1. Charles Blondin was born on 28 February 1824 in Hesdin, Pas-de-Calais, France.
14 Facts About Charles Blondin
1. 2.
Charles Blondin was encouraged by William Niblo to perform with the Ravel troupe in New York City and was part proprietor of a circus.
3.
Charles Blondin was not injured, but two workers who were on the scaffolding fell to their deaths.
4.
In 1861, Charles Blondin first appeared in London, at the Crystal Palace, turning somersaults on stilts on a rope stretched across the central transept 70 feet from the ground.
5.
Charles Blondin performed in September 1861 in Edinburgh, Scotland, at the Royal Botanic Gardens on Inverleith Row.
6.
Charles Blondin gave a series of other performances in 1862, as well, again at the Crystal Palace, and elsewhere in England and Europe.
7.
On 6 September 1873, Charles Blondin crossed Edgbaston Reservoir in Birmingham.
8.
In October 1869, Charles Blondin appeared in London at The Crystal Palace Harvest Fete.
9.
Charles Blondin traversed the long rope on a bicycle expressly made for the occasion.
10.
On 3 August 1896, at the age of 71, Charles Blondin walked on a tightrope across Waterloo Lake in Roundhay Park Leeds, several times.
11.
Charles Blondin died from complications of diabetes at his "Niagara House" in Ealing, London, on 22 February 1897, at age 72 and was buried in Kensal Green Cemetery.
12.
Charles Blondin married Marie Blancherie on 6 August 1846, legitimising their son Aime Leopold, after which they had two more children.
13.
In 1895, Charles Blondin married again, this time in the United Kingdom.
14.
Charles Blondin noted that he had seen one walking on a wire in Liverpool Street in the city with a child strapped to his back.