Leonardo Da Vinci, William Bourne and Cornelius Van Drebbel

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A very European venture: Invention of the submarine

Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519) made sketches of a submarine and William Bourne, a British mathematician, drew plans for a submarine in 1578. But it was only in 1620 that Cornelius van Drebbel, a Dutch inventor, managed to build a submarine. He wrapped a wooden rowboat tightly in waterproofed leather and had air tubes with floats to the surface to provide oxygen. Of course, there were no engines yet, so the oars went through the hull at leather gaskets. He took the first trip with 12 oarsmen in the Thames River – staying submerged for 3 hours.

About Leonardo da Vinci:

Hydraulics

da Vinci's extensive work in the study of hydraulics was focused on the canals of the Arno and Lombardy regions. It is suggested that he probably invented the hydrometer, a device widely used to measure the gravity or density of a liquid.

How New Jersey Saved Civilization: the first modern submarine

By Vicki Hyman/The Star-Ledger

February 08, 2010, 12:48AM

The long journey in the development of the submarine, from Leonardo da Vinci’s 16th-century sketches to the first modern vessel commissioned by the U.S. Navy 300 years later, is checkered with international intrigue, spectacular failures and mishaps that would be laughable had they not on occasion been fatal.

The first rudimentary submarine — a wooden rowboat wrapped in waterproof leather with air tubes leading to the surface — managed to stay submerged in the River Thames for three hours in 1620.

During the Revolutionary War, an American built a one-man model called the Turtle, which was to attach charges of gunpowder to the hulls of British ships. On its maiden voyage, it was towed out to sea, but the tide swept it past the warship.