Maximilianus Hell (1720-1792) - Munin

In the year 1767, nothing was further from my thoughts, than to leave – even for
a moment – my post at the observatory in order to observe the transit of Venus
in front of the Sun that was going to take place in 1769, invisible to me in
Vienna. Thus, having firmly made up my mind I had already rejected two
invitations to go abroad, intending instead to rest in Vienna and make
calculations of the solar parallax on the basis of data sets observed by other
astronomers [...].
Father Hell nowhere reveals the identity of those who had invited him to go abroad. This
should come as no surprise. In fact, administrative documents demonstrate that the authorities
in Copenhagen asked for secrecy when they gave the Viennese ambassador orders to contact
Hell. 8 Thus, had he declined, it would certainly have been very difficult to find evidence for
such an invitation. As has been explained in Section II.2.4 above, the first meeting between
Hell and the Danish ambassador took place in Vienna 5 September 1767. If his own words are
to be believed, the Imperial Astronomer of Vienna had by that time already declined two
invitations, but from whom? Some colleague from the Society of Jesus would be a possibility,
or else some sponsor on national level. Father Hell explains that he saw his advanced age, the
dangers and difficulties of travelling, and concern for his own health as obstacles for
embarking upon an expedition, 9 and that would make a sea voyage to a distant continent or a
long journey overland likely to have been rejected. Over the following pages, the possible
identity of the two inviters will be discussed. First, a possible Jesuit inviter will be discussed,
then the candidacy of a few national sponsors.
A Jesuit inviter of Hell may at first sight seem unlikely, since the Jesuits during this time were
encountering problems in several countries and the order as a whole had been pushed on the
defensive. Nevertheless, it is known that the most eminent Jesuit polymath of Hell’s
generation, Roger Joseph Boscovich, already in the spring of 1766 had made an agreement
with the Royal Society of London, whose member he was, to go to North America for the
transit of 1769 (Baja California in present-day Mexico was later fixed to be his site of
8 See Section I.2.3 above.
9 Cf. Hell 1770a1, pp. 1-2: “veluti ictu improviso infirmatus, non ætatem meam jam provectiorem, non itinerum
difficultatem, vitæque pericula, non denique debilioribus meis corporis viribus periculosam ad arctos cæli,
aërisque inclementiam magni pendens […], magno, intrepidoque animo iter ad Arctos petii” = “as though I had
been weakened by a surprising slap, not laying much weight on my already well advanced age, nor on the
difficulties of travelling, the risks to your life, or the danger imposed upon my feeble bodily strength by the
inclemency of the climate in the Arctic […], I embarked upon the journey to the Arctic in a lofty and fearless
spirit”. See also the introductory chapter of the Expeditio litteraria (edited in Chapter III.3 below), §. V: “I, who
because of my failing bodily strength twice already had rejected invitations to make a similar expedition, found
myself overwhelmed by the unexpected proposal presented by His Excellency Count von Bachoff”.
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