It is well documented Charles Babbage was a difficult, belligerent and often quarrelsome man. He fell out spectacularly with Joseph Clement his lead engineer on the Difference Engine which meant it was never completed. In 1830 he published his famous attack on English science and the Royal Society entitled, Reflections on the Decline of Science and some of its Causes. It, of course, upset many members of the Royal Society. Also, as I’ve noted previously, by his death in 1871 he was mocked by the press and seen as a bit of a joke.
It is … more desirable that the leading labours of his life should be briefly recorded, that he may be remembered as something higher than a mere crusader against peripatetic musicians.
Humans though are complicated animals with different sides to their personalities, and Babbage is no exception. It is true he was a quarrelsome man, but Babbage also faced many difficulties in his life. He had a tumultuous relationship with his father which likely left psychological scars. In 1827 Babbage lost four members of his family, his wife, who he loved very much, two children and his father, it was his annus horribilis. In total, he had eight children and only three would outlive him, a heavy burden for a father to endure.
It’s difficult to judge how these events affected Babbage’s temperament and if they contributed to his negative behaviour and outbursts. They can’t though have been easy to cope with and it’s likely they affected his mental wellbeing. But despite all of this there is plenty of evidence to suggest Babbage had a much lighter side.
He was often charming and engaging and he had many loyal friends including the famous astronomer John Herschel. Babbage met Herschel at Cambridge University around 1810 and as Doron Swade suggests he had a great time.
At Cambridge he enjoyed student life to the full. He formed an enduring friendship with John Herschel, who had entered St John’s College in 1809, and relished the company of a wide circle of friends. He played chess, took part in all night sixpenny whist sessions, and bunked lectures and chapel to go sailing on the river with his chums.
Babbage was also capable of enthralling individuals and audiences. One of his contemporaries the scientist Lyon Playfair describes an afternoon spent with Babbage.
Another philosopher whom I frequently visited was Babbage… Babbage was full of information which he gave in an attractive way. I once went to breakfast with him at nine o’clock. He explained to me the working of his calculating machine, and afterwards his method of signalling by… lights. As I was engaged to lunch at one o’clock, I looked at my watch, which indicated the hour of four. This appeared obviously impossible so I went into the hall to look for the correct time, and to my astonishment that also gave the hour as four. The philosopher had in fact been so fascinating in his descriptions and conversation that neither he nor I had noticed the lapse of time.
As is shown, Babbage could be so engaging he could almost bewitch his audience. There are also many stories of parties that Babbage either hosted or attended. As for the ones he hosted they can be seen as the A-List parties of their day, only the great, the good and the beautiful attended. As Doron Swade describes in his wonderful book The Difference Engine.
Not everyone was preoccupied with the advancement of mind. The geologist Charles Lyell pressed Babbage to invite Colonel Codrington’s wife, whom Lyell had heard was ‘very pretty’. Lyell also urged Charles Darwin, returned from his five-year adventure on the Beagle in 1836, to attend Babbage’s where he would meet the fashionable intelligentsia and, more to the point, beautiful women. One Woronzow Greig asked for an Engine demonstration to impress two lady friends, a Miss Parker and a Miss Sandbath from Liverpool, ‘very young and very pretty’. Babbage became a sought-after dinner guest. He was a celebrity, an engaging raconteur, full of wit and exuberant invention. To be able to say ‘Mr. Babbage is coming to dinner’ was the pleasure and delight of any hostess.
In many respects, Babbages’ humanity can be seen in the complexity of his character and personality. He is like all of us, made of many parts. But there is a great tension in his character with polar opposites juxtaposed. Babbage is a man who suffered many traumas and setbacks in his life while also leading a life of wealth and comfort. He was determined, belligerent, relentless, mean and unforgiving to the point of destruction. While at the same time he was a friend, a lover, a charmer, a socialite and a great entertainer.
Useful Sources: