André-François Boureau-Deslandes (21 May 1689 – 11 April 1757) was a French philosopher. Deslandes has been viewed as an important precursor of the ''

Encyclopédistes The Encyclopédistes () (also known in British English as Encyclopaedists, or in U.S. English as Encyclopedists) were members of the , a French writers' society, who contributed to the development of the ''Encyclopédie'' from June 1751 to Dece ...

''. He was appointed Commissioner of the Port of Brest in 1716, was a corresponding member from

La Rochelle La Rochelle (, , ; Poitevin-Saintongeais: ''La Rochéle'') is a city on the west coast of France and a seaport on the Bay of Biscay, a part of the Atlantic Ocean. It is the capital of the Charente-Maritime Departments of France, department. Wi ...

of the

Académie des Inscriptions et Belles-Lettres The () is a French learned society devoted to history, founded in February 1663 as one of the five academies of the . The academy's scope was the study of ancient inscriptions (epigraphy) and historical literature (see Belles-lettres). History ...

, and a member of the

Prussian Academy of Sciences The Royal Prussian Academy of Sciences () was an academy established in Berlin, Germany on 11 July 1700, four years after the Prussian Academy of Arts, or "Arts Academy," to which "Berlin Academy" may also refer. In the 18th century, when Frenc ...

Family background

Deslandes was born into an important family in Pondichéry. He was the son of André Boureau-Deslandes (born in

Tours Tours ( ; ) is the largest city in the region of Centre-Val de Loire, France. It is the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Departments of France, department of Indre-et-Loire. The Communes of France, commune of Tours had 136,463 inhabita ...

) and grandson of François Martin (1634–1706), the founder and first governor of Pondichéry. His father André Boureau-Deslandes played a major role in the diplomatic relations between France and

Siam Thailand, officially the Kingdom of Thailand and historically known as Siam (the official name until 1939), is a country in Southeast Asia on the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula. With a population of almost 66 million, it spa ...

, then in India where he became Director General of Commerce in

Bengal Bengal ( ) is a Historical geography, historical geographical, ethnolinguistic and cultural term referring to a region in the Eastern South Asia, eastern part of the Indian subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal. The region of Benga ...

. On his return to France, he was sent to

Saint-Domingue Saint-Domingue () was a French colonization of the Americas, French colony in the western portion of the Caribbean island of Hispaniola, in the area of modern-day Haiti, from 1659 to 1803. The name derives from the Spanish main city on the isl ...

as an officer in the Navy of the kings of France and Spain, and inspector-general of "l'Assiente". He was ennobled by letters in 1703 and died at

Léogâne Léogâne (; ) is one of the coastal communes in Haiti. It is located in the eponymous Léogâne Arrondissement, which is part of the Ouest Department. The port town is located about west of the Haitian capital, Port-au-Prince. Léogâne has ...

in 1707. In 1686 he married Deslandes' mother, Marie-Françoise, the daughter of the famous knight Martin, the governor of Pondichéry. They had eight children of which six survived, including two who became clergymen. Deslandes' father brought François Martin's Memoirs back to France as books of manuscripts, and they were later published in three volumes.

Works

*''L'apotheose du beau-sexe'', 1712 *''Reflexions sur les grands hommes qui sont morts en plaisantant '', 1712. English translation by

Abel Boyer Abel Boyer (1667? – 16 November 1729) was a French-English lexicographer, journalist and miscellaneous writer. Biography Abel Boyer was probably born on 24 June 1667 at Castres, in Upper Languedoc, southern France. His father, Pierre Boyer, o ...

, 1713 *''Histoire critique de la philosophie'', 1737. *''Pigmalion ou la statue animée'', 1741 *''Essay sur la marine et sur le commerce'', 1743 *''Lettre sur le luxe '', 1745

References

1689 births 1757 deaths 18th-century French philosophers Contributors to the Encyclopédie (1751–1772) Members of the Académie des Inscriptions et Belles-Lettres Members of the Prussian Academy of Sciences Denis Diderot {{france-philosopher-stub