Alessandro Volta, an Italian physicist and chemist, created the first chemical battery, and as a result, founded the discipline of electrochemistry. The battery, called the voltaic pile, was one of the first chemical cells consisting of a zinc electrode and a copper electrode with saltwater brine as the electrolyte. This discovery of a way to create constant electric current led to more electricity-related discoveries later in the century. Image source: Public Domain, https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/06/Voltaic_pile.svg