Philosophiæ Naturalis Principia Mathematica

Before you start

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What overturned it

Still worth reading — this is where the argument went next.

• On the Electrodynamics of Moving BodiesAlbert Einstein, 1905Special relativity derived from two postulates, dissolving absolute time without introducing a single new force.

Groundwork for

Works in the library that name this one as a prerequisite.

• A Treatise on the Analytical Dynamics of Particles and Rigid BodiesE. T. Whittaker, 1904Systematises the dynamics of rigid bodies and constrained mechanical systems entirely within the Lagrangian and Hamiltonian apparatus.
• An Introduction to Celestial MechanicsForest Ray Moulton, 1902Builds orbital motion and perturbation methods up from Newtonian gravitation alone, and stood as the standard English-language course text for decades.