Encyclopedia of Early Modern History Online

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Copernican Revolution
(1,420 words)

1. Introduction

The idea that the heliocentric astronomical system described by Nicolaus Copernicus (Heliocentric model) constituted a revolution in astronomy and the cosmological worldview is a topos of historiography that originated in the 18th century. It was founded by historians of astronomy, such as Jean-Sylvain Bailly, and of science, such as Etienne de Montucla, who saw the emergence and t…

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Guicciardini, Niccolò, “Copernican Revolution”, in: Encyclopedia of Early Modern History Online, Editors of the English edition: Graeme Dunphy, Andrew Gow. Original German Edition: Enzyklopädie der Neuzeit. Im Auftrag des Kulturwissenschaftlichen Instituts (Essen) und in Verbindung mit den Fachherausgebern herausgegeben von Friedrich Jaeger. Copyright © J.B. Metzlersche Verlagsbuchhandlung und Carl Ernst Poeschel Verlag GmbH 2005–2012. Consulted online on 19 March 2024 <http://dx.doi.org/10.1163/2352-0272_emho_COM_022636>
First published online: 2015
First print edition: 20170206



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