In 1901, Santos Dumont presents his Deutsch Prize award to the poor of Paris and the men who helped him.
- Letter signed by Santos Dumont to the President of the AeroClub in Paris.
- One page.
- In French.
- 13.1 cm x 20.2 cm.
- October 1901.
- Paris, France.
- Excellent condition conservation, except for a small tear in the fold (easy to restore/consolidate).
- Unique piece.
French transcription
(...).
From the moment I abandoned the interests at the Caisse de l'Aéro-Club (4000 francs) to the founding of a nouveau prix, from the same moment I abandoned the first 100,000 francs to the ux hommes désintéressés qui m´ont témoigné un engagement un dévouement dont ils ont eu parfois à souffrir.
J´espère que dans l´intérêt des pauvres de Paris et des hommes qui m´ont aidé, la Commission d'Aérostation de l´Aéro-Club reviendra sur son vote et me laissera quelques probabilities de leur gagner 100,000 francs.
En all cases mon ballon sera remis en état à la fin de cette semaine et j´espère puvoir continuar month essais aéronautiques dimanche prochain.
Veuillez agréer, Monsieur le Président, l´expression de mes sentiments les meilleurs et les plus distinctions.
Santos-Dumont.
Portuguese translation
(...) if I meet the conditions and it is not granted to me, I will regret it even more because it never occurred to me to receive the amount.
Just as last year I left the interest in the Aeroclub's coffers (4,000 francs) for the creation of a new prize, so I have now left the sum of 100,000 francs in case I win, half for the poor of Paris, half for the disinterested men who have shown me a commitment and devotion that sometimes made them suffer.
I hope that in the interests of the poor of Paris and of the men who helped me, the Aerostation Commission of the Aero Club will reconsider its vote and give me some chance of winning 100,000 francs for them.
Anyway, my balloon will be ready by the end of this week and I hope to be able to continue my aeronautical tests next Sunday.
Sincerely, Mr. President, I express my best and most distinguished greetings.
Santos-Dumont.
The story between Santos Dumont and the Deutsch Prize is one of the most emblematic episodes in aviation at the beginning of the 20th century. The Deutsch Prize was created by Henri Deutsch de la Meurthe, an oil magnate and aviation enthusiast, in 1900. The prize offered 100,000 francs to anyone who could fly in a dirigible, departing from Saint-Cloud, on the outskirts of Paris, around the Eiffel Tower and returning to the starting point in no more than 30 minutes.
Santos Dumont, an aviation pioneer and airship enthusiast, accepted the challenge. After several attempts and improvements to his airships, he finally managed to complete the required route on October 19, 1901, with his airship No. 6. On this flight, he departed from Saint-Cloud, flew to the Eiffel Tower, circled it and returned to the starting point in 29 minutes and 30 seconds, within the allotted time. This feat was a milestone in the history of aviation, demonstrating for the first time that it was possible to control an airship with precision and perform a scheduled flight.
Despite some initial controversy and protests from some judges about the exact flight time, Santos Dumont was officially recognized as the winner of the Deutsch Prize. The regulation changes were instrumental in their relationship turning sour and Santos Dumont leaving the flying club after the victory. But the victory made the Brazilian an international celebrity, and he immediately donated most of the prize money to his mechanics and to charities, reinforcing his reputation as a generous man.
In this context, this letter, the first part of which is missing, is exceptional for its historical content. It was probably dictated by Santos Dumont to a secretary or a friend of his at the Aero Club, but the signature is genuinely his, at a crucial moment in his career and in the history of aviation. Why didn’t he write this statement in his own hand? Let’s assume that he was still suffering from a hand injury after crashing into the roof of the Trocadero Hotel, near the Eiffel Tower, with the airship No. 5, a few days before the Deutsch Prize. As a cherry on the cake, the letter once belonged to the great American collector Harry Gordon, whose stamp is on the back.
