Newtonian physics

I found it very interesting to proceed from the astronomy and mathematics of Galileo to that of Newton. We strongly emphasized in class the empirical nature of Galileo's observations. For example, he came to conclusions about motion by performing the pendulum and inclined plane experiments that we also performed in our lab.

As I read in the introduction to Newton's Principia, however, "Newton used minimal experimental data" (xii). He attempted to proceed from purely mathematical demonstrations to come to his conclusion. As we began this class with Francis Bacon, the founder of induction, I think it is critical to remark that this deviates greatly from the hands-on science that Bacon endorses.

After the trial of Galileo, could Newton have been attempting to provide a sounder basis for mathematics and physics? Instead of coming to conclusions based on empirical data (like Galileo), Newton tried to show the logically sound deductive basis of his system of physics. Is this approach more or less successful than the approach of Galileo? Do we think that it would have been received better or worse?