The Académie Française

Since its official creation in January 1635, l’Académie française has had one function: to oversee and refine the French language. Its distinguished ‘Dictionnaire de l'Académie française’ editions define the codes and spelling rules of the French language.

On August 8, 1793, the institution was abolished by a decree of the Convention nationale (National Convention), along with all the former royal academies. Then, in 1803, by a decree of 3 Pluviôse, Year XI (January 23, 1803), the First Consul Napoléon Bonaparte decided to restore the old academies, but only as divisions (classes) of the Institut de France*. The second of these, the ‘class of French language and literature’ effectively corresponds to the former Académie Française.

American Revolutionary War

The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, resulted in American independence from Great Britain. The fighting began on April 19, 1775, followed by the Lee Resolution on July 2, 1776, and the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776. During the conflict, the American Patriots received support from the Kingdom of France, as well as to a lesser extent, the Dutch Republic, and the Spanish Empire. The war took place in North America, the Caribbean, and the Atlantic Ocean. Notable naval officers who fought for the American cause included the Marquis de Lafayette and Admiral D'Estaing, among others.

Bureau des longitudes (Board of Longitude)

Le Bureau des longitudes (Board of Longitude) was established under the government of the National Convention in 1795 to improve the accuracy of data when tracking a ship's longitude through astronomical observations and timekeeping instruments. The purpose of this scientific institution was to make advances in astronomical knowledge and the effectiveness of navigational instruments, ultimately enhancing the safety of French navigation and its competitiveness with the British Navy. The Bureau was responsible for managing the Paris Observatory (Observatoire de Paris), which later became independent, as well as for publishing la Connaissance des temps, a collection of nautical almanacs that were essential references during voyages. The Bureau also played a major role in the introduction of the decimal system. Two of its members, Mechain* and Delambre*, used triangulation to measure the length of the meridian between Dunkirk and Barcelona, from which the meter (defined as one ten-millionth of the distance between the terrestrial pole and the Equator) was derived.

The names of the Bureau's first members, including Lagrange*, Laplace*, Lalande*, Cassini*, Borda*, Bougainville*, Méchain*, and Delambre*, are included in the nomenclature of the Voyage of Discovery to the Southern Lands edited by Péron and Freycinet.

Consulat (Le Consulat, in English: Consulate)

Le Consulat was a political regime established in France following the coup d'état of 18-19 Brumaire Year VIII (9-10 November 1799), which replaced le Directoire*. It lasted until the establishment of the First Empire on 18 May 1804.

Under le Consulat, a new constitution was promulgated on December 13, 1799, known as the Constitution of the Year VIII. It was later modified by the Constitution of the Year X (1802), which made Napoleon Bonaparte, the First Consul, Consul for life. With increased power, he was able to appoint his successor and surrounded himself with a court-like entourage: Even without a crown, he became more of a king than any other sovereign in Europe. Bonaparte presented himself as a national reconciler and aimed to transcend party politics: ‘The government no longer knew parties and saw in France only Frenchmen’. He allowed many emigrated nobles, including Rossel*, and outcasts from different revolutionary periods, to return freely to France.

Financial recovery was aided by the founding of the Bank of France on February 13, 1800; the introduction of the Germinal franc in March 1803; and the creation of a corps of civil servants, specialists in the distribution and collection of taxes, including Mollien* and Cretet*.

Convention (La Convention, in English: The National Convention)

La Convention was a constituent assembly that, during the French Revolution, established the First Republic and governed France from September 1792 until October 26, 1795. It was during the Convention that the Reign of Terror was implemented, where the republican movements in power were radicalized by a violence that brooked no compromise in their fight against the external and internal threats that they faced.

Dépôt des Cartes et Plans de la Marine

Le Dépôt des Cartes et Plans de la Marine was a French hydrographic institution founded in 1720 in Paris. It served as a storehouse and distribution center for existing nautical and marine charts and documents such as sea journals, nautical papers, and publications. Beautemps Beaupré and Freycinet worked at the dépôt to edit the charts of their voyages and publish their atlases.

The nomenclature of Péron and Freycinet lists the names of the directors of le Dépôt des Cartes et Plans de la Marine at that time, including Rosily* and Buache*. Hamelin* later became one of its directors from 1833 to 1839.

Today, le Dépôt des Cartes et Plans is known as the Service Hydrographique de la Marine.

Directoire (Le Directoire, in English: The Directory)

Le Directoire was the regime that governed France from the end of the National Convention (October 26, 1795) [4 Brumaire, year IV] until November 9, 1799 (when the Consulate began). Outside of France, the Directory pursued an expansionist policy and sent Bonaparte on his Egyptian campaign (May 1798).

École normale

L’ École normale, also known as the École normale de l'an III, provided a series of high-level courses for the training of high school teachers. It was established by the Convention in 1795 with the goal of promoting a planned centralized national education system in France. The decree that established the school, issued on 30 October 1794 (9 brumaire an III), stated in its first article that ‘There will be established in Paris an École normale, where citizens from all parts of the Republic, already educated in useful sciences, shall be called upon to learn, from the best professors in all disciplines, the art of teaching.’

These courses only lasted for four months, from 1 Pluviose of the year III (20 January 1795) to 30 Floréal of the year III (19 May 1795). Nevertheless, the École normale de l'an III is considered the predecessor of today's prestigious École normale supérieure (rue d'Ulm - Paris) and other French normal schools.

The professors who taught at the École normale were renowned scholars, and their names are included in the nomenclature of Péron and Freycinet. They were:

• Mathematics: Joseph-Louis Lagrange and Pierre-Simon Laplace; • Descriptive geometry: Gaspard Monge; • Physics: René Just Haüy; • Natural history: Louis Jean-Marie Daubenton; • Chemistry: Claude Louis Berthollet; • Agriculture: André Thouin; • Geography: Jean-Nicolas Buache and Edme Mentelle (the latter was appointed as Buache's assistant by a decree of 24 nivôse); and • History: Volney.

Encyclopédie

l’Encyclopédie ou Dictionnaire raisonné des sciences, des arts et des métiers was a major work published between 1751 and 1772 under the direction of Denis Diderot* and Jean Le Rond d'Alembert*. This first French encyclopedia was conceived as a vast illustrated system for classifying, ranking, and understanding human knowledge.

French campaign in Egypt and Syria

The Napoleonic campaign in the Ottoman territories of Egypt and Syria (Campagne d’Egypte, 1797-1801) followed Napoleon Bonaparte's victorious campaign in Italy in 1797, leaving England as France's sole enemy. As general-in-chief of the French army, Bonaparte proposed, along with Talleyrand, to take the war to Egypt, which could serve as a base of operations against British dominance in India.

The campaign also included a scientific expedition, with about 160 scientists, historians, draftsmen, botanists, and engineers, who accompanied the army to study and describe the country. Their meticulous work led to the emergence of a new science: Egyptology. Many of their names are included in the nomenclature of Péron and Freycinet.

French Revolutionary Wars

The French Revolutionary Wars were a series of conflicts between France and other nations in Europe, following the French Revolution which took place between 1792 and 1802. The wars saw France fighting against a coalition of European powers, including Great Britain, Austria and Prussia. They had a profound impact on European and world history, leading to the rise of Napoleon and the spread of revolutionary ideals across Europe.

Institut national des sciences et des arts

In 1795, the National Convention established and organized l’Institut national des sciences et des arts (National Institute of Sciences and Arts, referred to in short as the Institut), now known as l’Institut de France, to serve as an assembly for writers, scholars, and artists. This followed the dissolution of the royal academies during the French Revolution. Initially, the Institute had 144 members divided into three classes: Physical Sciences and Mathematics (60 members), Literature and Fine Arts (48 members), and, for the first time, Moral and Political Sciences (36 members).

During the Consulate, a decree issued on May 13, 1801, introduced a formal dress code for members of the Institute: a black costume adorned with green olive branches embroidered on its sleeves and collar. This ceremonial attire is still worn on solemn occasions today.

Subsequently, on January 23, 1803 (3 Pluviôse Year XI), another decree reorganized the National Institute of Sciences and Arts. It was divided into four classes: Physical Sciences and Mathematics, French Language and Literature, Ancient History and Literature, and Fine Arts. As part of this restructuring, the class of Moral and Political Sciences was abolished, reflecting an effort to neutralize the republican ideals held by many of its members. These members were allowed to join one of the other, more politically neutral, classes within the newly restructured Institute.

With the establishment of the Napoleonic Empire in May 1804, the National Institute of Sciences and Arts was renamed l’Institut impérial des sciences, arts et lettres.

The class of Moral and Political Sciences was later reinstated in 1832 during the reign of Louis XVIII and is now known as the Académie des Sciences Morales et Politiques.

The names of the first members of l’Institut are included in the nomenclature of Péron and Freycinet, such as Lagrange*, Laplace*, Delambre*, Legendre*, Monge*, Prony*, Berthoud*, Lalande*, Méchain*, Cassini*, Coulomb*, Berthollet*, Fourcroy*, Vauquelin*, Guyton-Morveau*, Chaptal*, Dolomieu*, Lamarck*, Jussieu*, Cuvier*, Daubenton (albeit Baie Daubenton, mentionned in Péron, F (2011) 'Voyage de découvertes aux Terres Australes', Op cit., tome 1, p.318 , is not included in Freycinet atlas), Lacépède*, Hallé*, Parmentier*, Volney*, Cambacérès*, Talleyrand*, Roederer*, Dacier*, Bougainville*, and Jacques-Louis David*. Bonaparte himself was elected a member of the Institut on December 25, 1797, to the mechanical arts division of the science section, replacing Carnot.

Since 1805, the headquarters of the Institut has been located at the Collège des Quatre-Nations, quai de Conti, in Paris.

