Sir Newton FRS was an English mathematician, physicist, astronomer, alchemist, theologian, and author who was described in his time as a natural philosopher. He was a key figure in the Scientific Revolution and the Enlightenment that followed.
From the age of about twelve until he was seventeen, Newton was educated at
The King's School in
Grantham, which taught
Latin and
Ancient Greek and probably imparted a significant foundation of mathematics.
[21] He was removed from school and returned to Woolsthorpe-by-Colsterworth by October 1659. His mother, widowed for the second time, attempted to make him a farmer, an occupation he hated.
[22] Henry Stokes, master at The King's School, persuaded his mother to send him back to school. Motivated partly by a desire for revenge against a schoolyard bully, he became the top-ranked student,
[23] distinguishing himself mainly by building
sundials and models of windmills.