March 07

Publius Septimius Geta was born into the powerful Severan dynasty and became Roman emperor in 209 alongside his elder brother Caracalla. His reign was marked by internal power struggles and rivalry with his brother over imperial authority. Educated in the traditions of Roman leadership, he sought to gain support among the Senate and the army. Tensions culminated in his assassination by Caracalla in late 211, after which he was subjected to damnatio memoriae. Despite his short rule, Geta's life reflects the complex dynamics of imperial succession and familial conflict in ancient Rome.

Born in Nantes in 1556, Guillaume du Vair served as a prominent magistrate and legal advisor in the French court. He authored influential works on moral philosophy and eloquence, including treatises that bridged law and humanist thought. As President of the Parliament of Provence, he navigated the complex politics of post-war France. His style combined classical learning with a refined literary elegance, inspiring later philosophers such as Descartes. Du Vair's legacy endures in his contributions to political theory and the art of rhetoric.

Born in Glengyle, Rob Roy MacGregor became a symbol of Scottish resistance after participating in the Jacobite rising of 1715. Declared an outlaw following debts and clan conflicts, he gained fame for cattle raids and daring escapes. His exploits were widely publicized, blending fact and legend in stories of honor and rebellion. He received a royal pardon in 1722 but remained a popular folk figure whose life inspired literature and film. Rob Roy's legacy endures as an icon of Highland culture and resistance to authority.

Filippo Juvarra was born in Messina in 1678 and trained under architect Carlo Fontana in Rome. He became the court architect for the House of Savoy, creating grand palaces and churches throughout Italy and Spain. His designs are characterized by elegant curves, dramatic use of light, and harmonious proportions. The Basilica of Superga, built on a hill overlooking Turin, is considered his masterpiece and a landmark of European Baroque architecture. Juvarra's influence shaped the visual identity of 18th-century sacred and civic spaces across the continent.

Born Carlo della Torre di Rezzonico in Venice, he was elected Pope Clement XIII in 1758. His pontificate was marked by staunch defense of the Jesuit order against rising political pressures in Europe. He resisted demands from Bourbon monarchs to suppress the Jesuits, emphasizing papal authority and tradition. A patron of the arts and sciences, Clement XIII commissioned architectural projects and supported missionary work. His tenure highlighted the tension between Enlightenment ideas and ecclesiastical authority in the 18th century.

Ewald Christian von Kleist was born in what is now northwest Poland and educated in German literature and philosophy. He volunteered in the Prussian army during the Seven Years' War and rose to the rank of captain. His poetry, blending personal reflection with martial themes, became a hallmark of the burgeoning Sturm und Drang literary trend. Kleist was killed in action at the Battle of Kunersdorf in 1759, and his collected poems were published posthumously. His work influenced later German Romantic poets and cemented his reputation as a soldier-poet of his era.

Louis Auguste Le Tonnelier de Breteuil was born into a noble family near Brittany and began his career in the French military. He transitioned into diplomacy and held ambassadorial posts before rising to high office at the royal court. In 1788 he became Secretary of State and attempted financial and administrative reforms amid growing unrest. As chief minister from 1787 to 1789, he counseled the king during the convocation of the Estates-General. Breteuil fled France during the Revolution and lived in exile until his death in 1807, remembered for his role in the monarchy's final years.

Nicéphore Niépce was born in Chalon-sur-Saône and initially pursued a career in lithography and printing. In the early 1820s he developed heliography, a process using bitumen-coated plates to capture images by light exposure. In 1826 or 1827, he produced 'View from the Window at Le Gras', the earliest surviving photograph. Niépce later partnered with Louis Daguerre, and their work laid the groundwork for modern photographic techniques. He died in 1833, and his pioneering contributions are celebrated as the birth of photography.

Alessandro Manzoni was born in Milan and became a leading figure of Italian Romantic literature. His novel 'I Promessi Sposi' ('The Betrothed'), first published in 1827, is hailed as a masterpiece of world literature. He also wrote stirring poems like 'Il cinque maggio', commemorating Napoleon's death. Manzoni's works helped standardize the modern Italian language and inspired nationalist sentiments. He remained a respected intellectual and moral voice in 19th-century Italy until his death in 1873.

John Herschel was born in Slough, the son of astronomer William Herschel, and showed early aptitude in science. He conducted extensive observations of southern skies during an expedition to the Cape of Good Hope, cataloguing thousands of stars and nebulae. Herschel introduced new mathematical techniques in analysis and was elected President of the Royal Society in 1825. He invented the cyanotype photographic process and popularized terms such as 'negative' and 'positive' in photography. His interdisciplinary work bridged astronomy, mathematics, chemistry, and photography, influencing generations of scientists.

He was an American scientist and naturalist whose pioneering surveys mapped the geology and ecology of the Great Lakes region. Lapham led the first detailed topographical surveys of Wisconsin's coastline and studied glacial geology. As the state's first official geologist, he cataloged native plants, animals, and fossils. His research into weather patterns prompted him to propose one of the nation's first storm warning networks. He published extensively on meteorology and archaeology, preserving knowledge of prehistoric Native American sites. His cross-disciplinary work laid foundations for meteorological services and geological understanding in the Midwest.

Draper was an American physician and amateur astronomer who pioneered astrophotography in the mid-19th century. He captured the first photograph of a stellar spectrum and initiated the Harvard College Observatory's Draper Catalog of stellar spectra. Draper's work established techniques for long-exposure observations and image processing in astronomical research. He designed telescopic equipment and spectroscopes for detailed spectral analysis. His contributions laid the groundwork for modern astronomical spectroscopy and the classification of stars. The Henry Draper Medal, awarded by the National Academy of Sciences, honors his legacy in astrophysics.