Jean-Baptiste Benoît Eyriès (; 24 June 176713 June 1846) was a French geographer, author and translator, best remembered in the English speaking world for his translation of

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

ghost stories '' Fantasmagoriana'', published anonymously in 1812, which inspired

Mary Shelley Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley ( , ; ; 30 August 1797 – 1 February 1851) was an English novelist who wrote the Gothic novel ''Frankenstein, Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus'' (1818), which is considered an History of science fiction# ...

and John William Polidori to write ''

Frankenstein ''Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus'' is an 1818 Gothic novel written by English author Mary Shelley. ''Frankenstein'' tells the story of Victor Frankenstein, a young scientist who creates a Sapience, sapient Frankenstein's monster, crea ...

'' and ''

The Vampyre "The Vampyre" is a short work of prose fiction written in 1819 by John William Polidori, taken from the story told by Lord Byron as part of a contest among Polidori, Mary Shelley, Lord Byron, and Percy Shelley. The same contest produced the n ...

'' respectively. He was one of the founding members of the

Société de Géographie The Société de Géographie (; ), is the world's oldest geographical society. It was founded in 1821 as the first Geographic Society. Since 1878, its headquarters have been at 184 Boulevard Saint-Germain, Paris. The entrance is marked by two gig ...

, a member of the Société Asiatique,

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 ...

American Philosophical Society The American Philosophical Society (APS) is an American scholarly organization and learned society founded in 1743 in Philadelphia that promotes knowledge in the humanities and natural sciences through research, professional meetings, publicat ...

, and

American Academy of Arts and Sciences The American Academy of Arts and Sciences (The Academy) is one of the oldest learned societies in the United States. It was founded in 1780 during the American Revolution by John Adams, John Hancock, James Bowdoin, Andrew Oliver, and other ...

, and was awarded the

Legion of Honour The National Order of the Legion of Honour ( ), formerly the Imperial Order of the Legion of Honour (), is the highest and most prestigious French national order of merit, both military and Civil society, civil. Currently consisting of five cl ...

. He had a mountain named after him near Yos Sudarso Bay in

New Guinea New Guinea (; Hiri Motu: ''Niu Gini''; , fossilized , also known as Papua or historically ) is the List of islands by area, world's second-largest island, with an area of . Located in Melanesia in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, the island is ...

, as well as a sandbank near French Island,

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

, and a street in

Le Havre Le Havre is a major port city in the Seine-Maritime department in the Normandy (administrative region), Normandy region of northern France. It is situated on the right bank of the estuary of the Seine, river Seine on the English Channel, Channe ...

Biography

Born in

Marseille Marseille (; ; see #Name, below) is a city in southern France, the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Departments of France, department of Bouches-du-Rhône and of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Regions of France, region. Situated in the ...

on 24 June 1767, the son of Jacques-Joseph Eyriès, a "" ('lieutenant of the king's frigates'), and Jeanne-Françoise Deluy (1748–1826). He moved to

in 1772 when his father was promoted to "" ('commander of the Navy'), and went to study at the

College of Juilly The College of Juilly ( French: ''Collège de Juilly'') was a Catholic private teaching establishment located in the commune of Juilly, in Seine-et-Marne (France). Directed by the French Oratorians, it was created in 1638 by the Congregationi ...

. Eyriès began to travel to

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic count ...

and

Denmark Denmark is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe. It is the metropole and most populous constituent of the Kingdom of Denmark,, . also known as the Danish Realm, a constitutionally unitary state that includes the Autonomous a ...

to learn their languages and study

botany Botany, also called plant science, is the branch of natural science and biology studying plants, especially Plant anatomy, their anatomy, Plant taxonomy, taxonomy, and Plant ecology, ecology. A botanist or plant scientist is a scientist who s ...

and

mineralogy Mineralogy is a subject of geology specializing in the scientific study of the chemistry, crystal structure, and physical (including optical mineralogy, optical) properties of minerals and mineralized artifact (archaeology), artifacts. Specific s ...

, and through it grew to love geography and travel. Returning to Le Havre, he began working in the armaments trade, including commercial expeditions to various parts of the world, while taking care of a

natural history Natural history is a domain of inquiry involving organisms, including animals, fungi, and plants, in their natural environment, leaning more towards observational than experimental methods of study. A person who studies natural history is cal ...

museum there. In 1794 he went to

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

to free his father, who had been detained as a suspect in the new Republic, moving there the following year to devote himself to his studies, where he attended lectures by

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 ...

and

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". Cuv ...

