Henri Farman (26 May 1874– 17 July 1958) was a British-French
aviator
An aircraft pilot or aviator is a person who controls the flight of an aircraft by operating its directional flight controls. Some other aircrew members, such as navigators or flight engineers, are also considered aviators, because they a ...
and aircraft designer and manufacturer with his brother
Maurice Farman
Maurice Alain Farman (21 March 1877 – 25 February 1964) was a British-French Grand Prix motor racing champion, an aviator, and an aircraft manufacturer and designer.
Biography
Born in Paris to English parents, he and his brothers Richard a ...
. Before dedicating himself to aviation he gained fame as a sportsman, specifically in cycling and motor racing. Henri took French nationality in 1937.Obituary: ''Flight''
Family and early life
Henri Farman was born in Paris, France, and was baptised as Harry Edgar Mudford Farman. He was a son of Thomas Frederick Farman, the Paris correspondent of the ''
London Standard
The ''Evening Standard'', formerly ''The Standard'' (1827–1904), also known as the ''London Evening Standard'', is a local free daily newspaper in London, England, published Monday to Friday in tabloid format.
In October 2009, after bei ...
.''"Aviators at Rheims. Personal Sketches: M. Henri Farman." ''London Evening Standard'', 24 August 1909, p. 8. The British Newspaper Archive: Findmypast Newspaper Archive Limited in partnership with the British Library. Retrieved 23 October 2020."Chapter Three: Awakening in France." ''Contact! The Story Of The Early Aviators.'' p. 38. Unabridged republication of the revised edition of ''Contact! The Story Of The Early Birds,'' The Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington, D.C., 1987, Dover Publications 2002, New York. Accessed via Google books. Retrieved 13 August 2020. His father was born in 1845 at
Layer Marney
Layer Marney is a village and civil parish near to Tiptree, in the Colchester borough, in the county of Essex, England. Layer Marney has a Tudor palace called Layer Marney Tower and a church called Church of St Mary the Virgin. In 2001 the po ...
, Essex, England."England and Wales Census, 1871", database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:VF8G-DFL : 27 September 2019), Thomas Farman in entry for Frederick Mudford, 1871. Retrieved 13 August 2020. His mother, Sophia Ann Louisa Mudford, was born in
Canterbury
Canterbury (, ) is a cathedral city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, situated in the heart of the City of Canterbury local government district of Kent, England. It lies on the River Stour.
The Archbishop of Canterbury is the primate of ...
, Kent, on 9 September 1841. She was baptised on 16 July 1844 at St Pancras Old Church in London, and was a daughter of the author
William Mudford
William Mudford (8 January 1782 – 10 March 1848) was a British writer, essayist, translator of literary works and journalist. He also wrote critical and philosophical essays and reviews. His 1829 novel ''The Five Nights of St. Albans: A Romance ...
, who by the time of Sophia's baptism was living at Harrington Square. Sophia and Thomas were married at
St George's Hanover Square Church
St George's, Hanover Square, is an Anglican church, the parish church of Mayfair in the City of Westminster, central London, built in the early eighteenth century as part of a project to build fifty new churches around London (the Queen Ann ...
Maurice Farman
Maurice Alain Farman (21 March 1877 – 25 February 1964) was a British-French Grand Prix motor racing champion, an aviator, and an aircraft manufacturer and designer.
Biography
Born in Paris to English parents, he and his brothers Richard a ...
, forming a successful partnership.
On 31 January 1895, at the
, the Farman brothers broke the tandem bicycle record, covering 44.906 kilometres in an hour.
They announced their retirement from cycling in November 1896.
Motor racing
At around the same time as his brother Maurice, Henri discovered
motor racing
Motorsport, motorsports or motor sport is a global term used to encompass the group of competitive sporting events which primarily involve the use of motorized vehicles. The terminology can also be used to describe forms of competition of tw ...
. On 17 February 1901, he won the light car class (400 – 650 kg) ''Grand Prix du Palais d'Hiver,'' of the ''Circuit du sud-ouest.'' Maurice Farman won the heavy car class of the race. On 29 May 1901, Henri took part in the Paris-Bordeaux race and finished in seventh place. This was an open-entry race held concurrently with the
1901 Gordon Bennett Cup
The 1901 Gordon Bennett Cup, formally titled the II Coupe Internationale, was a motor race held on 29 May 1901, on public roads in France between Paris and Bordeaux, concurrently with an open-entry race over the same course. Initially, France were ...