Isle of France

L'Isle de France was the former name of the island of Mauritius after it became a French colony in 1715. The French governor, Mahé de La Bourdonnais, established Port Louis as a naval base and a ship-building centre. The island was under the administration of the French East India Company until 1767. From that year until 1810, the island was governed by officials appointed by the French Government, except for a brief period during the French Revolution when the local authorities set up a virtually independent government who refused to enforce the Revolutionary’s bans on the slave trade and on slavery and did not warmly welcome the Baudin expedition in 1800. From that year until 1810, the island was governed by officials appointed by the French government, except for a brief period after the French Revolution when local authorities established a virtually independent government that refused to enforce the Revolution’s bans on the slave trade and slavery and did not warmly welcome the Baudin expedition in 1800. However, Napoleon maintained slavery in the French colonies.

During the Napoleonic Wars, under the governorship of Decaen*, the Isle de France became a base from which French corsairs organised raids on British commercial ships over a vast area of the Indian Ocean, encompassing the entire Mascarene Archipelago (Isle de France, Île Bonaparte [previously Île Bourbon, now La Réunion], and Île Rodrigues) and the entire Seychelles Archipelago to the north. The British ended French hegemony in this part of the Indian Ocean in 1810. Under the Treaty of Paris in 1814, the Isle de France reverted to its former name, Mauritius.

Italian campaigns of the French Revolutionary Wars (1796-1797; 1799-1802)

The Italian Campaigns of the French Revolutionary Wars refer to the military operations carried out by Napoléon Bonaparte in northern Italy in 1796 and 1797 against Austria, Piedmont, and their allies (First European Coalition, 1792-1897). These campaigns also included battles fought in May-June 1800 against the Second European Coalition (1799-1802).

The nomenclature of Péron and Freycinet includes many of the French victories in Northern Italy (Marengo*, Rivoli*…), and of the generals who led them (see for example the Southern part of Golfe Bonaparte/ Gulf Spencer)

La Pérouse expedition (1785-1788)

The La Pérouse expedition was a voyage of discovery led by Jean-François de La Pérouse, also spelt Lapérouse or Lapeyrouse, at the instigation of the French king Louis XVI.

On August 1, 1785, the explorer set sail from Brest with two frigates: l'Astrolabe and la Boussole. On board the ships were over 200 scientists specializing in a wide range of disciplines.

In February 1786, the two ships rounded Cape Horn, before reaching Easter Island in April. After a stopover in Chile, the expedition continued on to Alaska, then California, before crossing the Pacific Ocean to Macao in China in 1787. The ships continued their voyage to the Philippines, Japan, Korea and Kamchatka (in Russia's far east). The expedition then sailed to Botany Bay (today's Sydney) in New South Wales (Australia), from where La Pérouse sent mail and journals taken by British vessels to France. After leaving Botany Bay, his vessels were wrecked on the Vanikoro reefs in the South Pacific in early 1788. The fate of the expedition remained a mystery for almost 40 years.

Légion d’Honneur

The Legion of Honor was created on May 19, 1802, by the First Consul, Napoleon Bonaparte, as part of a wider reorganization of the State. It was adopted after lengthy discussions in the Council of State, as well as the Tribunat and Legislative Body. The institution aimed to re-establish a complete system of rewards based on individual merit, rather than privileges or exemptions, while respecting the equality of citizens. Bonaparte pursued three objectives with the creation of the Legion: to reconcile the French people exhausted by more than a decade of instability and conflict, to unite them around the ideals of individual and national honor, and to symbolize a strong and unified state by uniting the courage of the military with the talents of civilians. The Legion of Honor was open to both soldiers and civilians from the time it was introduced. The marshals of the Empire, including Berthier*, Soult*, Ney*, Murat*, and Lannes*, were decorated alongside civilian personalities such as senior civil servants, magistrates like Mollien*, doctors like Corvisart*, industrialists, scientists such as Cuvier*, Monge*, and Montgolfier*, and artists like David*, Gros, and Gérard*, as well as architects, musicians, and writers.

Madame Campan and the ‘Institut national de Saint-Germain’

This Institution, now known as the Maison d’éducation des Loges, was a boarding school for girls established in Saint-Germain-en-Laye by Jeanne-Louise-Henriette Genet, known as Madame Campan (1752 – 1822), who was a distinguished educator in the late 18th century.

Madame Campan had previously served as chambermaid to Queen Marie-Antoinette but started a new career after the period of the Terreur. With few resources and several dependents, including her sick husband, her young son and three motherless nieces (including Adèle*), Madame Campan moved to Saint-Germain-en-Laye in 1794 and opened a small boarding school for young ladies. She remained at the school for eight years, during which time it became a hub of social activity for the Directory and the Consulate. In September 1795, Marie Josèphe Rose of Beauharnais (the future Empress Josephine*) brought her two children, Eugène* and Hortense*, to Saint-Germain for their education. Eugène went to the Irish college, while Hortense enrolled in Madame Campan's institution at the Hôtel de Rohan. The following year, Madame Campan informed Hortense of her mother's marriage to General Bonaparte, who then visited the school with his new wife on March 10, 1796. From that point on, the Bonaparte girls began to attend the school, including Napoleon's youngest sister Annunziata (later Caroline*), Lucien's eldest daughter Charlotte, and even Pauline*, who was put in the school by her husband General Leclerc to improve her neglected education.

