Portrait of Jean Sylvain Bailly

Jean Sylvain Bailly

French astronomer, mathematician, freemason, and political leader

Lived
1736–1793
Country
France

Updated September 2026

About Jean Sylvain Bailly

Jean Sylvain Bailly was a French astronomer, mathematician, freemason, and political leader of the early part of the French Revolution. He presided over the Tennis Court Oath, served as the mayor of Paris from 1789 to 1791, and was ultimately guillotined during the Reign of Terror.

Biography from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. Photo via Wikimedia Commons.

Authors like Jean Sylvain Bailly

Sources: book lists and dates from Wikidata and Open Library, ratings from Open Library readers. Last updated September 2026.