, and over the same course. Fifth place was taken in the 1901 Paris to Berlin Race. Henri won the heavy class section of the 1902 Paris - Vienna race. Marcel Renault came first in the general classification of this race. He took third place in the 1903 Gordon Bennett Cup.
He had an accident during the elimination trials for the 1905 Gordon Bennett Cup, on 16 June, over the hilly Auvergne circuit. While on the last round of this circuit, descending the Clermont Ferrand hill, on one of the turns in that descent, his car skidded. Henri and his chauffeur were lifted from the car, and ended up on top of a tree. Many onlookers believed he had been killed. But Henri was unharmed, came down from the tree and smoked a cigarette. He believed his car had ended up at the bottom of a ravine after this accident, but was not certain about the final destination of it.
Aviation
He started practising in 1907 with a homemade biplane glider on the sandhills of
Le Touquet
Le Touquet-Paris-Plage (; pcd, Ech Toutchet-Paris-Plache; vls, 't Oekske, older nl, Het Hoekske), commonly referred to as Le Touquet (), is a commune near Étaples, in the Pas-de-Calais department, northern France. It has a population of ...
, after first experimenting with model aeroplanes of different sizes.
Henri then decided he wanted a machine powered plane, and ordered a
Voisin 1907 biplane
The 1907 Voisin biplane (designated the Voisin II by the 1913 edition of '' Jane's All the World's Aircraft''), was the first successful powered aircraft designed by aeronautical engineer and manufacturer Gabriel Voisin. It was used by the ...
on 1 June 1907. He used this aircraft to set many official records for both distance and duration.
On 26 October 1907, at
, France, he made flights, among others, of 363, 403, and 771 metres in the plane. And he also started to turn the plane in the air on this date. The distance of 771 metres was completed in 52 seconds. It was the longest flight in the world that year, and won Farman the Ernest Archdeacon Cup. He made a complete circular flight of 1,030 metres, in 1 minute 14 seconds on 10 November 1907 at Issy. This was the first time that a European aeroplane had completed a full circle. And the first time that an aeroplane, other than a Wright brothers one, had stayed in the air for longer than a minute.
The ''Voisin-Farman I'' was also the first biplane in Europe to fly a circular circuit of 1 kilometre, over a predetermined course, on 13 January 1908.I." ''Encyclopædia Britannica,'' Encyclopædia Britannica, inc., Tom D. Crouch, 27 January 2010. Retrieved 11 August 2020. This again occurred at
, France, and won Henri the 50,000 franc Grand Prix d'Aviation offered by
Henri Deutsch de la Meurthe
Henri Deutsch de la Meurthe (; 25 September 1846 – 24 November 1919), born Salomon Henry Deutsch, was a successful French petroleum businessman (known as the "Oil King of Europe"Howard, Fred, ''Wilbur & Orville: A Biography'', Dover Publicatio ...
. And on 21 March 1908, at the same place, he made a flight of 2.004 kilometres.of Mechanical Flight" ''Flight'', 2 January 1909, p. 12. Accessed via the Internet Archive, Wayback Machine. Retrieved 10 August 2020.
On 30 October 1908, Farman went on to make the first cross-country flight in Europe. Henri flew from his hangars at
Camp de Châlons
The camp de Châlons, also known as camp de Mourmelon, is a military camp of about 10,000 hectares at Mourmelon-le-Grand, near Châlons-en-Champagne. It was created at the behest of Napoleon III and opened August 30, 1857 during the Second French ...
Reims
Reims ( , , ; also spelled Rheims in English) is the most populous city in the French department of Marne, and the 12th most populous city in France. The city lies northeast of Paris on the Vesle river, a tributary of the Aisne.
Founded ...
Gabriel Voisin
Gabriel Voisin (5 February 1880 – 25 December 1973) was a French aviation pioneer and the creator of Europe's first manned, engine-powered, heavier-than-air aircraft capable of a sustained (1 km), circular, controlled flight, which was made ...
because Voisin had sold an aircraft that had been built to Farman's specifications to J.T.C. Moore-Brabazon. This aircraft was named the ''Bird of Passage'' by Brabazon. So Henri started manufacturing aircraft to his own design. The first of these, the
Farman III
The Farman III, also known as the Henry Farman 1909 biplane, was an early French aircraft designed and built by Henry FarmanIII." ''Encyclopædia Britannica,'' Encyclopædia Britannica, inc., Tom D. Crouch, 4 April 2008. Retrieved 11 August 2020.
