Georges Lecointe (explorer)
| Georges Lecointe | |
|---|---|
Lecointe as second-in-command of the Belgian Antarctic Expedition
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| Born |
April 29, 1869 Antwerp, Belgium |
| Died | May 27, 1929 (aged 60) Uccle, Belgium |
| Nationality | Belgian |
| Occupation | naval officer and scientist |
| Known for | second-in-command of the Belgian Antarctic Expedition |
| Spouse(s) | Charlotte Dumeiz (1900-1929) |
| Children |
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Georges Lecointe (29 April 1869 - 27 May 1929) was a Belgian naval officer and scientist. He was captain of the Belgica and second-in-command of the Belgian Antarctic Expedition, the first to overwinter in Antarctica. After his return to Belgium he was deeply involved in the foundation of the International Research Council and the International Astronomical Union.
Georges Lecointe was born in Antwerp on 29 April 1869. His father was a well-known mathematics teacher and he proved early on to be a gifted student. He entered the Royal Military Academy in 1886. After being appointed in 1891 as second lieutenant in the First field artillery regiment and spending some time in the cavalry school in Ypres, he passed the officer examination of the École Polytechnique for the French Navy. The Belgian government detached him to the French Navy, where he was ultimately promoted to ship-of-the-line lieutenant in 1897. This detachment was exceptional and happened as a result of an audience with king Leopold II: it was only granted to one other Belgian officer, but refused to his friend Emile Danco.
Between 1894 and 1897 he trained on a number of ships in the Mediterranean, the Atlantic, Cochinchina and Tonkin. In 1897 he was attached to the Observatory of the Bureau des Longitudes and published a course on navigation and dead reckoning, La navigation astronomique et la navigation estimée, aimed at navy students of the École Polytechnique. In his second book, La création d'une marine nationale Belge (On the Creation of a Belgian National Navy), he pleaded for the re-creation of the Belgian Navy, which had been abolished in 1862. This, however, did not happen until the end of the World War I.
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