"No need to reinvent the wheel!" - for sure you have heard this phrase more than once and even even say it yourself. When they say so, they usually want to emphasize the simplicity of the case, when any deviations only complicate, but in no way accelerate its process. But, paradoxically, we know very little about the invention of a bicycle. For example, you know, in what year did they invent a bicycle? Probably not. And who invented the first bicycle? Also do not know? Then our article is for you!
As they say in a famous saying, it's never too late to learn. And it's not a shame to not know something, it's shameful not to want to learn something new. Therefore, we will talk about a very simple and very complicated device - a bicycle.
Who first invented the bicycle?
We immediately rush to debunk one common myth. The bicycle was invented not by Leonardo da Vinci. The famous drawing, which allegedly belongs to the brush of Leonardo, in fact is not.
Also, there was no confirmation of the legend that the bicycle was invented by the peasant Artamonov, and that he is still kept in one of the museums of Nizhny Tagil.
In fact, the bicycle, in the modern sense of the word, was invented not immediately. His perfection was at least 3 stages.
In 1817 the German professor Baron Karl von Dres invented something like a scooter. It consisted of 2 wheels and was called the "Walking Machine". And later compatriots nicknamed this scooter a trolley (in honor of the inventor Dreza). In 1818, Baron Karl von Dres patented his invention. When they learned about the scooter in the UK, he was nicknamed "dandy-chorz". In 1839-1840 in a small town in the south of Scotland the blacksmith Kirkpatrick Macmillan perfected the walking machine, adding pedals and a saddle to it. McMillan's bicycle was very similar to a modern bicycle. The pedals had to be pushed, they in turn rotated the rear wheel, and the front one could be turned with the help of the steering wheel. For reasons unknown to us, the invention of Kirkpatrick Macmillan remained little-known, and was soon forgotten about him.
In 1862, Pierre Lalman decided to add to the "dandy chorus" pedals (Pierre did not know anything about the invention of Macmillan). And in 1863 he realized his idea. Many of his products are considered the world's first bicycle, and Lalman, respectively, the creator of the first bicycle.
The question "Who invented the first bicycle?" Invariably gives rise to another, no less interesting "When it was invented?" The year of the invention of the bicycle can be considered 1817, the year was invented a "walking machine", and 1840 and 1862. But there is another date related to the invention of the bicycle - in 1866, when Lalman's bicycle was patented.
Since then, the bicycle has been improving every year. The materials from which the bicycle was made, the design itself, and the diameters and ratios of the wheel sizes changed. However, an essentially modern bicycle is not much different from the Lalman bicycle.
Where did they invent the bicycle?
If we assume that the first bicycle was invented by Pierre Lalman, then the birthplace of the bicycle is France. However, the Germans used to believe that the bicycle was invented in their homeland. In part this is also true, because if not for the invention of Baron Carl von Dres, Lalman would not have thought
But also about Scotland, we should not forget. The prototype of the bicycle, designed by Kirkpatrick Macmillan, in fact, differed little from the invention of Pierre Lalman.
"Why reinvent the wheel?"
This expression has become firmly in our vocabulary. When it is pronounced, they mean useless works on the creation of something that has long been known to everyone. Expressions of this kind are used in many countries. But, interestingly, the mention of a bicycle is characteristic only of post-Soviet countries. And why do we have such a love for bicycles?