Madame Campan moved to Saint-Germain-en-Laye in 1794 and opened a small boarding school for young ladies. She remained at the school for eight years, during which Saint-Germain-en-laye became a center for elite social education during the Directory and the Consulate. For example, in September 1795, Marie Josèphe Rose de Beauharnais (the future Empress Joséphine*) brought her two children, Eugène* and Hortense*, to Saint-Germain for their education. Eugène attended the Irish College, while Hortense enrolled in Madame Campan's institution at the Hôtel de Rohan. The following year, Madame Campan informed Hortense of her mother's marriage to General Bonaparte, who visited the school with his new wife on March 10, 1796. From that point onward, the Bonaparte girls began to attend the school, including Napoleon's youngest sister Annunziata (later Caroline*), Lucien's eldest daughter Charlotte, and even Pauline*, who was enrolled by her husband, General Leclerc, to improve her neglected education. Other notable students included Emilie* and Stéphanie de Beauharnais*.

Musée National d'Histoire Naturelle

The history of the Musée National d'Histoire Naturelle dates to the 17th century. Originally named the Royal Garden of Medicinal Plants, it was established in May 1635 by Louis XIII in Paris as a training ground for future doctors and apothecaries.

In the 18th century, the garden was instrumental in acclimatizing exotic species brought back from various voyages. Antoine de Jussieu*, for instance, successfully adapted the Java coffee tree in  its greenhouses , which paved the way for its exportation and cultivation in the former French colonies in America.

Buffon* conducted much of his research at the Royal Garden. It was there that he wrote his landmark work, Natural History, which comprised 36 volumes published between 1749 and 1788. To aid him in his work, Buffon gathered a team of renowned scientists, including Lamarck*, Dolomieu*, Thouin*, Desfontaine*, and others whose names appear in the nomenclature of Péron and Freycinet .

During the French Revolution, the parisian institution gained autonomy and by decree was officially established as the Musée National d'Histoire Naturelle in 1793. The new institution was led by a director and focused on research and public education. Teaching was divided into twelve professorships, each headed by esteemed professors like Cuvier (comparative anatomy), Fourcroy (chemistry), Jussieu, Desfontaines, and others listed in the nomenclature of Péron and Freycinet.

The Museum also played a crucial role in the preparation of Baudin's voyage, and in 1794, it opened the Menagerie, where a decade later, animals from the expedition were housed.

Nomenclature

The nomenclatures of the d'Entrecasteaux and Baudin expeditions list the places (capes, points, islands, reefs, mountains, watercourses, bays, plateaus, etc.) discovered and surveyed during these voyages.

By including these places in the official atlases and publications of the voyages, their geographical recognition gave way to a conception of discovery as a symbolic act of intellectual ownership, materialized by the right of the discoverer—exercised under the authority of their country—to assign its name.

New Holland

New Holland (Dutch: Nieuw-Holland, French: Nouvelle Hollande) is a historical Dutch/European name for mainland Australia.

The d’Entrecasteaux and the Baudin expeditions used this appellation (‘New Holland’) as well as the more general term Terres australes to designate Australia.

Nine Years' War

The Nine Years' War (1688-1697), also known as the War of the Grand Alliance or the War of the League of Augsburg, was a conflict between France and a European coalition that mainly included the Holy Roman Empire (led by the Habsburg monarchy), the Dutch Republic, England, Spain, Savoy, Sweden, and Portugal. Although not the first European war to extend to overseas colonies, the events of the Nine Years' War had far-reaching consequences in places as distant as the Americas, India, and West Africa.

The nomenclature of Péron and Freycinet recalls the names of French navy officers who fought against the British or the Dutch in sea battles during this conflict.

Peace of Amiens / Paix d’Amiens (March 23, 1802 - May 18, 1803)

On March 25, 1802, the peace treaty of Amiens was signed by Joseph Bonaparte, brother of Napoleon I, and Lord Cornwallis, British Minister Plenipotentiary, between the French Republic, the King of Spain and India, and the Dutch Republic, on the one hand, and the King of England and Ireland, on the other. The Peace of Amiens put a temporary end (eighteen months), to ten years of war between France and England.

This treaty stipulates (art. 1) as follows: ‘The contracting parties will take the greatest care to maintain perfect harmony between themselves and their states, without allowing, on either side, or committing any kind of hostility by land, or by sea, for whatever cause and under whatever pretext it may be.’

England undertook to return to France and its allies, Spain and Holland, their respective colonies. France, for its part, withdrew its troops from Naples and the Roman States.

Polytechnique

Polytechnique is a French engineering school that was established in 1794 under the name ‘École centrale des travaux publics’ to address the shortage of engineers and senior managers in France. The school was renamed École Polytechnique one year later, on September 1, 1795. It recruited students from across France through a competitive examination and had prestigious lecturers and professors such as Monge*, Laplace*, and Prony*, Berthollet*, Vauquelin*, Fourcroy*, and Lagrange*, encompassed in the nomenclature of Péron and Freycinet.

