''From the Earth to the Moon: A Direct Route in 97 Hours, 20 Minutes'' () is an 1865 novel by

Jules Verne Jules Gabriel Verne (;''Longman Pronunciation Dictionary''. ; 8 February 1828 – 24 March 1905) was a French novelist, poet and playwright. His collaboration with the publisher Pierre-Jules Hetzel led to the creation of the ''Voyages extraor ...

. It tells the story of the Baltimore Gun Club, a post-

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...

society of weapons enthusiasts, and their attempts to build an enormous

Columbiad The columbiad was a large-caliber, smoothbore, muzzle-loading cannon able to fire heavy projectiles at both high and low trajectory, trajectories. This feature enabled the columbiad to fire solid Round shot, shot or Shell (projectile), shell to ...

space gun A space gun, sometimes called a Verne gun because of its appearance in ''From the Earth to the Moon'' by Jules Verne, is a method of launching an object into space using a large gun- or cannon-like structure. Space guns could thus potentially pr ...

and launch three people – the Gun Club's president, his Philadelphian armor-making rival, and a French poet – in a projectile with the goal of a

Moon landing A Moon landing or lunar landing is the arrival of a spacecraft on the surface of the Moon, including both crewed and robotic missions. The first human-made object to touch the Moon was Luna 2 in 1959. In 1969 Apollo 11 was the first cr ...

. Five years later, Verne wrote a sequel called ''

Around the Moon ''Around the Moon'' (, 1869), also translated as ''Circling the Moon'' and ''All Around the Moon'', is the sequel to Jules Verne's 1865 novel, ''From the Earth to the Moon''. It is a science fiction tale which continues the trip to the Moon that w ...

''. The 2 modern unabridged English translations were done by Walter James Miller in 1978 and Frederick Paul Walter in 2010.

Background

Verne's novel was not the first literary work to recount a journey to the Moon; these include ''

A True Story ''A True Story'' (, ''Alēthē diēgēmata''; or ), also translated as ''True History'', is a long novella or short novel written in the second century AD by the Syrian author Lucian of Samosata. The novel is a satire of outlandish tales that h ...

'', by

Lucian Lucian of Samosata (Λουκιανὸς ὁ Σαμοσατεύς, 125 – after 180) was a Hellenized Syrian satirist, rhetorician and pamphleteer who is best known for his characteristic tongue-in-cheek style, with which he frequently ridi ...

(second century AD),

Francis Godwin Francis Godwin (1562–1633) was an English historian, science fiction author and priest, who was Bishop of Llandaff and of Hereford. Life He was the son of Thomas Godwin, Bishop of Bath and Wells, born at Hannington, Northamptonshire. He wa ...

's ''

The Man in the Moone ''The Man in the Moone'' is a book by the English Divine (noun), divine and Church of England bishop Francis Godwin (1562–1633), describing a "voyage of utopian discovery". Long considered to be one of his early works, it is now generally tho ...

'' (1638), the ''

Comical History of the States and Empires of the Moon ''The Other World: Comical History of the States and Empires of the Moon'' () was the first of three satirical novels written by Cyrano de Bergerac. It was published posthumously in 1657 and, along with its companion work '' The States and Empir ...

'' (1657) by

Cyrano de Bergerac Savinien de Cyrano de Bergerac ( , ; 6 March 1619 – 28 July 1655) was a French novelist, playwright, epistolarian, and duelist. A bold and innovative author, his work was part of the libertine literature of the first half of the 17th ce ...

John Wilkins John Wilkins (14 February 1614 – 19 November 1672) was an English Anglican ministry, Anglican clergyman, Natural philosophy, natural philosopher, and author, and was one of the founders of the Royal Society. He was Bishop of Chester from 1 ...

's novel ''The Discovery of a World in the Moone'' of 1638, and ''

Voyage de Milord Céton dans les sept planètes ''The Voyages of Lord Seaton to the Seven Planets'' is a 1765 romantic utopian novel by Marie-Anne de Roumier-Robert. In the form of travel literature through the Solar System, this novel addresses innovative feminist themes for the time. Summar ...

