Pierre Petit (8 December 1594
[His birth year is sometimes given as 1598.] – 20 August 1677) was a French astronomer, physicist, mathematician and instrument maker.
Petit was born in Montluçon
Montluçon (; oc, Montleçon ) is a commune in central France on the river Cher. It is the largest commune in the Allier department, although the department's prefecture is located in the smaller town of Moulins. Its inhabitants are known as ...
. He succeeded his father in his municipal office (''Contrôleur de l'élection''), but went to Paris in 1633 to dedicate himself to the sciences. He was a member of the circle around Marin Mersenne
Marin Mersenne, OM (also known as Marinus Mersennus or ''le Père'' Mersenne; ; 8 September 1588 – 1 September 1648) was a French polymath whose works touched a wide variety of fields. He is perhaps best known today among mathematicians for ...
, and knew Etienne Pascal, Blaise Pascal
Blaise Pascal ( , , ; ; 19 June 1623 – 19 August 1662) was a French mathematician, physicist, inventor, philosopher, and Catholic Church, Catholic writer.
He was a child prodigy who was educated by his father, a tax collector in Rouen. Pa ...
, and René Descartes
René Descartes ( or ; ; Latinized: Renatus Cartesius; 31 March 1596 – 11 February 1650) was a French philosopher, scientist, and mathematician, widely considered a seminal figure in the emergence of modern philosophy and science. Mathem ...
. Later he was a member of the academy of Montmor. On 4 April 1667 he became a fellow of The Royal Society
The Royal Society, formally The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, is a learned society and the United Kingdom's national academy of sciences. The society fulfils a number of roles: promoting science and its benefits, re ...
.[Database of all Royal Society fellows]
fro
About Us
at the Royal Society official site
He also served as a military engineer and geographer to Louis XIII
Louis XIII (; sometimes called the Just; 27 September 1601 – 14 May 1643) was King of France from 1610 until his death in 1643 and King of Navarre (as Louis II) from 1610 to 1620, when the crown of Navarre was merged with the French crown ...
and Louis XIV
, house = Bourbon
, father = Louis XIII
, mother = Anne of Austria
, birth_date =
, birth_place = Château de Saint-Germain-en-Laye, Saint-Germain-en-Laye, France
, death_date =
, death_place = Palace of Vers ...
, in roles such as Superintendent of Fortifications.
He died in Lagny-sur-Marne
Lagny-sur-Marne (, literally ''Lagny on Marne'') is a commune in the eastern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located in the Seine-et-Marne department in the Île-de-France from the centre of Paris.
The commune of Lagny-sur-Marne is part of th ...
in 1677.
References
External links
* 1681 (with Johannes Hevelius
Johannes Hevelius
Some sources refer to Hevelius as Polish:
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Some sources refer to Hevelius as German:
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*of the Royal Society
* (in German also known as ''Hevel''; pl, Jan Heweliusz; – 28 January 1687) was a councillor ...
)
Biographical Encyclopedia of Astronomers, Springer Reference
{{DEFAULTSORT:Petit, Pierre
People from Montluçon
1594 births
1677 deaths
17th-century French astronomers
17th-century French engineers
17th-century French mathematicians
Fellows of the Royal Society
Foreign Members of the Royal Society