De Jussieu, the name of a
French family which came into prominence towards the close of the sixteenth century, and was known for a century and a half for the
botanist
Botany, also called , plant biology or phytology, is the science of plant life and a branch of biology. A botanist, plant scientist or phytologist is a scientist who specialises in this field. The term "botany" comes from the Ancient Greek wo ...
s it produced. The following are its more eminent members:
*
Antoine de Jussieu
Antoine de Jussieu (6 July 168622 April 1758) was a French naturalist, botanist, and physician.
Jussieu was born in Lyon, the son of Christophe de Jussieu (or Dejussieu), an apothecary of some repute, who published a ''Nouveau traité de la ...
(1686–1758), born in
Lyon
Lyon,, ; Occitan: ''Lion'', hist. ''Lionés'' also spelled in English as Lyons, is the third-largest city and second-largest metropolitan area of France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of t ...
on 6 July 1686, was the son of
Christophe de Jussieu (or Dejussieu), an
apothecary
''Apothecary'' () is a mostly archaic term for a medical professional who formulates and dispenses '' materia medica'' (medicine) to physicians, surgeons, and patients. The modern chemist (British English) or pharmacist (British and North Ameri ...
of some repute, who published a ''Nouveau traité de la thériaque'' (1708). Antoine studied at the
University of Montpellier
The University of Montpellier (french: Université de Montpellier) is a public university, public research university located in Montpellier, in south-east of France. Established in 1220, the University of Montpellier is one of the oldest univ ...
, and travelled with his brother Bernard through
Spain
, image_flag = Bandera de España.svg
, image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg
, national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond")
, national_anthem = (English: "Royal March")
, i ...
,
Portugal
Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...
, and southern
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
. He went to Paris in 1708;
J. P. de Tournefort, whom he succeeded at the
Jardin des Plantes, dying in that year. His own original publications are not of marked importance, but he edited an edition of Tournefort's ''Institutiones rei herbariae'' (3 vols., 1719), and also a posthumous work of
Jacques Barrelier, ''Plantae per Galliam, Hispaniam, et Italiam observatae, &c.'' (1714). He practised
medicine
Medicine is the science and practice of caring for a patient, managing the diagnosis, prognosis, prevention, treatment, palliation of their injury or disease, and promoting their health. Medicine encompasses a variety of health care pract ...
, chiefly devoting himself to the very poor. He died in Paris on 22 April 1758.
*
Bernard de Jussieu
Bernard de Jussieu (; 17 August 1699 – 6 November 1777) was a French naturalist, younger brother of Antoine de Jussieu.
Bernard de Jussieu was born in Lyon. He took a medical degree at Montpellier and began practice in 1720, but finding the w ...
(1699–1777), a younger brother of the above, was born in
Lyon
Lyon,, ; Occitan: ''Lion'', hist. ''Lionés'' also spelled in English as Lyons, is the third-largest city and second-largest metropolitan area of France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of t ...
on 17 August 1699. He took a medical degree at
Montpellier
Montpellier (, , ; oc, Montpelhièr ) is a city in southern France near the Mediterranean Sea. One of the largest urban centres in the region of Occitania (administrative region), Occitania, Montpellier is the prefecture of the Departments of ...
and began practice in 1720, but finding the work uncongenial he gladly accepted his brother's invitation to Paris in 1722, when he succeeded
Sebastien Vaillant as sub-demonstrator of plants in the
Jardin du Roi. In 1725 he brought out a new edition of Tournefort's ''Histoire des Plantes qui naissent aux environs de Paris'', 2 vols., which was afterwards translated into English by
John Martyn
Iain David McGeachy (11 September 1948 – 29 January 2009), known professionally as John Martyn, was a Scottish singer-songwriter and guitarist. Over a 40-year career, he released 23 studio albums, and received frequent critical acclaim. ...
, the original work being incomplete. In the same year he was admitted into the
Académie des sciences
The French Academy of Sciences (French: ''Académie des sciences'') is a learned society, founded in 1666 by Louis XIV at the suggestion of Jean-Baptiste Colbert, to encourage and protect the spirit of French scientific research. It was at the ...
, and communicated several papers to that body. Long before
Abraham Trembley
Abraham Trembley (3 September 1710 – 12 May 1784 Geneva) was a Genevan naturalist. He is best known for being the first to study freshwater polyps or '' hydra'' and for being among the first to develop experimental zoology. His mastery of exp ...
