Cornelius Drebbel was a Dutch inventor, who built the first submarine. He was born in Alkmaar, in the Netherlands (then the Dutch Republic), the son of a wealthy farmer. Between 1620 and 1624, Drebbel built three different versions of his vessel, while working for the English Royal Navy. He tested them in the River Thames in London. There is a reconstruction of one of Drebbel’s submarines sits in Heron Square, London. It was based on design documents found at the Public Records Office in London, and made in 2003.
