Changing the world

England’s counties have given the world notable characters who have changed the course of history. Derbyshire is no exception.

- Roly Smith

For a medium-sized county, Derbyshire has perhaps provided the world with more game-changing people than most; consistently punching above its inventive weight.

Here, we highlight ten Derbyshire characters who, in chronological order, have changed the course of history through their inventiveness, enterprise and/or imagination.

It must be emphasised these are the author’s personal choices. Readers will undoubtedly have their own equally worthy contenders.

1 THOMAS HOBBES (1588-1679)

Although born in Wiltshire, in the year of the Spanish Armada, Thomas Hobbes spent the last 20 years of his life as tutor to the Cavendish children at Chatsworth.

Hobbes is considered one of the founders of modern political philosophy, perhaps best known for his monumental work entitled Leviathan, published in 1651. In it, Hobbes expounded what was to become an influential theory of the social contract, but also made significant contributions to other fields, including history, jurisprudence, geometry, the physics of gases, theology and ethics.

His De Mirabilibus Pecci: Concerning the Wonders of the Peak in Darby-shire, a longwinded Latin poem extolling the attractions of his adopted home, was first published in 1636 and was, in effect, the first tourist guide to the Peak District.

2 JOHN FLAMSTEED (1646-1719)