During his stay in Padua ca. 1592–1610, Galileo
Galilei (1564–1642) was a lecturer of mathematics at the
University of Padua and a tutor to private students of military
architecture and fortifications. He carried out these activities
at the Academia degli Artisti. At the same time, and in relation
to his teaching activities, he began to study the equilibrium
of bodies and strength of materials, later better
structured and completed in his Dialogues Concerning Two
New Sciences of 1638. This paper examines important details
of four works dating to the Paduan period: Breve instruzione
dell’architettura militare; Trattato di Fortificazione; Le
Mecaniche; Le operazioni del compasso geometrico et militare.
The two works on military architecture and fortifications
were compiled from notes taken by students, and are
not by Galileo’s hand, but are still illustrative of his work and
thinking at the time.
