The birth of the bicycle

Karl von Drais demonstrates his new invention

Born in Karlsruhe in 1785, Karl von Drais (a democrat who renounced his aristocratic title in 1848) trained for a career as a forestry officer, but was released from the service early to work as an inventor. Drais maintained an eclectic range of interests: in addition to developing mathematical formulae, he designed a high-speed typewriter, a wood-saving cooker and a cooking machine.

His most famous invention was inspired by watching people skate on ice. Mounting two wooden wheels in a wooden frame with a seat on it, Drais arranged a new contraption so that the rear wheel was fixed whilst the front wheel could be controlled by handlebars. A person sitting on the frame propelled the “draisine”, as the new mode of transport was called, by pushing off with each leg alternately. The first public test drive of Drais’ new invention took it from Mannheim to Schwetzingen and back and caused a stir due to the relatively high speeds at which the bicycle travelled. Drais was shrewd in his choice of road, which was the best in the whole of Baden. As almost all the other roads in Germany were of poorer quality, his new vehicle was of limited potential use. Nevertheless, it quickly became famous throughout Europe and was copied many times.