Gilbert, William
1544–1603
English physician
and scientist

The English physician William Gilbert earned fame for his studies in electricity and magnetism. His pioneering experiments in these fields marked the dawn of a new era in science.

Born in Colchester, England, Gilbert received his medical degree in 1569 and began practicing medicine in London. He served as a physician to many British nobles, including the monarchs Elizabeth I and James I. During this time, Gilbert also studied magnetism and electricity. In 1600 he published his most important work, On the Lodestone; Magnetic Bodies; and the Great Magnet, the Earth. A six-part review of magnetism, the work deals with the various forces produced by magnets and by the Earth's natural magnetism. In the final section, Gilbert argued that the rotation of the Earth itself depends on magnetic forces. He also distinguished between magnetism and another type of energy, which he called electrica—thereby introducing the word electric into the English language.

Gilbert's work had two major effects. First, his ideas influenced Johannes Kepler, the German astronomer who wrote about the planets and their motion. Kepler was one of the first to discuss the force of the Sun on Earth. Second, Gilbert's writings inspired others to experiment with magnetism and electricity—especially Jesuit* scientists who made important advances in the field of magnetism throughout the 1600s.

(See alsoAstronomy; Medicine; Science. )

* Jesuit

refers to a Roman Catholic religious order founded by St. Ignatius Loyola and approved in 1540