Patrick Luiz Sullivan De Oliveira, an Assistant Professor of History at IU University in Madrid, dives into the thrilling world of 19th-century ballooning in France. He discusses how the enthusiasm for ballooning surged during the turbulent times of the Franco-Prussian War. Balloons transformed from mere spectacles to symbols of national identity, bridging science and patriotism. The podcast also explores the interplay between the French aristocracy and ballooning culture, as well as the literary influences shaping colonial ambitions, particularly through the works of Jules Verne.
01:17:42
forum Ask episode
web_stories AI Snips
view_agenda Chapters
menu_book Books
auto_awesome Transcript
info_circle Episode notes
question_answer ANECDOTE
Serendipitous Origin of Research
Patrick Luiz Sullivan De Oliveira discovered his research topic by chance through a Brazilian aviator's biography in his father's travel agency office.
This led him to explore the surprising revival of ballooning in 19th-century France and its cultural significance beyond technology.
insights INSIGHT
Ballooning's Early Public Fascination
Ballooning in 1783 sparked massive public and scientific excitement in France, drawing huge crowds and dominating scientific discussions.
Despite hopes, lack of steerability led to scientific disinterest, relegating balloons to popular entertainment in the 19th century.
insights INSIGHT
Siege of Paris Elevated Balloons
The Franco-Prussian War siege of Paris elevated ballooning from entertainment to crucial communication technology, enabling links beyond the city.
Balloons became symbols of hope and resistance, shifting public perception toward a patriotic appreciation.
Get the Snipd Podcast app to discover more snips from this episode
Jules Verne's 'Five Weeks in a Balloon' follows Dr. Samuel Fergusson, his servant Joe, and his friend Richard Kennedy as they journey across Africa in a specially designed balloon named the 'Victoria'. The novel combines adventure, exploration, and scientific speculation. The trio encounters various landscapes, cultures, and dangers as they navigate the uncharted territories. Verne's detailed descriptions of geography, meteorology, and ethnography make the story educational and engaging. The narrative reflects the spirit of exploration and scientific curiosity prevalent during the 19th century.
Ascending Republic
Ascending Republic
Patrick Luiz Sullivan De Oliveira
The book investigates the resurgence of interest in ballooning during 19th-century France, examining its links to the Franco-Prussian War and the rise of the Third Republic. It explores how the French civil society cultivated enthusiasm for flight, appropriating it as a symbol of national pride. The narrative encompasses the roles of republican savants, aristocrats, and the anxieties of colonial expansion. This study reveals Paris as the global center of aeronautical culture, blending visions of patriotism, modernity, and technological cosmopolitanism. It sheds light on the cultural and societal impacts of flight before the advent of airplanes.
On August 27, 1783, a large crowd gathered in Paris to watch the first ascent of a hydrogen balloon. Despite the initial feverish enthusiasm, by the mid-nineteenth century the balloon remained relatively unchanged and was no longer seen as the harbinger of a new era. Yet that all changed in the last third of the century, when following the traumatic Franco-Prussian War defeat, the balloon reemerged to become the modern artifact that captured the attention of many. Through this process, the balloon became an important symbol of the fledgling Third Republic, and France established itself as the world leader in flight. In Ascending Republic: The Ballooning Revival in Nineteenth-Century France(MIT Press, 2025), Dr. Patrick Luiz Sullivan De Oliveira tells for the first time the story of this surprising revival. Through extensive research in the press and archives in France, the United States, and Brazil, De Oliveira argues that French civil society cultivated popular enthusiasm for flight (what historians call “airmindedness”) decades before the advent of the airplane. Champions of French ballooning made the case that if the British Royal Navy controlled the seas and the Imperial German Army dominated the continent, then France needed to take ownership of the skies. The French appropriated this newly imagined geopolitical space through a variety of practices, from republican savants who studied the atmosphere at high altitudes to aristocrats who organized transcontinental long-distance competitions. All of this made Paris into the global capital of a thriving aeronautical culture that incorporated seemingly contradictory visions of sacrificial patriotism, aristocratic modernity, colonial anxiety, and technological cosmopolitanism.
This interview was conducted by Dr. Miranda Melcher whose book focuses on post-conflict military integration, understanding treaty negotiation and implementation in civil war contexts, with qualitative analysis of the Angolan and Mozambican civil wars. You can find Miranda’s interviews on New Books with Miranda Melcher, wherever you get your podcasts.
New Books Network