Léon Delagrange
Léon Delagrange (Ferdinand Léon Delagrange; 13 March 1873- 4 January 1910 was a pioneer French aviator and also a sculptor .
He was born at Orléans and studied at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts under Louis Barrias and Charles Vital-Cornu. He was a member of the Salon des Artistes Français and received a commendation in 1901[1]. In 1907 he was one of the first people to order an aircraft from Gabriel Voisin. The aircraft was the first example of what was to become one of the most successful early French aircraft, the Voisin 1907 biplane. On 7 January 1909 he was awarded one of the first eight aviators certificates awarded by the Aéro-Club de France.[2] In September, 1908, he established a record of 15.2 miles in 29 minutes, 53 seconds, and in 1909 he received the Lagatiner prize at Juvisy (3.6 miles in 10 minutes, 18 seconds), made a sensational flight in a storm at Doncaster, England, on October 17 established a world record (6 miles in 7 minutes, 36 seconds), and in December set a new monoplane record. On 4 January 1910 he was killed when one wing of his Blériot XI monoplane failed at Croix d'Hins near Bordeaux.[3] He was president of the Aéro-Club de France in 1908, and in 1909 was decorated with the order of the Legion of Honor, and in 1910 received a medal from the Paris Academy of Sciences.
Allegedly[by whom?] Delagrange had an affair with Baroness De La Roche and was the father her son, Andre.
[edit] References
- This article incorporates text from an edition of the New International Encyclopedia that is in the public domain.
- ^ Benezit Dictionary of Artists
- ^ Aero Club of France Flight magazine 4 February 1911,page 88
- ^ Early Aviators – Delagrange Biography
[edit] External links
- Leon Delagrange Champagne|Berceau de l'aviation du Monde website
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