Edme Hippolyte Marié-Davy (1820-1893) was a French chemist and inventor of the 19th century. He was born in Clamecy

Clamecy, Nièvre

Clamecy is a commune in the Nièvre department in central France.Clamecy is the capital of an arrondissement in the department of Nièvre, at the confluence of the Yonne and Beuvron and on the Canal du Nivernais, 46 m. N.N.E...

, Nièvre

Nièvre

Nièvre is a department in the centre of France named after the Nièvre River.-History:Nièvre is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on March 4, 1790...

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In 1854, he invented the first naval periscope

Periscope

A periscope is an instrument for observation from a concealed position. In its simplest form it consists of a tube with mirrors at each end set parallel to each other at a 45-degree angle....

, consisting in a vertical tube with two small mirrors fixed at each end at 45°. He also invented a mercury bisulfate battery that bears his name, "the Marie-Davy".

In 1854, Marié-Davy invented an electromagnetic motor. Based on it, he proposed a submarine

Submarine

A submarine is a watercraft capable of independent operation below the surface of the water. It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability...

 with an electrically driven propeller. McClintock and Watson once planned to use the device on the Hunley

H. L. Hunley (submarine)

H. L. Hunley was a submarine of the Confederate States of America that played a small part in the American Civil War, but a large role in the history of naval warfare. The Hunley demonstrated both the advantages and the dangers of undersea warfare...

. The engine was said to have the power of "a one-horse steam engine".

In the 1860s, he was Deputy Director of the Paris Observatory

Paris Observatory

The Paris Observatory is the foremost astronomical observatory of France, and one of the largest astronomical centres in the world...

, in charge of meteorology

Meteorology

Meteorology is the interdisciplinary scientific study of the atmosphere. Studies in the field stretch back millennia, though significant progress in meteorology did not occur until the 18th century. The 19th century saw breakthroughs occur after observing networks developed across several countries...

. He devoted himself to the study of local thunderstorms, following the destructive storm of 14 November 1854, in the Crimean War

Crimean War

The Crimean War was a conflict fought between the Russian Empire and an alliance of the French Empire, the British Empire, the Ottoman Empire, and the Kingdom of Sardinia. The war was part of a long-running contest between the major European powers for influence over territories of the declining...

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