In 1796, a decree appointed three to five admission examiners, including Laplace, who were responsible for selecting mathematically gifted candidates during tours throughout France. At the time, the École Polytechnique was a civilian institution and the students were non-residential. Graduates of the Polytechnique would attend Ecoles d’application (engineering schools of instruction) to learn practical engineering skills. Among Baudin’s crew, Boullanger* and Faure* studied in the school of the ‘ingénieurs géographes’ specialised in surveying and geographical expertise, Maurouard* and Hyacinthe de Bougainville* in that of the military navy, and Bailly* in the school of ‘arts et manufactures’.

About fifty students and a dozen teachers and staff of the Polytechnique and these schools accompanied General Bonaparte to Egypt, where their scientific surveys contributed to the publication of the Description d'Égypte. The Polytechnique was highly valued by Napoleon Bonaparte, who considered it to be ‘his goose that lays the golden eggs’ due to the large number of officers in his army and leaders of his administration who had graduated from it.

In 1804, Napoleon gave the Polytechnique military status and a motto: ‘Pour la Patrie, les Sciences et la Gloire’.

Since the end of 2013, Polytechnique has had a new logo that includes the letter ‘X,’ the school's nickname since the mid-19th century. It derives from both the crossed gun barrels of the school’s coat of arms, and the use of the ‘X’ symbol in polynomial algebra.

Further reading: Belhoste, B. (2003) La formation d'une technocratie L'Ecole polytechnique et ses élèves de la Révolution au Second Empire. Belin, Paris.

Premier Empire (First French Empire)

On May 18, 1804, the Consulat was transformed into a hereditary empire. The coronation and consecration ceremony took place at Notre-Dame de Paris on December 2, 1804. In exchange for the French bishops' adherence to the Concordat between the French state and the Catholic Church, and their submission to the Pope, the pope Pius VII agreed to preside over the ceremony. However, contrary to tradition, Napoléon insisted on crowning himself and also placing the crown on Empress Josephine, leaving Pope Pius VII to merely bless the crown.

The regime was built on the model of a monarchy and established through the senatus-consultum of 28 Floréal Year XII (May 18, 1804), also known as the Constitution of Year XII. The senatus-consultum entrusted the government of the Republic to the First Consul Bonaparte, who was given the title of Emperor of the French Napoléon I. The imperial succession was proclaimed as hereditary applying to the direct, natural, and legitimate descendants of Napoléon Bonaparte. The new regime was formalized with Napoléon I's coronation at Notre-Dame de Paris on December 2, 1804, and with the establishment of a court system, including great dignitaries, civil and military officers, eighteen marshals, and a nobility of the Empire, many of whose names are remembered in the nomenclature of Péron and Freycinet.

It ended in 1815 with the Restauration.

Seven Years' War

The Seven Years' War (1754/1756–1763) was a global conflict involving most of the major European powers and many smaller European states, as well as nations in Asia and the Americas. The most powerful belligerents in each of the opposing alliances were Great Britain and France, both seeking to establish global dominance at the expense of the other power. Along with Spain, France fought Great Britain both in Europe and overseas with land-based armies and naval forces, while Britain's ally Prussia sought territorial expansion in Europe and consolidation of its power. The conflict originated from unresolved issues left by the War of the Austrian Succession (1740–1748), with Prussia seeking greater influence in the German states and Austria aiming to regain Silesia, captured by Prussia in the previous war and to contain Prussian influence. The long-standing colonial rivalries pitting Britain against France and Spain in North America and the West Indies were also fought on a grand scale, with France emerging from the conflict extremely weakened.

Société des Observateurs de l’Homme

In 1799, the Idéologues—scholars (primarily naturalists, physicians, philosophers, writers, historians, linguists, orientalists, and archaeologists) who had embraced the Revolution—found a fitting base in the Société des Observateurs de l’Homme. The Société had a particular focus on the emerging field of anthropology and expressed interest in the potential anthropological contributions of the Baudin expedition. Several savants and officers from the voyage, including the two captains, Baudin and Hamelin, as well as Péron, were among its correspondents. The Society was dissolved in 1804 by Bonaparte due to its republican ideals.

Terreur

The period during the French Revolution (1793-1794) when exceptional measures were taken to arrest and execute perceived or actual opponents to the ruling revolutionary government (the Montagnards).

Van Diemen’s Land

Van Diemen's Land was the original name given by the Dutch to the island of Tasmania, in honor of Antonio van Diemen, the Governor General of the Dutch East Indies who had sent Abel Tasman to explore the region in 1642.

The name of the island was officially changed by the British to Tasmania on January 1, 1856.

