BAILLY (Jean Sylvain)

, a celebrated French astronomer, historiographer, and politician, was born at Paris the 15th of September 1736, and has figured as | one of the greatest men of the age, being a member of several academies, and an excellent scholar and writer. He enjoyed for several years the office of keeper of the king's pictures at Paris. He published, in 1766, a volume in 4to, An Essay on the Theory of Jupiter's Satellites, preceded by a History of the Astronomy of these Satellites. In the Journal Encyclopédique for May and July 1773, he addressed a letter to M. Bernoulli, Astromer Royal at Berlin, upon some discoveries relative to these satellites, which he had disputed. In 1768 he published the Eulogy of Leibnitz, which obtained the prize at the Academy of Berlin, where it was printed. In 1770 he printed at Paris, in 8vo, the Eulogies of Charles the Vth, of de la Caille, of Leibnitz, and of Corneille. This last had the second prize at the Academy of Rouen, and that of Moliere had the same honour at the French Academy.

M. Bailly was admitted into the Academy as Adjunct the 29th of January 1763, and as Associate the 14th of July 1770.—In 1775 came out at Paris, in 4to, his History of the Ancient Astronomy, in 1 volume: In 1779 the History of Modern Astronomy in 2 volumes: and in 1787 the History of the Indian and Oriental Astronomy, being the 2d vol. of the Ancient Astronomy.

M. Bailly's memoris published in the volumes of the Academy, are as follow:

Memoir upon the Theory of the Comet of 1759.

Memoir upon the Epoques of the Moon's motions at the end of the last century.

First, second, and third Memoris on the Theory of Jupiter's Satellites, 1763.

Memoir on the Comet of 1762: vol. for 1763.

Astronomical Observations, made at Noslon: 1764.

On the Sum's Eclipse of the 1st of April, 1764.

On the Longitude of Polling; 1764.

Observations made at the Louvre from 1760 to 1764: 1765.

On the cause of the Variation of the Inclination of the Orbit of Jupiter's second Satellite; 1765.

On the Motion of the Nodes, and on the Variation of the Inclination of Jupiter's Satellites; 1766.

On the Theory of Jupiter's Satellites, published by M. Bailly, and according to the Tables of their Motions and of those of Jupiter, published by M. Jeaurat; 1766.

Observations on the Opposition of the Sun and Jupiter; 1768.

On the Equation of Jupiter's Centre, and on some other Elements of the Theory of that Planet; 1768.

On the Transit of Venus over the Sun, the 3d of June 1769; and on the Solar Eclipse the 4th of June the same year; 1769.

In the beginning of the revolution in France, in 1789, M. Bailly took an active part in that business, and was so popular and generally esteemed, that he was chosen the first president of the States General, and of the National Assembly, and was afterwards for two years together the Mayor of Paris; in both which offices he conducted himself with great spirit, and gave general satisfaction.

He soon afterward however experienced a sad reverse of fortune; being accused by the ruling party of favouring the king, he was condemned for incivism and wanting to overturn the Republic, and died by the Guillotine at Paris on the eleventh day of November, 1793, at 57 years of age.