Albert Robida (14 May 1848 – 11 October 1926) was a French illustrator, etcher, lithographer, caricaturist, and novelist. He edited and published ''
La Caricature'' magazine for 12 years. Through the 1880s, he wrote an acclaimed trilogy of futuristic novels. In the 1900s he created 520 illustrations for Pierre Giffard's weekly serial ''La Guerre Infernale''.
Biography
He was born in
Compiègne
Compiègne (; pcd, Compiène) is a commune in the Oise department in northern France. It is located on the river Oise. Its inhabitants are called ''Compiégnois''.
Administration
Compiègne is the seat of two cantons:
* Compiègne-1 (with ...
, France, the son of a carpenter. He studied to become a notary, but was more interested in caricature. In 1866 he joined ''
Journal amusant'' as an illustrator. In 1880, with
Georges Decaux, he founded his own magazine
''La Caricature'', which he edited for 12 years. He illustrated tourist guides, works of popular history, and literary classics. His fame disappeared after
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...
.
Robida and his wife Marguerite (née Noiret) had seven children, three of which made contributions to the arts. His elder son
Camille became a well-known architect. His youngest son, Henry, had been tabbed to serve as consulting architect to the government of
Siam
Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 million. The country is bo ...
(today Thailand), but his life was cut short by
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...
. Daughter Émilie was also an illustrator. In addition to several collaborations with her father, she was published in
periodicals
A periodical literature (also called a periodical publication or simply a periodical) is a published work that appears in a new edition on a regular schedule. The most familiar example is a newspaper, but a magazine or a journal are also exampl ...
such as ''Le Journal pour tous'' and ''La Poupée modèle''. Another son, Frédéric, was a president of the
Touring Club de France.
École primaire Albert Robida, a school in his native Compiègne, is named in his honor.
Futuristic Trilogy
Albert Robida was rediscovered thanks to his trilogy of futuristic works:
*''Le Vingtième Siècle'' (1883)
*''La Guerre au vingtième siècle'' (1887)
*''
Le Vingtième siècle. La vie électrique'' (1890)
These works drew comparison with
Jules Verne
Jules Gabriel Verne (;''Longman Pronunciation Dictionary''. ; 8 February 1828 – 24 March 1905) was a French novelist, poet, and playwright. His collaboration with the publisher Pierre-Jules Hetzel led to the creation of the '' Voyages extra ...
. Unlike Verne, he proposed inventions integrated into everyday life, not creations of mad scientists, and he imagined the social developments that arose from them, often with accuracy: social advancement of women, mass tourism, pollution, etc. His ''La Guerre au vingtième siècle'' describes modern warfare, with robotic missiles and poison gas. His
Téléphonoscope was a flat screen television display that delivered the latest news 24-hours a day, the latest plays, courses, and teleconferences.
Works with Pierre Giffard
Robida illustrated two works by
Pierre Giffard:
* ''La Fin du Cheval'' ("The End of the Horse"), on the inevitable replacement of the horse by the bicycle and then by the car.
* ''La Guerre Infernale'' ("The Infernal War"), a 1908 serial adventure novel for children that appeared weekly every Saturday. Robida contributed 520 illustrations. The novel is set in the future and features uncanny parallels to World War Two, including an attack on London by Germany and a conflict between Japan and the United States. It was subsequently republished as a book.
Bibliography
;Futuristic
* ''
Voyages très extraordinaires de Saturnin Farandoul'', 1879 (translated by
Brian Stableford
Brian Michael Stableford (born 25 July 1948) is a British academic, critic and science fiction writer who has published more than 70 novels. His earlier books were published under the name Brian M. Stableford, but more recent ones have dropped ...
as ''The Adventures of Saturnin Farandoul'')
* ''Le Vingtième Siècle'', 1883 (translated by Phillipe Willems as ''The Twentieth Century'')
* ''La Guerre au vingtième siècle'', 1887
* ''Le Vingtième Siècle. La vie électrique'', 1890 (translated by
Brian Stableford
Brian Michael Stableford (born 25 July 1948) is a British academic, critic and science fiction writer who has published more than 70 novels. His earlier books were published under the name Brian M. Stableford, but more recent ones have dropped ...