, ou Le nouveau Mentor'' by Marie-Anne Robert which appeared in Paris in 1756. The story is notable in that Verne attempted to do some rough calculations as to the requirements for the cannon and in that, considering the comparative lack of empirical data on the subject at the time, some of his figures are remarkably accurate. However, his version of a

for a

non-rocket spacelaunch Non-rocket spacelaunch refers to theoretical concepts for launch into space where much of the speed and altitude needed to achieve orbit is provided by a propulsion technique that is not subject to the limits of the rocket equation. Although al ...

turned out to be impractical for safe human space travel since a much longer

barrel A barrel or cask is a hollow cylindrical container with a bulging center, longer than it is wide. They are traditionally made of wooden stave (wood), staves and bound by wooden or metal hoops. The word vat is often used for large containers ...

would have been required to reach

escape velocity In celestial mechanics, escape velocity or escape speed is the minimum speed needed for an object to escape from contact with or orbit of a primary body, assuming: * Ballistic trajectory – no other forces are acting on the object, such as ...

while limiting

acceleration In mechanics, acceleration is the Rate (mathematics), rate of change of the velocity of an object with respect to time. Acceleration is one of several components of kinematics, the study of motion. Accelerations are Euclidean vector, vector ...

to survivable limits for the passengers. The character of Michel Ardan, the French member of the party in the novel, was inspired by the real-life photographer

Félix Nadar Gaspard-Félix Tournachon (; 5 April 1820 – 20 March 1910), known by the pseudonym Nadar () or Félix Nadar'','' was a French people, French photographer, caricaturist, journalist, novelist, balloon (aircraft), balloonist, and proponent of Hi ...

. In 1889 Verne wrote a second sequel to the novel, ''

The Purchase of the North Pole ''The Purchase of the North Pole'' or ''Topsy-Turvy'' () is an adventure novel by Jules Verne, published in 1889. It is the third and last novel of the Baltimore Gun Club, first appearing in ''From the Earth to the Moon'', and later in '' Around ...

'', which has the Gun Club members (led by J. T. Maston) plan to use the Columbiad to alter the tilt of the Earth to enable the mineral wealth of the Arctic region to be put within reach of exploitation.

Plot

The story opens some time after the end of the

. The

Baltimore Baltimore is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the 30th-most populous U.S. city. The Baltimore metropolitan area is the 20th-large ...

Gun Club, a society dedicated to the design of weapons of all kinds (especially cannons), comes together when Impey Barbicane, its president, calls them to support his latest idea. He's done some calculations, and believes that they could construct a cannon capable of shooting a projectile to the Moon. After receiving the support of his companions, another meeting is held to decide the place from which the projectile will be fired, the dimensions and materials of both the cannon and the projectile, and which kind of powder they are to use. An old enemy of Barbicane, a Captain Nicholl of Philadelphia, designer of

plate armor Plate armour is a historical type of personal body armour made from bronze, iron, or steel plates, culminating in the iconic suit of armour entirely encasing the wearer. Full plate steel armour developed in Europe during the Late Middle Ages, e ...

, declares that the entire enterprise is absurd and makes a series of bets with Barbicane, each of them of increasing amount, over the impossibility of such a feat. The first obstacle, enough money to construct the giant cannon (and against which Nicholl has bet $1,000), is raised from a number of countries in America and Europe. Notably, the U.S. donates four million

dollars Dollar is the name of more than 25 currencies. The United States dollar, named after the international currency known as the Spanish dollar, was established in 1792 and is the first so named that still survives. Others include the Australian d ...

, whilst England, at first, does not give anything. In the end, nearly five and a half million dollars are raised, which ensures the financial feasibility of the project. Stone's Hill in "Tampa Town",

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

is chosen as the site for the cannon's construction. The Gun Club travels there and begins construction of the Columbiad cannon, which requires the excavation of a and circular hole, which is completed in the nick of time, but a surprise awaits Barbicane: Michel Ardan, a French adventurer, plans to travel to the Moon aboard the projectile. During a meeting between Ardan, the Gun Club, and the inhabitants of Florida, Nicholl appears and challenges Barbicane to a duel. The duel is stopped when Ardan—having been warned by J. T. Maston, secretary of the Gun Club—meets the rivals in the forest where they have agreed to duel. Meanwhile, Barbicane finds the solution to the problem of surviving the incredible acceleration that the explosion would cause. Ardan suggests that Barbicane and Nicholl travel with him in the projectile, and his proposition is accepted. In the end, the projectile is successfully launched, but the destinies of the three astronauts are left inconclusive. The sequel, ''

'', deals with what happens to the three men during their voyage from the Earth to the Moon.

Influence on popular culture

The novel was loosely the inspiration for the 1875 opera ''

Le voyage dans la lune ''A Trip to the Moon'' ( , ) is a 1902 French science-fiction adventure trick film written, directed, and produced by Georges Méliès. Inspired by the Jules Verne novel ''From the Earth to the Moon'' (1865) and its sequel '' Around the Moon' ...

'', music by

Jacques Offenbach Jacques Offenbach (; 20 June 18195 October 1880) was a German-born French composer, cellist and impresario. He is remembered for his nearly 100 operettas of the 1850s to the 1870s, and his uncompleted opera ''The Tales of Hoffmann''. He was a p ...

