born July 4, 1753, Les Andelys, France
died March 7, 1809, Paris
French balloonist.
In 1785 he made the first aerial crossing of the English Channel, accompanied by John Jeffries, a U.S. doctor. He invented a parachute in 1785. His balloon flights in other European countries and in the U.S. in 1793 spurred an interest in ballooning. He and his wife performed many exhibitions in Europe; they died in separate balloon accidents.
J.-P.-F. Blanchard, engraving by James Newton, 1785, after an oil painting by Richard Livesay
By courtesy of the Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.