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Henri Farman (26 May 1874 – 17 July 1958) "A Pioneer of Aviation Dies: M. Henry Farman." Illustrated London News, 26 July 1958, p. 10. The British Newspaper Archive: Findmypast Newspaper Archive Limited in partnership with the British Library. Retrieved 23 October 2020. was a British-French aviator and aircraft designer and manufacturer with his brother Maurice Farman. Before dedicating himself to aviation he gained fame as a sportsman, specifically in cycling and motor racing. Henri acquired French nationality in 1937.Obituary: Flight
: 27 September 2019), Thomas Farman in entry for Frederick Mudford, 1871. Retrieved 13 August 2020. His mother, Sophia Ann Louisa Mudford, was born in Canterbury, Kent, on 9 September 1841. She was baptised on 16 July 1844 at St Pancras Old Church in London, and was a daughter of the author William Mudford, who by the time of Sophia's baptism was living at Harrington Square. England, Church of England Births and Baptisms, 1813-1917 for Sophia Ann Louisa Mudford." St Pancras: Baptisms 1844, No. 1267, p. 183.Ancestry image p. 92. London Metropolitan Archives; London, England; Reference Number: p90/pan1/024. Ancestry.com. Retrieved 23 October 2020."England Births and Christenings, 1538-1975"
: 24 March 2020), Sophia Ann Louisa Mudford, 1844. Retrieved 13 August 2020. Sophia and Thomas were married at St George's Hanover Square Church London, on 31 August 1868. of Westminster Archives Centre; London, England; Westminster Church of England Parish Registers; Reference: STC/PR/1/2." Ancestry.com. Westminster, London, England, Church of England Marriages and Banns, 1754-1935 database. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2020. Retrieved 13 August 2020. "Marriages: Farman – Mudford." Chelmsford Chronicle, 11 September 1868, p. 8. The British Newspaper Archive: Findmypast Newspaper Archive Limited in partnership with the British Library. Retrieved 23 October 2020.
Henri trained as a painter at the École des Beaux Arts, but soon became interested in the new mechanical inventions that were appearing at the end of the 19th century. He was able to pursue this interest as an amateur sportsman. Farman" Grace's Guide To British Industrial History. Retrieved 19 August 2020.
On 25 June 1893, Henri went by bicycle from Paris to Madrid with the journalist, author, and French cyclist Edouard de Perrodil. Edouard had written an account of this journey, and a book was published by MM. C. Marpon and Flammarion, titled Vélo ! Toro! Paris-Madrid bicyclette en 1893, which included drawings by Farman. They were received by the French Ambassador, among others upon reaching Madrid. "Cycling - A Ride from France to Spain." Dublin Evening Telegraph, 22 June 1893, p. 3. The British Newspaper Archive: Findmypast Newspaper Archive Limited in partnership with the British Library. Retrieved 24 October 2020. "Paris by Day." Daily Telegraph & Courier (London), 4 November 1893, p. 3. The British Newspaper Archive: Findmypast Newspaper Archive Limited in partnership with the British Library. Retrieved 24 October 2020.
He then took part in tandem races with his brother Maurice Farman, forming a successful partnership. Who's Who in Light Cars: Farman" Grace's Guide To British Industrial History. Retrieved 15 August 2020. On 31 January 1895, at the Vélodrome d'Hiver, the Farman brothers broke the tandem bicycle record, covering 44.906 kilometres in an hour. "Cycling. Bicycle Record." Western Morning News, 1 February 1895, p. 7. The British Newspaper Archive: Findmypast Newspaper Archive Limited in partnership with the British Library. Retrieved 26 October 2020. They announced their retirement from cycling in November 1896. "A Retiring Franco-AngloRider." Sporting Life, 11 November 1896, p. 7.The British Newspaper Archive: Findmypast Newspaper Archive Limited in partnership with the British Library. Retrieved 26 October 2020.
He had an accident during the elimination trials for the 1905 Gordon Bennett Cup, on 16 June, over the hilly Auvergne circuit. While on the last round of this circuit, descending the Clermont Ferrand hill, on one of the turns in that descent, his car skidded. Henri and his chauffeur were lifted from the car, and ended up on top of a tree. Many onlookers believed he had been killed. But Henri was unharmed, came down from the tree and smoked a cigarette. He believed his car had ended up at the bottom of a ravine after this accident, but was not certain about the final destination of it. "Gordon Bennett Race: Accidents on French Course. Mr. Farman's Missing Car." London Daily News, 17 June 1905. p. 7. The British Newspaper Archive: Findmypast Newspaper Archive Limited in partnership with the British Library. Retrieved 24 October 2020. Farman Brothers: Maurice and Henry." From Ten Years of Motors and Motor Racing,E.P.Dutton and Company, New York, Charles Jarrott, 1906, pp214-215. Accessed via The Motor Miscellany. Retrieved 15 August 2020.
