Babbage, Charles, 1791-1871

Mathematician Charles Babbage was born near Teignmouth in Devonshire and educated at Cambridge University (B.A. 1814, M.S. 1817). While still a student, Babbage and his friends Herschel and Peacock produced translations and expansions of continental works on calculus which served to spark a mathematical revival in England. As early as 1812, he was developing the idea of calculating mathematical tables using machinery, an enterprise that occupied most of his life. By 1822 he had constructed several prototypes, and received a government grant to pursue his research. Financial and personal disputes brought this work to a halt in 1828, but during the hiatus which followed, Babbage designed an even more sophisticated, flexible machine, 'programmed' by punch cards, with six orders of differences, and printing capacity. Though his concept was acknowledged to be brilliant and workable, Babbage never raised enough money to build the machine.