War of the Austrian Succession

In 1740, the death of Emperor Charles VI and the accession of his daughter Maria Theresa triggered the War of the Austrian Succession. Related princes claimed all or part of the empire, contesting the right of a woman to rule. France entered the war in 1741 by allying itself with Prussia against the Austrians, British, and Dutch. The final period was marked by French victories. The war ended in 1748 with the Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle. Louis XV returned his conquests to Austria, to the general surprise and dismay of his people, declaring that he had concluded peace ‘as a king and not as a merchant.’ Prussia was the great winner of the conflict, having enlarged its kingdom at the expense of Austria. Empress Maria Theresa reluctantly accepted it. The conflict resumed in 1756, triggering the Seven Years' War. Names of French personalities such as Dupleix, the governor of Pondicherry and of the French establishments in India, who had long collected strategic information on the English trading post's defense capabilities and prepared an attack plan, are remembered in the nomenclature of Péron and Freycinet

L’Académie Française

Fondée officiellement en janvier 1635, l’Académie française a pour mission de veiller sur la langue française et d’en affiner l’usage. Son prestigieux Dictionnaire de l’Académie française fixe les règles de référence en matière de langue et d’orthographe.

Le 8 août 1793, la Convention nationale supprima l’institution avec les autres académies royales. En 1803 (3 pluviôse an XI), le Premier Consul Napoléon Bonaparte rétablit ces académies en tant que « classes » de l’Institut de France ; la « classe de langue et littérature françaises » correspondait à l’ancienne Académie française.

Guerre d’indépendance américaine

La guerre d’indépendance américaine (19 avril 1775 – 3 septembre 1783), également appelée Revolutionary War, aboutit à l’indépendance des Treize Colonies vis‑à‑vis de la Grande‑Bretagne. Les hostilités débutèrent le 19 avril 1775, suivies par la résolution Lee (2 juillet 1776) et la Déclaration d’indépendance (4 juillet 1776).

Les patriotes américains bénéficièrent du soutien du royaume de France, et dans une moindre mesure de la République des Provinces‑Unies et de l’Empire d’Espagne. Le conflit se déroula en Amérique du Nord, dans les Caraïbes et sur l’Atlantique ; des officiers français comme le marquis de Lafayette et l’amiral d’Estaing y prirent part.

Bureau des longitudes

Créé en 1795 par la Convention nationale, le Bureau des longitudes avait pour objet d’améliorer la détermination de la longitude en mer par des observations astronomiques et des instruments horaires. Il contribua aux progrès de l’astronomie et de la navigation, renforçant la sécurité de la marine française face à la Royal Navy.

Il administra l’Observatoire de Paris (devenu ensuite autonome) et publia La Connaissance des temps (almanachs nautiques). Il joua un rôle majeur dans l’introduction du système décimal. Méchain et Delambre y mesurèrent par triangulation l’arc Dunkerque‑Barcelone, base de la définition du mètre.

Le Consulat

Régime instauré à la suite du coup d’État des 18‑19 brumaire an VIII (9‑10 novembre 1799) qui mit fin au Directoire, le Consulat dura jusqu’à l’établissement du Premier Empire (18 mai 1804).

La Constitution de l’an VIII (13 décembre 1799), puis celle de l’an X (1802), fit du Premier Consul Napoléon Bonaparte un consul à vie, doté de pouvoirs étendus. Se posant en artisan de réconciliation nationale, il renforça l’appareil d’État (Banque de France, franc germinal, administration fiscale).

La Convention (Convention nationale)

Assemblée constituante et législative, la Convention nationale gouverna la France de septembre 1792 au 26 octobre 1795 et proclama la Première République. Elle fut le cadre de la Terreur (1793‑1794), période de radicalisation et de répression au nom de la défense de la Révolution face aux menaces intérieures et extérieures.

Dépôt des Cartes et Plans de la Marine

Fondé à Paris en 1720, le Dépôt fut l’institution hydrographique française chargée de rassembler, conserver et diffuser cartes, journaux de bord et documents nautiques. Beautemps‑Beaupré et Freycinet y travaillèrent à l’édition et à la publication des cartes et atlas issus de leurs voyages.

Plusieurs directeurs du Dépôt sont cités par Péron et Freycinet (Rosily, Buache) ; Hamelin dirigea l’institution de 1833 à 1839. Aujourd’hui, ses attributions relèvent du Service hydrographique et océanographique de la Marine.

Le Directoire

Régime en vigueur du 4 brumaire an IV (26 octobre 1795) au 18 brumaire an VIII (9 novembre 1799). À l’extérieur, il poursuivit une politique d’expansion et lança la campagne d’Égypte (mai 1798) placée sous le commandement du général Bonaparte.

École normale (de l’an III)

Créée par décret du 9 brumaire an III (30 octobre 1794) et ouverte du 1er pluviôse au 30 floréal an III (20 janvier – 19 mai 1795), l’École normale devait former des enseignants pour un système national centralisé. Elle est l’ancêtre de l’actuelle École normale supérieure (rue d’Ulm) et des écoles normales.

Parmi ses professeurs : Lagrange, Laplace (mathématiques), Monge (géométrie descriptive), Haüy (physique), Daubenton (histoire naturelle), Berthollet (chimie), Thouin (agriculture), Buache et Mentelle (géographie), Volney (histoire).

