1887 in France

Events from the year 1887 in France.

Incumbents

28 January – Construction of foundation of the Eiffel Tower starts in Paris. On 14 February, a letter of protest against its design signed by members of the artistic community is published on the front page of Les Temps newspaper.^[1] On 1 July, work on the iron superstructure begins.
11 January – Louis Pasteur's anti-rabies treatment is defended in the French Academy of Medicine by Dr. Joseph Grancher.^[2]
23 February – The French Riviera is hit by a powerful earthquake originating in Liguria, killing around 2,000 along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea.^[3]
24 February – The first international telephone line in Europe is opened to the public between Brussels and Paris.^[4]
21–28 April – The Schnaebele incident nearly leads to war between France and Germany.
The Lebel Model 1886 rifle is first issued to the French army, the first military firearm to use smokeless powder ammunition.

17 January – Marcel Godivier, cyclist (died 1963)
18 March – Alfred Vaucher, theologian, church historian and bibliographer (died 1993)
16 April – Paul Marie André Richaud, Cardinal (died 1968)
31 May – Saint-John Perse, poet and diplomat, awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1960 (died 1975)
13 June – André François-Poncet, politician and diplomat (died 1978)

2 July – Marcel Tabuteau, oboist (died 1966)
28 July – Marcel Duchamp, artist (died 1968)
16 September – Nadia Boulanger, composer and conductor (died 1979)
30 September – Joseph de Goislard de Monsabert, General (died 1981)
5 October – René Cassin, jurist and judge, received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1968 (died 1976)
11 October – Pierre Jean Jouve, writer, novelist and poet (died 1976)
13 November – Jean de Limur, film director (died 1976)
31 December – Gaston Modot, actor (died 1970)

^ Zarevich, Emily (2023-02-17). "The Artists Who Hated the Eiffel Tower". JSTOR Daily. Retrieved 2025-05-22.
^ Gelfand, Toby (2002). "11 January 1887, the Day Medicine Changed: Joseph Grancher's Defense of Pasteur's Treatment for Rabies". Bulletin of the History of Medicine. 76 (4): 698–718. ISSN 0007-5140. Archived 19 April 2024 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 17 February 2024.
^ "Séisme ligure de 1887 - Azurseisme". www.azurseisme.com. Archived 2024-02-17 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2024-02-17.
^ Realfonzo, Ugo A. (2023-02-24). "Today in History: First international telephone line between Brussels and Paris is opened". The Brussels Times. Retrieved 2026-02-24.