The First Subsea Communication Cable: London to Paris
Americans like to focus on the first short lived Trans-Atlantic cable, a project completed in 1858. But the first commercial and successful subsea communication cable connected Paris and London. The honors go to the startup English Channel Submarine Cable Company, which two engineer brothers, Jacob and John Watkins Brett, founded. Its first attempt in 1850 failed. There are several differing accounts. What these accounts have in common is that the cable had no protection. One colorful story is that the cable lasted 24 hours before a French fisherman cut the cable thinking it was a new type of seaweed. According to this account, the cable sent a telegraph message to Prince Louis Napoleon Bonaparte before the cable died. Other more reliable accounts suggest the cable never worked at all. But the second attempt in 1851 using armored cable was successful. Commercial telegraph service between London and Paris began November13, 1851. Landing points were near Calais and Dover. It was viewed a...