Voltaire? Abraham Hayward? Alexander von Humboldt? Apocryphal?
Question for Quote Investigator: The resistance to new ideas is tenacious. Yet, there is a breathtaking reversal in attitude once a new idea is established.
The philosopher Voltaire has received credit for presenting the following example regarding Christopher Columbus. When the explorer proposed an expedition to reach a new hemisphere he was told that the place he envisioned did not exist. When his expedition reached the new hemisphere he was told that everyone already knew it existed.
Would you please help me to find a citation?
Reply from Quote Investigator: In 1756 Voltaire (pen name of François-Marie Arouet) published “Essai Sur Les Mœurs et L’Esprit des Nations” (“Essay On the Morals and Spirit of Nations”). The essay included the following passage about Christopher Columbus. Boldface added to excerpts by QI:1
Lorsque Colombo avait promis un nouvel hémisphère, on lui avait soutenu que cet hémisphère ne pouvait exister; & quand il l’eut découvert, on prétendit qu’il avait été connu depuis long-temps.
Here is one possible translation into English:
When Colombus promised a new hemisphere, he was told that this hemisphere could not exist; & when he discovered it, it was claimed that it had been known for a long time.
Of course, the hemisphere was not a new discovery to its many existing inhabitants. Voltaire’s statement was from the perspective of a European.
Below are additional selected citations in chronological order.
In 1806 the book “Hogarth Illustrated” by John Ireland included the following passage in English attributed to Voltaire:2
“When he promised a new hemisphere, it was insisted upon that no such hemisphere could exist; and when he had discovered it, asserted that it had been known long before. The honour was given to the Carthaginians; and, to prove they deserved it, a book of Aristotle’s was quoted, which Aristotle never wrote. It was farther said, that one Martin Behem went from Nuremburg to the Straits of Magellan, in 1460, with a patent from the Duchess of Burgundy, who, as she was not alive at that time, could not issue patents.” VOLTAIRE
In 1836 German geographer and naturalist Alexander von Humboldt published “Examen Critique de L’Histoire de La Géographie du Nouveau Continent” (“Critical Examination of the History of Geography of the New Continent”). Von Humboldt referred to the remark by Voltaire. This passage in French is followed by an English translation:3
. . . une habitude qui date de plus loin que la fondation de cette Académie d’Italie, qui doutait de tout, excepté de ses propres arrêts. « Lorsque Colomb avait promis un nouvel hémisphère, dit l’illustre auteur de l’Essai sur les mœurs et l’esprit des nations on lui avait soutenu que cet hémisphère ne pouvait exister, et quand il l’eut découvert, on prétendit qu’il avait été connu depuis long-temps. »
. . . a habit that dates back further than the founding of the Italian Academy, which doubted everything except its own rulings. “When Columbus promised a new hemisphere,” says the illustrious author of the “Essay On the Morals and Spirit of Nations”, “it was argued that this hemisphere could not exist, and when he discovered it, it was claimed that it had been known for a long time.”
Voltaire helped to inspire Alexander von Humboldt to craft an entertaining tripartite expression which is discussed in the Quote Investigator article which is available here.
In 1861 English scholar Abraham Hayward published an essay in “The Quarterly Review” of London which included a version of the quotation ascribed to Voltaire:4
‘When Columbus,’ says Voltaire, ‘promised a new hemisphere, people maintained that it could not exist; and when he had discovered it, that it had been known a long time.’
Also, in 1861 Hayward’s essay was reprinted in “Littell’s Living Age” of Boston, Massachusetts.5
In 1869 “Fraser’s Magazine for Town and Country” in London printed another version of the saying without attribution:6
But as the gloss of novelty wore off, there arose another parallel or point of association with Columbus, of whom it was said: ‘When he promised a new hemisphere, people maintained that this hemisphere did not exist, and when he had discovered it, they pretended that it had been known a long time ago.’
In 1873 a two volume collection of essays by Abraham Hayward was published. The essay containing the quotation attributed to Voltaire was included. Thus, it achieved further circulation.7
In 1880 the book “Lives of the Catholic Heroes and Heroines of America” included a chapter about Christopher Columbus which contained a version of the quotation:8
After a new world had been discovered, many scattered indications were then found to have foreshown it. “When he promised a new hemisphere,” wrote Voltaire, “people maintained that it could not exist; and when he had discovered it, that it had been known a long time!”
