The desire of mankind to fly exists exactly as long as there is a civilization. But real steps in this direction were made only towards the end of the 19th century, when the first hot air balloon flight took place. This greatest event shocked not only France, in which it actually took place, but the whole world. The Montgolfier brothers went down in history as pioneers and revolutionaries. The origin of aeronautics should be considered a significant milestone in the development of all science and human civilization.
The beginnings of the Montgolfier brothers
When it comes to who invented the first balloon, almost every educated and well-read person remembers the surname of the brothers Joseph and Jacques-Etienne Montgolfier. Of course, these inventors should not be considered one of a kind, since studies of similar phenomena have been carried out in the past.
The impetus for the creation of the balloon was the discovery of hydrogen by the scientist Henry Cavendish: the scientist found that the density of "combustible air" is much less than ordinary air.
It is this property that was used in the first experiments and subsequent discoveries of Montgolfier. The brothers carried out numerous tests with shirts, bags and test balls made of natural fabrics, which, although they took off, were not high. But for that time, even such facts turned out to be frighteningly new and almost revolutionary.
The first full-fledged tests took place in 1782, when a balloon with a volume of three cubic meters rose into the air. The next balloon was already much larger: the structure weighed 225 kilograms and consisted of four side stripes and a dome of cotton pasted over with paper. On June 4, the inventors launched this prototype into the air, but managed to overcome only about one and a half kilometers, and the flight ended in a fall. The Montgolfier brothers were not the only ones who conducted such research during this period: the Frenchman Jacques Charles launched balloons filled with hydrogen, which was a significant leap in the development of this direction.
If the balloons from the brothers-explorers, filled with warm air, were called hot air balloons, then the creations of Monsieur Charles - charlier.
After such a start, which was considered practically successful, the Montgolfier brothers received strong support from the Academy of Sciences. Financial investments allowed them to carry out new launches, so that the next ball, on which a strange company rode - a sheep, a goose and a rooster, was significantly larger than its predecessor: 450 kilograms with a volume of 1000 cubic meters. After its relatively successful landing (smooth fall of the basket from a height of about half a kilometer), it was decided to test the air structure with people on board.
At the same time, Jacques Charles launched a ball of rubber-impregnated silk, which during the first flight was able to cover a distance of 28 kilometers.
First successful flight
The Montgolfier brothers dreamed of becoming the first passengers of their invention, but their father forbade such a risk. The search for volunteers did not take long, and the first people to take off were Pilatre de Rozier and the Marquis D'Arland.
The Montgolfier brothers were able to make their first flight already in 1784, when 7 more people boarded with them. This journey is considered to be the first commercial flight in the history of aeronautics.
The brothers planned the first flight on November 21, 1873. It was on this day that the epoch-making journey of the two discoverers took place: the balloon, having risen to a height of one kilometer, flew over a distance of more than 9 kilometers in 25 minutes. The first passengers turned out to be more than skillful balloonists and perfectly controlled a huge balloon, which in to a large extent ensured the success of the event.
A successful flight spurred the desire to develop this direction further, but the next goal, which the brothers and their followers set their sights on, turned out to be too difficult. An attempt to fly across the English Channel, not coordinated with Montgolfier himself, turned out to be unsuccessful for Pilatre de Rozier: he died in the fall of a burnt out balloon. In the fate of this pioneer, two milestones sadly coincided: the honor of being the first person in a balloon and the tragedy of being his first victim.
After that, aeronautics began to develop by leaps and bounds. Jacques Charles in his research not only significantly safer flights, but also invented a way to measure flight altitude and regulate it. Traveling in balloons stimulated the invention of the parachute: in 1797, the first jump of André-Jacques Garnerin was successfully completed, escaping only with a dislocation of the hand. And already in 1799 the first parachute jump was made by a woman - Jeanne Labros, a student of Garnerin.
Today hot air balloons, having undergone minor design changes, are still used in aeronautics, are popular with people and adorn many holidays. Huge bright balls made of durable fabric with a sufficient level of safety have become not a means of transportation, but an attempt by a person to get closer to the sky.