(1700–1784) published his ''Histoire des polypes d'eau douce'', Jussieu maintained the doctrine that these
organism
In biology, an organism () is any living system that functions as an individual entity. All organisms are composed of cells (cell theory). Organisms are classified by taxonomy into groups such as multicellular animals, plants, and ...
s were
animal
Animals are multicellular, eukaryotic organisms in the Kingdom (biology), biological kingdom Animalia. With few exceptions, animals Heterotroph, consume organic material, Cellular respiration#Aerobic respiration, breathe oxygen, are Motilit ...
s, and not the
flower
A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproductive structure found in flowering plants (plants of the division Angiospermae). The biological function of a flower is to facilitate reproduction, usually by providing a mechani ...
s of marine plants, then the current notion; and to confirm his views he made three journeys to the coast of
Normandy
Normandy (; french: link=no, Normandie ; nrf, Normaundie, Nouormandie ; from Old French , plural of ''Normant'', originally from the word for "northman" in several Scandinavian languages) is a geographical and cultural region in Northwestern ...
. Singularly modest and retiring, he published very little, but in 1759 he arranged the plants in the royal garden of the
Trianon at
Versailles
The Palace of Versailles ( ; french: Château de Versailles ) is a former royal residence built by King Louis XIV located in Versailles, about west of Paris, France. The palace is owned by the French Republic and since 1995 has been managed, u ...
, according to his own scheme of classification. This arrangement is printed in his nephew's ''Genera'', and formed the basis of that work. He cared little for the credit of enunciating new discoveries, so long as the facts were made public. On the death of his brother Antoine, he could not be induced to succeed him in his office, but prevailed upon
L. G. Lemonnier to assume the higher position. He died in Paris on 6 November 1777.
*
Joseph de Jussieu
Joseph de Jussieu (3 September 1704 – 11 April 1779), was a French botanist and explorer, member of the Jussieu family. He introduced the common garden heliotrope ('' Heliotropium arborescens'') to European gardeners.
He was born in Lyon, and ...
(1704–1779), brother of Antoine and Bernard, was born in Lyon on 3 September 1704. Educated like the rest of the family for the medical profession, he accompanied
C. M. de la Condamine to
Peru
, image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg
, image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg
, other_symbol = Great Seal of the State
, other_symbol_type = Seal (emblem), National seal
, national_motto = "Fi ...
, in the expedition for measuring an
arc of the meridian
In geodesy and navigation, a meridian arc is the curve between two points on the Earth's surface having the same longitude. The term may refer either to a segment of the meridian, or to its length.
The purpose of measuring meridian arcs is to ...
, and remained in
South America
South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the southe ...
for thirty-six years, returning to France in 1771. Amongst the seeds he sent to his brother Bernard were those of ''
Heliotropium arborescens
''Heliotropium'' is a genus of flowering plants in the heliotrope family, Heliotropiaceae. There are around 325 species in this almost cosmopolitan genus, which are commonly known as heliotropes (sg. ). It is highly toxic for dogs and cats.
Et ...
'', then first introduced into Europe. He died in Paris on 11 April 1779.
*
Antoine Laurent de Jussieu
Antoine Laurent de Jussieu (; 12 April 1748 – 17 September 1836) was a French botanist, notable as the first to publish a natural classification of flowering plants; much of his system remains in use today. His classification was based on an e ...
(1748–1836), nephew of the three preceding, was born in Lyon on 12 April 1748. Called to Paris by his uncle Bernard, and carefully trained by him for the pursuits of medicine and botany, he largely profited by the opportunities afforded him. Gifted with a tenacious memory, and the power of quickly grasping the salient points of subjects under observation, he steadily worked at the improvement of that system of plant arrangement which had been sketched out by his uncle. In 1789 was issued his ''Genera piantarum secundum ordines naturales disposita, juxta methodum in horto regio Parisiensi exaratam''. This volume formed the basis of modern classification; more than this, it is certain that
Georges Cuvier
Jean Léopold Nicolas Frédéric, Baron Cuvier (; 23 August 1769 – 13 May 1832), known as Georges Cuvier, was a French natural history, naturalist and zoology, zoologist, sometimes referred to as the "founding father of paleontology". Cuvier ...
derived much help in his
zoological
Zoology ()The pronunciation of zoology as is usually regarded as nonstandard, though it is not uncommon. is the branch of biology that studies the animal kingdom, including the structure, embryology, evolution, classification, habits, and dis ...
