When Physics Became King

"In a beautifully written and engaging synthesis, Morus sheds new light on familiar topics and people .... The result is by far the best history of 19th-century physics that is now available."

--Jeff Hughes "Physics World" (8/1/2000 12:00:00 AM)

"This is a story about the ascendance of physics as viewed by the public and, more importantly, by government and industry. As
Morus puts it, physics became 'the ultimate authority in nature'. It is a fascinating story, well told and mostly based on the latest
research by professional historians of science."

--Stephen G. Brush "Nature" (7/28/2005 12:00:00 AM)
"Iwan Rhys Morus's excellent history of physics in the 19th century, When Physics Became King, considers the field in an age when physics and physicists came to play a prominent role in the culture. . . . A few good histories of physics during that remarkable age exist--but none as readable or comprehensive as Morus's superb book."--Robert M. Brian "Physics Today" (4/1/2006 12:00:00 AM)
"Morus is to be congratulated on writing an account of the rise of physics that is not only accessible to scientists, students, and the general reader but of major interest to scholars studying nineteenth-century European history. From French mathematics to German romanticism, from the precision laboratory to spiritualism, When Physics Became King explores the concepts, skills, institutions, and societies through which a new and international discipline was forged. The rise of the physical sciences should henceforth be integral to any general history of modern Europe."--Andrew Warwick, author of Masters of Theory: Cambridge and the Rise of Mathematical Physics
"This delightfully written book traces the evolution of the subject from the relatively obscure world of 18th century
Natural Philosophy to the end of the 19th century with Physics established as a University discipline requiring proper training, having a well-defined career structure, and imposing research obligations on working physicists....The book is informative, well structured and a joy to read. It ought to appeal not only to the relatively narrow audience of science historians, but to working physicists and to the general public."--A. Calogeracos "Contemporary Physics"