard E. et al., 1999,
Erhard Weigel - 1625 to 1699. Baroque patriarch of the early German Enlightenment. Proceedings of the colloquium held in Jena on March 20, 1999, on the occasion of the 300th anniversary of his death
' (= ''Acta Historica Astronomiae'', vol. 7). * Reinhard Breymayer: ''Astronomie, Kalenderstreit und Liebestheologie. Von Erhard Weigel und seinem Schüler Detlev Clüver über Friedrich Christoph Oetinger und Philipp Matthäus Hahn zu Friedrich Schiller, Johann Andreas Streicher, Franz Joseph Graf von Thun und Hohenstein, Mozart und Beethoven''. Dußlingen : Noûs-Verlag Thomas Leon Heck 2016. - 227 pp. - .


Further reading

* Behme, T. (2019). "Erhard Weigel's Proof of the Existence of God and its Critique by Leibniz". ''Studia Leibnitiana'' 51(2), pp. 247–264.


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Weigel, Erhard 1625 births 1699 deaths People from Weiden in der Oberpfalz 17th-century German mathematicians 17th-century German astronomers Leipzig University alumni University of Jena faculty