People have always dreamed of mastering air space... Thinking about this now, we cannot even imagine how significant the event was then - the first flight in a hot air balloon. This event took place on November 21, 1783. It was on that momentous day that a hot-air balloon rose into the air from a castle called de la Muet (a place in the western part of Paris). Then the balloon rose into the air to a height of 915 meters. The flight lasted 25 minutes. During this time, the balloonists covered a distance of 9 km. The landing was soft enough and took place near the road to Fontainebleau, and in an open area. The people who gave life to the balloon (the Montgolfier brothers) were banned from taking part in the first flight. Then Jean Francois Pilatre de Rozier and Francois d'Arlandom agreed to such a socially significant cause. Little known fact - this was the second ball of the Montgolfier inventors. It is larger than the first (almost 23 meters high, 15 meters in diameter). At the bottom of the ball was a ring gallery for two people.
The Montgolfier brothers: on the left - Joseph, on the right - Etienne (engraving of the 19th century). During the first public display of their balloon, Joseph was 43 and Etienne 38. Etienne's image is copied from a portrait by his daughter.
The first public demonstration of the flight of a hot air balloon is presented in the engraving in a somewhat fantastic form. The experiment was carried out by the brothers Joseph and Etienne Montgolfier on June 4, 1783 in Annon (France). The ball was a spherical linen bag covered with paper, was 11 m in diameter and weighed 227 kg. He was filled with hot air over the fire. The flight lasted 10 minutes.
The first man's flight in a hot air balloon took place in Paris on November 21, 1783. The intricately painted balloon, built by the Montgolfier brothers, was 14 meters across and more than 21 meters high. The basket with two passengers, Pilatre de Rozier and the Marquis d'Arland, weighed about 730 kg. It is believed to be the view from the terrace of Benjamin Franklin's house in Passy.
The dream to rise above the earth, overcome gravity and approach the Sun has been living in the human soul since ancient times. Known historical factsindicating that even in ancient Rome and China made the first attempts to do this by means of containers filled with smoke. In the Middle Ages, they continued, but the resulting balloons were small, short-lived and unable to lift anything else besides themselves. Who invented the high lift balloon that can carry extra weight? It all began at the end of the 18th century in France, which can be considered the birthplace of aeronautics.
The beginning of the way
It all began on June 5, 1783, when the sons of the French paper industrialist Montgolfier created a huge paper ball with a volume of 600 cubic meters. Through a grate of grape branches, he was filled with smoke from a fire and climbed 500 meters. After 10 minutes, when the smoke cooled down, the balloon landed 2 km from the launch site. 
After working all summer on improving the design, the Montgolfier brothers sent the first living souls on the flight on September 19, 1783: a ram, a rooster and a duck. And on November 21, in a fairly strong and reliable basket, two French noblemen ventured into the air. Having flown 9 km at an altitude of 1000 meters, they, together with the balloon, returned to the ground unharmed and began to be revered as heroes.
But the Montgolfier brothers weren't the only ones who invented the first balloons. In parallel with them, another Frenchman worked on the invention of the aircraft: the physicist Charles. He created a more promising model, using hydrogen instead of smoke, thereby significantly prolonging the stay of the structure in the air and making it possible for its more compact dimensions. On August 27, 1783, his invention - a ball with a volume of about 200 cubic meters made of silk impregnated with rubber, successfully lifted off the ground and, having covered a distance of 28 km, landed safely in almost an hour.
Further work
Jacques Charles continued to work on his aircraft. He introduced improvements that increased the strength of the balloon's envelope and made the flight somewhat safer. He invented a way to measure and control altitude in flight and during landing. His innovations, ball rope net, ballast sandbags, gas valve, air anchor, made him aircraft a real vehicle that allows you to quickly and safely travel long distances.The only drawback, explosive hydrogen, was replaced over the years by safe helium, but continued to be used on unmanned charlier aircraft. In Russia, the first flight of a balloon and a man took place in 1804 in St. Petersburg. Then balloons were used mainly for scientific research.
The improvement of aircrafts was carried out in the future. Currently, balloons are not only a means for practical purposes, but also a beautiful and popular view sports. And the first scientists who invented the balloon remained forever in the history of aeronautics and human memory.
"PASSAROLA" LORENZO GUZMAO
To the number of pioneers of aeronautics, whose names have not been forgotten by history, but whose scientific achievements remained unknown or questioned for centuries, refers to the Brazilian Bartolommeo Lorenzo.
This is his real name, and he entered the history of aeronautics as a Portuguese priest Lorenzo Guzmao, the author of the Passarola project, which until recently was perceived as pure fantasy. After a long search in 1971, documents were found that shed light on the events of the distant past.
These events began in 1708, when, having moved to Portugal, Lorenzo Guzmao entered the University of Coimbra and was fired up with the idea of \u200b\u200bbuilding an aircraft. Having shown outstanding ability in the study of physics and mathematics, he began with what is the basis of any endeavor: experiment. He built several models that became the prototypes of the planned vessel.