, and started collecting old travel books. He was given a mission in 1804–1805 by

Charles Maurice de Talleyrand-Périgord Charles-Maurice de Talleyrand-Périgord (; ; 2 February 1754 – 17 May 1838), 1st Prince of Benevento, then Prince of Talleyrand, was a French secularization, secularized clergyman, statesman, and leading diplomat. After studying theology, he b ...

and

Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte (born Napoleone di Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French general and statesman who rose to prominence during the French Revolution and led Military career ...

to travel to Germany and rally the French emigrants there, chosen for his knowledge of the country and language and his discretion. He used the opportunity to continue his collection, but turned down the title "" ('councillor of the State') to keep his independence, allowing him to devote himself entirely to geography and botany, and return to Paris to settle. As a speaker of nine languages, he translated many articles and books from German, English and Scandinavian languages into French, mostly on travel and geography, but also some fiction, such as

Goethe Johann Wolfgang (von) Goethe (28 August 1749 – 22 March 1832) was a German polymath who is widely regarded as the most influential writer in the German language. His work has had a wide-ranging influence on Western literature, literary, Polit ...

's '' Elective Affinities'', novels by August Lafontaine, and '' Fantasmagoriana'', a selection of German ghost stories that he published anonymously in 1812. From that year he became one of the drafters of the ''Biographie Universelle'' under editor Joseph François Michaud, writing many articles for it up until his death. His quality as a translator and extensive scientific knowledge earned him the friendship and admiration of many respected scientists, notably including

Alexander von Humboldt Friedrich Wilhelm Heinrich Alexander von Humboldt (14 September 1769 – 6 May 1859) was a German polymath, geographer, natural history, naturalist, List of explorers, explorer, and proponent of Romanticism, Romantic philosophy and Romanticism ...

and

Conrad Malte-Brun Conrad Malte-Brun (; born Malthe Conrad Bruun; 12 August 177514 December 1826), sometimes referred to simply as Malte-Brun, was a Dano- French geographer and journalist. His second son, Victor Adolphe Malte-Brun, was also a geographer. Today he ...

, the latter of whom he joined in 1819 to continue the publication of ''Nouvelles Annales des Voyages, de la Géographie et de l’Histoire'', a journal dedicated to the advancement of the earth sciences. In 1821 he became one of the two hundred and seventeen founding members of the world's first geographical society, the

, remaining one of the most active and on its central committee until his death; he was named honorary president, a prestigious title given to the likes of

Pierre-Simon Laplace Pierre-Simon, Marquis de Laplace (; ; 23 March 1749 – 5 March 1827) was a French polymath, a scholar whose work has been instrumental in the fields of physics, astronomy, mathematics, engineering, statistics, and philosophy. He summariz ...

, Georges Cuvier, Alexander von Humboldt and

François-René de Chateaubriand François-René, vicomte de Chateaubriand (4 September 1768 – 4 July 1848) was a French writer, politician, diplomat and historian who influenced French literature of the nineteenth century. Descended from an old aristocratic family from Bri ...

. The explorer

Jules Dumont d'Urville Jules Sébastien César Dumont d'Urville (; 23 May 1790 – 8 May 1842) was a French List of explorers, explorer and French Navy, naval officer who explored the south and western Pacific, Australia, New Zealand and Antarctica. As a botanist an ...

named two landmarks after Eyriès during the first voyage of the ''

Astrolabe An astrolabe (; ; ) is an astronomy, astronomical list of astronomical instruments, instrument dating to ancient times. It serves as a star chart and Model#Physical model, physical model of the visible celestial sphere, half-dome of the sky. It ...

'' (1826–1829): , a sandbank near French Island,

, and , a double-peaked mountain near Yos Sudarso Bay,

. He was admitted to the

in 1839, was elected a member of the

in 1840 and a Foreign Honorary Member of the

in 1841, and was awarded the

in 1844. Eyriès suffered a stroke in 1844, rendering him incapable of further work, and died on 13 June 1846 at the house of his brother Alexandre Eyriès, the mayor of Graville near Le Havre, and was buried in the cemetery of Graville Priory, with an inscription on his tombstone after Edme François Jomard. He left a library of about 20,000 volumes collected throughout his life, which reflect his interest in rare and old works on travel and geography, and included almost everything written on

Normandy Normandy (; or ) is a geographical and cultural region in northwestern Europe, roughly coextensive with the historical Duchy of Normandy. Normandy comprises Normandy (administrative region), mainland Normandy (a part of France) and insular N ...