On 26 October 1907, at Issy-les-Moulineaux, France, he made flights, among others, of 363, 403, and 771 metres in the plane. He also started to turn the plane in the air on this date. The distance of 771 metres was completed in 52 seconds. It was the longest flight in the world that year, and won Farman the Ernest Archdeacon Cup. "This Day in Aviation. Important Dates in Aviation History: Tag Archives: Ernest Archdeacon: 26 October 1907." Bryan R. Swopes, 2016. Retrieved 12 August 2020. He made a complete circular flight of 1,030 metres, in 1 minute 14 seconds on 10 November 1907 at Issy. This was the first time that a European aeroplane had completed a full circle. And the first time that an aeroplane, other than a Wright brothers one, had stayed in the air for longer than a minute.
The Voisin-Farman I was also the first biplane in Europe to fly a circular circuit of 1 kilometre, over a predetermined course, on 13 January 1908. I." Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, inc., Tom D. Crouch, 27 January 2010. Retrieved 11 August 2020. Of Flight: Other Aviation Pioneers." Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, inc., 3 December 2018. Retrieved 11 August 2020. This again occurred at Issy-les-Moulineaux, France, and won Farman the 50,000 franc Grand Prix d'Aviation offered by Henri Deutsch de la Meurthe.* And on 21 March 1908, at the same place, he made a flight of 2.004 kilometres. of Mechanical Flight" Flight, 2 January 1909, p. 12. Accessed via the Internet Archive, Wayback Machine. Retrieved 10 August 2020.
On 30 October 1908, Farman went on to make the first cross-country flight in Europe. Farman flew from his hangars at Camp de Châlons, Bouy, "Henri Farman, 1874–1958: Farman Chronology" Early Aviators.com. Retrieved 12 August 2020. "Grace's Guide To British Industrial History: Early Flight Records." From Flight magazine, 1910. Retrieved 12 August 2020.' to Reims, landing at the cavalry ground. It was a distance of 27 kilometres. premier Voyage en Aéroplane." Le Matin, 31 October 1908: Gallica bnf.fr.National Library of France. Retrieved 12 August 2020. "Henry Farman.The First Passengers and the First Cross-Country." Retrieved 12 August 2020.
By early 1909, Farman fell out with Gabriel Voisin because Voisin had sold an aircraft that had been built to Farman's specifications to J.T.C. Moore-Brabazon. This aircraft was named the Bird of Passage by Brabazon. Farman then started manufacturing aircraft to his own design. The first of these, the Farman III, first flew in April 1909. It was an immediate success and widely imitated. III." Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, inc., Tom D. Crouch, 4 April 2008. Retrieved 11 August 2020.
In 1909, he opened a flying school at Châlons-sur-Marne at which George Bertram Cockburn was the first pupil.Villard, Henry (1987) Contact! The Story of the Early Aviators, Smithsonian Institution Press, In this same year he made further record breaking flights. One of 180 kilometres in just over 3 hours, at Reims on 27 August. And one of 232 kilometres in 4 hours 17 minutes and 53 seconds, One Year of Flying and Flight. A 1909 Retrospect: The Unbroken Chain Of Events" Flight, No. 53, Vol. II, No. 1, p. 3. Accessed via the Internet Archive, Wayback Machine. Retrieved 11 August 2020. at Mourmelon-le-Grand on 3 November. In October 1909 he appeared at the Blackpool Aviation Week, Britain's first air show, at which he won over £2000 in prizes.
In partnership with his two brothers Maurice Farman and Richard Farman, he built a highly successful and innovative aircraft manufacturing plant. Their 1914 model was used extensively for artillery observation and reconnaissance during World War I. The Farman Aircraft company's Goliath was the first long-distance passenger airliner, beginning regular Paris-London (Croydon Airport) flights on 8 February 1919.
He was made a knight of the French Légion d'honneur in 1919. Along with Maurice, he retired in 1937 when the French Popular Front government nationalised the aircraft industry; Farman's company becoming part of the Societe Nationale de Constructions Aeronautiques du Centre.
Farman took French nationality in 1937. He died in Paris on 17 July 1958 and is buried in the Cimetière de Passy in Paris.
In 1988, Farman was inducted into the International Air & Space Hall of Fame at the San Diego Air & Space Museum.Sprekelmeyer, Linda, editor. These We Honor: The International Aerospace Hall of Fame. Donning Co. Publishers, 2006. .
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