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The heliograph's 158-year history spans from a mathematical surveying tool to a guerrilla warfare communication device. This simple, reliable technology remains relevant across multiple technological revolutions.
German mathematician Carl Friedrich Gauss invented the heliotrope in 1821 for geodetic surveying. The invention used mirrors to reflect sunlight for precise triangulation measurements. Soon after, Gauss suggested the device could be used for telegraphic communication.
In 1869, British electrical engineer Henry Christopher Mance, working with the Persian Gulf Telegraph Department, developed the first widely used heliograph in British India. His improved design used mirrors and shutters to transmit Morse code over 35 miles. At first, the British government dismissed the improved design.
But the new heliograph succeeded during the Second Afghan War (1878-1880), earning Mance a knighthood in 1885.
The British-Indian Army first deployed heliographs in warfare during their expedition against the Jowaki Afridi tribe in present-day Pakistan. Brigadier General Campbell Chambers commanded the operation, during which the device proved invaluable for communication across rugged mountain terrain. This made it an important military utility to the British military.
U.S. Army Colonel Nelson A. Miles created a 140-mile heliograph network connecting Fort Keogh and Fort Custer in Montana Territory around mid-1878. This system coordinated military operations during the Indian Wars. The heliograph proved especially effective across America's vast western landscapes.
A decade later, General Nelson A. Miles updated the network to 2,000 more miles across Arizona and New Mexico, with 27 stations, to pursue Apache leader Geronimo. The communication system had stations at Bowie Peak and Antelope Springs. It facilitated rapid coordination, contributing to Geronimo's eventual surrender, effectively ending the Indian Wars.
Major W.J. Volkmar of the U.S. Army Signal Corps conducted systematic tests in Arizona and New Mexico, achieving successful heliograph communication at distances of 85, 88, 95, and 125 miles.
On September 17, 1894, the U.S. Army Signal Corps achieved a world record by transmitting heliograph messages using 8-inch mirrors 183 miles between Mount Ellen, Utah, and Mount Uncompahgre, Colorado.
Both British and Boer forces used heliographs during the Second Boer War, particularly during sieges like Ladysmith. The British innovated by using tubes to narrow beams (reducing interception risk) and deploying balloon-mounted heliographs for aerial observation. Communication ranges reached up to 100 miles. It was even used by famous commanders like Winston Churchill and Lord Kitchener.
The U.S. Forestry Service started adopting heliographs for forest protection in 1909. Forest rangers used these devices for rapid fire detection and reporting in remote areas. I showed that the technology could be used outside of war and in civilian communication as well.
Before World War I, the Russian Imperial Army adopted heliographs for cavalry scouting and reporting across Russia's vast territories. During the Russian Civil War, the Bolshevik Red Army used heliographs for intelligence gathering. Later, in 1926, Basmachi rebels in Central Asia's Turkestan, led by figures like former Ottoman general Enver Pasha, used heliographs for communication during their uprising against Soviet rule.
The heliograph remained standard equipment in British, Australian, and Canadian armies until the 1940s, with the Canadian Army among the last major forces to retire the device. The Heliograph saw the end of its modern use when radio technology proved to be a superior alternative for military communication.
Although retired in the west, during the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, Afghan Mujahideen fighters, including groups led by future resistance leader Ahmad Shah Massoud, used heliographs for communication. It still proved successful in guerrilla warfare.
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