Joseph-François Soleirol (13 July 1781 in

Verdun Verdun ( , ; ; ; official name before 1970: Verdun-sur-Meuse) is a city in the Meuse (department), Meuse departments of France, department in Grand Est, northeastern France. It is an arrondissement of the department. In 843, the Treaty of V ...

– 5 March 1853 in

Metz Metz ( , , , then ) is a city in northeast France located at the confluence of the Moselle (river), Moselle and the Seille (Moselle), Seille rivers. Metz is the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Moselle (department), Moselle Departments ...

) was a French army engineer and amateur

botanist 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 ...

. From 1800 he studied at the

École Polytechnique (, ; also known as Polytechnique or l'X ) is a ''grande école'' located in Palaiseau, France. It specializes in science and engineering and is a founding member of the Polytechnic Institute of Paris. The school was founded in 1794 by mat ...

, then embarked on a military career in which he attained the rank of captain in 1807. Later on, he served as an instructor at the École d'application de l'artillerie et du genie (School of artillery and engineering) in

. In 1841 he became a member of the Académie royale de Metz.Soleirol, Joseph François
IDREF.fr In the field of botany he collected numerous plant specimens in

Lorraine Lorraine, also , ; ; Lorrain: ''Louréne''; Lorraine Franconian: ''Lottringe''; ; ; is a cultural and historical region in Eastern France, now located in the administrative region of Grand Est. Its name stems from the medieval kingdom of ...

and has historically been given credit for extensive collections actually made by his younger brother, Henri-Augustin (1792–1860) in Corsica, where the latter spent much of his career, also a military engineer.Soleirol, Joseph François
SARDOA d- library In 1825, Soleroil issued an

exsiccata Exsiccata (Latin, ''gen.'' -ae, ''plur.'' -ae) is a work with "published, uniform, numbered set of preserved specimens distributed with printed labels". Typically, exsiccatae are numbered collections of dried herbarium Biological specimen, spe ...

-like specimen series entitled ''Plantes de Corse''. Les frères Soleirol, histoire séculaire d'une confusion autour d'un collecteur en Corse. Candollea. volume 74. pages. 209-216. 2019

/ref> The plant genus ''

Soleirolia ''Soleirolia soleirolii'' (, syn. ''Helxine soleirolii'') is a flowering plant in the nettle family. It has a number of common names, including baby's tears, angel's tears, peace in the home, bits and pieces, bread and cheese, Corsican creeper, ...

'' ( Gaudich.; family

Urticaceae The Urticaceae are a family, the nettle family, of flowering plants. The family name comes from the genus ''Urtica''. The Urticaceae include a number of well-known and useful plants, including nettles in the genus ''Urtica'', ramie (''Boehmeria ...

) commemorates his name, as do species with the epithet of ''soleirolii''.Alfalfa and Relatives: Evolution and Classification of Medicago
by Ernest Small In 1843 he was co-founder of the Société d'horticulture in Metz. He also had a passion for music, and served as director of the Société philharmonique de Metz.Joseph-François Soleirol (1781-1863)
data.bnf.fr

Selected works

* ''Cahier classique sur le cours de construction, à l'usage des élèves de l'École royale de l'artillerie et du génie'', (1819) – Classical book on construction, for use by students of the Royal School of Artillery and Engineering. * ''Recueil d'expériences sur les mortiers de construction, suivi d'observations sur la manière d'opérer dans les recherches de ce genre'', (1835) – Series of experiments on construction mortars. * ''Recherches sur la stabilité des batardeaux en maçonnerie'', (1841) – Research on the stability of masonry

cofferdam A cofferdam is an enclosure built within a body of water to allow the enclosed area to be pumped out or drained. This pumping creates a dry working environment so that the work can be carried out safely. Cofferdams are commonly used for constru ...

s. * ''Quelques faits relatifs aux Ardennes observés en 1841'', (1845) – Some facts about

Ardennes The Ardennes ( ; ; ; ; ), also known as the Ardennes Forest or Forest of Ardennes, is a region of extensive forests, rough terrain, rolling hills and ridges primarily in Belgium and Luxembourg, extending into Germany and France. Geological ...

observed in 1841. * ''Une application de la géométrie descriptive'', (1856–57) – An application of

descriptive geometry Descriptive geometry is the branch of geometry which allows the representation of three-dimensional objects in two dimensions by using a specific set of procedures. The resulting techniques are important for engineering, architecture, design an ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Soleirol, Joseph-Francois 1781 births 1853 deaths People from Verdun 19th-century French botanists Structural engineers