314 LEEWARD ISLANDS LEFEBVRE-DESNOUETTES strong convexity of the surfaces of the lens. Leeuwenhoek was particularly distinguished for his discovery of the red globules of the blood in 1673, that of the infusorial animal- culesan 1675, and that of the spermatozoa in 1677. Malpighi had seen and mentioned as early as 1661 what were undoubtedly the blood globules ; but he did not perceive their true nature nor give an exact description of them. Leeuwenhoek discovered their existence and their most important characters in human blood as well as in that of birds, reptiles, and fishes. The spermatozoa were first seen by a student of medicine named Ham. He immedi- ately communicated the fact to Leeuwenhoek, who at once verified the reality of the discov- ery in the human spermatic fiuid, and extended it to that of the dog, the rabbit, the ram, the cock, and various other animals. The infuso- rial animalcules he discovered in the rain water which ran from the roof of his house. Leeu- wenhoek's life was passed in scientific research and in manufacturing optical instruments in his native city. He was visited by Queen Mary, and was invited to visit the czar Peter when that sovereign was in Delft. His wri- tings were collected and published in Dutch separately at Delft and Leyden. They also ap- peared in Latin (Delft, 1695), and a selection of his works, containing his microscopical dis- coveries in many departments of nature, trans- lated into English by Samuel Hoole, was pub- lished in London, 1798-1801. LEEWARD ISLANDS, a name applied by Euro- pean navigators and geographers to such of the Lesser Antilles as lie between lat. 15 and 19 N., comprising the British islands Dominica, Montserrat, Nevis, Antigua, