Greatest French people ever ?

But after some consideration I have replaced Jean Reno and Luc Besson by Charles de Gaulle et Edith Piaff because they were both elected to the top 10 by the French.

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This is surely more appropriate

spongetaro said:

As for the "French ethnicity", Louis XIV, Gustave Eiffel, Napoleon, Edith Piaf and Alexander Dumas had all non French origin.

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It depends on what is considered ethnically French. Louis XIV had mixed European blood like all monarchs, but still quite a lot of French ancestry.

Napoleon was Corsican, which is part of France (now). He and Edith Piaff had some Italian ancestry too, but borders shift all the time, and Italian ancestry is fairly close to French ancestry in many regards (mostly a mixture of Palaeolithic European and Neolithic West Asian with a strong Celtic and Italic overlay and some Greek and Germanic admixture, and a lot of migration between the two regions at least since Roman times).

Gustave Eiffel had some German ancestry, but once again that is very common among the French, especially in the North-East.

Alexandre Dumas was Creole French-African blood through his mother, which makes him the least French of all the people in the list, but he was still predominantly of French ancestry.

Zidane is 0% ethnically French, no matter how you look at it.

René Descartes



René Descartes (31 March 1596 – 11 February 1650) was a French philosopher, mathematician, and writer who spent most of his adult life in the Dutch Republic. He has been dubbed the 'Father of Modern Philosophy', and much subsequent Western philosophy is a response to his writings, which are studied closely to this day.

At the age of eight, he entered the Jesuit Collège Royal Henry-Le-Grand at La Flèche.^{http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/René_Descartes#cite_note-4} After graduation, he studied at the University of Poitiers, earning a Baccalauréat and Licence in law in 1616, in accordance with his father's wishes that he should become a lawyer.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/René_Descartes#cite_note-5

In 1622 he returned to France, and during the next few years spent time in Paris and other parts of Europe. It was during a stay in Paris that he composed his first essay on method: Regulae at Directionem Ingenii (Rules for the Direction of the Mind).http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/René_Descartes#cite_note-Durandin-7 source

edao said:

René Descartes (31 March 1596 – 11 February 1650) was a French philosopher, mathematician, and writer who spent most of his adult life in the Dutch Republic. He has been dubbed the 'Father of Modern Philosophy', and much subsequent Western philosophy is a response to his writings, which are studied closely to this day.

At the age of eight, he entered the Jesuit Collège Royal Henry-Le-Grand at La Flèche.^{http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/René_Descartes#cite_note-4} After graduation, he studied at the University of Poitiers, earning a Baccalauréat and Licence in law in 1616, in accordance with his father's wishes that he should become a lawyer.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/René_Descartes#cite_note-5

In 1622 he returned to France, and during the next few years spent time in Paris and other parts of Europe. It was during a stay in Paris that he composed his first essay on method: Regulae at Directionem Ingenii (Rules for the Direction of the Mind).http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/René_Descartes#cite_note-Durandin-7 source

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Edao, you have a knack for choosing French people that I don't like. Descartes' philosophy has been widely discredited in the 19th and especially 20th century. His most fundamental ideas can all be rejected by modern neuropsychology, as brilliantly explained by Antonio Damasio's book Descartes' error, which destroys the idea of an immaterial thinking soul/spirit.

There is also John Calvin but as you know he was rather influential abroad than in France itself

edao said:

René Descartes (31 March 1596 – 11 February 1650) was a French philosopher, mathematician, and writer who spent most of his adult life in the Dutch Republic. He has been dubbed the 'Father of Modern Philosophy', and much subsequent Western philosophy is a response to his writings, which are studied closely to this day.

At the age of eight, he entered the Jesuit Collège Royal Henry-Le-Grand at La Flèche.^{http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/René_Descartes#cite_note-4} After graduation, he studied at the University of Poitiers, earning a Baccalauréat and Licence in law in 1616, in accordance with his father's wishes that he should become a lawyer.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/René_Descartes#cite_note-5

In 1622 he returned to France, and during the next few years spent time in Paris and other parts of Europe. It was during a stay in Paris that he composed his first essay on method: Regulae at Directionem Ingenii (Rules for the Direction of the Mind).http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/René_Descartes#cite_note-Durandin-7 source

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You might also want to check the works of Daniel C. Dennett, one of the foremost cognitive scientists, who took apart the Cartesian model opposing body and mind. He does this masterfully Consciousness Explained, Freedom Evolves and Sweet Dreams.

spongetaro said:

There is also John Calvin but as you know he was rather influential abroad than in France itself

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Calling a religious figure great is tantamount to calling a criminal great.

Maciamo said:

Calling a religious figure great is tantamount to calling a criminal great.

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What do you exactly mean by "Great"?

I couldn't vote, none of the choices listed make me think they are the greatest person France has ever spawned. As for Napoleon, he surely had a great impact on Europe (his code is still the basis for several European countries current laws), but as Thomas wrote, to half of Europe, he was just a warmonger. As for the great man who spread the Enlightenment ideas across Europe, I rather have the image of an imperialist opportunist who criss-crossed Europe to gain as much territory as possible. Ask any Spaniard how he is perceived in Spain... He definitely is one of the great characters in history, but so are Attila, Hitler and Stalin...

weissmacht said:

I am a direct descendant of him-his name was Timothe Demonbreun.

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He is your ancestor on your mother side right? As you are R1b L21 scots modal, it would be surprising that it comes from France.

Louis XIV IMO

Napoleon loved Lyon. He wanted to bury it (the confluence) but the Parisians have stolen.