In August 1709, the models were shown to the highest royal nobility. One of the demonstrations was successful: a thin egg-shaped shell with a small brazier suspended under it, heating the air, was lifted from the ground by almost four meters. In the same year, Guzmao launched the Passarola project. History has no information about her trial. But in any case, Lorenzo Guzmao was the first person who, relying on the study of the physical phenomena of nature, was able to identify a real way of aeronautics and tried to put it into practice.
JOSEPH MONGOLFIE'S INVENTION
"Hurry, get more silk fabric, ropes ready, and you will see one of the most amazing things in the world", - received such a note in 1782 Etienne Montgolfier, owner of a paper mill in a small French town, from his older brother Joseph. The message meant that at last they found something that the brothers talked about more than once during their meetings: a means by which one can take to the air.
This remedy turned out to be a shell filled with smoke. As a result of a simple experiment, J. Montgolfier saw how the cloth shell, sewn in the form of a box from two pieces of cloth, rushed upward after filling it with smoke. Joseph's discovery also captivated his brother. Working together now, they built two more aerostatic machines (as they called their balloons). One of them, made in the form of a ball with a diameter of 3.5 meters, was demonstrated in the circle of relatives and friends.
The success was complete - the shell lasted about 10 minutes in the air, while rising to a height of almost 300 meters and flying through the air for about a kilometer. Inspired by their success, the brothers decided to show the invention to the general public. They built a huge balloon over 10 meters in diameter. Its shell, sewn from canvas, was reinforced with rope mesh and pasted over with paper to increase impermeability.
Demonstration of the balloon took place in the market square of the city June 5, 1783 in the presence of a large number of spectators. The ball, filled with smoke, rushed upward. Special protocol, sealed with signatures officials, witnessed all the details of the experiment. So for the first time, the invention was officially certified, which opened the way aeronautics.
INVENTION BY PROFESSOR CHARLES
The Montgolfier brothers' balloon flight aroused great interest in Paris. The Academy of Sciences invited them to repeat their experience in the capital. At the same time, the young French physicist professor Jacques Charles it was ordered to prepare and conduct a demonstration of their aircraft. Charles was convinced that hot air balloon gas, as the smoky air was then called, was not the best way to create aerostatic lift.
He was well acquainted with the latest discoveries in the field of chemistry and believed that the use of hydrogen promises much greater benefits, since it is lighter than air. But choosing hydrogen to fill the aircraft, Charles faced a number of technical problems. First of all, from what to make a light shell capable of long time keep volatile gas.
The Robey brothers, the mechanics, helped him to cope with this problem. They made the material of the required qualities using a light silk fabric coated with a solution of rubber in turpentine. On August 27, 1783, Charles's aircraft was launched on the Champ de Mars in Paris. In front of 300 thousand spectators, he rushed upward and soon became invisible. When one of those present exclaimed: "What is the point in all this ?!" - famous American scientist and statesman Benjamin Franklin, who was among the audience, remarked: "What is the point in the birth of a newborn?" The remark turned out to be prophetic. A "newborn" was born, for whom a great future was predetermined.
FIRST AIR PASSENGERS
The successful flight of Charles' balloon did not stop the Montgolfier brothers in their intention to take advantage of the proposal of the Academy of Sciences and demonstrate their own design balloon in Paris. Striving to make the greatest impression, Etienne used all his talent, it is not without reason that he was also considered an excellent architect. Built by him balloon was, in a sense, a work of art. Its shell, more than 20 meters high, had an unusual barrel-shaped shape and was decorated on the outside with monograms and colorful ornaments.
The balloon shown to the official representatives of the Academy of Sciences aroused such admiration in them that it was decided to repeat the show in the presence of the royal court. The demonstration took place at Versailles (near Paris) on September 19, 1783. True, the balloon, which aroused the admiration of the French academicians, did not live to see this day: its shell was washed away by rain, and it fell into disrepair. However, this did not stop the Montgolfier brothers. Working day and night, they built a ball on schedule that was as beautiful as the previous one.
To produce even greater effect, the brothers attached a cage to the balloon, where they planted ram, duck and rooster... These were the first passengers in the history of aeronautics... The balloon broke away from the platform and rushed upward, and eight minutes later, having covered a distance of four kilometers, safely landed on the ground. The Montgolfier brothers became heroes of the day, were awarded awards, and all balloons, in which smoky air was used to create lift, began to be called hot air balloons from that day.
