When a French hot air balloon was swept away by the wind and ended up in Norway
What was supposed to be a short trip out of Paris turned into a 15-hour-long journey through the skies for two Frenchmen. They ended up in eastern Norway.
The 22-metre-tall hot air balloon floats above the Norwegian mountains. The journey would prove to be a record-breaking one: 1,200 kilometres. The farthest a manned hot air balloon had travelled at the time.(Photo: Kleppen collection, Norwegian Museum of Science and Technology)
In the autumn of 1870, Paris was surrounded by Prussian forces during the Franco-Prussian War. The siege completely isolated the capital. Railway and telegraph lines were cut.
The people of Paris were starving.
To overcome the isolation, Parisians turned to hot air balloons that could carry post and important messages out of the city.
"France has a long tradition of manned hot air balloons, stretching back to the late 18th century," says Ketil Gjølme Andersen.
He is senior curator at the Norwegian Museum of Science and Technology.
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"During the four months the siege lasted, 67 manned balloons were launched," says Andersen. "This was really the beginning of what we now think of as airmail."
To save weight, ultra-thin paper was used, and newspapers were photographed in miniature format.
It was under these desperate circumstances that La Ville d‘Orléans took off.
Paul Rolier had only recently married when he set out on the journey. At home sat his young wife, who was very worried about her husband's mission.Photo: Unknown, Norwegian Folk Museum)
Léon Bézier carried the secret wartime message. According to one theory, he may also have had a personal motive for leaving Paris, after coming under suspicion in a fraud case.(Photo: Unknown, Norwegian Folk Museum)
A secret message
On 24 November 1870, balloon number 33, La Ville d’Orléans, was launched from Paris.
On board were balloon pilot Paul Rolier and courier Léon Bézier. Along with four sacks of mail, they carried a secret coded message sewn into Bézier’s clothing.
The message was intended for the French Minister of War, Léon Gambetta, who was in the city of Tours. The plan was to coordinate an attack on the Prussian forces.
"It was absolutely crucial that the message reached Tours quickly," says Andersen.
The power of the wind
The balloon rose into the darkness of night to avoid being shot down by the Prussian forces.
But once in the air, they lost control.
"They had no way of steering. They were completely dependent on the wind," says Andersen.
During the night, the hot air balloon was caught by powerful air currents and drifted far away from its intended route. When daylight came, it was foggy, and they did not know where they were.
Then they heard a persistent rumbling sound.
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When the fog lifted, they saw the sea beneath them.
"That's when they started to realise that this could go terribly wrong. The mood became quite bleak," says Andersen.
At one point, they are said to have considered setting fire to the balloon, convinced that they were heading towards certain death regardless.
To determine which direction the wind was blowing, Rolier and Bézier used thin cigarette paper. The cargo on board included bread and wine, four mail sacks, sandbags, six carrier pigeons, an electric lantern with batteries, and an anchor line.(Image: Norwegian Museum of Science and Technology)
Nearly crashed into the sea
The situation was dramatic.
In an attempt to descend towards the water and a ship they had spotted, they threw out the anchor line. This turned out to be a mistake.
"The rope iced over and became very heavy, pulling the basket down to the water. Suddenly, they found themselves just above the surface of the sea," Andersen says.
To rise again, they threw out the sandbags. It was not enough.
"In the end, they had to cut loose one of the mail sacks," says Andersen.
The sack fell into the sea near Mandal in southern Norway.
This was just enough for the balloon to begin rising again, allowing it to drift inland once more.
La Ville d'Orléans barely stays above the sea surface off the coast near Mandal.(Image: Norwegian Museum of Science and Technology)
Alone in the winter mountains
Near Lifjell in Telemark, eastern Norway, the hot air balloon started running out of gas.
The basket struck a tree, and Rolier was thrown out into the cold snow.
"The basket then became lighter and started rising again. Bézier had gotten his foot tangled in a rope, but eventually managed to free himself. He fell several metres down into deep snow," Andersen says.
The hot air balloon continued on without them.
The two men survived, but suddenly found themselves in the middle of the Norwegian winter – without equipment and with no idea where they were.
"They were standing there in uniforms and thin shoes, not dressed for winter at all," says Andersen.
The two men wandered through the snow before finding shelter in a simple cabin. The next day, they continued on foot.
Eventually, they encountered two local lumberjacks, Harald and Klas Strand, who brought them back to their farm.
"With the help of a matchbox labelled 'Christiania,' the Frenchmen understood where they were and where they needed to go," says Andersen.
Christiania was the name of Norway's capital at the time.
Rolier and Bézier in snow-covered Lifjell mountains in Telemark.(Image: Norwegian Museum of Science and Technology)
From mountain wilderness to public celebration
News of the balloon voyage spread rapidly.
"Rolier and Bézier were first taken to Seljord, then to Kongsberg, onwards to Hokksund, and then to Drammen. French flags hung from several windows. Finally, they arrived in Christiania, where they were given a warm welcome at Gamle Logen," Andersen says.
Among those present were Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson, who gave a speech, and Jonas Lie, who had written a song for the occasion.
"They quite literally became celebrities. Newspapers quickly picked up the story," says Andersen.
The basket remained in Norway and was given to the University of Oslo by the French state. It was later transferred to the Norwegian Museum of Science and Technology, where it remains today. The basket has been on display since 1932.(Photo: Maren Skullerud Fergestad)
In Christiania, Bézier managed to send the important wartime message by telegraph.
"By then, however, it was too late to coordinate the planned military operation," Andersen says.
Whether the message would have altered the course of the war remains uncertain.
"The French forces were likely incapable of resisting the massive Prussian armies anyway," says Andersen.
It took 14 days from their departure from Paris before Rolier and Bézier finally returned to French soil.
A glimpse into a besieged Paris
The hot air balloon itself eventually came down in Krødsherad, with the cargo miraculously still on board.
"All the mail sacks were brought to Christiania and distributed. Even the sack that fell into the sea was later recovered, and those letters were delivered as well," Andersen says.
Many of the letters carried out of Paris by hot air balloon during this period still exist today.
"An entire field of research has grown around studying these letters. They reveal details about the war, but also provide sociological and anthropological insight into everyday life in Paris at the time," Andersen explains.
In January 1871, La Ville d'Orléans was exhibited as part of a larger exhibition at Christiania Tivoli at Klingenberg. For the occasion, the goldsmith Tostrup melted down the balloon's battery to create small medals. These were sold to raise money for French war victims.(Photo: Maren Skullerud Fergestad)
From hot air balloons to drones
"It's a story with both geopolitical and major political significance, which is what makes it so compelling. At the same time, it also carries technological importance," says Andersen.
The balloons also marked a significant step in the evolution of aviation.
"They can be seen as a precursor to airships," he says.
Airships were popular for a few decades during the first half of the 20th century.
On 14 April this year, it was exactly 100 years since the airship Norge arrived in Oslo before its journey to the United States via the North Pole.
"In many respects, the airship was an attempt to make the balloon steerable through the use of engines," says Andersen.
There are also parallels to modern warfare.
"Throughout the 19th century, and also during the First World War, hot air balloons were used for military reconnaissance and enemy surveillance," says Andersen.
He points out that this can be compared to today’s drones, which also provide an aerial overview of the battlefield. But there is one important difference.
"Whereas hot air balloons were primarily defensive surveillance tools, modern drones have evolved into high-tech offensive weapons – something hot air balloons never became," says Andersen.
