Júlio Ximenes Sênior (March 13, 1901 in

Uberaba Uberaba () is a municipality in the state of Minas Gerais, Brazil. It is located in the Brazilian Highlands at an elevation of 823 metres (2,700 ft) above sea level on the Uberaba River, and is situated 418 kilometres (260 mi) from the state c ...

Minas Gerais Minas Gerais () is one of the 27 federative units of Brazil, being the fourth largest state by area and the second largest in number of inhabitants with a population of 20,539,989 according to the 2022 Brazilian census, 2022 census. Located in ...

– April 11, 1975 in

Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro, or simply Rio, is the capital of the Rio de Janeiro (state), state of Rio de Janeiro. It is the List of cities in Brazil by population, second-most-populous city in Brazil (after São Paulo) and the Largest cities in the America ...

) was a Brazilian

scientist A scientist is a person who Scientific method, researches to advance knowledge in an Branches of science, area of the natural sciences. In classical antiquity, there was no real ancient analog of a modern scientist. Instead, philosophers engag ...

and

medical doctor A physician, medical practitioner (British English), medical doctor, or simply doctor is a health professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring health through the study, diagnosis, prognosis ...

, in the research field of

biochemistry Biochemistry, or biological chemistry, is the study of chemical processes within and relating to living organisms. A sub-discipline of both chemistry and biology, biochemistry may be divided into three fields: structural biology, enzymology, a ...

microbiology Microbiology () is the branches of science, scientific study of microorganisms, those being of unicellular organism, unicellular (single-celled), multicellular organism, multicellular (consisting of complex cells), or non-cellular life, acellula ...

, and was also a career

Brazilian Army The Brazilian Army (; EB) is the branch of the Brazilian Armed Forces responsible, externally, for defending the country in eminently terrestrial operations and, internally, for guaranteeing law, order and the constitutional branches, subordina ...

officer.

Military career

He attained the rank of brigadier-general during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. He had also served as a captain in

São Paulo São Paulo (; ; Portuguese for 'Paul the Apostle, Saint Paul') is the capital of the São Paulo (state), state of São Paulo, as well as the List of cities in Brazil by population, most populous city in Brazil, the List of largest cities in the ...

during the

Revolution of 1930 The Revolution of 1930 () was an armed insurrection across Brazil that ended the Old Republic. The revolution replaced incumbent president Washington Luís with defeated presidential candidate and revolutionary leader Getúlio Vargas, conclu ...

, which ultimately brought twice-Brazilian president,

Getúlio Vargas Getúlio Dornelles Vargas (; ; 19 April 1882 – 24 August 1954) was a Brazilian lawyer and politician who served as the 14th and 17th president of Brazil, from 1930 to 1945 and from 1951 until his suicide in 1954. Due to his long and contr ...

, into power for the first time. Dr. Ximenes sustained injuries in these conflicts, and was decorated for bravery under fire. During his military life, he and his family were relocated all over Brazil, including to very remote military outposts of the

Amazon Amazon most often refers to: * Amazon River, in South America * Amazon rainforest, a rainforest covering most of the Amazon basin * Amazon (company), an American multinational technology company * Amazons, a tribe of female warriors in Greek myth ...

, and

Mato Grosso Mato Grosso ( – ) is one of the states of Brazil, the List of Brazilian states by area, third largest by area, located in the Central-West Region, Brazil, Central-West region. The state has 1.66% of the Brazilian population and is responsible ...

do Sul. He was later permanently transferred to Rio de Janeiro, then capital of Brazil, where his family were amongst the first inhabitants of a burgeoning Copacabana, the legendary

Carioca Carioca ( or ) is a demonym used to refer to residents of the City of Rio de Janeiro, in Brazil and their culture. Like other Brazilians, ''Cariocas'' speak Portuguese. The ''carioca'' accent and sociolect (also simply called "''carioca''", ...

beach. He served as requisitioner-general of the Brazilian Army, a position requiring tact, as well as honesty, as pharmaceutical companies were insistent that their stock be chosen over the other. In fact, President Vargas once said of the

General A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air force, air and space forces, marines or naval infantry. In some usages, the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colone ...

, "''Ximenes is a rare Brazilian: a completely incorruptible man''".

Béchamp versus Pasteur

In 1957, having combed the archives of several countries for almost a decade, he wrote Béchamp versus Pasteur, a Portuguese-language monograph on

Antoine Béchamp Pierre Jacques Antoine Béchamp (; 16 October 1816 – 15 April 1908) was a French scientist now best known for breakthroughs in applied organic chemistry and for a bitter rivalry with Louis Pasteur. Béchamp developed the Béchamp reducti ...

's battles with arch-rival,

Louis Pasteur Louis Pasteur (, ; 27 December 1822 – 28 September 1895) was a French chemist, pharmacist, and microbiologist renowned for his discoveries of the principles of vaccination, Fermentation, microbial fermentation, and pasteurization, the la ...

on the topic of

germ theory The germ theory of disease is the currently accepted scientific theory for many diseases. It states that microorganisms known as pathogens or "germs" can cause disease. These small organisms, which are too small to be seen without magnification, ...

(specifically, pleomorphic theory). He later published in 1960 a French-language version, ''Béchamp contre Pasteur'', which received numerous citations in France, including towards the end of his life, a

Palmes Académiques Palmes is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Sir Brian Palmes, English landowner and politician * Sir Guy Palmes, English politician * Brian Palmes MP * Lieutenant General Francis Palmes * Major Billie Palmes * Captain Laurence P ...

from the French government in recognition of his distinguished services in the field of scientific research. The English-language edition was published in 1963, entitled ''Béchamp against Pasteur (Their Ideas And Their Fights)'', and notably all 3 editions were written ''and'' translated by the author himself (he credited his daughter with help in the English version, though he was fluent in English).

Death

He is buried in famed Rio de Janeiro cemetery, Cemitério São João Batista, which has been referred to as the Brazilian

Père Lachaise A name suffix in the Western English-language naming tradition, follows a person's surname (last name) and provides additional information about the person. Post-nominal letters indicate that the individual holds a position, educational degree, a ...

. His grave is located a few yards away from his renowned contemporary, the Hollywood actress,

Carmen Miranda Maria do Carmo Miranda da Cunha (9 February 1909 – 5 August 1955), known professionally as Carmen Miranda (), was a Portuguese-born Brazilian singer, dancer, and actress. Nicknamed "The Brazilian Bombshell", she was known for her signature ...

, and where fellow Franco-Brazilian pioneer aviator,

Alberto Santos-Dumont Alberto Santos-Dumont (self-stylised as Alberto Santos=Dumont; 20 July 1873 – 23 July 1932) was a Brazilian aeronaut, sportsman, inventor, and one of the few people to have contributed significantly to the early development of both lighter-t ...

, is also buried.

References

Béchamp Contre Pasteur, at the University of Miami
Copies in 3 languages are archived in 6 Universities amongst them at the

University of California-Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California), is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California, United States. Founded in 1868 and named after the Anglo-Irish philosopher George Berkeley ...

, the

University of Oxford The University of Oxford is a collegiate university, collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the List of oldest un ...

, the University of Paris I: Panthéon-Sorbonne, as well as the one shown, at the

University of Miami The University of Miami (UM, UMiami, Miami, U of M, and The U) is a private university, private research university in Coral Gables, Florida, United States. , the university enrolled 19,852 students in two colleges and ten schools across over ...

(personally inscribed by the author's hand, 1965). {{DEFAULTSORT:Ximenes Senior, Julio Brazilian scientists 1901 births 1975 deaths People from Uberaba Burials at Cemitério de São João Batista