Charles Cros

Darci Gardner (Appalachian State University)

Ed. by Elisabeth Gerwin, University of Lethbridge
The Literary Encyclopedia. Volume 1.5.2.05: French Writing and Culture: The Nineteenth-Century , 1800-1900.
Vol. editors: David Elwyn Evans (University of St Andrews), Edward Forman (University of Bristol), Elisabeth Gerwin (University of Lethbridge), Nigel Harkness (University of Newcastle upon Tyne), Tim Unwin (University of Bristol), David Williams (University of Sheffield), Jennifer Yee (University of Oxford)

Dates

Born 1 Oct 1842
Died 9 Aug 1888
Activity 1862-1888

Places

Born in France
Active in France

Activities

Primary

Poet

Resources

Cros' Works

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Émile Hortensius Charles Cros (born 1 October 1842 in Fabrezan; died 9 August 1888 in Paris) was an inventor and creative writer. As a scientist, he advanced colour photography and was the first person to conceive of the phonograph. A respected poet, Cros contributed to the

Parnasse contemporain

, the

Chat noir

cabaret, and the literary groups the Hydropathes and the Zutistes.

Cros was raised in an educated and artistic family from present-day Occitania (southern France); the family, including his two brothers and one sister, relocated to Paris in 1844. Cros’ grandfather was a grammarian and professor, and his father a philosopher. As a child, Cros studied maths, piano, and modern and classical languages under the tutelage of his father. From fall 1860 until February 1863, he tutored at

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1686 words

Citation: Gardner, Darci. "Charles Cros". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 05 September 2024 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/speople.php?rec=true&UID=5721, accessed 16 October 2024.]

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