Sir Francis Ronalds (1788–1873) was an English scientist, inventor, and one of the earliest electrical engineers. A pioneer in telecommunication, he was knighted for creating the first working electric telegraph over a substantial distance. Ronalds also invented the first electric clock in 1814 and made important contributions to meteorology. Through his experiments, he discovered that electrical signals traveled with extraordinary speed, although he argued that the velocity must still be finite. His innovative curiosity and precise engineering laid the groundwork for the electric communication systems that would transform the modern world.

In 1816, working in his mother’s garden, Ronalds set up eight miles of wire on silk strings and wooden frames to test whether electricity could carry messages. He later buried about 585 feet of the wire in glass tubes sealed inside a wooden conduit filled with pitch thereby creating what is now considered the first underground telegraph cable. At each end, rotating dials displayed letters, and when the sender grounded the wire, small pith balls at the receiver moved to show the chosen letter. Though the process was slow and required careful timing, Ronalds’s experiment proved that messages could travel instantly by electricity – an idea that paved the way for the telegraph systems that followed.