Encyclopédie

L’« Encyclopédie ou Dictionnaire raisonné des sciences, des arts et des métiers » (1751‑1772), dirigée par Diderot et d’Alembert, constitua une entreprise majeure de classification, de hiérarchisation et de diffusion des savoirs au siècle des Lumières.

Campagne d’Égypte et de Syrie

Expédition militaire menée par Bonaparte dans les territoires ottomans d’Égypte et de Syrie (1797‑1801), prolongeant ses succès en Italie. Elle visait aussi les intérêts britanniques en Inde.

L’expédition s’accompagna d’une mission scientifique (environ 160 savants : naturalistes, ingénieurs, dessinateurs, etc.) dont les travaux inaugurèrent l’égyptologie et aboutirent à la monumentale Description de l’Égypte.

Guerres de la Révolution française

Ensemble de conflits opposant la France révolutionnaire à diverses coalitions européennes (1792‑1802). Ils contribuèrent à l’ascension de Bonaparte et à la diffusion en Europe de principes politiques nouveaux.

Institut national des sciences et des arts (Institut de France)

Établi en 1795 par la Convention après la dissolution des anciennes académies, l’Institut rassembla écrivains, savants et artistes, d’abord en trois classes (sciences physiques et mathématiques ; littérature et beaux‑arts ; sciences morales et politiques).

Sous le Consulat (décrets de 1801 et 1803), l’habit vert fut institué et l’organisation remaniée : quatre classes furent conservées et la classe des sciences morales et politiques supprimée (rétablie en 1832). Bonaparte fut élu à l’Institut le 25 décembre 1797. Depuis 1805, le siège est au Collège des Quatre‑Nations, quai de Conti.

Isle de France (Maurice)

Ancien nom de l’île Maurice sous la domination française (1715‑1810). Port‑Louis devint base navale et chantier naval sous La Bourdonnais ; l’île passa de la Compagnie des Indes (jusqu’en 1767) à une administration d’État. Pendant la période révolutionnaire, les autorités locales résistèrent aux interdictions du commerce d’esclaves.

Sous Decaen, l’Isle de France servit de base à la course contre le commerce britannique dans l’océan Indien. La supériorité britannique fut rétablie en 1810 ; le traité de Paris (1814) rendit le nom de Maurice.

Campagnes d’Italie (Révolution française)

Opérations conduites par Bonaparte en Italie du Nord (1796‑1797) contre l’Autriche, le Piémont et leurs alliés (Première Coalition), puis combats de 1800 contre la Deuxième Coalition. Les victoires (Rivoli, Marengo, etc.) et les généraux qui s’y illustrèrent sont souvent rappelés par la toponymie et les cartes de l’époque.

Expédition de La Pérouse (1785‑1788)

Voyage d’exploration dirigé par Jean‑François de La Pérouse, parti de Brest le 1er août 1785 à la tête de deux frégates, l’Astrolabe et la Boussole, avec plus de deux cents savants et spécialistes.

Après avoir franchi le cap Horn (février 1786) et touché l’île de Pâques (avril), l’expédition longea l’Alaska et la Californie, traversa le Pacifique vers Macao (1787), puis visita Philippines, Japon, Corée et Kamtchatka, avant de gagner Botany Bay (Sydney). Les navires furent perdus sur les récifs de Vanikoro au début de 1788 ; le sort de l’expédition demeura mystérieux près de quarante ans.

Légion d’honneur

Instituée le 19 mai 1802 par le Premier Consul Bonaparte, la Légion d’honneur rétablit un système complet de récompenses fondé sur le mérite individuel, ouvert aux militaires comme aux civils, afin de réconcilier la nation et d’incarner l’unité de l’État.

Parmi les décorés : maréchaux (Berthier, Soult, Ney, Murat, Lannes), hauts fonctionnaires, magistrats, médecins (Corvisart), industriels, savants (Cuvier, Monge, Montgolfier), artistes (David, Gros, Gérard), etc.

Madame Campan et l’« Institut national de Saint‑Germain »

Jeanne‑Louise‑Henriette Genet, dite Madame Campan (1752‑1822), ancienne première femme de chambre de Marie‑Antoinette, fonda en 1794 à Saint‑Germain‑en‑Laye une pension de jeunes filles devenue un lieu d’éducation mondaine sous le Directoire et le Consulat.

Joséphine y fit instruire sa fille Hortense ; Bonaparte visita l’institution en mars 1796. D’autres jeunes parentes Bonaparte y furent admises (Caroline, Pauline, etc.). L’école, aujourd’hui Maison d’éducation des Loges, accueillit aussi Émilie et Stéphanie de Beauharnais.

Musée national d'Histoire naturelle

Issu du Jardin royal des plantes médicinales (1635), le Muséum fut institué en 1793 comme établissement autonome de recherche et d'enseignement public. Il joua un rôle central dans l'acclimatation des espèces exotiques et la préparation du voyage de Baudin ; la Ménagerie ouvrit en 1794.

