Jacques Barbeu-Dubourg (12 February 1709 – 14 December 1779) was a French physician, botanist, writer, translator and publisher known for translating

Benjamin Franklin Benjamin Franklin ( April 17, 1790) was an American polymath who was active as a writer, scientist, inventor, statesman, diplomat, printer, publisher, and political philosopher. Encyclopædia Britannica, Wood, 2021 Among the leading inte ...

's work into French and for inventing a gentlemen's umbrella fitted with a

lightning conductor A lightning rod or lightning conductor (British English) is a metal rod mounted on a structure and intended to protect the structure from a lightning strike. If lightning hits the structure, it will preferentially strike the rod and be conducte ...

. He designed a method of histographic visualizations which he called the ''Carte chronographique''.

Life

He first embarked on theological studies, but abandoned this to devote his life to science. He studied medicine in Paris and obtained a doctorate in 1748. He was a keen follower of the work of Benjamin Franklin, and they maintained a regular friendly correspondence. He translated some of Franklin's early experimental work into French in 1762 and published it in ''Gazette d'Epidaure'', his medical journal. He went on to publish his French translation of Franklin's ''Observations and Experiments'' in 1773. Barbeu-Dubourg's "umbrella-lightning rod", an umbrella fitted with a tall spike and trailing chain, was designed to give the same protection for gentlemen as was sought by ladies of the time who wore lightning conductors on their hats. Barbeu-Dubourg was a member of the Royal Society of Medicine in Paris, the

Medical Society of London The Medical Society of London is one of the oldest surviving medical societies (being organisations of voluntary association, rather than regulation or training) in the United Kingdom. It was founded in 1773 by the Quaker physician and philanthro ...

and the

American Philosophical Society The American Philosophical Society (APS), founded in 1743 in Philadelphia, is a scholarly organization that promotes knowledge in the sciences and humanities through research, professional meetings, publications, library resources, and communit ...

of Philadelphia. He wrote numerous books and papers, including: *''Chronographie, ou Description des tems, contenant toute la suite des souverains de l'univers et des principaux événements de chaque siècle...'' (Paris, 1753), one of the most ambitious of the chronographic charts produced during that period. The chart was 54 feet long, and mounted on an apparatus with scrolls and cranks to allow the reader to move freely through world history, a device which Barbeu-Dubourg called a "chronographic machine". *''Gazette d'Épidaure, ou Recueil de nouvelles de médecine avec des réflexions pour simplifier la théorie et éclairer la pratique'' (Paris, 1762) *'Le Botaniste françois, comprenant toutes les plantes communes et usuelles...'' (two volumes, Paris, 1767) *''Petit Code de la raison humaine, ou Exposition succincte de ce que la raison dicte à tous les hommes pour éclairer leur conduite et assurer leur bonheur'' (Paris, 1789) During the

American Revolution The American Revolution was an ideological and political revolution that occurred in British America between 1765 and 1791. The Americans in the Thirteen Colonies formed independent states that defeated the British in the American Revolut ...

the French government appointed Barbeu-Dubourg to act as secret intermediary to offer support to the Americans, but he was soon deemed unsuitable for the task and replaced by

Beaumarchais Pierre-Augustin Caron de Beaumarchais (; 24 January 1732 – 18 May 1799) was a French polymath. At various times in his life, he was a watchmaker, inventor, playwright, musician, diplomat, spy, publisher, horticulturist, arms dealer, satirist, ...

. As Streeter Bass recounts, "He was too old, he lacked business acumen, and – more serious in a venture of this nature – he was insecure and garrulous." Barbeu-Dubourg wrote the article ″Chronologique″ for the

Encyclopédie ''Encyclopédie, ou dictionnaire raisonné des sciences, des arts et des métiers'' (English: ''Encyclopedia, or a Systematic Dictionary of the Sciences, Arts, and Crafts''), better known as ''Encyclopédie'', was a general encyclopedia publis ...

Denis Diderot Denis Diderot (; ; 5 October 171331 July 1784) was a French philosopher, art critic, and writer, best known for serving as co-founder, chief editor, and contributor to the ''Encyclopédie'' along with Jean le Rond d'Alembert. He was a promine ...

and

Jean le Rond d'Alembert Jean-Baptiste le Rond d'Alembert (; ; 16 November 1717 – 29 October 1783) was a French mathematician, mechanician, physicist, philosopher, and music theorist. Until 1759 he was, together with Denis Diderot, a co-editor of the ''Encyclopédie ...

. He died in 1779 in Paris and his ashes were buried in the chapel of Saint-Symphorien church in

Saint-Germain-des-Prés Saint-Germain-des-Prés () is one of the four administrative quarters of the 6th arrondissement of Paris, France, located around the church of the former Abbey of Saint-Germain-des-Prés. Its official borders are the River Seine on the north ...

Carte chronographique

The ''Chronographie universelle & details qui en dependent pour la Chronologie & les Genealogies'' abbreviated to Carte chronographique was the first synchronoptical visualisation which attempted to map world history from the

Garden of Eden In Abrahamic religions, the Garden of Eden ( he, גַּן־עֵדֶן, ) or Garden of God (, and גַן־אֱלֹהִים ''gan-Elohim''), also called the Terrestrial Paradise, is the Bible, biblical paradise described in Book of Genesis, Genes ...

to the

Age of Enlightenment The Age of Enlightenment or the Enlightenment; german: Aufklärung, "Enlightenment"; it, L'Illuminismo, "Enlightenment"; pl, Oświecenie, "Enlightenment"; pt, Iluminismo, "Enlightenment"; es, La Ilustración, "Enlightenment" was an intel ...

Gallery

File:Barbeu-Dubourg - Chronographie (Tableau 34).png, Jacques Barbeu-Dubourg, Chronographie, ou Description des Tems..., tableau 34, Paris 1753 File:Umbrella fitted with lightning conductor.jpg, Umbrella fitted with lightning conductor, designed by Jacques Barbeu-Dubourg. 18th century engraving File:Lightning rod hats.jpg, Lightning rod hats fashion of circa 1778. 19th century engraving designed by Émile Deschamps (1822–1893) and Yan Dargent (1824–1899)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Barbeu-Dubourg, Jacques French translators 1709 births 1799 deaths English–French translators Translators to French Contributors to the Encyclopédie (1751–1772) French people of the American Revolution Members of the American Philosophical Society People from Mayenne Burials at Saint-Germain-des-Prés (abbey) 18th-century French botanists 18th-century French journalists 18th-century French physicians 18th-century French translators

Life

Carte chronographique

Gallery

See also

References