Database: Chappe Signal Towers

In 1794, Claude Chappe developed a new means of communication via a practical system of semaphore relay stations. The relay line consisted of towers spaced between 12 and 25 kilometers apart, each fitted with a telescope. This made it possible to quickly transmit crucial information. And so, on September 1, 1794, in less than an hour, Parisians were informed of the capture of from the Austrians, 220 kilometers away. *
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* Of course, some of the nuances of the message were lost along the way. I imagine by the end they were under the impression that someone had caught a Condescending Leprechaun in Australia.
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