Eugène Godard | |
|---|---|
 Godard in 1868 byLouis Figuier | |
| Born | (1827-08-26)26 August 1827 Clichy, France |
| Died | 9 September 1890(1890-09-09) (aged 63) Brussels, Belgium |
| Resting place | Saint-Ouen Cemetery, Paris. 48°54′37″N2°21′00″E / 48.910335°N 2.350047°E /48.910335; 2.350047 |
| Nationality | French |
| Known for | Pioneering constructor of gas and hot air balloons Innovator of battlefield aerial reconnaissance Organizer of the first aeronautics competition in France |
| Awards | Aeronaut of the Emperor of Austria Aeronaut of the Emperor of France |
| Aviation career | |
| Full name | Eugène Godard Ainé |
| First flight | 17 October 1847 |
| Famous flights | First balloon flight in Wales First hot air balloon flight in London First passenger balloon flight in Canada |
Eugène Godard Ainé (26 August 1827 – 9 September 1890) was a Frenchaeronaut.
In 1841, 14-year-old Eugène Godard enrolled at theNational Conservatory of Arts and Crafts inParis. He did well in his studies and, being the son of a master mason, was intent on a career in architecture. After attending the launch of agas balloon in 1845 however, he found his passion had a new direction and began buildingballoons. Although his first craft never managed to leave the ground, Godard persisted, and by the end of 1846 he had designed, built, and successfully launched several unmannedhydrogen balloons. He and his brother Louis established a workshop inLille where the two constructed the balloon in which, on 17 October 1847, Eugène made his first free ascent, initiating his career as professional aeronaut and aerostat manufacturer.
In 1849, Godard went toBordeaux and met the famous British balloonistCharles Green, who flew him aboard a balloon inflated withcoal gas, which was cheaper and more easily obtained than hydrogen. Applying what he learned from Green, Godard constructed his next craft, which he named theVille de Bordeaux.
On 6 October 1850 Godard made his first long-distance flight from thehippodrome atPlace de l'Etoile in Paris toGits, Belgium aboard his balloon theVille de París, a craft that observers described as a "noble and gigantic" balloon. TheVille de París was reportedly destroyed by fire about a month later following a mishap inMarseille where Godard and four passengers lost control of the balloon. Fortunately all five people survived.[1]
In 1852 Godard aided inventorHenri Giffard in construction the firststeam airship. In 1853, launching fromVienna, Godard became only the second person to ever fly over theAustrian Alps.
In 1854 Godard made a series of ascents at the marriage of EmperorFranz Joseph I and EmpressElizabeth of Austria. On that occasion Godard signed an agreement with the Austrian government which stated that, in case of war, he would build balloons, organize balloonists companies, and perform observation ascents for the military. Franz Joseph declared him the "Aeronaut of the Emperor of Austria".
In August 1855, he left France with his wife and his brother Auguste and went to theUnited States, where he remained until 1858. Godard's many balloon ascents inNorth America included launches inNew York City,New Orleans,St. Louis,Louisville,Cincinnati,San Francisco, andCuba. After a perilous ascent aboard the balloonAmerican during a storm inCincinnati, Godard invented the tear panel which facilitates rapid deflation of a balloon.
In 1856, Godard traveled to Cuba where he met canopy makerMatias Perez. The two shared a flight on 21 May, after which Perez purchased the balloon from Godard for 1200 hard pesos. According to one report, this craft had also been namedVille de París.[2] Perez flew the ship himself successfully on 12 June under excellent atmospheric conditions. Then on 29 June, at around 7:00 PM, the Cuban attempted a second ascent, but this time in a strong wind. The balloon was quickly swept out to sea with Perez on board. The balloon and pilot were never found.
On 8 September 1856, Eugène Godard made the first successful Canadian passenger flight in a balloon, travelling fromMontreal toPointe-Olivier, Quebec. On board with him were A.E. Kierzowski and A.X. Rambau.[3] The balloon, calledCanada, was the first aircraft ever constructed in Canada.[4] Then on 13 August 1857, Godard made the first balloon flight in the history ofWales, launching fromCaernarfon in a gas balloon calledAurora.[5]
In 1859, at the outbreak of theFranco-Austrian war, Godard returned to Europe and offered tethered observation balloon services to EmperorNapoleon III. In so doing, he instituted the art of aerial reconnaissance and broke the 1854 agreement he had made with Franz Joseph I, contributing to Austria's defeat by the French.
After the war, Godard began building hot air balloons equipped with a boiler of his invention, known as the "Montgodarfières". In 1863 he was again awarded the title "Aeronaut of the Emperor", but this time by Napoleon III. He was commissioned to build a balloon to be used as a platform for aerial photography by renowned photographerNadar. The aircraft, which was calledLe Géant (The Giant), had an onboard darkroom, a two-story deck capable of carrying 50 men, and an envelope capacity of 6,000 m3 (210,000 cu ft).[4][6] It was this balloon that inspiredJules Verne to write hisadventure novel,Five Weeks in a Balloon. Later that year Godard built an even larger craft,L'Aigle (The Eagle), whose furnace weighed 445 kilograms (980 pounds) and had a volume that dwarfed that ofLe Géant with 14,000 m3 (490,000 cu ft).
On 20 July 1864 Godard achieved the first hot-air balloon ascent from London, launchingL'Aigle fromCremorne Gardens, and eventually landing inGreenwich. He launched a second time from the same spot 8 days later, this time landing inWalthamstow.[5][7]
In 1866, Godard invented a new optical telegraph system for the military. In 1867, he conducted series of scientific ascents with astronomerCamille Flammarion.
In 1870, during theFranco-Prussian War Godard conducted captive observation flights around the city. The ProvisionalGovernment of National Defense also appointed him to construct balloons for an aerial postal service.[8] Using work space in both theAusterlitz andEast railway stations, with the help of his wife and his brother Jules, Godard built 33 balloons from October 1870 to January 1871. Then following theSiege of Paris, he moved his family toNantes.
While visitingAmiens on 28 September 1873, Godard and his son Eugène II piloted Jules Verne on his first and only balloon ascent.[9]
At the1878 Paris Expo, Godard worked withHenri Giffard offering rides to the public in his giant tethered passenger balloon[10] at theTuileries Garden. The gondola accommodated up to 52 passengers, and over the course of the expo, rides were given to some 35,000 people.[4]
In 1884 Godard oversaw operation of the largest captive balloon inNice, built at Grands Ateliers Aérostatiques du Champ-de-Mars, the largest aircraft factory of the late 19th century, by his nephew Louis II, Gabriel Yon, and 22-year-old apprentice Edouard Surcouf, who would go on to become a prominent aeronautical engineer.[11]
On 6 April 1885 at Place Saint-Ambroise in Paris, Godard organized and directed the Arènes du Sport Aéronautique, France's first ever aviation competition.[12][13]
In 1888 he settled permanently inBrussels, where he died on 9 September 1890. He is buried inSaint-Ouen Cemetery in Paris.
During his long and productive career, from 1845 to 1890, Eugène Godard built dozens of hot air and gas balloons. He performed approximately 2,500 ascents in ten countries on two continents (Europe and America) setting several world records for altitude, distance, and duration of flight.[8]
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