Gustave Flourens

Gustave Flourens (August 4, 1838 - April 3, 1871) was a French Revolutionary leader and writer.

A son of JP Flourens, the physiologist, he was born at Paris. In 1863 he undertook, on behalf of his father, a course of lectures at the College de France, on the subject of the history of mankind. His theories as to the manifold origin of the human race gave offence to the clergy, and he was prevented from delivering further lectures. He then went to Brussels, where he published his lectures under the title of Histoire de l’homme (1863); he visited Constantinople and Athens, took part in the Cretan insurrection of 1866, spent some time in Italy, where an article of his in the Fe polo d'Italia caused his arrest and imprisonment, and finally, having returned to France, nearly lost his life in a duel with Paul de Cassagnac, editor of the Pays.

In Paris he devoted his time to the cause of republicanism, and at length, having failed in an attempt to organize a revolution at Belleville on February 7 1870, was compelled to flee from France. Returning to Paris on the downfall of Napoleon, he placed himself at the head of a body of 500 tirailleurs. Because of his insurrectionary proceedings he was taken prisoner at Créteil, near Vincennes, by the provisional government, and confined at Mazas on December 7 1870, but was released by his men on the night of January 21-22. On March 18 he joined the Communists, was elected a member of the commune by the 20th arrondissement, and was named colonel. He was one of the most active leaders of the insurrection, and in a sortie against the Versailles troops in the morning of 3 April was killed in hand-to-hand conflict at Rueil, near Malmaison. Besides his Science de l'homme (Paris, 1869), Gustave Flourens was the author of numerous fugitive pamphlets.

See C. Prolès, Les Hommes de la revolution de 1871 (Paris, 1898).

This entry was originally from the 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica.