André Citroën
| André Citroën | |
|---|---|
André Citroën on an ocean voyage
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| Born |
André-Gustave Citroën 5 February 1878 Paris, France |
| Died | 3 July 1935 (aged 57) Paris, France |
| Nationality | French |
| Occupation | Business, Engineering |
| Known for | Founder of Citroën |
| Parent(s) | Levie Citroen and Masza Amelia Kleinman |
| Relatives | Alfred Lindon (brother-in-law) |
André-Gustave Citroën (pronounced: [ɑ̃dʁe ɡystav sitʁɔɛn]; 5 February 1878 – 3 July 1935) was a French industrialist and freemason. He is remembered chiefly for the make of car named after him, but also for his application of double helical gears.
Born in Paris in 1878, André-Gustave was the 5th and last child of Jewish parents, diamond merchant Levie Citroen from the Netherlands and Masza Amelia Kleinman from Warsaw, Poland. He was a cousin of the British philosopher Sir A. J. Ayer (the only son of his aunt Reine).
The Citroen family moved to Paris from Warsaw in 1873. Upon arrival, the diaeresis was added to the name (reputedly by one of André's teachers), changing Citroen to Citroën (a grandfather had been a greengrocer and seller of tropical fruit, and had taken the surname of Limoenman, literally "lime man," his son however preferred Citroen, Dutch for "lemon").
His father committed suicide when André was six years old (presumably after failure in a business adventure in a diamond mine in South Africa).
It is reputed that the young André was inspired by the works of Jules Verne and had seen the construction of the Eiffel Tower for the World Exhibition, making him want to become an engineer.
André was a graduate of the École Polytechnique in 1900. In that year he visited Poland, the birthland of his mother, who had recently died. During that holiday he saw a carpenter working on a set of gears with a fish-bone structure. These gears were less noisy and more efficient. Citroën bought the patent for very little money, leading to the invention that is credited to Citroën: double helical gears. Also reputed to be the inspiration of the double chevron logo of the Citroën brand.
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