Historical figures in Paris
The atlas holds 247 people and 788 moments here, from 508 to 2023. The most recorded lives are Édith Piaf, Joséphine de Beauharnais and Sarah Bernhardt. Among them Writers, Political Leaders and Scientists, across the Space Age and the Cold War.
Notable people
Charles Baudelaire
from 1821 to 1867
10 moments here
French poet, essayist, translator, and art critic, best known for Les Fleurs du mal. Baudelaire lived chiefly in Paris, spent formative school years…
Charles Darwin
in 1827
1 moment here
English naturalist, geologist, and biologist whose observations during the global voyage of HMS Beagle and subsequent research led to his theory of…
Charles de Gaulle
from 1922 to 1962
6 moments here
French army officer, leader of Free France during the Second World War, head of France's Provisional Government, and president of the French Fifth…
Charles Dickens
from 1846 to 1863
2 moments here
English novelist, journalist, editor, social reformer, actor and celebrated public reader. This chronology traces documented residences, workplaces,…
Charlie Chaplin
from 1921 to 1931
2 moments here
English actor, comedian, director, writer, producer and composer whose screen persona, the Tramp, became an international icon.…
Claude Simon
from 1925 to 2005
6 moments here
French novelist, painter, photographer, viticulturist, Resistance participant, and 1985 Nobel Prize in Literature laureate.…
Clovis I
from 508 to 511
2 moments here
Clovis I was king of the Salian Franks from 481 and the first Frankish king to unite much of the Frankish peoples under one ruler.…
Dalida
from 1954 to 1987
11 moments here
Dalida, born Iolanda Cristina Gigliotti, was an Egyptian-born Italian-French singer, actress and model.…
David Hilbert
from 1886 to 1900
2 moments here
German mathematician and philosopher of mathematics whose career began in Königsberg and was centered at the University of Göttingen from 1895 until…
David Hume
from 1763 to 1765
2 moments here
Scottish philosopher, historian, economist and essayist. Hume’s documented movements include formative stays in Bristol and France; residences at…
Deng Xiaoping
in 1921
1 moment here
Chinese revolutionary, statesman, and paramount leader of the People’s Republic of China from 1978 to 1989.…
Desiderius Erasmus
in 1495
1 moment here
Dutch Renaissance humanist, Catholic priest, theologian, editor, and author. Erasmus was born in the Burgundian Netherlands, educated in the Low…
Diana, Princess of Wales
in 1997
2 moments here
Diana Frances Spencer (1961–1997) was Princess of Wales from 1981 until her divorce in 1996.…
Dmitri Mendeleev
in 1900
1 moment here
Russian chemist Dmitri Ivanovich Mendeleev formulated the periodic law and produced a foundational periodic table.…
Dwight D. Eisenhower
from 1928 to 1950
2 moments here
Dwight D. Eisenhower was a United States Army officer, Supreme Allied Commander in Europe during World War II, and the 34th president of the United…
Édith Piaf
from 1915 to 1963
33 moments here
French singer and lyricist Édith Giovanna Gassion, known as Édith Piaf, rose from street performance in Paris to international prominence in chanson…
Eleanor Roosevelt
in 1948
2 moments here
American political figure, diplomat, activist, and First Lady of the United States from 1933 to 1945.…
Elizabeth Taylor
in 1970
1 moment here
British-American actress and HIV/AIDS activist. Born in London, Taylor moved to Southern California in 1939, became a major Hollywood star, worked…
Émile Zola
from 1840 to 1902
11 moments here
French novelist, journalist, and leading naturalist writer. Born in Paris, Zola spent formative years in Aix-en-Provence before returning to Paris;…
Ernest Hemingway
from 1918 to 1956
6 moments here
American novelist, short-story writer, and journalist. Hemingway’s documented movements ranged from Illinois and Michigan to Italy in World War I,…
Eusébio
from 1961 to 1973
2 moments here
Eusébio da Silva Ferreira (1942–2014) was a Portuguese footballer, born in Lourenço Marques (now Maputo), who became Benfica's record goalscorer and…
Federico Fellini
in 1970
1 moment here
Italian film director and screenwriter whose career developed from caricature and comic writing in Rimini and Rome into internationally influential…
Félix Houphouët-Boigny
from 1945 to 1962
2 moments here
Ivorian physician and politician who became the first president of Côte d’Ivoire, serving from independence in 1960 until his death in 1993.…
Florence Nightingale
from 1853 to 1856
2 moments here
English social reformer, statistician, and nursing pioneer. Nightingale’s documented movements span childhood homes in England; travel and nursing…
Moments
- 1677 Arrival in Paris as tutor John Locke
- 1678 Departure from Paris toward Rome John Locke
- 1678 Return to Paris after abandoned Rome journey John Locke
- 1694 Born in Paris Voltaire
- 1704 Studies at Louis-le-Grand Voltaire
- 1709 Scholarly residence in Paris Montesquieu
- 1717 Diplomatic and scholarly visits in Paris Peter the Great
- 1717 First Bastille imprisonment Voltaire
- 1726 Second Bastille imprisonment Voltaire
- 1726 Move to Paris after sale of office Montesquieu
- 1727 Letter from Paris Montesquieu
- 1728 Departure for Vienna Montesquieu
- 1734 Residence in Paris while preparing later work Montesquieu
- 1738 Botanical visit in Paris Carl Linnaeus
- 1739 Letter from Paris to Niccolini Montesquieu
- 1742 Presentation to the Académie des Sciences Jean-Jacques Rousseau
- 1744 Visits Paris and begins relationship with Denis Voltaire
- 1745 Return to Paris and relationship with Thérèse Jean-Jacques Rousseau
- 1749 Visits to Diderot at Vincennes Jean-Jacques Rousseau
- 1749 Returns briefly to Paris after du Châtelet’s death Voltaire
- 1754 Final visit to Paris Montesquieu
- 1755 Death in Paris Montesquieu
- 1759 Residence at Château de Montmorency Jean-Jacques Rousseau
- 1763 Embassy service in Paris David Hume
- 1763 Arrives in Paris Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
- 1764 First arrival in Paris Adam Smith
- 1765 Chargé d’affaires in Paris David Hume
- 1765 Paris stay with the Prince of Conti Jean-Jacques Rousseau
- 1766 Second Paris residence and intellectual meetings Adam Smith
- 1766 Returns to Paris Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
- 1767 Visit to Paris Benjamin Franklin
- 1770 Final Paris residence on Rue Platrière Jean-Jacques Rousseau
- 1776 Carriage accident in Paris Jean-Jacques Rousseau
- 1776 American commissioner in Passy Benjamin Franklin
- 1778 Lives at Chaussée-d'Antin in Paris Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
- 1778 Treaties with France Benjamin Franklin
- 1778 Returns to Paris after twenty-five years Voltaire
- 1778 Attends a performance of Irène Voltaire
- 1778 Initiated at Les Neuf Sœurs Voltaire
- 1778 Dies in Paris Voltaire
- 1783 Hydrogen-balloon flight witness Benjamin Franklin
- 1783 Signed Treaty of Paris John Adams
- 1783 Manned balloon launch Benjamin Franklin
- 1784 Meeting with Mirabeau Benjamin Franklin
- 1784 Arrival as diplomat in Paris Thomas Jefferson
- 1786 Chlorine experiment in Paris James Watt
- 1789 Present in Paris during Bastille storming Thomas Jefferson
- 1794 Diplomatic mission in Paris James Monroe
- 1799 Confronts legislators at Saint-Cloud Napoleon Bonaparte
- 1802 Travels to Paris Simón Bolívar