71
Upon his return to the Collegio Romano, as expected he became Pianciani’s
assistant. The latter strongly encouraged Secchi to improve his background and
provided him an excellent training in physics. In 1847, Secchi was ordained a priest.
But the following year, the political situation became unstable in all the Italian
preunification states, and it was especially hostile to the Jesuits, because of their
presumed political influence. With his confreres, Secchi was forced to leave Italy
and he spent some months in England at Stonyhurst College. Then, at the end of
1848, he was called to Georgetown College, in the United States, to teach physics (Fig. 4.4) (Chinnici 2019: 36-42). There Secchi began to be incorporated into the
local scientific milieu, probably thanks to Fr. James Curley (1796–1889) SJ, the
director of the Georgetown College Observatory. Secchi become acquainted with
important local scientific personalities, especially Commodore Matthew F. Maury
(1806–1873), from whom Secchi learnt much about new theories of dynamic meteorology, and the physicist Joseph Henry (1797–1878), Secretary of the Smithsonian
Institution. Henry invited Secchi to publish a work about an experiment on electrical rheometry which he had done in Italy to test a theoretical law; it appeared in the
Smithsonian Contributions to Knowledge (1852) and is the first important international scientific publication by Secchi.
Probably the Jesuit scientist from Reggio could have had a brilliant career in the
United States, where many prospects were open to him, but in 1849, the political
Fig. 4.3 The Jesuit College at Loreto, known as Collegio Illirico, in a photograph datable to
around the 1930s (Courtesy of ASPEM)
4 Angelo Secchi: Portrait of a “Multi-versed” Jesuit Scientist
Upon his return to the Collegio Romano, as expected he became Pianciani’s
assistant. The latter strongly encouraged Secchi to improve his background and
provided him an excellent training in physics. In 1847, Secchi was ordained a priest.
But the following year, the political situation became unstable in all the Italian
preunification states, and it was especially hostile to the Jesuits, because of their
presumed political influence. With his confreres, Secchi was forced to leave Italy
and he spent some months in England at Stonyhurst College. Then, at the end of
1848, he was called to Georgetown College, in the United States, to teach physics (Fig. 4.4) (Chinnici 2019: 36-42). There Secchi began to be incorporated into the
local scientific milieu, probably thanks to Fr. James Curley (1796–1889) SJ, the
director of the Georgetown College Observatory. Secchi become acquainted with
important local scientific personalities, especially Commodore Matthew F. Maury
(1806–1873), from whom Secchi learnt much about new theories of dynamic meteorology, and the physicist Joseph Henry (1797–1878), Secretary of the Smithsonian
Institution. Henry invited Secchi to publish a work about an experiment on electrical rheometry which he had done in Italy to test a theoretical law; it appeared in the
Smithsonian Contributions to Knowledge (1852) and is the first important international scientific publication by Secchi.
Probably the Jesuit scientist from Reggio could have had a brilliant career in the
United States, where many prospects were open to him, but in 1849, the political
Fig. 4.3 The Jesuit College at Loreto, known as Collegio Illirico, in a photograph datable to
around the 1930s (Courtesy of ASPEM)
4 Angelo Secchi: Portrait of a “Multi-versed” Jesuit Scientist