Émile Girardeau (12 October 1882 – 7 December 1970) was a French

engineer Engineers, as practitioners of engineering, are professionals who Invention, invent, design, build, maintain and test machines, complex systems, structures, gadgets and materials. They aim to fulfill functional objectives and requirements while ...

, famous for being the first person to patent the original system of frequencies that is used and known today as

radar Radar is a system that uses radio waves to determine the distance ('' ranging''), direction ( azimuth and elevation angles), and radial velocity of objects relative to the site. It is a radiodetermination method used to detect and track ...

. He was born in 1882 at

Luçon Luçon () is a Communes of France, commune in the Vendée Departments of France, department, Pays de la Loire Regions of France, region, western France. Its inhabitants are known as Luçonnais. Luçon Cathedral is the seat of the Diocese of Luço ...

, France (the

Vendée Vendée () is a department in the Pays de la Loire region in Western France, on the Atlantic coast. In 2019, it had a population of 685,442.École Polytechnique (, ; also known as Polytechnique or l'X ) is a ''grande école'' located in Palaiseau, France. It specializes in science and engineering and is a founding member of the Polytechnic Institute of Paris. The school was founded in 1794 by mat ...

(Polytechnic School) (1902-1908) and became the Instructor at the

École nationale des ponts et chaussées École nationale des ponts et chaussées (; ; abbr. ENPC), also nicknamed Ponts (), formerly known as École des Ponts ParisTech (), is a grande école in the field of science, engineering and technology, of the Polytechnic Institute of Paris, a ...

(National School of Bridges and Roads). By 1910, Girardeau established the first radiotelegraphic radio connection in tropical countries with Joseph Béthenod. The radio connection systems were designed for the Radioelectric French Company. In 1919, Girardeau was promoted to

Chevalier of the Legion of Honour The National Order of the Legion of Honour ( ), formerly the Imperial Order of the Legion of Honour (), is the highest and most prestigious French national order of merit, both military and civil. Currently consisting of five classes, it was ...

for services in war. In 1922, Girardeau set in motion the idea for the creation of a

public utility A public utility company (usually just utility) is an organization that maintains the infrastructure for a public service (often also providing a service using that infrastructure). Public utilities are subject to forms of public control and ...

information Information is an Abstraction, abstract concept that refers to something which has the power Communication, to inform. At the most fundamental level, it pertains to the Interpretation (philosophy), interpretation (perhaps Interpretation (log ...

and

music Music is the arrangement of sound to create some combination of Musical form, form, harmony, melody, rhythm, or otherwise Musical expression, expressive content. Music is generally agreed to be a cultural universal that is present in all hum ...

. Also in 1922, Girardeau helped establish the first private

radio station Radio broadcasting is the broadcasting of audio (sound), sometimes with related metadata, by radio waves to radio receivers belonging to a public audience. In terrestrial radio broadcasting the radio waves are broadcast by a land-based rad ...

in France, called RADIOLA, which at the end of March 1929 became

Radio Paris Radio Paris was a French radio broadcasting company best known for its Axis propaganda broadcasts in Vichy France during World War II. Radio Paris evolved from the first private radio station in France, called Radiola, founded by pioneering Fren ...

. In 1931, Girardeau was promoted to Commander of the Legion of Honour. In 1934, Girardeau headed the team which developed the first

system in France. In 1939, Girardeau built with Maurice Ponte radar installations for the defence of

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

against planes (which were destroyed in June 1940). After the fall of France to

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

, Girardeau created a factory for underground forces of free France. In 1944, Girardeau re-established radio communications in France. In 1945, Girardeau became a member of the

Académie navale An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of tertiary education. The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, founded approximately 386 BC at Akademia, a sanctuary of Athena, the go ...

. In 1954, Girardeau became a member of the

Académie des sciences morales et politiques An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of tertiary education. The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, founded approximately 386 BC at Akademia, a sanctuary of Athena, the go ...

. In 1970, Girardeau died in Paris.

External links and references

* "
Emile Girardeau
'". L'histoire du "radar ", les faits (''tr''. The history of the "radar", the facts) {{DEFAULTSORT:Girardeau, Emile 1882 births 1970 deaths People from Luçon 20th-century French engineers Members of the Académie des sciences morales et politiques