Quick Facts
French visionary who invented science fiction, predicted submarines and space travel, and took millions of readers on extraordinary voyages while never leaving his study in Amiens.
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Life Journey
Born Jules Gabriel Verne on February 8, 1828, in Nantes, a busy port city. His father was a lawyer who expected his son to follow him. The boy dreamed of the sea.
Legend says young Jules tried to stow away on a ship bound for the Indies. His father caught him and extracted a promise: 'I will travel only in imagination.' He kept that promise.
Sent to Paris to study law. Instead, he fell in love with theatre and began writing plays. His father was not pleased. The young man starved for his dreams.
Married Honorine de Viane, a widow with two daughters. To support his family, he worked as a stockbroker while writing in the early mornings. The double life was exhausting.
Met publisher Pierre-Jules Hetzel, who recognized his talent. Hetzel would publish all of Verne's major works and shape his career. The partnership changed literature.
Published 'Five Weeks in a Balloon,' his first successful novel. The story of African exploration by balloon launched the Voyages Extraordinaires series. Verne had found his form.
Published 'Journey to the Center of the Earth.' Professor Lidenbrock's descent into an Icelandic volcano captured imaginations worldwide. Science fiction was born.
Published 'From the Earth to the Moon,' predicting space travel with remarkable accuracy. The projectile launched from Florida, three-man crew, Pacific splashdown - a century before Apollo 11.
Published 'Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea.' Captain Nemo and the Nautilus became icons. Electric submarines, undersea gardens, the mysterious anti-hero - all revolutionary.
Settled permanently in Amiens, northern France. He would rarely leave, writing his extraordinary voyages from a study filled with maps and scientific journals.
Published 'Around the World in Eighty Days.' Phileas Fogg's methodical journey became his most popular work. The novel was serialized as readers bet on Fogg's success.
Shot in the leg by his mentally disturbed nephew Gaston. The wound never fully healed, leaving him partially lame. The incident cast a shadow over his later years.
Elected to the Amiens city council, where he served for fifteen years. The visionary novelist became a respected local politician, championing libraries and education.
His later novels grew darker, reflecting anxieties about technology and war. His health declined. He continued writing to the end, leaving several posthumous works.
Jules Verne died on March 24, 1905, in Amiens. He had written sixty-four novels in the Voyages Extraordinaires series. His predictions continue to come true.