The invention of the grounding lightning rod by a Czech priest

Prokop Diviš - a Czech priest who tried to control the weather but instead invented the lightning rod.

Diviš was a pastor in Přímětice, a neighborhood in the town of Znojmo near the Austrian border. In addition to preparing sermons and conducting services, he managed the monastery's farmland. Diviš became fascinated with electricity, a subject little known in his time. He began experimenting with low voltages, achieving remarkable success in promoting plant growth and in healing. He published his findings and even demonstrated them at the royal court in Vienna.

Prokop Diviš's house with the weather machine on the right. (Photo: Wikimedia)

In 1753, Russian physicist Georg Wilhelm Richmann attempted to extract electricity from a lightning storm using a metal pole but was struck and killed by lightning. The year before, American scientist Benjamin Franklin survived a similar accident during his famous kite experiment. News of Richmann's death inspired Diviš to study atmospheric electricity. In letters, he proposed building a "weather machine" with several physicists. It was a device designed to suppress and prevent thunderstorms and lightning by constantly drawing electricity from the air. Diviš's theories were considered fantastical at the time and were ignored. When he received no response, Diviš decided to build the machine himself.

On June 15, 1754, Diviš erected a 40-meter-high freestanding pole in Přímětice and placed his 'weather machine' on it. The device consisted of several tin cans and more than 400 metal spikes. At the time, a popular theory was that spikes could conduct electricity more effectively. The pole was protected by heavy metal chains connected to the ground, making it one of the world's first grounded lightning rods.

Diviš described his invention as highly effective in dispelling storms. He observed that clouds would form when the pole was lowered and disappear when it was raised again. He took this as evidence that the spikes attracted hidden electricity in the atmosphere and safely dispersed it before lightning could form.

Despite Diviš's enthusiasm, the invention faced skepticism from the scientific community. In 1759, when drought threatened the farmers of Přímětice, they dismantled the "weather machine" and blamed it for the lack of rain. Diviš then built a second "weather machine" and placed it on the church tower to prevent outsiders from destroying it. However, due to the villagers' complaints, the church authorities advised Diviš to stop the experiment.

Undaunted, Diviš continued to correspond with scientists and proposed a theory he called Magia naturalis. Diviš received support from two priests from Württemberg who came to watch his experiments and helped him publish the theory abroad the year Diviš died.

For decades, Benjamin Franklin was credited with inventing the lightning rod. However, in the late 19th century, the European scientific community began to claim that Prokop Diviš was the true father of the lightning rod. Some argued that his 1754, unsupported design provided better grounding than Franklin's experiment.

Today, Prokop Diviš is recognized as the independent developer of the lightning rod, along with Benjamin Franklin. Both men made significant contributions to the understanding and application of electricity. Their research had a lasting impact on lightning protection technology and safety.