The Invention of Nature

Humboldt had already tried to get their approval in the summer of 1814 when he had accompanied the Prussian king, Friedrich Wilhelm III, to London where the Allies had celebrated their victory over Napoleon. During two short weeks Humboldt had met politicians, dukes, lords and ladies, scientists and thinkers – in short, anybody who might prove useful – but nothing had been achieved. He encountered hope and enthusiasm, some promises and offers of assistance, but in the end no sight of the all-important passport.

Three years later, on 31 October 1817, Humboldt was back in London, once again trying to petition the East India Company. His brother Wilhelm, who had just moved to England in his new capacity as the Prussian Minister to Britain, was expecting him at his house in Portland Place. Wilhelm did not like his new home – London was too big and the weather was miserable. The streets were choked with carriages, carts and people. Tourists regularly complained about the dangers of walking in the city, especially on Mondays and Fridays when herds of cattle were driven through the narrow lanes. Coal smoke and fog often gave London a claustrophobic atmosphere. How had the English ever become ‘great with so little day light’, Richard Rush, the American Minister in London, wondered.

The area around Portland Place where Wilhelm lived was one of the most fashionable in London. That winter, however, it was one great building site because architect John Nash was implementing his grand town planning scheme that would eventually connect the Prince Regent’s London home, Carlton House, in St James’s Park, with the new Regent Park. Part of this was Regent Street which cut through the labyrinthine narrow streets of Soho and then connected to Portland Place. Work had begun in 1814 and there was noise everywhere as old buildings were razed to make space for the new broad streets.

Alexander’s room had been prepared and Wilhelm was looking forward to welcoming his brother. But as so often, Alexander was travelling with a male companion, this time François Arago. Wilhelm deeply disliked his brother’s intense friendships – probably a mixture of jealousy and a concern for what might have seemed the inappropriate nature of these connections. When Wilhelm refused to accommodate Arago, Alexander decamped with his friend to a nearby tavern. It wasn’t a great beginning for the visit.

Wilhelm lamented that he only ever saw his brother in the company of others. Not once did they dine at home, just the two of them, he complained, but he also had to admit that Alexander always brought a refreshing whirlwind of activity. Wilhelm still thought him too French and was often irritated by his never-ending ‘flow of words’. Most of the time he just let his brother talk without interrupting him. But even though they had their differences, Wilhelm was glad to see him.

Despite the chaos around Portland Place, the area suited Alexander. Within minutes he could wander through fields and along winding lanes to the north, yet it was only a quick carriage ride to the headquarters of the Royal Society and a twenty-minute stroll to the British Museum which was one of the most popular attractions that year. Thousands of people flocked there to see the famous Elgin Marbles which the Earl of Elgin had controversially removed from the Acropolis in Greece and which only a few months previously had found a new home in the British Museum. The Elgin Marbles were stunning, Wilhelm told his wife Caroline, but ‘no one has robbed like this! It was as like seeing the whole of Athens.’

There was also a bustle of commerce in London completely unlike that of Paris. London was the largest city in the world and Britain’s economic prowess was displayed in the shops that lined the West End – a glittering show of the country’s imperial reach. With Napoleon’s removal to St Helena and the end of the French threat, Britain was beginning a long period of unchallenged dominance in the world. The ‘accumulation of things’, visitors noted, was ‘amazing’. It was noisy, messy and crowded.