, without the permission of the author. In 1880 ''

The Pall Mall Gazette ''The Pall Mall Gazette'' was an evening newspaper founded in London on 7 February 1865 by George Murray Smith; its first editor was Frederick Greenwood. In 1921, '' The Globe'' merged into ''The Pall Mall Gazette'', which itself was absorbed i ...

'' described Verne’s ''Columbiad'' as a 'space-ship' – the first recorded use of this term in history. In

H. G. Wells Herbert George Wells (21 September 1866 – 13 August 1946) was an English writer, prolific in many genres. He wrote more than fifty novels and dozens of short stories. His non-fiction output included works of social commentary, politics, hist ...

' 1901 novel ''

The First Men in the Moon ''The First Men in the Moon'' by the English author H. G. Wells is a scientific romance, originally serialised in ''The Strand Magazine'' and '' The Cosmopolitan'' from November 1900 to June 1901 and published in hardcover in 1901. Wells calle ...

'' (also relating to the first voyagers to the Moon) the protagonist, Mr. Bedford, mentions Verne's novel to his companion, Professor Cavor, but it is mentioned that Cavor is, "not a reader of fiction". The novel (along with Wells' ''The First Men in the Moon'') inspired the first science fiction film, ''

A Trip to the Moon ''A Trip to the Moon'' ( , ) is a 1902 French science-fiction adventure trick film written, directed, and produced by Georges Méliès. Inspired by the Jules Verne novel ''From the Earth to the Moon'' (1865) and its sequel '' Around the Moon ...

'', made in 1902 by

Georges Méliès Marie-Georges-Jean Méliès ( , ; 8 December 1861 – 21 January 1938) was a French magic (illusion), magician, toymaker, actor, and filmmaker. He led many technical and narrative developments in the early days of film, cinema, primarily in th ...

; in 1958, another film adaptation of the story was released, titled ''

From the Earth to the Moon ''From the Earth to the Moon: A Direct Route in 97 Hours, 20 Minutes'' () is an 1865 novel by Jules Verne. It tells the story of the Baltimore Gun Club, a post-American Civil War society of weapons enthusiasts, and their attempts to build an en ...

'' and in 1967 became the basis for the very loose adaptation ''

Jules Verne's Rocket to the Moon ''Jules Verne's Rocket to the Moon'' (U.S. title: ''Those Fantastic Flying Fools''; also known as ''Chiflados Del Espacio'', ''Blast-off'', and ''Rocket to the Moon'') is a 1967 British science fiction comedy film directed by Don Sharp and star ...

'' (1967), a caper-style British comedy starring

Burl Ives Burl Icle Ivanhoe Ives (June 14, 1909 – April 14, 1995) was an American Folk music, folk singer and actor with a career that spanned more than six decades. Ives began his career as an itinerant singer and guitarist, eventually launching his o ...

and

Terry-Thomas Terry-Thomas (born Thomas Terry Hoar Stevens; 10 July 1911 – 8 January 1990) was an English character actor and comedian who became internationally known through his films during the 1950s and 1960s. He often portrayed disreputable members ...

. The 1961 Czechoslovak film ''

The Fabulous Baron Munchausen ''The Fabulous Baron Munchausen'' () is a 1962 Czechoslovak romance film, romantic adventure film directed by Karel Zeman, based on the tales about Baron Munchausen. The film combines live-action with various forms of animation and is highly sty ...

'' combines characters and plot elements from the Verne novel with those of the stories of

Baron Munchausen Baron Munchausen (; ) is a fictional German nobleman created by the German writer Rudolf Erich Raspe in his 1785 book '' Baron Munchausen's Narrative of His Marvellous Travels and Campaigns in Russia''. The character is loosely based on baron ...

and

. In March 1953, the Gilberton Company published a comic-book adaptation of ''From the Earth to the Moon'' as issue No. 105 in its ''

Classics Illustrated ''Classics Illustrated'' is an American comic book/magazine series featuring adaptations of literary classics such as '' Les Misérables'', ''Moby-Dick'', ''Hamlet'', and '' The Iliad''. Created by Albert Kanter, the series began publication ...

'' series. An unidentified scriptwriter combined Verne's ''From the Earth to the Moon'' with the sequel, ''Around the Moon''. Gilberton art director Alex A. Blum supplied both the cover painting and the 44 pages of interior art. The title went through twelve printings between 1953 and 1971. During their return journey from the Moon, the crew of

Apollo 11 Apollo 11 was a spaceflight conducted from July 16 to 24, 1969, by the United States and launched by NASA. It marked the first time that humans Moon landing, landed on the Moon. Commander Neil Armstrong and Lunar Module pilot Buzz Aldrin l ...

made reference to Jules Verne's book during a TV broadcast on 23 July, 1969. The mission's commander, astronaut

Neil Armstrong Neil Alden Armstrong (August 5, 1930 – August 25, 2012) was an American astronaut and aerospace engineering, aeronautical engineer who, in 1969, became the Apollo 11#Lunar surface operations, first person to walk on the Moon. He was al ...

