Joseph-Michel Montgolfier

About

Co-inventor of the groundbreaking globe aérostatique hot air balloon.

Before Fame

He began his career as an inventor in the early 1780s.

Trivia

He and his brother, Jacques-Étienne Montgolfier, first flew their hot air balloon on June 4, 1783, at a public demonstration in Annonay.

Family Life

He and his brother were two of sixteen children born to a successful paper manufacturer.

Associated With

Queen Marie Antoinette was present to witness the first launch of the Montgolfier brothers' hot air balloon, an event which used a sheep, a duck, and a rooster as test subjects.