Francois Blondel
architect; b. 1617 or 1618 (at Ribemont, Picardie, France); d. January 21, 1686.
In 1652 Blondel was appointed tutor of the son of Henri Auguste de Loménie, Secretary of State to Louis XIV, and travelled with him in Germany and Italy. He was afterward employed in several negotiations with foreign governments, notably at Constantinople. On his return he received a brevet as counsellor of state. He was also made tutor of the Dauphin and professor of mathematics at the Collège Royale. His knowledge of architecture was acquired during his travels. Blondel's first practical work was the reconstruction of the bridge at Saintes (Charente Inférieure, France). In 1670 he built the triumphal arch of the Porte S. Bernard, Paris, which was destroyed in the Revolution. In 1673 he rebuilt the arch of the Porte S. Antoine, Paris. Blondel's greatest monument is the triumphal arch in Paris called the Porte S. Denis, which was begun in 1674. The sculpture was begun by Girardon, and finished by Michel Anguier. In 1672 he was made director of the Académie de l'Architecture, established in 1671. On account of his knowledge of fortifications he was made maréchal-de-camp in 1675. His published works are Cours d'Architecture enseigné dans l'Académie Royale (Paris, 2 vols., 4to, 1675-1683), Cours de Mathématique pour le Dauphin (1683), L'art de jeter les bombes et nouvelle manière de fortifier les places; Une Histoire du Calendrier roman (1682).
Pierre Bullet
architect; b. 1639; d. 1716.
Bullet was a pupil of François Blondel. In 1670-1672 he assisted Blondel in the construction of the Porte Saint-Denis, Paris. He afterward built the Porte Saint-Martin from his own designs. In 1675 Bullet built the great altar of the church of the Sorbonne, Paris. In 1676 he published his Plan de Paris.
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