Jacques-Julien Houtou of Billardière

Jacques-Julien Houtou of Billardière , born the October 28th 1755 with Alençon and dead the January 8th 1834, is a Botaniste French.

He studies medicine with Montpellier and Rheims and passes his doctorate to Paris in 1755. He directs himself towards the Natural history and studies in Great Britain with Sir Joseph Banks (1743-1820) and Sir James Edward Smith (1759-1828). After having herborized in the the Alps and the Dauphine , it is in charge of a mission with Cyprus, in Syria and with the Lebanon. The August 18th 1792, it is named corresponding royal Académie of sciences.

In 1792, it takes share, under the orders of Bruny d' Entrecasteaux, with the mission charged to try to find in Oceania the vessels the Compass and the Astrolabe of the forwarding of Perugia. In spite of the failure of this mission, the vessels of the forwarding of help carry out a recognition of the south-west of the Australia, Tasmanie, New Zealand and the Antilles. Billardière, Claude Rich Antoine Gaspard (1762-1798) and Etienne Pierre Ventenat (1757-1808) benefit from it to carry out full collections of zoological, botanical and geological specimens, and to describe the habits and the languages of the indigenous of Australia.

The revolutionary wars having burst meanwhile, its vessel is captured by the Dutch on its arrival with Java and its collections sent in Great Britain. Its former Master Sir Joseph Banks (1743-1820) intercedes in his favor and obtains British authorities that they return his collections to him.

Billardière returns to Paris in 1796: it is sent in Italy like member of the Commission of sciences and arts at the time of the countryside of Italy, following the general Bonaparte, in order to enrich the collections by the national museums. It draws an account from its voyage in Oceania: Relation of the voyage to the research of Perugia (1799) which will become an international best-seller. He becomes member of the Academy of Science the 5 frimaire year IX (November 26th 1800). Of 1804 with 1806, it publishes Novae Hollandiae plantarum specimen , an extensive description of the flora of Australia.

It is also interested in quality of the Indigo and publishes a relative study with the measurement of the color of this dye: Colorimeter: description of a colorimeter and means of knowing the relative quality of the indigos (1827). Friend of Louis-Augustin Bosc d' Antic (1759-1828), of Andre Michaux (1746-1803), it became friendly and correspondent of Jean-Marie Leon Dufour (1780-1865) and of Jean-Baptiste Bory of Saint-Vincent (1778-1846).

Its work is honoured with several scientific names, including the kind Billardiera and the Espèce of grass tuft Poa labillardieri .

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