General William Roy, 1726-1790: Father of the Ordnance Survey

By Humphrey Welfare

William Roy was a polymath and a visionary. His work established the path that would lead to the formation of the Ordnance Survey and to all of the paper-based and digital mapping products that we use today. His story - very much one of the Enlightenment - demonstrates how one man's curiosity and diligence enabled him to excel across a diverse range of topics: military reconnaissance and intelligence; the lessons that could be learned from the past about the tactical use of landscape; the science of determining the height of mountains; and the development of a meticulous methodology to achieve an unprecedented accuracy in topographical measurement. In this biography, Humphrey Welfare uncovers the career and activities of this important figure, and in doing so paints a vivid picture of the inner complexities of 18th-century Britain.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1399505785
• ISBN13: 9781399505789
• Release Date: August 2022
• Publisher: Edinburgh University Press
• Length: 310 Pages
• Weight: 1.55 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 6.6" x 9.7"