as ''Electric Life'')
* ''Voyage de fiançailles au XX
e siècle
* ''Un chalet dans les airs'' (translated by
Brian Stableford
Brian Michael Stableford (born 25 July 1948) is a British academic, critic and science fiction writer who has published more than 70 novels. His earlier books were published under the name Brian M. Stableford, but more recent ones have dropped ...
as ''Chalet in the Sky'')
* ''L'horloge des siècles'', 1902 (translated by
Brian Stableford
Brian Michael Stableford (born 25 July 1948) is a British academic, critic and science fiction writer who has published more than 70 novels. His earlier books were published under the name Brian M. Stableford, but more recent ones have dropped ...
as ''The Clock of the Centuries'' )
* ''L'Ingénieur von Satanas'', 1919
;Other work
* ''L'Île de Lutèce : enlaidissements et embellissements de la Cité''
* ''La Bête au bois dormant''
* ''La Part du hasard''
* ''Le Voyage de M. Dumollet''
* ''Les Vieilles Villes d'Italie : notes et souvenirs''
* ''La Grande Mascarade parisienne''
* ''La Fin des Livres'', with
Octave Uzanne
* ''Contes pour les bibliophiles'', with Octave Uzanne
* ''Les Vieilles Villes d'Espagne, notes et souvenirs''
* ''Un caricaturiste prophète. La guerre telle qu'elle est''
* ''1430, les assiégés de Compiègne''
* ''Paris de siècle en siècle; le cœur de Paris, splendeurs et souvenir''
* ''Le 19
e siècle''
* ''Les Escholiers du temps jadis''
* ''Les Vieilles Villes d'Italie : notes et souvenirs''
* ''Le Voyage de M. Dumollet''
;La Vieille France series
* ''La
Bretagne'', text, drawings and 40 additional lithographies hors by A. Robida, Paris, Librairie illustrée, ca. 1900, 336 p.
* ''La
Touraine
Touraine (; ) is one of the traditional provinces of France. Its capital was Tours. During the political reorganization of French territory in 1790, Touraine was divided between the departments of Indre-et-Loire, :Loir-et-Cher, Indre and Vien ...
'', text, drawings and lithography by A. Robida, Paris, La Librairie Illustrée, 336 p., 40 illustrations, undated
892
Year 892 ( DCCCXCII) was a leap year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar.
Events
By place
Europe
* Summer – Poppo II, duke of Thuringia (Central Germany), is deposed by King Arnu ...
Tome II:
Le Mans
Le Mans (, ) is a city in northwestern France on the Sarthe River where it meets the Huisne. Traditionally the capital of the province of Maine, it is now the capital of the Sarthe department and the seat of the Roman Catholic diocese of Le ...
,
Laval,
Sablé,
Angers
Angers (, , ) is a city in western France, about southwest of Paris. It is the prefecture of the Maine-et-Loire department and was the capital of the province of Anjou until the French Revolution. The inhabitants of both the city and the pr ...
,
Saumur
Saumur () is a commune in the Maine-et-Loire department in western France.
The town is located between the Loire and Thouet rivers, and is surrounded by the vineyards of Saumur itself, Chinon, Bourgueil, Coteaux du Layon, etc.. Saumur s ...
,
Thouars
Thouars () is a commune in the Deux-Sèvres department in western France. On 1 January 2019, the former communes Mauzé-Thouarsais, Missé and Sainte-Radegonde were merged into Thouars.
It is on the River Thouet. Its inhabitants are known ...
,
Loudun
Loudun (; ; Poitevin: ''Loudin'') is a commune in the Vienne department and the region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine, western France.
It is located south of the town of Chinon and 25 km to the east of the town Thouars. The area south of Loudun i ...
,
Chinon
Chinon () is a commune in the Indre-et-Loire department, Centre-Val de Loire, France.
