The microscope was invented by a Dutch spectacle maker named Zaccharias Janssen around 1590.
In 1655, Robert Hooke of England created the first compound microscope, where two systems of lenses -- ocular (or eyepiece) lenses for viewing and objective lenses -- were used. He published Micrographia, the first book describing observations made through the microscope he built of a variety of organisms. In his book, Robert Hooke named the numerous compartments partitioned by walls as "cell."
The discovery of cells triggered the microscope's rapid advancement.
Antoni Van Leeuvenhoek of Holland made his own simple microscopes, which lead to his discovery of red blood cells in 1673, as well as the discovery of bacteria and human sperm.
Efforts to improve the microscope were made primarily in England in the 18th and 19th century. Microscopes developed by Leitz and Zeiss, both German companies, became popular in the last half of the 19th century and onward.
