Richard of Wallingford (1292–1336) was an English mathematician, astronomer, horologist, and cleric who made major contributions to

astronomy Astronomy is a natural science that studies celestial objects and the phenomena that occur in the cosmos. It uses mathematics, physics, and chemistry in order to explain their origin and their overall evolution. Objects of interest includ ...

and

horology Chronometry or horology () is the science studying the measurement of time and timekeeping. Chronometry enables the establishment of standard measurements of time, which have applications in a broad range of social and scientific areas. ''Hor ...

while serving as

abbot Abbot is an ecclesiastical title given to the head of an independent monastery for men in various Western Christian traditions. The name is derived from ''abba'', the Aramaic form of the Hebrew ''ab'', and means "father". The female equivale ...

of St Albans Abbey in Hertfordshire.

Biography

Richard was born, the son of a

blacksmith A blacksmith is a metalsmith who creates objects primarily from wrought iron or steel, but sometimes from #Other metals, other metals, by forging the metal, using tools to hammer, bend, and cut (cf. tinsmith). Blacksmiths produce objects such ...

, at Wallingford in Berkshire (now

Oxfordshire Oxfordshire ( ; abbreviated ''Oxon'') is a ceremonial county in South East England. The county is bordered by Northamptonshire and Warwickshire to the north, Buckinghamshire to the east, Berkshire to the south, and Wiltshire and Glouceste ...

) in England, in 1292. When he was

orphan An orphan is a child whose parents have died, are unknown, or have permanently abandoned them. It can also refer to a child who has lost only one parent, as the Hebrew language, Hebrew translation, for example, is "fatherless". In some languages ...

ed he was taken to William de Kirkeby the

Prior The term prior may refer to: * Prior (ecclesiastical), the head of a priory (monastery) * Prior convictions, the life history and previous convictions of a suspect or defendant in a criminal case * Prior probability, in Bayesian statistics * Prio ...

of Wallingford Priory and dedicated to the Holy Trinity. Wallingford was a dependant priory to St Albans Abbey. Richard subsequently spent six years studying at

Oxford University The University of Oxford is a collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the second-oldest continuously operating u ...

before becoming a monk at

St Albans St Albans () is a cathedral city in Hertfordshire, England, east of Hemel Hempstead and west of Hatfield, Hertfordshire, Hatfield, north-west of London, south-west of Welwyn Garden City and south-east of Luton. St Albans was the first major ...

. He later studied for nine more years at Oxford. In 1327 he became abbot of St Albans. Richard is best known for the

astronomical clock An astronomical clock, horologium, or orloj is a clock with special mechanisms and dials to display astronomical information, such as the relative positions of the Sun, Moon, zodiacal constellations, and sometimes major planets. Definition ...

he designed, while he was abbot, which is described in the ''Tractatus Horologii Astronomici'' (1327). The clock was completed about 20 years after Richard's death by William of Walsham, but was apparently destroyed during

Henry VIII Henry VIII (28 June 149128 January 1547) was King of England from 22 April 1509 until his death in 1547. Henry is known for his Wives of Henry VIII, six marriages and his efforts to have his first marriage (to Catherine of Aragon) annulled. ...

reformation The Reformation, also known as the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation, was a time of major Theology, theological movement in Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the p ...

and the dissolution of St Albans Abbey in 1539. His clock almost certainly was the most complex

clock A clock or chronometer is a device that measures and displays time. The clock is one of the oldest Invention, human inventions, meeting the need to measure intervals of time shorter than the natural units such as the day, the lunar month, a ...

mechanism in existence at the time in the

British Isles The British Isles are an archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean off the north-western coast of continental Europe, consisting of the islands of Great Britain, Ireland, the Isle of Man, the Inner Hebrides, Inner and Outer Hebr ...

, and one of the most sophisticated ones anywhere. The only other clocklike mechanism of comparable complexity that is documented in the 14th century is the astrarium by Giovanni de Dondi. Richard’s clock gave the mean time in equal and unequal hours, as well as the true solar time. It also displayed the phases of the moon and showed the positions of the lunar nodes and the height of the tide at

London Bridge The name "London Bridge" refers to several historic crossings that have spanned the River Thames between the City of London and Southwark in central London since Roman Britain, Roman times. The current crossing, which opened to traffic in 197 ...

