Bust of Louis Braille (1809-1852)
by Étienne Leroux (1836-1906) |
Blinded
in both eyes as a result of an early childhood accident, Braille mastered his
disability while still a boy. He excelled in his education and received
scholarship to France's Royal Institute for Blind Youth. While still a student
there, he began developing a system of tactile code that could allow blind
persons to read and write quickly and efficiently. Inspired by the military
cryptography of Charles Barbier, Braille constructed a new method built
specifically for the needs of the blind. He presented his work to his peers for
the first time in 1824.
In
adulthood, Braille served as a professor at the Institute and enjoyed an
avocation as a musician, but he largely spent the remainder of his life
refining and extending his system. It went unused by most educators for many
years after his death, but posterity has recognized braille as a revolutionary
invention, and it has been adapted for use in languages worldwide.