It was during this stay in London that Rumford presented to the Royal
Society of London, and to the American Academy of Sciences L1000 Three
per Cent. Stock, for the purpose of endowing a medal to be called the
Rumford Medal, and to be given each alternate year for the best work
done during the preceding two years in the subjects of heat and light.
He directed that two medals, one in gold and the other in silver,
should be struck from the same die, the value of the two together to
amount to L60. Whenever no award was made, the interest was to be
added to the principal, and the excess of the income for two years
over L60 was to be presented in cash to the recipient of the medal. At
present the amount thus presented is sufficient to pay the composition
fee for life membership of the Royal Society. The first award of the
medal was made in 1802, to Rumford himself. The other recipients have
been John Leslie, William Murdock, Etienne-Louis Malus, William
Charles Wells, Humphry Davy, David Brewster, Augustin Jean Fresnel,
Macedonio Melloni, James David Forbes, Jean Baptiste Biot, Henry Fox
Talbot, Michael Faraday, M. Regnault, F. J. D. Arago, George Gabriel
Stokes, Neil Arnott, M. Pasteur, M. Jamin, James Clerk Maxwell,
Kirchoff, John Tyndall, A. H. L. Fizeau, Balfour Stewart, A. O. des
Cloiseaux, A. J. Angstroem, J. Norman Lockyer, P. J. C. Janssen, W.
Huggins, Captain Abney.
In the summer of 1796 Rumford and his daughter left England to return
to Munich. On account of the war, they were obliged to go by sea to
Hamburg; whence they drove to Munich, where the count was anxiously
expected, political troubles having compelled the elector to leave the
city. After the battle of Friedburg, the Austrians retired to Munich,
and, finding the gates of the city closed, they fortified
themselves on an eminence overlooking the city, and, through some
misunderstanding with the local authorities, the Austrian general
threatened to attack the city if any Frenchman should be allowed to
enter. Rumford took supreme command of the Bavarian forces, and so
gained the respect of the rival generals that neither the French nor
the Austrians made any attempt to enter the city. The large number of
soldiers now in Munich gave Rumford a good opportunity to exercise his
skill in cooking on a large scale, and this he did, adding to the
comfort of the soldiers and reducing the cost of the commissariat. On
the return of the elector, Miss Sarah was made a countess, and
one-half of her father's pension was secured to her, thus providing
her with an income of about L200 per annum for life. Many of the
details of the home life and social intercourse during this period of
residence at Munich are preserved in the autobiography of the
countess, as well as accounts of excursions, including a trip by river
to Salzburg for the purpose of inspecting the salt-mines. After two
years' stay in Munich, the count was appointed Minister
Plenipotentiary from Bavaria to the Court of Great Britain.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account