King's Observatory

The King's Observatory
Location Old Deer Park, Richmond, London, United Kingdom
Coordinates 51°28′08″N 0°18′53″W / 51.4689°N 0.3147°WCoordinates: 51°28′08″N 0°18′53″W / 51.4689°N 0.3147°W
Established 1769
Website www.kingsobservatory.co.uk

The King's Observatory is a building in Richmond, London that formerly housed an astronomical and terrestrial magnetic observatory[1] founded by King George III. Until 1981 when it reverted to its more correct name,[2] it was also known as Kew Observatory.[3] The building, which is Grade I listed,[4] was completed in 1769,[5] in time for the king's observation of the transit of Venus that occurred on 3 June in that year. The architect was William Chambers; his design of the King's Observatory influenced the architecture of two Irish observatories – Armagh Observatory and Dunsink Observatory near Dublin.[6]

Location

The observatory is located within the Old Deer Park of the former Richmond Palace in Richmond, Surrey, now within Greater London. The former royal manor of Kew lies to the immediate north. The observatory grounds overlie to the south the site of the former Carthusian Sheen Priory established by King Henry V in 1414.[7]

Architecture

The architect was Sir William Chambers. The Chippendale-Chinese woodwork inside the octagons is by James Arrow. The three obelisks close to the observatory are by Edward Anderson.[5]

People

Directors (superintendents) of the observatory included Stephen Demainbray, Francis Ronalds, John Welsh, Balfour Stewart, G. M. Whipple, Francis John Welsh Whipple, Charles Chree, and George Clarke Simpson.

History

Observing the transit of Venus on 3 June 1769

A contemporary report by Stephen Demainbray, the superintendent of the observatory, says: "His Majesty the King who made his observation with a shorter reflecting telescope, magnifying Diameter 170 Times was the first to view the Penumbra of Venus touching the Edge of the Sun's Disk. The exact mean time (according to civil Reckoning) was attended to by Stephen Demainbray, appointed to take exact time by Shelton's Regulator, previously regulated by several astronomical observations."[8]

Testing timepiece movements

In 1840 the observatory was taken over by the British Association for the Advancement of Science and performed a role in assessing and rating chronometers, watches, barometers, thermometers, sextants and other scientific instruments for accuracy until this duty was transferred to the National Physical Laboratory in 1910. An instrument which passed the tests was awarded a "Kew Certificate", a hallmark of excellence.

As marine navigation adopted the use of mechanical timepieces, their accuracy became more important. The need for precision resulted in the development of a testing regime involving various astronomical observatories. In Europe, the observatories at Neuchatel, Geneva, Besancon and Kew were examples of prominent observatories that tested timepiece movements for accuracy. The testing process lasted for many days, typically 45. Each movement was tested in five positions and two temperatures, in ten series of four or five days each. The tolerances for error were much finer than any other standard, including the modern COSC standard. Movements that passed the stringent tests were issued a certification from the observatory called a Bulletin de Marche, signed by the directeur of the observatory. The Bulletin de Marche stated the testing criteria and the actual performance of the movement. A movement with a Bulletin de Marche from an observatory became known as an Observatory Chronometer, and was issued a chronometer reference number by the observatory.

The role of the observatories in assessing the accuracy of mechanical timepieces was instrumental in driving the mechanical watchmaking industry toward higher and higher levels of accuracy. As a result, modern high quality mechanical watch movements have an extremely high degree of accuracy. However, no mechanical movement could ultimately compare to the accuracy of a quartz movement. Accordingly, such chronometer certification ceased in the late 1960s and early 1970s with the advent of the quartz watch movement.

In 1908 geomagnetic instruments were relocated from the King's Observatory to Eskdalemuir Observatory in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland after the advent of electrification in London led to interference with their operations.[9]

Later use

From 1910 to 1980, the observatory housed the Meteorological Office. In 1981 it was handed back to the Crown Estate Commissioners and reverted to its more correct name of the King’s Observatory. In 1985 the observatory was refurbished and transformed into commercial offices; new brick buildings were added. Since 1989 the lease has been held by Kew Holdings Limited. From 1986 to 2011 it was used by Autoglass (now Belron) as their UK head office.[2]

Current and future use

In 1999, the Crown Estates commissioned landscape architect Kim Wilkie to prepare a master plan for linking the observatory's Grade I landscape to Kew Gardens, Syon Park and Richmond. These proposals were accepted by Kew Holdings Limited. In 2014 Richmond upon Thames London Borough Council granted planning permission for the observatory to be used as a private single residence. All ancillary buildings will be demolished. As of 2015 the current tenant is Mr R J F Brothers.[2]

Kew Observatory in art

The Ashmolean Museum of Art and Archaeology in Oxford has a portrait, Peter Rigaud and Mary Anne Rigaud, by the eighteenth-century painter John Francis Rigaud. His portrait of his nephew and niece, exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1778, shows Stephen Peter Rigaud (1774–1839) (who became a mathematical historian and astronomer, and Savilian Chair of Geometry and Savilian Professor of Astronomy at the University of Oxford) and his elder sister. In the picture, painted when they were aged four and seven, they are shown sitting in a park; the building in the background is Kew Observatory, where their father Stephen Rigaud, was observer.[10] Although described here as Richmond Park, topographical considerations make it more likely that the park portrayed is Old Deer Park, where the observatory is situated.

See also

Notes and references

  1. ↑ Hunt, Andrew (21 January 2007). "Where a king watched a transit of Venus". Cities of Science. Retrieved 8 March 2014.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Brothers, R J F (2 January 2015). "The King's Observatory: restoration of an 18th century landmark". Home page. The King's Observatory. Retrieved 21 March 2015.
  3. ↑ Scott, Robert Henry (1885). "The History of the Kew Observatory" in Proceedings of the Royal Society, Vol. XXXIX. pp. 37–86.
  4. ↑ "Kew Observatory". National Heritage List for England. Historic England. Retrieved 28 December 2013.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 Cherry, Bridget and Pevsner, Nikolaus (1983). The Buildings of England – London 2: South. London: Penguin Books. p. 520. ISBN 0 14 0710 47 7.
  6. ↑ "The King's Observatory at Richmond". History. Armagh Observatory. 22 February 2010. Retrieved 21 March 2015.
  7. ↑ Cloake, John (1990). Richmond's Great Monastery, The Charterhouse of Jesus of Bethlehem of Shene (Paper no.6). London: Richmond Local History Society. p. 51. diagram
  8. ↑ Manuscript of Dr. Demainbray's notebook of the Transit of Venus 1769, "The Observatory: A Monthly Review of Astronomy" (1882) called 'Dr Demainbray and the King's Observatory at Kew'. The manuscript is now held at King's College London and is quoted in "The King's Observatory at Kew & The Transit of Venus 1769". Arcadian Times. Retrieved 4 August 2013.
  9. ↑ "A Scientific Workshop Threatened by Applied Science: Kew Observatory to Be Removed Owing To The Disturbance Caused by Electric Traction". The Illustrated London News. 8 August 1903.
  10. ↑ "John Francis Rigaud (1742–1810): Stephen Peter Rigaud and Mary Anne Rigaud". Browse the Paintings Collection. Ashmolean Museum of Art and Archaeology. Retrieved 13 July 2013.

Further reading

External links