François Pouqueville

François Charles Hugues Laurent Pouqueville born with the Merlerault on November 4th, 1770 and dead on December 28th, 1838, is a Médecin, Diplomate, Voyageur and well-read man French, member of the Commission of Sciences and Arts having accompanied the forwarding by Egypt of Bonaparte.

Wire of Francois, butcher, and of Marie-madeleine Savary, when it had completed its studies year college of Caen, it entered to the seminar of Lisieux and it to receive the order of the subdiaconate there was initially vicar in his native commune, serving constitutional of Montmarcé (1792), then changing way with the events of the Revolution, resigned of its functions of the worship to become teacher in Merlerault (1794), assistant of the mayor (1793), before going up to Paris to follow the courses of Antoine Dubois to the Medical college. It made, under this Master of fast progress and, when the forwarding of Egypt was decided, Pouqueville obtained to form of it part like assistant member of the commission of sciences and arts.

After the Battle of Aboukir in 1798, Kléber charged it with negotiating the exchange of the prisoners with Nelson, but fallen quickly, under the influence of the climate, victim of a bad fever, it had been able to continue the scientific work only it had started as a doctor and Kléber advised with the negotiator to turn over to France to repair a seriously faded health. Consequently, embarked for Italy in December 1798 on a tartane livournaise, it was taken like his companions by Neapolitan corsairs, who dévalisèrent their prisoners and led them on the coasts of Morée to Navarin. There, escaped Pouqueville with slavery, became, with broad of the Calabria, the prey of the Turks when barbaresque pirates attacked and took the boat which transported it. Delivered to the Pasha Moustapha-Pasha, vassal of the Sultan with whom France was in war, Pouqueville became prisoner of war. Led to Tripolitza, it remained there during the rigorous winter of 1799. Moustapha-pasha, having learned that he knew medicine, treated it with some softness and made it look after. Pouqueville benefitted from its situation to visit the surrounding places; sometimes even the doors of the harems opened in front of its quality of doctor. The confidence which it inspired flashes back on those which were with him and, in spring, one transferred them to Constantinople where, locked up during two years with the castle of the Seven Turns, the scientist dedicated being studied of the modern Greek . It met there with the old French diplomat, Ruffin, selected captive since forwarding of Egypt, which it called the Nestor of the East and auprès of which it supplements his education of orientalist. Its friendship with the patriarch of the diplomacy was real, and it is established later between them a trade of letters that only the death of Ruffin stopped.

During its captivity, Pouqueville translated Anacréon, composed several Eastern apologues, inter alia: Bet it ; a small poem Burlesque of best comic, Gueuséade , in four Song S and Sixain S, and some light Poetry S, dedicated to Pink Ruffin. Returned to freedom on the complaint of the French government, the prisoner returned in 1801 to Paris where it passed his thesis of doctorate, Of febre adeno-nevrosa seu of plague orientali (1801), work on the plague of the East so remarkable that it was worth to him presented to the contests for the decennial prices.

Nevertheless, Pouqueville renonça to practice medicine to devote itself to its taste for the literature and archeology. The Voyage in Morée and to Constantinople , which it published in 1805 was worth to him to be appointed general consul near Ali Pasha with Jannina. Its knowledge of the area, and the local languages made an undeniable diplomatic agent of it and what determined Pouqueville to accept the position that one offered to him is that by accepting these functions, it would be allowed to him to finish its book on Greece. It was accommodated perfectly by the famous pasha, whom it accompanied in several by his excursions and which provides him the means of exploring the Albania. But after the peace of Tilsitt, Ali-Pasha, up to that point very favorable to the interests of France, turned itself on the side of England. The position of Pouqueville became very difficult then. Pouqueville passed to Janina ten years in a complex situation, half friend, half captive of the pasha, in front of living confined in its house and, each time it had an official step to make near the pasha, it was to instruct his Hugues brother to replace it.

In 1815, it left Janina and was sent like simple consul to Patras, but, tired solitary existence soon that it carried out and determined to put in order various materials that it had gathered, he asked, in 1817, after a one year stay to the consulate of Patras, and obtained, to return to France. Of return to Paris, it succeeds so well in its career which it was admitted, on February 16th, 1827, in the place of Lanjuinais, the Académie of the inscriptions and the humanities. It was named member of the Institute of Egypt, honorary member of the Academy of medicine, knight of the Légion of honor.

While speaking about old Greece in the works and the many articles which it published as from this time, Pouqueville especially stuck to depict the state of oppression in which were Hellènes under the yoke of the Turks. Greece recognized this service by sending to its lawyer the order of the Saver, whom he refused. Casimir Delavigne dedicated to him one of its Messéniennes .

It became familiar of the living room of the countess of Ségur which put it in scene in the model Little girls under amusing pseudonym of Mr Tocambel. It bound with many artists and of intellectuals of his time, such as Chateaubriand which was to discover Greece on its incentive, or Alexandre Dumas, which paid homage to its expertise in the work that it wrote itself on Ali Pasha.

He became the friend of Henriette Lorimier, portraitist in vogue and which was his/her partner until her death. Ingres, which was one their close relations, made a portrait of him in 1834. It is buried with the Cimetière Montparnasse.

One has of him, in addition to his thesis on the plague: Voyage in Morée, Constantinople and in Albania (Paris, 3 vol. in-8°), translated into English and German; Voyage in Greece (Paris, 1820-1822, 5 vol. in-8°; 20 edict., 1826-1827, 6 vol. in-8°), its capital work, History of the regeneration of Greece (Paris, 1824,4 vol. in-8°), translated into many languages; historical and diplomatic Memory on the French trade and establishments with Raising, since year 500 until the end of the , (Paris, 1833, in-8°; Greece, in the picturesque Universe (1835, in-8°); Three Memories on Illyrie ; a Memory on the Wallachian colonies established in the mountains of Greece, from Fienne in Morée ; a Note on the fine tragedy of Ali-Tébélen (1822, in-8°), etc

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