classification from its perusal. Hardly had the last sheet passed through the press, when the
French Revolution
The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in November 1799. Many of its ideas are considere ...
broke out, and the author was installed in charge of the
hospital
A hospital is a health care institution providing patient treatment with specialized health science and auxiliary healthcare staff and medical equipment. The best-known type of hospital is the general hospital, which typically has an emerge ...
s of Paris. The
Museum d'histoire naturelle
The French National Museum of Natural History, known in French as the ' (abbreviation MNHN), is the national natural history museum of France and a ' of higher education part of Sorbonne Universities. The main museum, with four galleries, is loc ...
was organized on its present footing mainly by him in 1793, and he selected for its library everything relating to
natural history from the vast materials obtained from the
convent
A convent is a community of monks, nuns, religious brothers or, sisters or priests. Alternatively, ''convent'' means the building used by the community. The word is particularly used in the Catholic Church, Lutheran churches, and the Anglican ...
s then broken up. He continued as professor of botany there from 1770 to 1826, when his son Adrien succeeded him. Besides the ''Genera'', he produced nearly sixty memoirs on botanical topics. He died in Paris on 17 September 1836.
*
Adrien-Henri de Jussieu
Adrien-Henri de Jussieu (23 December 1797 – 29 June 1853) was a French botanist.
Born in Paris as the son of botanist Antoine Laurent de Jussieu, he received the degree of Doctor of Medicine in 1824 with a treatise of the plant family (biol ...
(1797–1853), son of Antoine Laurent, was born in Paris on 23 December 1797. He displayed the qualities of his family in his
thesis
A thesis ( : theses), or dissertation (abbreviated diss.), is a document submitted in support of candidature for an academic degree or professional qualification presenting the author's research and findings.International Standard ISO 7144: ...
for the degree of
M.D.
Doctor of Medicine (abbreviated M.D., from the Latin ''Medicinae Doctor'') is a medical degree, the meaning of which varies between different jurisdictions. In the United States, and some other countries, the M.D. denotes a professional degree. ...
, ''De Euphorbiacearum generibus medicisque earundem viribus tentamen'', Paris, 1824. He was also the author of valuable contributions to botanical literature on the ''
Rutaceae
The Rutaceae is a family, commonly known as the rue[RUTACEAE](_blank)
in BoDD – Botanical Derm ...
'', ''
Meliaceae
Meliaceae, the mahogany family, is a flowering plant family of mostly trees and shrubs (and a few herbaceous plants, mangroves) in the order Sapindales.
They are characterised by alternate, usually pinnate leaves without stipules, and by syncar ...
'' and ''
Malpighiaceae
Malpighiaceae is a family of flowering plants in the order Malpighiales. It comprises about 73 genera and 1315 species, all of which are native to the tropics and subtropics. About 80% of the genera and 90% of the species occur in the New World ( ...
'' respectively, of ''Taxonomie'' in the ''Dictionnaire universelle d'histoire naturelle'', and of an introductory work styled simply ''Botanique'', which reached nine editions, and was translated into the principal languages of Europe. He also edited his father's ''Introductio in Historiam Plantarum'', issued at Paris, without imprint or date, it being a fragment of the intended second edition of the ''Genera'', which Antoine Laurent did not live to complete. He died in Paris on 29 June 1853, leaving two daughters. He was the last of the great botanists of this de Jussieu dynasty.
*Laurent-Pierre De Jussieu (1792–1866), miscellaneous writer, nephew of Antoine Laurent, was born at
Villeurbanne
Villeurbanne (; frp, Velorbana) is a commune in the Metropolis of Lyon in Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in eastern France.
It is situated northeast of Lyon, with which it forms the heart of the second-largest metropolitan area in France after tha ...
on 7 February 1792. His ''Simon de Nantua, ou le marchand forain'' (1818), reached fifteen editions, and was translated into seven languages. He also wrote ''Simpies notions de physique et d'histoire naturelle'' (1857), and a few geological papers. He died at
Passy on 23 February 1866.
*Alexis de Jussieu (1802–1865), advocat, brother of Laurent-Pierre, was born on 17 August 1802. He was the editor of ''
Le Courrier français''. He died in
Saint-Nizier-sous-Charlieu,
Ain
Ain (, ; frp, En) is a department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in Eastern France. Named after the Ain river, it is bordered by the Saône and Rhône rivers. Ain is located on the country's eastern edge, on the Swiss border, where ...
on 25 October 1865.
References
*
{{authority control
French botanists
French families