Abstract

This chapter considers what the theory actually achieved and specifically reexamines the meaning of the relativity principle. The question of its meaning was raised by critical observers whose comments led to a partial reinterpretation of general relativity. The German physicist Erich J. Kretschmann argued that the principle of general covariance has no physical content and only constitutes a mathematical requirement. This contention generated an exchange of letters in which Einstein conceded Kretschmann's criticism, but Einstein does not mention Kretschmann's remarks explicitly in his book. The chapter discusses these developments and correlates them with his correspondence with colleagues and with other texts he published during the formative years.

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