Page - 184 - in Maximilian Hell (1720–92) - And the Ends of Jesuit Science in Enlightenment Europe

Chapter 4184 or the most learned and in astronomical observations so well versed Mr. Mallet, astronomer of the Royal Observatory in Uppsala, would take upon Yourselves to conduct this highly wished-for observation in one of the two above-mentioned places—that is, the Cape of Lapland and Vardøhus—or rather, if possible, one of You at this, and the other at the other site. The task will then certainly be conducted with the highest care, and provide the richest harvest. […] If You and Your highly worthy assistants are willing to take upon Yourselves this task, the Royal Society will be in a position to concentrate its efforts, all the more eager on con- ducting observations in several other places. […] May I suggest that You, if You agree to observe the transit from the Cape of Lapland or Vardøhus, may also be willing to observe the transit with Gregorian telescopes simi- lar to the English ones, that is, two-feet long? In that way, comparison between the observers will be more eminent and secure.36 As to Maskelyne’s emphasis on northernmost Norway as a region better suited for observations of the Venus transit than Swedish Lapland, the British astron- omer royal in fact contradicted Wargentin, who in the application one year earlier to the Swedish king for extra funding to sponsor the 1769 Venus transit observations had stressed that for this purpose “no place in the whole of Eu- rope, Asia, or Africa is better suited than Swedish Lapland.”37 It might seem strange that Wargentin, as an able astronomer, did not judge the advantages of the northernmost parts of the region in the same way as his British counter- part. For political reasons, however, Denmark–Norway was not likely to allow Swedish astronomers to make expeditions within its territories anyway. Thus it may have been the political man, rather than the astronomer Wargentin, speaking on the above occasion. In other words, a quite consistent blend of internal-scientific and diplomatic considerations lay at the heart of the “re- search policy”38 of the lobbyists and decision-makers in Stockholm. Given the negative publicity surrounding Danish–Norwegian activity in 1761, Copenha- gen’s decision to equip a high-profile Venus transit expedition led by an as- tronomer of international standing in 1769 is perfectly logical. 36 Maskelyne to Wargentin, dated Greenwich, January 5, 1768 (Centrum för vetenskapshisto- ria, Kungl. Vetenskapsakademien, Stockholm; hereafter: cvh). 37 Wargentin in a letter to the Swedish king, dated January 14, 1767, quoted from Norden- mark, Pehr Wilhelm Wargentin, 374. 38 For this term applied to the history of astronomy in eighteenth-century Sweden, see Wid- malm, “Science in Transit.”