The Road to Relativity

An annotated facsimile edition of Einstein’s handwritten manuscript on the foundations of general relativity

This richly annotated facsimile edition of “The Foundation of General Relativity” introduces a new generation of readers to Albert Einstein’s theory of gravitation. Written in 1915, this remarkable document is a watershed in the history of physics and an enduring testament to the elegance and precision of Einstein’s thought. Presented here is a beautiful facsimile of Einstein’s original handwritten manuscript, along with its English translation and an insightful page-by-page commentary that places the work in historical and scientific context. Hanoch Gutfreund and Jürgen Renn’s concise introduction traces Einstein’s intellectual odyssey from special to general relativity, and their essay “The Charm of a Manuscript” provides a delightful meditation on the varied afterlife of Einstein’s text. Featuring a foreword by John Stachel, this handsome edition also includes a biographical glossary of the figures discussed in the book, a comprehensive bibliography, suggestions for further reading, and numerous photos and illustrations throughout.

Table of Contents

A. Fundamental Considerations on the Postulate of Relativity

1. Observations on the Special Theory of Relativity

2. The Need for an Extension of the Postulate of Relativity

3. The Spacetime Continuum. Requirement of General Covariance for the Equations Expressing General Laws of Nature

4. The Relation of the Four Coordinates to Measurement in Space and Time

5. Contravariant and Covariant Four- vectors

6. Tensors of the Second and Higher Ranks

7. Multiplication of Tensors

8. Some Aspects of the Fundamental Tensor g

9. The Equation of the Geodetic Line. The Motion of a Particle

B. Mathematical Aids to the Formulation of Generally Covariant Equations

10. The Formation of Tensors by Differentiation

11. Some Cases of Special Importance

12. The Riemann- Christoffel Tensor

C. Theory of the Gravitational Field

13. Equations of Motion of a Material Point in the Gravitational Field. Expression for the Field- components of Gravitation

14. The Field Equations of Gravitation in the Absence of Matter

15. The Hamilto

16. The General Form of the Field Equations of Gravitation

17. The Laws of Conservation in the General Case

18. The Laws of Momentum and Energy for Matter, as a Consequence of the Field Equations

D. Material Phenomena

19. Euler’s Equations for a Frictionless Adiabatic Fluid

20. Maxwell’s Electromagnetic Field Equations for Free Space

E.

21. Newton’s Theory as a First Approximation

22. Behavior of Rods and Clocks in the Static Gravitational Field. Bending of Light- rays. Motion of the Perihelion of a Planetary Orbit

Appendix: Presentation of the Theory on the Basis of a Variational Principle

About the Authors

Hanoch Gutfreund is professor emeritus of theoretical physics at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, where he is also the academic director of the Albert Einstein Archives. 

Jürgen Renn is a director at the Max Planck Institute for the History of Science in Berlin.