Buffon y mena ses travaux (Histoire naturelle, 1749‑1788) entouré de savants (Lamarck, Dolomieu, Thouin, Desfontaines, etc.). Douze chaires furent instituées, dont celles de Cuvier (anatomie comparée) et Fourcroy (chimie).

Nomenclature

Les nomenclatures des expéditions de d'Entrecasteaux et Baudin, recensent les lieux (cap, pointe, île, récif, montagne, cours d'eau, baie, plateau etc.) découverts et reconnus pendant ces voyages.

En faisant figurer ces lieux dans les atlas et publications officiels des voyages, leur reconnaissance géographique s'effaçait au profit d'une conception de la découverte comme acte symbolique de propriété intellectuelle, matérialisée par le droit du découvreur — exercé sous l'autorité de son pays — d'en attribuer le nom.

Nouvelle‑Hollande

Ancienne appellation européenne (d'origine néerlandaise) pour désigner le continent australien. Les expéditions d'Entrecasteaux et Baudin l'emploient, au même titre que le terme plus général de Terres australes.

Guerre de la Ligue d’Augsbourg (Guerre de Neuf Ans)

Conflit européen (1688‑1697) opposant la France à une large coalition (Empire, Provinces‑Unies, Angleterre, Espagne, Savoie, Suède, Portugal). Les opérations eurent aussi des répercussions en Amériques, en Inde et en Afrique de l’Ouest. La toponymie et les récits rappellent les combats navals livrés par des officiers français contre Anglais et Hollandais.

Paix d’Amiens (25 mars 1802 – 18 mai 1803)

Traité signé à Amiens entre la France, l’Espagne et la République batave, d’une part, et le Royaume‑Uni, d’autre part, qui mit fin provisoirement à dix années de guerre entre la France et l’Angleterre. L’Angleterre restitua des colonies ; la France retira ses troupes de Naples et des États pontificaux. La paix ne dura qu’une dizaine de mois.

École polytechnique

Fondée en 1794 sous le nom d’« École centrale des travaux publics », rebaptisée École polytechnique en 1795, elle recruta par concours et dispensa un enseignement scientifique d’élite (Monge, Laplace, Lagrange, Berthollet, Vauquelin, Fourcroy, etc.).

Des polytechniciens participèrent à l’expédition d’Égypte ; Napoléon donna à l’école un statut militaire et la devise « Pour la Patrie, les Sciences et la Gloire » (1804). Le symbole « X » s’imposa au XIXe siècle.

Premier Empire

Le Consulat fut transformé en Empire héréditaire par le sénatus‑consulte du 28 floréal an XII (18 mai 1804). Le sacre et le couronnement eurent lieu à Notre‑Dame de Paris (2 décembre 1804), en présence de Pie VII ; Napoléon se couronna lui‑même et couronna l’impératrice Joséphine.

Le régime, d’inspiration monarchique, institua une Cour, de hautes dignités, dix‑huit maréchaux et une noblesse d’Empire. Il s’acheva en 1815 avec la Restauration.

Guerre de Sept Ans

Conflit mondial (1754/1756‑1763) opposant principalement la France et l’Espagne à la Grande‑Bretagne (alliée à la Prusse), en Europe comme outre‑mer (Amérique du Nord, Antilles, Inde). Il prolongea les enjeux non résolus de la guerre de Succession d’Autriche et affaiblit considérablement la puissance coloniale française.

Société des Observateurs de l’Homme

Fondée en 1799 par des savants proches du courant des Idéologues (naturalistes, médecins, philosophes, orientalistes, etc.), la Société s’intéressa à l’anthropologie naissante et suivit avec attention les apports possibles du voyage de Baudin. Baudin, Hamelin et Péron comptèrent parmi ses correspondants. Dissoute en 1804 par Bonaparte pour motifs politiques.

Terreur

Période de la Révolution (1793‑1794) durant laquelle des mesures d’exception furent prises pour arrêter et exécuter les opposants réels ou supposés au gouvernement révolutionnaire (Montagnards).

Terre de Van Diemen (Tasmanie)

Nom donné par les Hollandais à l’île de Tasmanie en l’honneur d’Antonio van Diemen, gouverneur général des Indes orientales néerlandaises, qui dépêcha Abel Tasman en 1642. L’île fut officiellement renommée « Tasmanie » par les Britanniques le 1er janvier 1856.

Guerre de Succession d’Autriche

À la mort de l’empereur Charles VI (1740) et à l’accession de sa fille, Marie‑Thérèse, plusieurs princes contestèrent les droits de cette dernière, déclenchant la guerre. La France entra en 1741 aux côtés de la Prusse contre l’Autriche, la Grande‑Bretagne et les Provinces‑Unies. Le conflit s’acheva par la paix d’Aix‑la‑Chapelle (1748).

La Prusse sortit renforcée ; les rivalités coloniales franco‑britanniques reprirent et débouchèrent en 1756 sur la guerre de Sept Ans. La toponymie conserve des noms de personnalités françaises engagées outre‑mer (par ex. Dupleix à Pondichéry).