On This Day In History: ‘Principia Mathematica’ Monumental Work Published By Isaac Newton – On July 5, 1687

AncientPages.com - On July 5, 1687, one of the most famous books in the history of science was published by Isaac Newton.

Newton's own copy of his Principia Mathematica. Image credit: Andrew Dunn - CC BY-SA 2.0

The book “Principia Mathematica” or simply ‘Principia’ (in Latin: Philosophiæ Naturalis Principia Mathematica), which title means “Mathematical Principles of Natural Philosophy,” was composed by English physicist and mathematician Sir Isaac Newton.

When the book was published, Newton held the position of a professor of mathematics at the University of Cambridge. Sometime after the publication of the book “Principia Mathematica,” Isaac Newton received a knighthood from Queen and was subsequently referred to as Sir Isaac Newton.

In this immense work, Newton created a new science. He gave an insightful mathematical analysis of the relationships between force, motion, and time, as in acceleration and inertial motion. The original was written in Latin because it was the universal language of scholars in many countries.

He also defined the motion of the heavenly bodies.

This book was the original publication of his now famously-known three Laws of Motion and the Law of Universal Gravitation.

In formulating his physical theories, Newton developed a field of mathematics known as calculus.

His treatment of the subject is still reflected in introductory physics textbooks.

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