. Based on the 14th-century literary evidence still surviving in the 20th century, scholars of horological history have tried to build recreations of Richard of Wallingford's clock. The best known of these was built by Haward Horological and for many years was displayed at the Time Museum (now defunct) in

Rockford, Illinois Rockford is a city in Winnebago County, Illinois, Winnebago and Ogle County, Illinois, Ogle counties in the U.S. state of Illinois. Located in far northern Illinois on the banks of the Rock River (Mississippi River tributary), Rock River, Rockfor ...

; it is currently on display at the Halim Time and Glass Museum in

Evanston, Illinois Evanston is a city in Cook County, Illinois, United States, situated on the North Shore (Chicago), North Shore along Lake Michigan. A suburb of Chicago, Evanston is north of Chicago Loop, downtown Chicago, bordered by Chicago to the south, Skok ...

. One was built by Eric Watson and is now in the Wallingford Museum; one built in 1988 is located at St Albans Cathedral; and one was built by Don Unwin for the Whipple Museum of the History of Science in Cambridge. Richard suffered from what was then thought to be

leprosy Leprosy, also known as Hansen's disease (HD), is a Chronic condition, long-term infection by the bacteria ''Mycobacterium leprae'' or ''Mycobacterium lepromatosis''. Infection can lead to damage of the Peripheral nervous system, nerves, respir ...

(though it might have been scrofula or

tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB), also known colloquially as the "white death", or historically as consumption, is a contagious disease usually caused by ''Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can al ...

) which he apparently contracted when he went to have his position, as abbot of St Albans Abbey, confirmed by the Pope at

Avignon Avignon (, , ; or , ; ) is the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Vaucluse department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region of southeastern France. Located on the left bank of the river Rhône, the Communes of France, commune had a ...

. He died at St Albans in 1336.

Studies in astronomy and mathematics

Richard also designed and constructed calculation devices: a torquetum, the '' Rectangulus'', and an

equatorium An equatorium (plural, equatoria) is an astronomy, astronomical Mechanical calculator, calculating instrument. It can be used for finding the positions of the Moon, Sun, and planets without arithmetic operations, using a geometrical model to re ...

, which he called ''Albion''. The Albion could be used for astronomical calculations such as lunar, solar and planetary longitudes and could predict

eclipses An eclipse is an astronomical event which occurs when an astronomical object or spacecraft is temporarily obscured, by passing into the shadow of another body or by having another body pass between it and the viewer. This alignment of three ...

, and was capable of doing this without relying on a set of tables that had to be copied out.Hannam, James. God's philosophers: how the medieval world laid the foundations of modern science. Icon Books Ltd, 2009, 156 This is described in the ''Tractatus Albionis''. He published other works on

trigonometry Trigonometry () is a branch of mathematics concerned with relationships between angles and side lengths of triangles. In particular, the trigonometric functions relate the angles of a right triangle with ratios of its side lengths. The fiel ...

, celestial coordinates, astrology, and various religious works.

References

Sources

* *North, J. (2004) ''God's Clockmaker: Richard of Wallingford and the Invention of Time''. Oxbow Books. *North, J. (1976) ''Richard of Wallingford: An edition of his writings''. Oxford Univ Press. *Watson, E (1979) "The St Albans Clock of Richard of Wallingford". ''Antiquarian Horology'', Number 4, Volume 11, Summer 1979, p. 372–384. * * * *
"Richard of Wallingford"
at the

Oxford Dictionary of National Biography The ''Dictionary of National Biography'' (''DNB'') is a standard work of reference on notable figures from History of the British Isles, British history, published since 1885. The updated ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' (''ODNB'') ...

; Retrieved 26 February 2025

External links

Wallingford History Gateway

Images of Richard of Wallingford and the Astronomical Clock of Richard of Wallingford from the British Library
{{DEFAULTSORT:Richard Of Wallingford 1292 births 1336 deaths 14th-century astrologers 14th-century English astronomers 14th-century English mathematicians 14th-century English Roman Catholic priests 14th-century writers in Latin Abbots of St Albans Astronomical instrument makers Catholic clergy scientists English clockmakers Horology Medieval English astrologers People from Wallingford, Oxfordshire 14th-century Christian abbots

Biography

Studies in astronomy and mathematics

See also

References

Sources

External links