FIRST HUMAN FLIGHT TO MONGOLFIERA
Each flight of the Montgolfier brothers' balloons brought them closer to their cherished goal - the flight of a man. The new ball they built was larger: height 22.7 meters, diameter 15 meters. At the bottom of it was a ring gallery for two people. In the middle of the gallery there was a fireplace for burning chopped straw. Under the hole in the shell, it radiated heat, which heated the air inside the shell during flight.
This made it possible to make the flight longer and, to some extent, manageable. King Louis XVI of France forbade the authors of the project to take personal part in the flight. Such a risky task for life, in his opinion, should have been entrusted to two criminals sentenced to death. But this caused violent protests. Pilatra de Rozier, an active participant in the construction of a hot air balloon.
He could not come to terms with the idea that the names of some criminals would enter the history of aeronautics, and insisted on personal participation in the flight. Permission has been obtained. Another "pilot" was the Marquis, a fan of aeronautics d "Arland... And on November 21, 1783, a man was finally able to get off the ground and make an air flight. The hot air balloon held out in the air for 25 minutes, flying about nine kilometers.
FIRST HUMAN FLIGHT ON A CHARLIERE
In an effort to prove that the future of aeronautics belongs to charlier (the so-called balloons with envelopes filled with hydrogen), and not hot air balloons, Professor Charles understood that for this it was necessary to carry out a flight of people on a charlier, and more spectacular than the flight of the Montgolfier brothers. When creating a new balloon, he developed a number of design solutions that were then used for many decades.
The charlier built by him had a net that wrapped around the upper hemisphere of the balloon's envelope, and slings with which a gondola for people was suspended from this net. A special vent was made in the shell for the release of hydrogen when the external pressure drops. To control the flight altitude, a special valve in the shell and ballast stored in the nacelle were used. An anchor was also provided to facilitate landing on the ground.
On December 1, 1783, a charlier with a diameter of more than nine meters took off in the Tuileries park. On it went Professor Charles and one of the brothers Robert, who took an active part in the work on the construction of charlier. Having flown 40 kilometers, they safely landed near a small village. Then Charles continued his journey alone.
Charlier flew five kilometers, climbing to an unprecedented height for that time - 2750 meters. After staying in the transcendental height for about half an hour, the researcher landed safely, thus completing the first flight in the history of aeronautics in a balloon with a shell filled with hydrogen.
AEROSTAT ABOVE LA MANCHEM
The life of a French mechanic Jean Pierre Blanchard, who made the first balloon flight across the English Channel, is notable for being a vivid illustration of a turning point in the development of aeronautics at the end of the 18th century. Blanchard began with the idea of \u200b\u200bflapping flight.
In 1781, he built an apparatus, the wings of which were set in motion by the effort of the arms and legs. Testing this apparatus suspended from a rope thrown over a block, the inventor climbed to the height of the roof of a multi-storey building with a counterweight of only 10 kilograms. Delighted with his successes, he published in the newspaper his views on the possibility of a man's flapping flight.
Air travel, made on the first balloons, and then the search for means of control of their movement again returned Blanchard to the idea of \u200b\u200bwings, this time as a control of the balloon. Although Blanchard's first voyage on a balloon with winged oars ended unsuccessfully, he did not give up his attempts and was more and more carried away by ascent into the heavenly space. Blanchard began giving public flight demonstrations.
When in the fall of 1784 his flights began in England, he had the idea of \u200b\u200bflying in a balloon across English Channel, thereby proving the possibility of air communication between England and France. This historic flight, which was attended by Blanchard and his friend American Doctor Geoffrey, took place on January 7, 1785.
A LIFE GIVEN TO AERONAUTICS
The history of aeronautics was a history of not only victories, but also defeats, and sometimes dramatic destinies. An example of this is the life of Pilatre de Rozier. a physicist by training, he was one of the first to understand the true meaning of Joseph Montgolfier's invention.
Rosier stubbornly put forward the idea of \u200b\u200bmanned aeronautics, repeatedly declaring his personal readiness to fly in a hot air balloon. Perseverance and courage led to triumph: Rosier became the first aeronautic pilot, having completed a twenty-minute hot air balloon flight with the Marquis d'Arland on November 21, 1783. At his suggestion, the design of the hot air balloon, which was being built in 1783 in the city of Lyon to demonstrate flight, was changed.