The traditional province around Chinon, Touraine, became a favorite resort of French kings and their nobles beginning in the late 15th and early 16th centurie ...
,
Vendôme
Vendôme (, ) is a subprefecture of the department of Loir-et-Cher, France. It is also the department's third-biggest commune with 15,856 inhabitants (2019).
It is one of the main towns along the river Loir. The river divides itself at the ...
* ''
Normandie'', text, drawings and lithographies by A. Robida, Paris, La Librairie illustrée, undated
890
__NOTOC__
Year 890 ( DCCCXC) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar.
Events
By place
Europe
* The Frankish nobles, who have ruled Provence in anarchy (since 887), declare Lo ...
331 pages, 40 additional duotone illustrations. Tome II:
Bayeux
Bayeux () is a commune in the Calvados department in Normandy in northwestern France.
Bayeux is the home of the Bayeux Tapestry, which depicts the events leading up to the Norman conquest of England. It is also known as the first major tow ...
,
Lisieux
Lisieux () is a commune in the Calvados department in the Normandy region in northwestern France. It is the capital of the Pays d'Auge area, which is characterised by valleys and hedged farmland.
Name
The name of the town derives from the ...
,
Bernay,
Honfleur
Honfleur () is a commune in the Calvados department in northwestern France. It is located on the southern bank of the estuary of the Seine across from le Havre and very close to the exit of the Pont de Normandie. The people that inhabit Honf ...
,
Le Havre
Le Havre (, ; nrf, Lé Hâvre ) is a port city in the Seine-Maritime department in the Normandy region of northern France. It is situated on the right bank of the estuary of the river Seine on the Channel southwest of the Pays de Caux, very ...
,
Fécamp
Fécamp () is a commune in the Seine-Maritime department in the Normandy region in north-western France.
Geography
Fécamp is situated in the valley of the river Valmont, at the heart of the Pays de Caux, on the Alabaster Coast. It is aroun ...
,
Dieppe
Dieppe (; Norman: ''Dgieppe'') is a coastal commune in the Seine-Maritime department in the Normandy region of northern France.
Dieppe is a seaport on the English Channel at the mouth of the river Arques. A regular ferry service runs to N ...
,
Eu,
Rouen
Rouen (, ; or ) is a city on the River Seine in northern France. It is the prefecture of the region of Normandy and the department of Seine-Maritime. Formerly one of the largest and most prosperous cities of medieval Europe, the population ...
,
Louviers
Louviers () is a commune in the Eure department in Normandy in north-western France.
Louviers is from Paris and from Rouen.
Population
History
Prehistory
In the area around Louviers, cut stones from the Paleolithic era have been fou ...
,
Évreux,
Vernon. Republished: Éd. de Crémille, Genève, 1994, 169 p.
* ''
Provence
Provence (, , , , ; oc, Provença or ''Prouvènço'' , ) is a geographical region and historical province of southeastern France, which extends from the left bank of the lower Rhône to the west to the Italian border to the east; it is bo ...
'', Paris, À la Librairie illustrée, undated
893 332 p.
Avignon
Avignon (, ; ; oc, Avinhon, label= Provençal or , ; la, Avenio) is the prefecture of the Vaucluse department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region of Southeastern France. Located on the left bank of the river Rhône, the commune had ...
,
Barbentane,
Orange,
Carpentras, Vaucluse,
Cavaillon,
Sisteron
Sisteron (; , oc, label=Mistralian norm, Sisteroun; from oc, label= Old Occitan, Sestaron) is a commune in the Alpes-de-Haute-Provence department, Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, southeastern France.
Sisteron is situated on the banks of the rive ...
,
Tarascon
Tarascon (; ), sometimes referred to as Tarascon-sur-Rhône, is a commune situated at the extreme west of the Bouches-du-Rhône department of France in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Inhabitants are referred to as Tarasconnais or Taras ...
,
Beaucaire,
Arles
Arles (, , ; oc, label= Provençal, Arle ; Classical la, Arelate) is a coastal city and commune in the South of France, a subprefecture in the Bouches-du-Rhône department of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region, in the former province ...
