Galileo Publishes Dialogue on the Two Chief World Systems

On February 22, 1632, Galileo Galilei published "Dialogue Concerning the Two Chief World Systems," comparing the Copernican heliocentric model with the Ptolemaic geocentric system through conversations between three characters. Written in Italian rather than Latin, the book reached a broader audience. The Church viewed it as advocating heliocentrism despite Galileo receiving permission to present both systems equally. By 1633, the Inquisition tried Galileo for heresy, forced him to recant, and placed him under house arrest for life.