As a result of an article in the Autumn edition of The Bell about musician/astronomer Sir William Herschel (1738–1822), we have heard from his great, great, great grandson, Anthony Herschel Hill, with the suggestion that Joseph Haydn may have been inspired to write the oratorio The Creation following an encounter with Herschel.
Soon after his discovery of the planet Uranus in 1781, Herschel moved from Bath to be nearer Windsor at the request of King George III in order that the Royal Family could use his telescopes to view the heavens. In Slough, Herschel constructed a 40ft telescope — so large that it appeared on Ordnance Survey maps. It was here that the meeting took place between the astronomer and Haydn in 1792. The Creation was completed in 1798.
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