,
Marseille
Marseille ( , , ; also spelled in English as Marseilles; oc, Marselha ) is the prefecture of the French department of Bouches-du-Rhône and capital of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Situated in the camargue region of southern Fra ...
,
Toulon
Toulon (, , ; oc, label= Provençal, Tolon , , ) is a city on the French Riviera and a large port on the Mediterranean coast, with a major naval base. Located in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region, and the Provence province, Toulon is th ...
,
Fréjus
Fréjus (; ) is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in Southeastern France. In 2019, it had a population of 54,458.
It neighbours Saint-Raphaël, effectively forming one urban agglomeration. The north ...
, Nice,
Monaco
Monaco (; ), officially the Principality of Monaco (french: Principauté de Monaco; Ligurian: ; oc, Principat de Mónegue), is a sovereign city-state and microstate on the French Riviera a few kilometres west of the Italian region of Lig ...
,
Menton
Menton (; , written ''Menton'' in classical norm or ''Mentan'' in Mistralian norm; it, Mentone ) is a commune in the Alpes-Maritimes department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region on the French Riviera, close to the Italian border.
Me ...
,
Aix
Aix or AIX may refer to:
Computing
* AIX, a line of IBM computer operating systems
*An Alternate Index, for a Virtual Storage Access Method Key Sequenced Data Set
* Athens Internet Exchange, a European Internet exchange point
Places Belgiu ...
,
Nîmes
Nîmes ( , ; oc, Nimes ; Latin: ''Nemausus'') is the prefecture of the Gard department in the Occitanie region of Southern France. Located between the Mediterranean Sea and Cévennes, the commune of Nîmes has an estimated population of ...
,
Uzès
Uzès (; ) is a commune in the Gard department in the Occitanie region of Southern France. In 2017, it had a population of 8,454. Uzès lies about north-northeast of Nîmes, west of Avignon and south-east of Alès.
History
Originally ''Uc ...
,
Montpellier
Montpellier (, , ; oc, Montpelhièr ) is a city in southern France near the Mediterranean Sea. One of the largest urban centres in the region of Occitania, Montpellier is the prefecture of the department of Hérault. In 2018, 290,053 people l ...
,
Béziers
Béziers (; oc, Besièrs) is a subprefecture of the Hérault department in the Occitanie region of Southern France. Every August Béziers hosts the famous ''Feria de Béziers'', which is centred on bullfighting. A million visitors are attra ...
,
Narbonne
Narbonne (, also , ; oc, Narbona ; la, Narbo ; Late Latin:) is a commune in Southern France in the Occitanie region. It lies from Paris in the Aude department, of which it is a sub-prefecture. It is located about from the shores of the ...
,
Carcassonne
Carcassonne (, also , , ; ; la, Carcaso) is a French fortified city in the department of Aude, in the region of Occitanie. It is the prefecture of the department.
Inhabited since the Neolithic, Carcassonne is located in the plain of the Aud ...
* ''Paris, Splendeurs et Souvenirs'', Éditions de Crémille, Genève, 1992, textes, dessins et lithographies par A. Robida, 824 p., 2 volumes. Tome 1 : ''Le Cœur de Paris'', 412 p. Tome 2 : ''Paris, de Siècle en Siècle'', 412 p.
Notes
Critical studies
* Elizabeth Emery, "Albert Robida, Medieval Publicist," in:
Cahier Calin: Makers of the Middle Ages. Essays in Honor of William Calin'', ed. Richard Utz and Elizabeth Emery (Kalamazoo, MI: Studies in Medievalism, 2011), pp. 51–55.
External links
Albert Robida... et son blog
*
ttp://www.robida.info/ The friends of Albert Robida site
1942 ''Life'' magazine articleon accuracy of Robida's predictions of future warfare, with pictures
*
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Robida, Albert
1848 births
1926 deaths
People from Compiègne
French science fiction writers
French speculative fiction artists
French illustrators
French caricaturists
Writers from Hauts-de-France
19th-century French novelists
French male novelists
19th-century French male writers