Cornelis Drebbel

@Inventor of World’s First Navigable Submarine, Timeline and Facts ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ Cornelis Jacobszoon Drebbel was a Dutch builder best remembered as the inventor of world’s first navigable submarine Dutch Inventors & Discoverers Cornelis Jacobszoon Drebbel was a Dutch builder best remembered as the inventor of the world’s first navigable submarine. He worked initially as a painter, engraver and cartographer before developing a keen interest in mechanics, alchemy and designing optical instruments. Born to a burgher in Netherlands, he studied at the Academy of Harleem after receiving his primary education from a local Latin school and became a student of the famous engraver, Hendrick Goltzius. Although initially apprenticed to an engraver, he soon developed an interest in alchemy and mechanical inventions. Subsequently, he was granted a patent for a ‘perpetual motion machine’ actuated by changes in atmospheric pressure and temperature, an invention which established his reputation in scientific and aristocratic circles in Europe. Later, he journeyed to England upon the invitation of King James I who encouraged him to continue his scientific works. Among the numerous inventions attributed to his name are: construction of the first compound microscope using two sets of convex lenses, a variety of optical instruments, an improved thermometer, a scarlet dye, and self-regulating ovens. But undoubtedly, his most famous and magnificent invention was the first ever navigational submarine which he designed and built while working for the English Royal Navy. A great innovator and a brilliant empiric researcher, Cornelis Drebbel was a spirited man who contributed towards the advancement of mechanics, pneumatics, optics, chemistry, hydraulics and pyrotechnics

Personal Details

Birthday: 1572 Died on: November 8, 16331572 Nationality: Dutch Famous: Discoverers, Inventor of World’s First Navigable Submarine, Inventors, Inventors & Discoverers Spouses: Sofia Goltzius, Sophia Jansdochter Goltzius Known as: Cornelis Jacobszoon Drebbel Discoveries / Inventions: Submarine Perpetual Motion Incubator Scarlet Dye Information Detail Birthday 1572 Died on November 8, 16331572 Nationality Dutch Famous Discoverers, Inventor of World’s First Navigable Submarine, Inventors, Inventors & Discoverers Spouses Sofia Goltzius, Sophia Jansdochter Goltzius Known as Cornelis Jacobszoon Drebbel Discoveries / Inventions Submarine Perpetual Motion Incubator Scarlet Dye Birth Place Alkmaar Gender Male Born in Alkmaar Famous as Inventor of world’s first navigable submarine Died at Age 61

Alkmaar

Cornelis Drebbel born at Unsplash Birth Place

In 1595, Cornelis Drebbel married Sophia Jansdochter Goltzius, younger sister of Hendrick Goltzius. The couple had several children of which four survived. Unsplash Personal Life

Throughout his life, he faced financial trouble and remained in constant need of money due to the dissolute lifestyle of his wife. He died on November 7, 1633, in London while living in near-poverty conditions. Unsplash Personal Life

Cornelis Drebbel was born in 1572 in Alkmaar, Netherlands, to Jacob Janszoon Drebbel, a burgher of Alkmaar who was a landowner or farmer. Unsplash Childhood & Early Life

After receiving an elementary education, he studied at the Latin school in Alkmaar and later attended the Academy in Haarlem, located in North-Holland. There, he became an apprentice to the famous engraver, Hendrick Goltzius. Unsplash Childhood & Early Life

Gradually, he became a skilled engraver, which is evident through a number of extant engravings which he created. In addition to it, he also developed an interest in alchemy from Hendrick and gained knowledge about it. Unsplash Childhood & Early Life

After his marriage in 1595, he devoted himself to engraving and publishing maps and pictures. Soon, he developed a fascination towards mechanical inventions and in 1598 obtained a patent for a water-supply system and a sort of perpetual clockwork. Unsplash Career

In 1601, he built a fountain for the city of Middelburg, in the province of Zeeland. The following year, he was granted a patent for a chimney which he had designed. Unsplash Career

After getting acquainted with Hans Lippershey, a spectacle maker and constructor of telescopes, and his colleague Zacharias Jansen, he became interested in optics. Subsequently, he learned about lens grinding and optics. Unsplash Career

Some of his mechanical inventions appealed to King James I of England, and soon the Drebbel family moved to England at the invitation of the king where he was taken into the special service of Henry, Prince of Wales. There, he astonished the court with his creations such as a perpetuum mobile, automatic and hydraulic organs, and optical instruments. Unsplash Career

In 1610, upon the invitation of Emperor Rudolf II, Drebbel and his family moved to Prague where he once again demonstrated his inventions. Unsplash Career

During the early 1620s, Drebbel designed and built his most famous invention, the navigational submarine. Propelled by oars and sealed against the water by a covering of greased leather, the wooden vessel travelled the River Thames at a depth of 12 to 15 feet from Westminster to Greenwich. Unsplash Major Works

Drebbel invented the first thermostat, which used a column of mercury and a system of floats and levers to maintain a steady temperature within a furnace. He also discovered the first permanent scarlet fabric dye, and developed a process for manufacturing sulfuric acid from sulfur and saltpeter. Unsplash Major Works

Information	Detail
Birthday	1572
Died on	November 8, 16331572
Nationality	Dutch
Famous	Discoverers, Inventor of World’s First Navigable Submarine, Inventors, Inventors & Discoverers
Spouses	Sofia Goltzius, Sophia Jansdochter Goltzius
Known as	Cornelis Jacobszoon Drebbel
Discoveries / Inventions	Submarine Perpetual Motion Incubator Scarlet Dye
Birth Place	Alkmaar
Gender	Male
Born in	Alkmaar
Famous as	Inventor of world’s first navigable submarine
Died at Age	61

Cornelis Drebbel

Dutch

1572

Biography

Personal Details

Alkmaar