France is best known for its art and its cuisine, both of which are well worth shouting about. But you may not know that the French have also come up with some brilliant inventions. Here are, in our opinion, the most ingenious of them all:
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1. Braille
In 1824, a 15-year-old Louis Braille first presented his system of written communication, today known simply as braille. Blinded in both eyes as a child, he worked tirelessly on the system of raised dots, which enables the blind and visually impaired to read and write.
2. The stethoscope
French physician Rene Laennec created the stethoscope in 19th-century Paris. The invention changed how doctors diagnosed diseases and enabled them to listen to the heart and lungs without placing their ears in patients’ chests.
3. The Aqua-Lung
Invented by engineer Émile Gagnan and Naval Lieutenant Jacques Cousteau, the Aqua-Lung was the first commercially successful SCUBA unit, allowing divers to breathe underwater for over an hour.
4. The film camera
The first patented film camera was invented in the late 19th century by Louis Le Prince. On it, he shot the first moving picture in the world using celluloid. Less than 10 years after his invention, the Lumière brothers created the first film, Workers Leaving the Lumière Factory, which was 46 seconds long. The dawn of cinema had arrived.
5. Blood transfusion
Although not an invention as such, physician Dr Jean-Baptiste Denys performed the first blood transfusion from animal to human in 1667. A 15-year-old boy was the recipient of a small amount of sheep’s blood and survived to tell the tale.
6. The hot air balloon
Brothers Joseph-Michel and Jacques-Etienne Montgolfier from the Ardèche region invented the hot air balloon, executing the first unmanned flight in September 1783. The first untethered, manned flight came two months later, and we’ve been enjoying balloon flights ever since.
7. The sewing machine
Barthélemy Thimonnier, a tailor, created the first patented sewing machine in 1829 and set up the first machine-based clothing manufacturer the following year. Although the factory burned down shortly after opening, Thimonnier paved the way for larger-scale clothing operations.
Rob Fearn
Editor - Alan Rogers Guides
Rob is the General Manager at Alan Rogers Travel Group, he is responsible for the ongoing development of the Alan Rogers website and publication of the Alan Rogers Guides.
He has been involved in the leisure industry since completing a BTEC in Travel & Tourism in 1993. Previous roles have included the promotion of tourism in Yorkshire and running a motorcycle touring company in the Australian Outback.
