The Illustrious Pre-Upright Microscope - History of Microscopes

You have heard of the upright microscope, as well as the inverted microscopes . You may have even heard of biological microscopes and industrial microscopes. But really, do you know how, where, and even when the idea of the microscope was conceived? Truly, how well do you know microscopes?
Microscopes, A History
You probably know that the 'father of microscopy' is a man known as Antoni van Leeuwenhoek. But to assume that he earned such a moniker because he invented the microscope is nothing short of idiotic. In fact, nothing could be farther than the truth.
The true inventors of the earliest microscope were two rather obscure eyeglass makers from Middelburg, Netherlands named Zacharias Janssen and Hans Lippershey. (The latter also invented the first telescope, not Galileo Galilei as what is more commonly assumed, but that's another story.) This was back in 1590.
Since then, there has been numerous historical accounts wherein the earliest forms of the microscope (and again, this was well before the idea of the upright microscope, industrial microscopes , inverted microscope, etc. were even conceived) was used in a biological sense. Sometime in 1644, the internal workings of living tissue was documented for the very first time through a microscope in L'ochio della mosca (which translates to The Fly's Eye), published by the Italian, Giambattista Odierna.
Next to go literally under the microscope were the lungs sometime between 1660 and 1670 in Marcelo Malpighi's quest for a better understanding of biological structures. And then there was Robert Hooke who illustrated - and rather impressively, too - his findings in the then-bestseller, Micrographia.
So considering how widely used the microscope was back in this age of discovery, why was Antoni van Leeuwenhoek, of all people, awarded the illustrious - albeit dubious - honor or being the undisputed 'father of microscopy'? Well, this is largely due to the fact that it was he who discovered micro-organisms. That is to say, it was he who unearthed an entire, minuscule, functioning universe beneath the lenses of the microscope.
Truly, it does pay to look where no one would think of looking because if it wasn't for Antoni van Leeuwenhoek, the full potential of the microscope would not have been realized and maximized with the advent of the upright microscopes and other varieties.
Microscopes, Today
Today, the microscope has come a long way from the simpler and more straightforward device of old. In fact, if investors Zacharias Janssen and Hans Lippershey and even Antoni van Leeuwenhoek saw any one of the newer and more powerful microscopes today (like the upright microscope, for example), they probably would not even recognize it for what it once was!
Predominantly used in biology, today's microscopes are now classified within four main types, namely, compound, dissection, Transmission Electron Microscope (TEM), and Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM). The first two, compound and dissection, are both illuminated by light, while the latter two are illuminated by electrons.
There are also many different kinds of microscopes divided amongst these four main types - subtypes, if you will. Each one has a specific and unique specialty that suits specific branches of biology.
So whether you go for an upright microscope or an inverted one, it definitely pays to know its history to help you appreciate your equipment better.