Denis Papin: Biography, Achievements & Lasting Legacy

Denis Papin FRS (French pronunciation: [dəni papɛ̃]; 22 August 1647 – 26 August 1713) was a French Huguenot physicist, mathematician and inventor, best known for his pioneering invention of the steam digester, the forerunner of the pressure cooker, the steam engine, the centrifugal pump, and a submersible boat.

He started his career in his native France, before emigrating to London, in 1675, and rising to being on the staff of the Royal Society, in 1684. As a Huguenot, he was stripped of his French citizenship, and denied a return to France after Louis XIV invoked the Edict of Fontainebleau in 1685. From 1687-1707 he held a position as a mathematics professor of the University of Marburg, Germany, before returning to England the last 5 years of his life. In spite of his many discoveries he died a pauper, and the date of his death and burial site were lost for 303 years.