Fulgence Marion's 'Wonderful Balloon Ascents; Or, The Conquest of the Skies' is a historical account of the development of hot air balloons and their voyages, particularly focusing on the Montgolfier brothers and Vincent Lunardi. Marion reveals how the discovery of the balloon had an extraordinary impact on the people of Europe, arousing enthusiasm, excitement, and hope for new vistas of enterprise and research. However, the practical uses of balloons for travel did not come to fruition. Instead, the balloon served as a vehicle for daring aeronauts who fearlessly pushed the boundaries of human enterprise, sometimes with tragic consequences. Despite the balloon's limited usefulness, Marion shows how its invention had a profound impact on the history of human enterprise and scientific achievement.

Wonderful Balloon Ascents by F. (Fulgence) Marion "Let posterity know, and knowing be astonished, that on the fifteenth day of September, 1784, Vincent Lunardi of Lucca, in Tuscany, the first aerial traveller in Britain, mounting from the Artillery Ground in London, and traversing the regions of the air for two hours and fifteen minutes, on this spot revisited the earth. In this rude monument for ages be recorded this wondrous enterprise successfully achieved by the powers of chemistry and the fortitude of man, this improvement in science which the great Author of all Knowledge, patronising by his Providence the inventions of mankind, hath graciously permitted, to their benefit and his own eternal glory." The stone upon which the above inscription was carved, stands, or stood recently, near Collier's End, in the parish of Standon, Hertfordshire; and it will possibly afford the English reader a more accurate idea of the feelings with which the world hailed the discovery of the balloon than any incident or illustration drawn from the annals of a foreign country. We are delighted to publish this classic book as part of our extensive Classic Library collection. Many of the books in our collection have been out of print for decades, and therefore have not been accessible to the general public. The aim of our publishing program is to facilitate rapid access to this vast reservoir of literature, and our view is that this is a significant literary work, which deserves to be brought back into print after many decades. The contents of the vast majority of titles in the Classic Library have been scanned from the original works. To ensure a high quality product, each title has been meticulously hand curated by our staff. Our philosophy has been guided by a desire to provide the reader with a book that is as close as possible to ownership of the original work. We hope that you will enjoy this wonderful classic work, and that for you it becomes an enriching experience