Witness to a Century of Progress — Michel Eugène Chevreul

Michel Eugène Chevreul was one of France’s most celebrated scientists when he died in 1889. Reaching the age of nearly 103 years, Chevreul had witnessed first hand the century of progress in science and technology that transformed France and the world.

His life spanned a turbulent period of political and social upheaval: four kings, two emperors, three republics and four revolutions. Chevreul never forgot the horror of public executions he saw as a child during the French Revolution, and in his final weeks of life he delighted in spectacle of the Eiffel Tower, which was built to celebrate a century of progress as the centerpiece of the 1889 Paris Exposition.

Chevreul had a long and varied career as a professor at the Museum of Natural History and Director of the dye works of the Gobelins Manufactory in Paris. Chevreul personified the role of the eminent scientist in both the popular and the political imagination.

The lavish public celebration of his 100th birthday, in 1886, and his state funeral in April 1889 stand in stark contrast to the government’s persecution of Antoine Lavoisier, the father of modern chemistry, at the beginning of the century.

The reason behind this was a change in the status of scientists in national politics. Leaders of the French Revolution in 1789 were highly suspicious of the scientists who had attained distinction as loyal servants of the deposed monarchy. The judge at Lavoisier’s trial for corruption put it succinctly, saying “The republic has no need for scientists” before sending him to the guillotine.

However, the tables had turned after a century of revolutionary advance in science and industry. At the end of the 19th century political leaders used the celebration of technological advances, scientists, and engineers to associate themselves in the public mind with the benefits brought by progress.

Michel Eugène Chevreul is one of the 72 scientists and engineers named on the Eiffel Tower.