In the new version, the balloon was designed to lift twelve people into the air. And although the Lyon hot air balloon lifted only seven people into the air and touched the ground again 15 minutes later, this was the first multi-seat balloon flight in the history of aeronautics. Then Rosier sets a new record. In a hot air balloon flight, together with the chemist Prou, he reaches an altitude of 4000 meters. Having achieved this success, Rosier returns to the idea of \u200b\u200blong-distance flights.
Now his goal is to fly across the English Channel. He develops a balloon of his own design, combining a conventional spherical charlier and a cylindrical hot air balloon. The combined balloon became known as rozier. But fate was clearly not favorable to Pilatro de Rozier... Having risen into the air on June 15, 1785, together with his assistant Romain, Rosier did not even manage to fly to the English Channel. The fire that broke out on the rozier led to the tragic death of both balloonists.
FROM DREAM TO PROFESSION
Attempts to implement the controlled movement of balloons, undertaken in France in the early years of the development of aeronautics, did not give positive results. And the interest of the general public in demonstration flights gradually turned aeronautics into a special kind of entertainment events.
But in 1793, that is, ten years after the first flights of people on balloons, the area of \u200b\u200btheir practical application was discovered. French physicist Guiton de Morveaux proposed using tethered balloons to lift observers into the air. This idea was expressed at a time when the enemies of the Great french revolution tried to strangle her.
The technical development of the tethered balloon project was entrusted to the physicist Kutell. He successfully coped with the task, and in October 1793 the balloon was sent to the active army for field tests, and in April 1794 a decree was issued on the organization of the first aeronautical company of the French army. Kutell was appointed its commander.
The appearance of tethered balloons over the positions of the French troops stunned the enemy: rising to a height of 500 meters, observers could look far into the depths of his defenses. The reconnaissance data was transmitted to the ground in special boxes, which were descended along a cord attached to the gondola.
After the victory of the French troops, the National Aeronautical School was created by the decision of the Convention. Although it existed for only five years, a start was made: aeronautics became a profession.
AIRCRAFT IN THE RUSSIAN EMPIRE
For the first time in Russia, a balloon flight without passengers lasting 6 hours was carried out french Minel on March 30, 1784, which aroused great interest among the Russian population. But already on April 15, 1784 in Russia Catherine II signed " Decree prohibiting the launch of balloons from March 12 to December 12 (on pain of paying a fine of 20 rubles) ", that is, in the warm season because of the possible danger of fires.
When Alexandra I there was an idea to equip the Russian army with balloons. However, then she did not advance further than test flights. And the first Russian aeronaut was staff doctor Kashinsky, who in October 1805 independently flew on a hot air balloon. Researchers also mention a certain Moscow bourgeois woman Ilinskaya, who in August 1828 took off in a balloon of her own design. But the origin played a cruel joke with her: aeronautics was still attributed to the noble privilege, and therefore she did not become a heroine of her time. History has not preserved either her name, patronymic, or biography. Not without casualties: in 1847, the balloonist Lede died, whose balloon was blown into Lake Ladoga by the wind.
On December 3, 1870, the Russian Aeronautics Society was created. And after five years Dmitriy Mendeleev at a meeting of the Russian Physicochemical Society, he proposed his own project of a balloon with a hermetically sealed gondola for high-altitude flights. In 1880, on his initiative, an aeronautical department was created at the Russian Technical Society. In addition to Mendeleev, Aleksandr Radishchev, Ilya Repin, Lev Tolstoy, Viktor Vasnetsov and many others showed their interest in flying in the sky. And in February 1885 in St. Petersburg, on Volkovo Pole, a Personnel Military Aeronautical Team was organized, which conducted military exercises using balloons.
The twentieth century democratized flights as much as possible. Including in Russian Empire... A specialized magazine and flying club appeared. In 1910, the first All-Russian aeronautics festival took place, in 1924 - the All-Union aeronautical competitions.
From the history of aeronautics:
November 21, 1783 is a significant day in the history of aeronautics. On this day, two brave Frenchmen, Pilatre de Rozier and the Marquis d'Arland, flew the Montgolfier brothers in a hot air balloon for the first time in history. The balloonists reached an altitude of 915 m and covered a distance of 9 km in 25 minutes.
