Denis Papin

Lore & Background

Denis Papin was born into a Calvinist family in Chitenay and attended a Jesuit school there. He graduated with a medical degree from the University of Angers in 1669. In 1673 in Paris, he worked with Christiaan Huygens and met Gottfried Leibniz. Due to increasing repression of Huguenots, he visited London in 1675, where he worked with Robert Boyle from 1676 to 1679. During this period he invented the steam digester, a type of pressure cooker with a safety valve, and first addressed the Royal Society on the subject in 1679.

After a stint in Venice, Papin became a member of the staff of the Royal Society in 1684. He was denied return to France after Louis XIV invoked the Edict of Fontainebleau in 1685. Around 1687 he took an academic post in Marburg, Germany. In 1690, having observed the mechanical power of atmospheric pressure on his digester, he built a model of a piston steam engine, the first of its kind. In 1705, with help from Gottfried Leibniz, he developed a second steam engine based on an invention by Thomas Savery, using steam pressure rather than atmospheric pressure.

In 1707 Papin constructed a ship powered by hand-cranked paddles to return to London with his family. An apocryphal story from 1851 held that this ship was steam-powered, but this was refuted as early as 1880. Papin's ship was said to have been destroyed in 1707 by boatmen who feared it would threaten their livelihood. He returned to London in 1707, leaving his wife in Germany. Several of his papers were put before the Royal Society between 1707 and 1712 without acknowledging or paying him. He died a pauper; his burial site was lost until 2016.

Reader's Guide

Denis Papin's significance lies in his foundational contributions to steam power and pressure technology. His steam digester, with its safety valve, was a direct forerunner of the pressure cooker and demonstrated principles later used in steam engines. His 1690 model of a piston steam engine was the first of its kind, and his later collaboration with Leibniz produced an engine using steam pressure. These developments anticipated the work of Thomas Newcomen, whose atmospheric steam engine was built in 1712. Papin also suggested the use of a force pump or bellows to maintain pressure in a diving bell, a design later utilized by John Smeaton. His hand-cranked paddleboat, though not steam-powered, represents an early attempt at mechanical ship propulsion. The destruction of his boat by fearful boatmen illustrates the resistance to technological change. Papin's legacy is commemorated by streets, a statue, and a memorial plaque at St Bride's Church in London, where his burial was finally recorded in 2016 after 303 years. His life reflects the challenges faced by Huguenot exiles and the precarious position of inventors dependent on patronage.

Did You Know?

• Papin invented the steam digester, the forerunner of the pressure cooker, while working with Robert Boyle in London.
• He built the first model of a piston steam engine in 1690.
• An apocryphal story claimed his 1705 paddleboat was steam-powered, but it was actually hand-cranked.
• His burial site was lost for 303 years until a record was discovered in 2016 at St Bride's Church, Fleet Street.