- published: 22 Dec 2015
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Claude Chappe (December 25, 1763 – January 23, 1805) was a French inventor who in 1792 demonstrated a practical semaphore system that eventually spanned all of France. This was the first practical telecommunications system of the industrial age, making Chappe the first telecom mogul with his "mechanical internet."
Chappe was born in Brûlon, Sarthe, France, the grandson of a French baron. He was raised for church service, but lost his sinecure during the French Revolution. He was educated at the Lycée Pierre Corneille in Rouen.
His uncle was the astronomer Jean-Baptiste Chappe d'Auteroche famed for his observations of the Transit of Venus in 1761 and again in 1769. The first book Claude read in his youth was his uncle's journal of the 1761 trip, "Voyage en Siberie". His brother, Abraham, wrote "Reading this book greatly inspired him, and gave him a taste for the physical sciences. From this point on, all his studies, and even his pastimes, were focused on that subject." Because of his astronomer uncle, Claude may also have become familiar with the properties of telescopes.
Histoires de Timbres n°8 Claude Chappe
100% Sarthe au Musée Claude Chappe (Brûlon)
Le télégraphe aérien de Claude Chappe à d'Écouen
The Mechanical Telegraph
Arnage : les élèves de Claude Chappe élisent leur incroyable talent
Arnage : les élèves de Claude Chappe élisent leur incroyable talent
Lycée Claude Chappe - WebTV Nanterre hebdo 22-28 mars 2010_2.mp4
Territoire Partagé : La tombe de Claude Chappe (Brulon)
Life of Claude Chappe Top 19 Facts.mp4
Trip To London with TEL Claude Chappe 2015