The brothers Joseph and Jacques-Etienne had the idea to make their own unique invention - a balloon that could cover decent distances. Numerous studies of various chemists and physicists led them to this decision. So, in 1766, after the discovery of hydrogen, Henry Cavendish found out that the so-called "combustible air" in density is several times less than the air itself. The Montgolfier brothers decided to conduct their experiments, filling shirts with hot air from a fire, and then paper bags. Then, numerous tests were carried out to launch balls of silk and linen. The filled items rose to the ceiling, which was already a huge breakthrough. This invention of the brothers was supposed to help in military affairs - Joseph was thinking over an option with an air attack on the enemy when there was no approach to land.
Such experiments, despite their simplicity, made a huge breakthrough in aeronautics. And yet, the brothers relied on the erroneous opinion that the burning of a special mixture of wool and straw creates a kind of "electric smoke" that could raise a light body filled with it. Montgolfier took a paper ball with a hole at the bottom and filled it with hot gases, which were lighter than air as long as their temperature was high. The successor of their cause, Saussure tried to lift up a ball filled with air heated by a red-hot iron strip introduced into the opening of the ball. However, the experiment always remained unfinished.
Researchers carefully prepared for each experiment, constantly changing the size of the spheres and the composition of the combustible substances. In 1782, Joseph and Jacques-Etienne set about making a three-cubic-meter test balloon filled with hot air. The experiment was crowned with success, and therefore further the brothers decided to increase the size of the sphere in diameter by several tens of times. The sphere was made of cotton and pasted over with paper. It consisted of four parts - a dome and three side stripes. In total, the structure weighing over 225 kilograms and a volume of 800 cubic meters was completed in April 1783.
On June 4, 1783, a public demonstration of the invention of the Montgolfier brothers took place, which was attended by a huge number of people. Within ten minutes, the balloon gained altitude, and 4 thousand feet from the launch site fell to the ground. It was a scientific success, however, requiring careful development. The French inventor and scientist Jacques Charles then also decided to try himself in the field of aeronautics - he filled a balloon with hydrogen, which gave a significant leap in research. Depending on the different ways filling balloons they received different names. So, spheres filled with warm air were called hot air balloons, and hydrogen - charlier. The first charlier was launched from the Champ de Mars in Paris on August 27, 1783. It should be noted that all the experiments carried out were carried out only on balloons without passengers, since there was a danger of structures falling from a great height.
Information about the successful launch of a huge balloon reached the top - the Academy of Sciences, which offered Montgolfier funding for all experiments. Naturally, this was a tempting offer, since all funds for previous experiments were from the brothers' own pockets. And then Montgolfier decided to go further - to create a larger ball, this time with a volume of one thousand cubic meters and weighing 450 kilograms. Despite some difficulties in manufacturing, the sphere was ready in the fall of the same year.
On September 19, 1783, at Versailles, the experimental brothers first released a balloon into the air, in a wicker basket of which there were a sheep, a rooster and a goose. The entire flight took about eight minutes, during which the structure covered a distance of three kilometers. At an altitude of 500 meters, the sphere broke through, but descended to the ground so smoothly that not a single animal was hurt. This event marked a new round in the development of aeronautics, it was only necessary to find a more durable material to be able to lift people into the air.
Inspired by a successful demonstration at Versailles, Joseph and Jacques-Etienne set about making the largest balloon that could lift two people into the air. The younger brother began to design a new invention, slightly modifying the drawings of the previous areas. The new balloon was strikingly different from its predecessors - it had an oval shape, more than 13 meters in diameter, a volume of more than 2 thousand cubic meters and a weight of 500 kilograms. Moreover, it was festively decorated - the figure of the king on a blue background, as well as signs of the zodiac and numerous flowers were seen.
The time has come for people to try the balloon for strength. Jacques-Etienne dreamed of flying on a joint invention with his brother, but their father strictly forbade him to do so. Therefore, this honor fell to Pilatre de Rozier and the army officer - the Marquis d'Arland.
The debut flight took place on the western outskirts of Paris on November 21, 1783. The experiment was quite successful - the balloon climbed almost one kilometer, and in 25 minutes was able to cover a distance of nine miles. This scientific discovery literally blew up France - in all the shops you could buy various souvenirs in the form of balloons, the dishes were full of pictures with them. Already on December 10, 1783, Joseph and Jacques-Etienne were invited to the Academy of Sciences, where they were awarded for achievements in aeronautics, and their father Pierre received a title of nobility. In 1783, Louis XVI summoned Etienne and Joseph from Annon to Paris, bestowed upon them the title of nobility and the coat of arms with the motto "Thus they rise to the stars." For outstanding achievements in the field of aeronautics, Louis XVI awarded Etienne and Joseph Montgolfier with the Order of St. Michael.