| AdminHistory | Benjamin Robins: born in Bath, 1707; pioneering military engineer whose 'New Principles of Gunnery' (1742) laid the groundwork for modern ordnance theory and practice, invalidating existing suppositions concerning gunpowder and the flight of projectiles and forming the foundation for later scientific work in these fields; invented the ballistic pendulum, which allowed the momentum of a projectile suddenly halted in its flight to be determined, enabling gunners to measure more accurately the muzzle velocities of projectiles; died at Madras, India, 1751. |
| CustodialHistory | The manuscript formed part of the library of John Thomas Graves (1806-1870), mathematician and Professor of Jurisprudence at University College London, whose collection included manuscripts dating from the 15th to the 19th century, relating mainly to mathematics. Formerly Graves 4992.Other pressmarks: 6.h.4; 54.k.10. |