A history of the 1702 chair in chemistry at the University of Cambridge.The University of Cambridge's 1702 chair of chemistry is the oldest continuously occupied chair of chemistry in Britain. This book's descriptions of the lives and work of the 1702 chairholders over the past three hundred years paint a vivid picture of chemistry being slowly transforming from alchemy into a major academic discipline. Containing personal memoirs and historical essays by acknowledged experts, this book will engage all interested in the pivotal role chemistry has played in the making of the modern world.The University of Cambridge's 1702 chair of chemistry is the oldest continuously occupied chair of chemistry in Britain. This book's descriptions of the lives and work of the 1702 chairholders over the past three hundred years paint a vivid picture of chemistry being slowly transforming from alchemy into a major academic discipline. Containing personal memoirs and historical essays by acknowledged experts, this book will engage all interested in the pivotal role chemistry has played in the making of the modern world.The University of Cambridge's 1702 chair of chemistry is the oldest continuously occupied chair of chemistry in Britain. This book's descriptions of the lives and work of the 1702 chairholders over the past three hundred years paint a vivid picture of chemistry being slowly transformed from alchemy into a major academic discipline. Containing personal memoirs and historical essays by acknowledged experts, this book will engage all readers interested in the pivotal role chemistry has played in the making of the modern world.List of contributors; Preface; Holders of the 1702 Chair of Chemistry at Cambridge; Illustration acknowledgements; 1. 'The deplorable frenzy': the slow legitimisation of chemical practice at Cambridge University Kevin Knox; 2. Vigani and after: chemical enterprise in Cambridge 16801780 Simon Schaffer and Larry Stewart; 3. Richard Watson: gaiters and gulĂ