The 2nd Duke (1673-1729) made no changes to the house and garden he had watched being created in his youth. He made his mark in a different field, as a collector of paintings, drawings and prints. He also made important collections of coins and carved Greek and Roman gems. The 2nd Duke was the grandfather of Henry Cavendish (1731-1810), the distinguished and eccentric scientist, who determined the composition to water, recognised hydrogen as an element and was the ‘first man to weigh the world’. Cavendish’s library of 12,000 books on science and many other subjects is at Chatsworth.
The 2nd Duke (1673-1729) made no changes to the house and garden he had watched being created in his youth. He made his mark in a different field, as a collector of paintings, drawings and prints. He also made important collections of coins and carved Greek and Roman gems. The 2nd Duke was the grandfather of Henry Cavendish (1731-1810), the distinguished and eccentric scientist, who determined the composition to water, recognised hydrogen as an element and was the ‘first man to weigh the world’. Cavendish’s library of 12,000 books on science and many other subjects is at Chatsworth.
