The Last Flash of Genius (1852–1862)

Abstract

The beginning of the Second Empire was a period of progress and glory for France [Plessis 1979]. Industry and agriculture flourished. The railroad network was greatly extended, and in 1852 the line between Paris and Strasbourg through Toul was completed, thereby facilitating Liouville’s travel between his two homes. However, the economic expansion also had annoying effects on Liouville’s life, caused by Napoléon Ill’s decision to transform his medieval capital into the grandiose city we can still admire. In addition to imposing buildings like the Opéra, the Bibliothèque Nationale, and the Gare du Nord, Baron Haussmann planned the broad boulevards, such as Boulevard St. Michel, which cut through the densely populated part of the Latin Quarter, where Liouville lived. His house on the rue de Sorbonne was demolished in 1853, and the family moved to 13 rue de Condé in the vicinity of the Place de l’Odéon, that is, closer to the Institut but further from the Collège de France.