, Le Havre and

Provence Provence is a geographical region and historical province of southeastern France, which stretches from the left bank of the lower Rhône to the west to the France–Italy border, Italian border to the east; it is bordered by the Mediterrane ...

, with rare maps from the German and Scandinavian countries, some of which are not even in the

Bibliothèque nationale de France The (; BnF) is the national library of France, located in Paris on two main sites, ''Richelieu'' and ''François-Mitterrand''. It is the national repository of all that is published in France. Some of its extensive collections, including bo ...

. Many of these books, and some of his manuscripts, remain as of 2006 in the municipal library of Le Havre, and a street "Rue Jean Baptiste Eyries" was named after him in the city. Eyriès was remembered by his contemporaries for his erudition, selfless dedication, prodigious memory, critical thinking and modesty, and

Pierre Larousse Pierre Athanase Larousse (; 23 October 18173 January 1875) was a French grammarian, lexicographer and encyclopaedist. He published many of the outstanding educational and reference works of 19th-century France, including the 15-volume . Early ...

wrote of him: "Many people still remember seeing a little old man in antiquated clothes, wearing a wide-brimmed hat and reading along the waterfront: that was Eyriès, who worked to fill his vast memory and his rich library at the same time."

Bibliography

As author

*
Costumes, moeurs et usages de tous les peuples
', 11 volumes, 1821–1827
''Abrégé des Voyages Modernes Depuis 1780 Jusqu'à Nos Jours''
14 volumes, 1822–1824
''Recherches sur la population du globe terrestre''
1833
''Voyage pittoresque en Asie et en Afrique, résumé général des voyages anciens et modernes''
1839
''L'Univers, histoire et description de tous les peuples : Danemark''
continued by

Jean-Marie Chopin Jean-Marie Chopin (; born in 1796 in Saint Petersburg; died 15 February 1871 in Paris) was a French-Russian explorer of the Caucasus. Son of a French sculptor and employed by Catherine II of Russia, Chopin began his career as secretary and librar ...

, 1846
''Dictionnaire de géographie ancienne et moderne''
with E. G. Béraud, 1847

As contributor

*''Biographie Universelle'', contributor, 1812 ff.
''Voyage dans l'intérieur de l'Afrique''
by Gaspard Théodore Mollien with an article by Eyriès, 2 volumes, 1820
''Voyage pittoresque autour du monde, avec des portraits de sauvages d'Amérique, d'Asie, d'Afrique, et des îles du grand Océan''
by Louis Choris with text by Eyriès, 1 volume, 1822 *''L'Encyclopédie moderne'', contributor, 1824–1825
''Bibliomappe, ou Livre-cartes, textes analytiques, tableaux et cartes indiquant graduellement la géographie naturelle, les divisions géographiques, politiques, civiles, etc., les noms géographiques, historiques de tous les âges et de toutes les parties de l'univers, avec l'indication chronologique des découvertes des navigateurs, des changements survenus dans la circonscription des États, leurs dénominations, etc.''
with Jacques-Charles Bailleul and

Pierre Claude François Daunou Pierre Claude François Daunou (; 18 August 176120 June 1840) was a French statesman of the French Revolution and Empire. An author and historian, he served as the nation's archivist under both the Empire and the Restoration, contributed a vo ...

, 2 volumes, 1824–1826

As editor

* Jean-Louis-Hubert-Simon Deperthes
''Histoire des naufrages, délaissements de matelots, hivernages, incendies de navires et autres désastres de mer, recueillis des plus authentiques relations''
3 volumes, 1815–1818
''Nouvelles Annales des Voyages, de la Géographie et de l’Histoire''
periodical, 1819–? *

Jean-François de La Harpe Jean-François de La Harpe (20 November 1739 – 11 February 1803) was a French playwright, writer and literary critic. Life La Harpe was born in Paris of poor parents. His father, who signed himself Delharpe, was a descendant of a noble family ...

''Abrégé de l'Histoire générale des voyages''
24 volumes, 1820 * Charles Cochelet
''Naufrage du brick français La Sophie, perdu le 30 mai 1819 sur la côte occidentale d'Afrique, et captivité d'une partie des naufragés dans le désert du Sahara, avec de nouveaux renseignements sur la ville de Timectou''
2 volumes, 1821 * J. F. Bach
''Introduction à la connaissance des montagnes, des vallées, des lacs et des rivières de la Suisse et des pays limitrophes''
1 volume, 1842

As translator

William Robert Broughton William Robert Broughton (22 March 176214 March 1821) was a British naval officer in the late 18th century. As a lieutenant in the Royal Navy, he commanded HMS ''Chatham'' as part of the Vancouver Expedition, a voyage of exploration through t ...