, said, "A hundred years ago, Jules Verne wrote a book about a voyage to the Moon. His spaceship, Columbia , took off from Florida and landed in the Pacific Ocean after completing a trip to the Moon. It seems appropriate to us to share with you some of the reflections of the crew as the modern-day Columbia completes its rendezvous with the planet Earth and the same Pacific Ocean tomorrow." In 1991

Origin Systems Origin Systems, Inc. was an American video game developer based in Austin, Texas. It was founded on March 3, 1983, by Richard Garriott and his brother Robert. Origin is best known for their groundbreaking work in multiple genres of video games ...

released "''Ultima: Worlds of Adventure 2: Martian Dreams''". Set during the 1893

World's Columbian Exposition The World's Columbian Exposition, also known as the Chicago World's Fair, was a world's fair held in Chicago from May 5 to October 31, 1893, to celebrate the 400th anniversary of Christopher Columbus's arrival in the New World in 1492. The ...

, the game featured a space gun similar to the one described in the book, though it was aimed at mars, rather than the moon. In the 2010 ''

The Quantum Thief ''The Quantum Thief'' is the debut science fiction novel by Finnish writer Hannu Rajaniemi and the first novel in a trilogy featuring the character of Jean le Flambeur; the sequels are '' The Fractal Prince'' (2012) and '' The Causal Angel'' (201 ...

'' trilogy, the protagonist enters an uneasy alliance with the "Gun Club zoku", who specialize in military weaponry, and in ''The Causal Angel'' (2014) after escaping Earth using a nuclear-powered space gun, sells the "Verne gun bullet" to them as a unique collectible item; author

Hannu Rajaniemi (born 9 March 1978) is a Finnish American author of science fiction and fantasy, who writes in both English and Finnish. He lives in Oakland, California, and was a founding director of a commercial research organisation ThinkTank Maths. Ear ...

is a fan of Verne. The Japanese anime adaption of the '' Space Brothers'' (2012–2014) opening for episodes 39-51 ("Small World" by

Fujifabric is a Japanese rock band formed in 2000. While their music can be mostly categorized as alternative rock or power pop, their music usually consists of an eclectic mix of genres, including jazz, disco and progressive rock. Name origin Before the ...

) was a parody of the story, even ending with the cover of an early English translation.Archived a
Ghostarchive
and th
Wayback Machine
The first incarnation in 1995 of the roller coaster

Space Mountain Space Mountain is a space-themed indoor roller coaster attraction located at five of the six Disneyland-style Disney Parks. Although all five versions of the attraction are different in nature, all have a similar conical exterior façade that i ...

Disneyland Paris Disneyland Paris is an entertainment resort in Marne-la-Vallée, France, located about east of Paris. It encompasses two theme parks, seven Disney-owned hotels, two convention centers, a golf course, an arena, and a shopping, dining and entert ...

, named ''Space Mountain: De la Terre à la Lune'', was based loosely on the novel. The attraction's exterior used a Verne era

retro-futuristic Retrofuturism (adjective ''retrofuturistic'' or ''retrofuture'') is a movement in the creative arts showing the influence of depictions of the future produced in an earlier era. If futurism is sometimes called a "science" bent on anticipat ...

influence, with a rivet and boiler plate effect and the "Columbiad", which recoils with a bang and produces smoke as the train passes, giving riders the perception of being shot into space. In 1995 the BBC made a 44-minute documentary about the creation of Space Mountain, called ''Shoot for the Moon''; Tim Delaney and his team were shown bringing the book to life.

References

External links

* * —This is the original translation of Mercier and King published by Sampson Low et al. in 1873 and deletes about 20% of the original French text, along with numerous other errors. * —Gut. text #83 in HTML format with original illustrations. * —This the version of both parts of ''Earth to the Moon'' and ''Round the Moon'' as published by Ward Lock in London in 1877. The translation is more complete than the Mercier version, but still has flaws, referring to the space capsule as a "bullet". * , an analysis and comparison to Apollo. * . * . * . * {{DEFAULTSORT:From The Earth to the Moon 1865 French novels 1865 science fiction novels French science fiction novels French adventure novels Space exploration novels Novels set in Florida Novels set on the Moon Fiction about rivalry French novels adapted into films Science fiction novels adapted into films Adventure novels adapted into films French novels adapted into television shows French novels adapted into operas Novels adapted into comics Novels by Jules Verne

Background

Plot

Influence on popular culture

See also

References

Further reading

External links