Jean-Pierre Blanchard

Jean-Pierre Blanchard

Jean-Pierre [François] Blanchard (French pronunciation: [ʒɑ̃ pjɛʁ blɑ̃ʃaʁ]; 4 July 1753 – 7 March 1809) was a French inventor, best known as a pioneer of gas balloon flight, who distinguished himself in the conquest of the air in a balloon, Notable for his successful hydrogen balloon flight in Paris on 2 March 1784, Blanchard later moved to London and undertook flights with varying propulsion mechanisms. His historic achievement came on 7 January 1785, crossing the English Channel from Dover Castle to Guînes in about 2½ hours, receiving acclaim from Louis XVI and earning a substantial pension. Touring Europe, Blanchard demonstrated his balloons and showcased the modern parachute, which he later used for a successful escape in 1793 when his hydrogen balloon ruptured. Read more on Wikipedia

Since 2007, the English Wikipedia page of Jean-Pierre Blanchard has received more than 214,157 page views. His biography is available in 26 different languages on Wikipedia (up from 25 in 2019). Jean-Pierre Blanchard is the 122nd most popular inventor (up from 142nd in 2019), the 1,434th most popular biography from France (up from 1,774th in 2019) and the 19th most popular French Inventor.