''Voyage de découvertes dans la partie septentrionale de l'océan Pacifique, fait par le capitaine W. R. Broughton, pendant les années 1795, 1796, 1797 et 1798''
2 volumes, 1807 * Joachim Christoph Friedrich Schulz
''Voyage en Pologne et en Allemagne fait en 1793 par un Livonien, où on trouve des détails très étendus sur la révolution de Pologne, en 1791 et en 1794, ainsi que la description de Varsovie, Dresde, Nurenberg, Vienne, Munich, etc.''
2 volumes, 1807 *

''Tableaux de la nature''
1808 *

Johann Wolfgang von Goethe Johann Wolfgang (von) Goethe (28 August 1749 – 22 March 1832) was a German polymath who is widely regarded as the most influential writer in the German language. His work has had a wide-ranging influence on Western literature, literary, Polit ...

: '' Affinités électives'', 3 volumes, 1810 * August Lafontaine
''Aline de Riesenstein''
4 volumes, 1810 * August Lafontaine
''Barneck et Saldorf: or, Le triomphe de l'amitié''
3 volumes, 1810 * Johann Friedrich Hugo von Dalberg
''Mehaled et Sedli, histoire d'une famille druse''
2 volumes, 1812 * Johann Karl August Musäus, Johann August Apel, Friedrich Laun, and Heinrich Clauren: '' Fantasmagoriana; ou Recueil d'Histoires, d'Apparitions, de Spectres, Revenans, Fantômes, etc., traduit de l'allemand, par un amateur'', anonymously, 2 volumes, 1812 * Karl Fischer, Heinrich Zschokke, Friedrich Laun, Ludwig Franz von Bilderbeck,

August von Kotzebue August Friedrich Ferdinand von Kotzebue (, ; – ) was a German playwright, who had also worked as a Russian diplomat. In 1817, one of Kotzebue's books was burned during the Wartburg festival. He was murdered in 1819 by Karl Ludwig Sand, a ...

, August Lafontaine, Ludwig Schubart, and J. Conrad
''Nouveau recueil de contes traduits de l'allemand''
3 volumes, 1813 * James Morier
''Voyage en Perse, en Arménie, en Asie-Mineure et à Constantinople''
3 volumes, 1813 * John Mawe
''Voyages dans l'intérieur du Brésil, particulièrement dans les districts de l'or et du diamant, faits avec l'autorisation du prince régent de Portugal en 1809 et en 1810, contenant aussi un voyage au Rio-de-la-Plata et un essai historique sur la révolution de Buenos-Ayres''
1816 *

Leopold von Buch Christian Leopold von Buch (26 April 1774 – 4 March 1853), usually cited as Leopold von Buch, was a German geologist and paleontologist born in Stolpe an der Oder (now a part of Angermünde, Brandenburg) and is remembered as one of the most im ...

''Voyage en Norvège et en Laponie, fait dans les années 1806, 1807 et 1808''
2 volumes, 1816 *

John Aikin John Aikin (15 January 1747 – 7 December 1822) was an English medical doctor and surgeon. Later in life he devoted himself wholly to biography and writing in periodicals. Life He was born at Kibworth Harcourt, Leicestershire, England, son of ...

''Annales du règne de Georges III, depuis l'avènement de ce monarque jusqu'à la paix générale conclue en 1815''
3 volumes, 1817 * Vasili Mikhailovich Golovnin
''Voyage de M. Golovnin, contenant le récit de sa captivité chez les Japonais, pendant les années 1811, 1812 et 1813, et ses observations sur l'Empire du Japon, suivi de la relation du voyage de M. Ricord, aux côtes du Japon en 1812 et 1813''
2 volumes, 1818 *

Henry Pottinger Lieutenant-general (United Kingdom), Lieutenant-General Sir Henry Pottinger, 1st Baronet (3 October 1789 – 18 March 1856) was an Bombay Army officer and colonial administrator who served as the first governor of Hong Kong from 1843 to 1844. ...

''Voyages dans le Béloutchistan et le Sindhy, suivis de la description géographique et historique de ces deux pays''
2 volumes, 1818 *

Francis Beaufort Sir Francis Beaufort ( ; 27 May 1774 – 17 December 1857) was an Irish hydrographer and naval officer who created the Beaufort cipher and the Beaufort scale. Early life Francis Beaufort was descended from French Protestant Hugu ...

