Bachelier, Nicolas

SUBJECT AREA: Canals

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b. 1485

d. prior to December 1557 Toulouse, France

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French surveyor, architect and mason.

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Between 1515 and 1522 Francis I of France became ruler of part of Italy, including Milan. He discussed with Leonardo da Vinci the possibility of providing canals in France similar to those constructed or under construction in Italy. One idea was to provide a link between the Garonne at Toulouse and the Aude at Carcassonne. In 1539 Bachelier and his colleague Arnaud Casanove, who described themselves as "expert levellers", proposed a survey of the Toulouse to Carcassonne route and also suggested that barges could either float down the Garonne to Bordeaux or could travel along a canal dug parallel to the river. Francis I authorized them to do the work and approved the plans, which comprised a lock-free canal of variable depth, when they had completed them. However, their plans were hopelessly inaccurate, and nothing was done. In 1598 Henri IV re-examined the plans, but it was left to Pierre Paul Riquet in 1662 to reassess the concept of a Biscay-to- Mediterranean waterway.

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Further Reading

H.Graillet, 1914, Nicolas Bachelier, imagier et maçon de Toulouse. B.Lavigne, 1879, Etude biographique sur Nicolas Bachelier.

JHB