General arshin

How tall was Thumbelina? The question is not as elementary as it seems - after all, an inch had different lengths at different times. Most likely, it should be measured in inches, legalized by the decree of the English King Edward II, according to which this unit is “equal to the length of three barley grains taken from the middle part of the ear and placed one against the other with their ends.” Then it turns out that an inch’s height is 25.4 mm.

In the Middle Ages in Europe there were many different, poorly coordinated measures of length and weight. Their chaos and approximate nature increasingly diverged from the needs of science and technology. The Great French Revolution, which even raised its hand to the calendar, of course, could not leave the old system of measures alone. On May 8, 1790, the National Assembly, at the proposal of deputy Charles Maurice Talleyrand, decided to develop a new system to replace the old, “feudal” one. The Academy got down to business with enthusiasm. The special commission was headed by mathematician Joseph Louis Lagrange. It was at his suggestion that the decimal measurement system was taken as a basis, which the Assembly approved on October 27, 1790. On this day, the unit of length was declared to be one ten-millionth of the distance from the equator to the North Pole, measured along the meridian of Paris. The very idea of ​​such a cosmic approach dawned on the Lyon abbot Gabriel Mouton back in 1670, but, of course, it could only capture the imagination of the masses in an era of tectonic social upheaval. The name for the new unit was invented by academician Jean Charles de Borda - meter. At the same time, a unit of mass was approved - a gram, equal to the mass of a cubic centimeter of water.

On March 30, 1791, the Assembly obliged the Academy to measure all units of measurement existing in France on the new decimal scale. Twelve academicians set to work. Meanwhile, a wave of History was rolling over the country, which sooner or later could not help but overwhelm the modest commission: half of its members were arrested by the Committee of Public Safety. However, even those who remained free constantly experienced what it was like to work in conditions of social unrest. Delambre and Méchajou, whose duty it was to calculate the difference in latitude between Barcelona and Dunkirk, were especially tormented; without this it was impossible to find out the real length of the meter. While taking measurements on the ground, the unfortunate academicians were constantly attacked and arrested - they were all suspected of espionage!

Power changed in France, Robespierre was replaced by the Directory; then she was overthrown by Bonaparte; then First Consul Bonaparte became Emperor Napoleon; All this time there were endless wars in Europe - and Academician Delambre, forgotten by everyone, measured and measured. Finally, in 1810, he submitted a report to Napoleon detailing all the measures of the decimal system. The Emperor had a taste for historical moments and sayings. On this occasion, he said: “The fruits of conquest are gone - the fruit of this work will remain for centuries!” I wonder if the former Foreign Minister Talleyrand remembered that this was his revolutionary idea?