:
Caramanie ou courte description de la côte méridionale de l'Asie mineure
', 1 volume, 1820 *

Adam Johann von Krusenstern Adam Johann von Krusenstern (; 10 October 177012 August 1846) was a Russian admiral and explorer of Swedish and Baltic German descent, who led the first Russian circumnavigation of the Earth in 1803–1806. Life Krusenstern was born i ...

''Voyage autour du monde fait dans les années 1803, 1804, 1805 et 1806''
translation revised by Eyriès, 2 volumes, 1821 *

Maximilian zu Wied-Neuwied Maximilian or Maximillian (Maximiliaan in Dutch and Maximilien in French) is a male name. The name " Max" is considered a shortening of "Maximilian" as well as of several other names. List of people Monarchs * Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor ...

''Voyage au Brésil dans les années 1815, 1816 et 1817''
3 volumes, 1821–1822 *

Nikolay Muravyov-Karsky Nikolay Nikolayevich Muravyov-Karsky (; 13 August 1794 – 4 November 1866) was an Imperial Russian military officer and General of the Russian Army. A member of the mighty Muravyov family. He became famous for the capture of Kars in the Crime ...

''Voyage en Turcomanie et à Khiva, fait en 1819 et 1820''
translated by G. Lecointe de Laveau and revised by Eyriès and Julius Klaproth, 1 volume, 1823 * Edward Allen Talbot
''Cinq années de séjour au Canada''
3 volumes, 1825 * Basil Hall
''Voyage au Chili, au Pérou et au Mexique pendant les années 1820, 1821 et 1822''
2 volumes, 1825 * Alexander Gordon Laing
''Voyage dans le Timanni, le Kouranko et le Soulimana''
translated with Philippe François Lasnon de La Renaudière, 1826 * Dixon Denham, Hugh Clapperton, and Walter Oudney
''Voyages et découvertes dans le Nord et dans les parties centrales de l'Afrique''
translated with Philippe François Lasnon de La Renaudière, 3 volumes, 1826 * John Pinkerton
''Abrégé de géographie moderne, ou Description historique, politique, civile et naturelle des empires, royaumes, états et leurs colonies, avec celle des mers et des îles de toutes les parties du monde''
translated with

Charles Athanase Walckenaer Baron Charles Athanase Walckenaer (25 December 1771 – 28 April 1852) was a French civil servant, writer, man of letters, and scientist. He was a polymath and wrote extensively on geography, natural history, and literature. Major contributio ...

, 2 volumes, 1827 * Yegor Timkovsky
''Voyage à Péking, à travers la Mongolie, en 1820 et 1821''
translation revised by Eyriès, 2 volumes, 1827 * Hugh Clapperton
''Second voyage dans l'intérieur de l'Afrique, depuis le golfe de Benin jusqu'à Sackatou, par le capitaine Clapperton, pendant les années 1825, 1826 et 1827, suivi du Voyage de Richard Lander, de Kano à la côte maritime''
translated with Philippe François Lasnon de La Renaudière, 2 volumes, 1829 * Wilhelm Dorow
''Voyage historique dans l'ancienne Étrurie''
1 volume, 1829 *

Alexander Burnes Captain Sir Alexander Burnes (16 May 1805 – 2 November 1841) was a Scottish explorer, military officer and diplomat associated with the Great Game. He was nicknamed Bokhara Burnes for his role in establishing contact with and expl ...

''Voyages de l'embouchure de l'Indus à Lahor, Caboul, Balkh et à Boukhara ; et retour par la Perse''
3 volumes, 1835 *

Johann Ludwig Burckhardt Johann Ludwig (also known as John Lewis, Jean Louis) Burckhardt (24 November 1784 – 15 October 1817) was a Swiss traveller, geographer and Orientalist. Burckhardt assumed the alias ''Sheikh Ibrahim Ibn Abdallah'' during his travels in Arabia ...

''Voyages en Arabie, contenant la description des parties du Hedjaz regardées comme sacrées par les Musulmans, suivis de Notes sur les Bédouins et d'un Essai sur l'histoire des Wahabites''
3 volumes, 1835 * Michael Joseph Quin
''Voyage sur le Danube de Pest à Roustchouk''
1836

References

External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Eyries, Jean-Baptiste Benoit Writers from Marseille 19th-century French writers French travel writers French geographers Members of the Académie des Inscriptions et Belles-Lettres Recipients of the Legion of Honour Members of the American Philosophical Society Fellows of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences Members of the Société Asiatique 1767 births 1846 deaths French male non-fiction writers 19th-century French male writers 19th-century French translators English–French translators German–French translators Russian–French translators French editors