In 1909, he opened a flying school at Châlons-sur-Marne at which George Bertram Cockburn was the first pupil. In this same year he made further record breaking flights. One of 180 kilometres in just over 3 hours, at
Reims
Reims ( , , ; also spelled Rheims in English) is the most populous city in the French department of Marne, and the 12th most populous city in France. The city lies northeast of Paris on the Vesle river, a tributary of the Aisne.
Founded ...
on 27 August. And one of 232 kilometres in 4 hours 17 minutes and 53 seconds, at
Mourmelon-le-Grand
Mourmelon-le-Grand () is a commune in the Marne department in north-eastern France.
Population
Camp de Châlons
The ''camp de Châlons'', also known as ''camp de Mourmelon'', is a military camp of circa 10,000 hectares near Mourmelon-le-Gr ...
air show
An air show (or airshow, air fair, air tattoo) is a public event where aircraft are exhibited.
They often include aerobatics demonstrations, without they are called "static air shows" with aircraft parked on the ground.
The largest air show ...
, at which he won over £2000 in prizes.
In partnership with his two brothers Maurice and Richard (Dick), he built a highly successful and innovative aircraft manufacturing plant. Their 1914 model was used extensively for artillery observation and reconnaissance during World War I. The
Farman Aircraft
Farman Aviation Works (french: Avions Farman) was a French aircraft company founded and run by the brothers Richard, Henri, and Maurice Farman. They designed and constructed aircraft and engines from 1908 until 1936; during the French national ...
company's ''Goliath'' was the first long-distance passenger
airliner
An airliner is a type of aircraft for transporting passengers and air cargo. Such aircraft are most often operated by airlines. Although the definition of an airliner can vary from country to country, an airliner is typically defined as an ...
, beginning regular Paris-London (
Croydon Airport
Croydon Airport (former International Civil Aviation Organization airport code, ICAO code: EGCR) was the UK's only international airport during the interwar period. Located in Croydon, South London, England, it opened in 1920, built in a Neocla ...
) flights on 8 February 1919.
He was made a chevalier of the French
in 1919. Along with Maurice, he retired in 1937 when the French Popular Front government nationalised the aircraft industry; Farman's company becoming part of the ''
Societe Nationale de Constructions Aeronautiques du Centre
SNCAC (the ', sometimes known as ) was a French aircraft manufacturer created by the nationalisation of the Farman Aviation Works and Hanriot firms in 1936 in aviation, 1936.
It was liquidated in 1949, with assets distributed between SNCAN, SNC ...
''.
Henry Farman took French nationality in 1937.
He died in Paris on 17 July 1958 and is buried in the Cimetière de Passy in Paris.
In 1988, Farman was inducted into the
International Air & Space Hall of Fame
The International Air & Space Hall of Fame is an honor roll of people, groups, organizations, or things that have contributed significantly to the advancement of aerospace flight and technology, sponsored by the San Diego Air & Space Museum. Sin ...
at the
San Diego Air & Space Museum
San Diego Air & Space Museum (SDASM, formerly the San Diego Aerospace Museum) is an aviation and space exploration museum in San Diego, California, United States. The museum is located in Balboa Park and is housed in the former Ford Building, ...
.Sprekelmeyer, Linda, editor. ''These We Honor: The International Aerospace Hall of Fame''. Donning Co. Publishers, 2006. .
See also
*
Farman Aviation Works
Farman Aviation Works (french: Avions Farman) was a French aircraft company founded and run by the brothers Richard, Henri, and Maurice Farman. They designed and constructed aircraft and engines from 1908 until 1936; during the French national ...
*
Farman III
The Farman III, also known as the Henry Farman 1909 biplane, was an early French aircraft designed and built by Henry FarmanFarman F.60 Goliath
*
Farman F.121 Jabiru
The Farman F.120 and its derivatives were a family of multi-engine airliners and bombers of the 1920s built by the Farman Aviation Works in France.
Design and development
The Jabiru, which was named after a Latin American stork, was a fixed- ...
Farman F 402
The Farman F 400 was a 1930s French three-seat cabin high-winged monoplane which was designed and built by Farman.
Design and development
The Farman series "400" was a revolution for its builder because it had a thin, cantilever-constructed, h ...