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Robert Fludd, also known as Robertus de Fluctibus (1574, Bearsted, Kent – September 8 1637, London) was a prominent English Rosicrucian and Paracelsian physicist, astrologer, and mystic. He was the son of Sir Thomas Fludd, a high-ranking governmental official (Queen Elizabeth I 's treasurer for war in Europe). He obtained a degree at Oxford - an MD. Between 1598 and 1604, Fludd studied medicine, chemistry and the occult on the European mainland, but he is best known for his research in occult philosophy. He had a celebrated exchange of views with Johannes Kepler concerning the scientific and hermetic approaches to knowledge. His philosophy is presented in Utriusque Cosmi, Maioris scilicet et Minoris, metaphysica, physica, atque technica Historia The metaphysical, physical, and technical history of the two worlds, namely the greater and the lesser (published in Germany between 1617 and 1621); according to Frances Yates, his memory system (which she describes in detail in The Art of Memory, pp. 321-341) may reflect the layout of Shakespeare's Globe Theatre (The Art of Memory, Chapter XVI). In 1630, Fludd proposed many perpetual motion machines. People were trying to patent variations of Fludd's machine in the 1870s. Fludd's machine worked by recirculation by means of a water wheel and Archimedean screw. The device pumps the water back into its own supply tank. * * Fludd was the first person to discuss the circulation of the blood, and did in fact arrive at the correct conclusion. However, his conclusion was based on the macrocosm-microcosm analogy, a theory in which all occurences in the microcosm (man) are influenced by the macrocosm (the heavens). His theory was that the blood must circulate because the heart is like the sun and the blood like the planets, and by this time is was known that the planets orbit around the sun. William Harvey later explained the circulation of blood in more modern and experimental terms, although the work of William Harvey still reference the macrocosm-microcosm analogy. According to the Dossiers Secrets d'Henri Lobineau, Fludd was a Grand Master of the Priory of Sion.
Gwynedd connection He was a descendant of Cunedda ''Wledig'' ap Edern, King of Gwynedd, which is now part of Wales. Gwynedd is one of two areas in Wales that has been ruled by Irish Royal immigrants, the other being Dyfed. | ||||||||
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