Several forms of kites and windsocks appear in writings and drawings as far back as 105 A.D. when Roman soldiers used them as military banners, but flying kites on a line was unknown. In the thirteenth century, Marco Polo brought back tales of kites from China, but they were regarded as curiosities and had little impact on European culture.
In the fifteenth century, Leonardo da Vinci experimented with kites as he became interested in flight and flying machines. His interest in kites may have led him to study clouds and air currents which led to the invention of the parachute and his drawing for a helicopter. He also developed a system for spanning a gorge with the help of a kite that would later be used to help build the bridge at Niagara Falls, but more on that a little later.
After the Dutch established trade routes with the East Indies in the mid-sixteenth century, kites were established widely in Europe. The new Eastern styles changed Western views of kites, but kites were still regarded as a children’s toy although some scientists began using kites in experiments. For example, in 1749 in Scotland, Alexander Wilson conducted experiments using a train of kites to measure temperatures at various levels of the atmosphere.
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