| Administrative History | The paper referred to the earthquake of November 1822, which was the subject of Maria Graham's paper “An Account of some Effects of the late Earthquakes in Chili”, 'Transactions of the Geological Society' (1824).
The earthquake became the focus of George Bellas Greenough's 1834 Anniversary Address. Greenough disagreed with Charles Lyell's assertion of the elevation of land by earthquakes, which Lyell had written about in his book 'Principles of Geology'. However, instead of directly attacking the author, Greenough took issue with one of the eyewitness accounts which Lyell cited - that of Maria Graham [later Lady Maria Callcott]. Lady Callcott took exception to being called a liar, and published a vigorous defence in 1834. The controversy rolled on for another year or so, resulting in other papers on the subject being sent to the Society. |