Geologists have known for over 200 years that climate is one of the main controls on the accumulations of minerals and organic remains that end up as sedimentary rocks and fossils. This chapter opens with a discussion on the founding fathers. Comte de Buffon thought that the temperature of the air reflected the temperature of the Earth, rather than the heat from the Sun, and interpreted animal remains to show that the Earth was cooling from its original molten state. Georges Cuvier identified fossil species and their likely interrelationships. Unlike James Hutton, Cuvier was keen on the moulding of geological history by catastrophic events. Charles Lyell drew heavily on contemporary geological literature to produce the Principles. Jean Louis Rodolphe Agassiz highlighted how important ice may have been in the geological history of Europe and North America. Lyell stuck to the iceberg theory more or less unchanged throughout his life. Charles Lyell; climate; Comte de Buffon; geologists; Georges Cuvier; iceberg theory; James Hutton; Jean Louis Rodolphe Agassiz
