Marie Marvingt "La Fiancée du Danger" (1875-1963)
Marie Marvingt was born on February 20, 1875, at Aurillac, France. A world class athlete she won winning numerous prizes in swimming, fencing, shooting, ski-jumping, skating, bobsled especially dominating the 1908-1910 seasons at Chamonix France, where she won more than 20 first place awards. She was a world class mountain climber and between 1903-1910 was the first woman to climb most of the peaks of the French and Swiss Alps. The French Academy of Sports gave her a medal in March 1910 "for all sports" (the only one they ever gave for more than one sport).
In 1901 Marie Marvingt had taken her first flight in a balloon. Some six years later on July 19, 1907 flew as the balloon pilot. In 1908, not being allowed to participate in the tour de France bicycle race (it was a man's sport, after all), she nevertheless rode the course after the race, and completed it, which only some 30 of the more than 100 male starters had done. On October 26, 1909 not long after her first solo flight Marie Marvingt was the first female pilot to fly a balloon across the North Sea and the English Channel from Europe to England.. She continued ballooning during 1909 and 1910 winning a number of prizes and in June 1910 she received her Balloon pilot's license from the Aero Club of France (#145)
 Marie Marvingt, Reims, 1912 Image : David Lam download a 1000pixel image
Fixed wing Flight In September 1909 Marie Marvingt had her first flight in a fixed wing aeroplane piloted by Roger Sommers and in 1910 she studied fixed wing aviation with Hubert Latham, in his Antoinette. At least one journal credited her with being the first woman to solo a monoplane. A major point in her life also came in 1910 when she proposed the development of airplane ambulances to the French Government. At that time however the concept fell on deaf ears On November 8, 1910 Marie Marvingt became the third woman in the world licensed as a pilot (#281). In 1911 Won the Coupe Femina in Turin and 1912, still inspired to create an air ambulance for France she ordered an 'airplane ambulance' from the Deperdussin company. Her concept was imortalised in a painting by Emile Friant in 1914 just a war was breaking out.
 Marie Marvingt, The Air Ambulance by Emile Friant download a 750pixel image
In 1914 Marie Marvingt enlisted in the French Army and served on the front lines as a male infantryman, a red cross nurse and by 1915 was serving as volunteer pilot flying bomber missions over Germany. Between the wars "La Fiancée du Danger" worked as war correspondent with French Forces in North Africa. During this time she also devided devised metal skis for air ambulances working in Morocco and Algeria and apparently, at a later date, for a time ran a school in Morocco teaching skiing on sand dunes. Even with all this activity still found time to author and act and direct two films in 1934/35. Marie Marvingt devoted the remainder of her long life to her dream of 1910, the concept of aeromedical evacuation, giving more than 6000 conferences and seminars on the subject on at least four continents. She was Co-Founder of the French organisation Les Amies De L'Aviation Sanitaire (Friends of Medical Aviation) and one of the leaders behind the success of the First International Congress on Medical Aviation, 1929. On January 30, 1955. Marie Marvingt received award from the Federation National d'Aeronautique at the Sorbonne, for her work in aviation medicine, established civil air ambulance service in Morocco and was awarded the Medal de la Paix of Morocco. In 1955, at the age of 80, Marie Marvingt learned to fly a jet helicopter, flew in a US jet, and reportedly broke the sound barrier (not verified - Ed). Marie Marvingt died, December 24, 1963 at the age of 88, the most decorated woman in the history of France, with more than 34 medals and decorations.
Marie Marvingt Née à Aurillac le 20 février 1875, Marie Marvingt, Aviatrice, sportive de haut niveau, accomplit des missions militaires dans différents régiments. De très nombreux succès sont à mettre à son actif notamment le prix du concours de distance de l'Aéro-Club de l'Est, sur sonballon 'L'Etoile filante'. Elle reçoit le 8 novembre 1910 le brevet no.281 qui constitue le 3e brevet féminin mondial d'aéronautique. Le 14 décembre 1963, Marie Marvingt "La Fiancée du Danger" s'éteint dans son lit à l'âge de 88 ans. Avec elle disparait la doyenne des femmes pilotes possèdant 17 records mondiaux et 30 décorations.
Marie Marvingt : Une femme extraordinaire Marie Marvingt était la femme la plus décorée de France - détentrice de 34 médailles et décorations de France et d'ailleurs. En plus des précitées, elle détenait la Croix de Guerre 1914 -1918 avec palmes, les Palmes Académiques ; la Médaille de l'Aéronautique; la Médaille de la Paix du Maroc. Elle était infirmière diplômée et assistante en chirurgie. Journaliste, elle écrivait sur l'aviation, les sports, et des personnalités. Elle était brillante cavalière et travaillait à tous appareils, maniait poids et haltères, pratiquait la boxe, la lutte, le jiu-jitsu, le judo, le karaté, le tennis, le golf, le billard, le water-polo et le polo à cheval, le hockey, le base-ball, le football, le saut, la course à pied, travaillait sur le fil de fer et savait jongler et dompter; pratiquait aussi l'as, le skiff, le canot automobile, le vol à voile, l'aéroplane, et maniait avec succès le sabre, l'épée et le fleuret; championne au tir aux pigeons, elle chassait la panthère et le phoque. Seule femme au monde détentrice de quatre brevets : avion, ballon, hydravion, hélicoptère ; elle pilotait également des dirigeables. Elle parla 5 langues (diplômée en Espéranto), joua au cornet, et étudiait le droit et la médecine. A aussi étudié la tragédie, le chant, le dessin, la peinture, la sculpture, les danses anciennes et modernes, et la cuisine -pour laquelle elle reçut un prix ; pratiqua l'hypnotisme, la graphologie, la chiromancie, l'astrologie, la phrénologie, la physiognomonie, la géodésie, la taxidermie, la météorologie, la psychologie, la topographie, l'océanographie, la balistique, etc. ; une des premières femmes à faire de la spéléologie. Se faisait surnommer " la fiancée du danger" et "La Marie". On la décrivait comme "la femme la plus incroyable depuis Jeanne d'Arc" et "la plus grande sportive du siècle".
Dave Lam adds 20/10/02... You might also want to add her to your section on women in war-- Official French Government documents (her citation for entry to the Legion of Honor) credit her with piloting bomber missions over Germany in WWI. She is probably the first woman pilot to actually participate in combat operations.
Gallery
 Marie Marvingt and her Antoinette
 Marie Marvingt, sur son Antoinette, 1911 download a 1000pixel or 1500pixel image
 Marie Marvingt, sur son Deperdussin, Jarville, 1912
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Marie Marvingt
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