In 1890 “The Life of Christopher Columbus” by Francesco Tarducci was translated from Italian to English. The book credited German geographer Alexander von Humboldt with a version of the quotation:9
When Columbus, writes Humboldt, promised a new hemisphere, all maintained that its existence was an impossibility; when he had discovered it, all said it had been known long before. It is the usual warfare waged by the malice of those who feel humbled before the might of genius, and endeavor to exalt their own littleness by lowering the greatness of others.
In the case of Christopher Columbus, they were not satisfied with trying to lessen his merits; they attempted to strip from his brow the glorious halo of discoverer, and brand him with a stigma of imposture and infamy.
In conclusion, Voltaire deserves credit for the statement about Christopher Columbus he wrote in “Essai Sur Les Mœurs et L’Esprit des Nations” (“Essay On the Morals and Spirit of Nations”). The statement has been translated into English in several different ways.
Image Notes: Earth as seen by the Apollo 17 crew. Image obtained from the official website of NASA at nasa.gov.
Acknowledgement: Great thanks to @janko_js whose messages inspired QI to formulate this question and perform this exploration. @janko_js identified crucial citations for Voltaire and Alexander von Humboldt.
Update History: On February 7, 2024 the 1836 citation was added to the article.
- 1785, Oeuvres Completes de Voltaire (Complete Works of Voltaire), Tome Dix-Huitième (Volume Eighteenth), Essai Sur Les Mœurs et L’Esprit des Nations, et Sur Les Principaux Faits de L’Histoire, Depuis Charlemagne Jusqu’à Louis XIII (Essay On the Morals and Spirit of Nations, and On the Principal Facts of History, From Charlemagne to Louis XIII), Chapitre 145: De Colombo & de l’Amérique, Quote Page 301, De l’Imprimerie de la Société Littéraire-Typographique (From the Printing Office of the Literary-Typographic Society). (Google Books Full View) link ↩︎
- 1806, Hogarth Illustrated by John Ireland, Third Edition, Volume 2, Chapter: Columbus Breaking the Egg, Footnote, Quote Page 324, J. N. Boydell and Company, London. (Google Books Full View) link ↩︎
- 1836, Examen Critique de L’Histoire de La Géographie du Nouveau Continent (Critical Examination of the History of Geography of the New Continent) by Alexander von Humboldt, Tome Premier (Volume 1), Quote Page 254 and 255, Librairie de Gide, Paris. (Internet archive at archive.org) link ↩︎
- 1861 April, The Quarterly Review, Volume 109, Number 218, The Pearls and Mock Pearls of History (by Abraham Hayward), Start Page 307, Quote Page 321, John Murray, London. (Google Books Full View) link ↩︎
- 1861 June 15, Littell’s Living Age, Number 889, The Pearls and Mock-Pearls of History (Reprinted from Quarterly Review), Start Page 643, Quote Page 651, Column 1, Littell, Son, and Company, Boston, Massachusetts. (Google Books Full View) link ↩︎
- 1869 August, Fraser’s Magazine for Town and Country, Volume 80, The Irish Church Bill, Start Page 257, Quote Page 260, Column 1, Longmans, Green, and Company, London. (Google Books Full View) link ↩︎
- 1873, Biographical and Critical Essays Reprinted From Reviews by A. Hayward (Abraham Hayward), Volume 1 of 2, Essay: The Pearls and Mock Pearls of History (From Quarterly Review, April 1861), Start page 1, Quote Page 25, Longmans, Green, and Company, London. (Google Books Full View) link ↩︎
- 1880, Lives of the Catholic Heroes and Heroines of America by John O’Kane Murray, Section: Christopher Columbus, Chapter 2: The Struggles of Genius, Quote Page 29, James Sheehy, New York. (Google Books Full View) link ↩︎
- 1890, The Life of Christopher Columbus by Francesco Tarducci, Translated from the Italian by Henry F. Brownson, Volume 1, Chapter 5, Quote Page 48, Published by H. F. Brownson, Detroit, Michigan. (Google Books Full View) link ↩︎