Land surveying is probably the oldest professions on earth. Ever since man has decided a part of land should belong to a tribe, the necessity for surveying began.
Land surveying is fascinating. The methods used seek to decide which part of land belongs to whom, hopefully ending arguments once and for all.
The bottom line is, surveying is really a process using mathematical methods to survey land.
The initial accounts of surveying land dates back to ancient Egypt. Experts have found evidences that the ancient Egyptians used basic geometry to redraw the lines of boundary once the Nile River overflowed. An Egyptian land register dating back to to 3000 BC was also found.
Following Egyptians, the Romans - also one of the powerful civilizations of the ancient world - practiced land surveying. They took it one step further and made "land surveyor" the official position within the Empire. They were called agrimensores, often known as Corpus Agrimensorum Romanorum. Although they used very easy tools, these were very thorough with their jobs and would create straight lines and correct angles with the use of these tools. Following https://landsurveyorgreatermanchester.co.uk/best-measured-building-survey-greater-manchester/ were measured, they might create shallow ditches to mark the lines. In fact, some of the furrows they made still exist today.
Among the recorded land surveying of the "modern" times is that of William the Conqueror who wrote the Domesday Book in 1086. This book is truly a list of names of land owners, the volume of land they owned along with other information regarding the land. While it was an amazing quantity of information during this time, the pieces of information weren't 100% correct. The locations were not accurate and the maps weren't made to scale.
Among history's greatest icons was also an avid surveyor - Napoleon Bonaparte. The fascination with surveying land was really just a product of his desire to conquer the world. Napoleon Bonaparte founded a registry called the cadastre. This consists of a registry of properties of a county, ownership details, locations so when much information regarding the land's value. Yes, Napoleon Bonaparte can be considered a land surveyor - and an extremely smart man.
The techniques used for land surveying also have evolved on the centuries. In the past, people would use whatever could help them determine the length from one point to another. This implies using chains with links and also ropes. Needless to say, this didn't give accurate results however they didn't have the technology we've back then.
Today, land surveyors have the best technologies to help them making use of their job. There is GPS, or Global Positioning System, which is probably the most accurate technologies being used today. Total stations are also very important to a land surveyor, which employs the use of an EDM or Electronic Distance Measurement device along with a theodolite which allows for more precise angle and distance measurements.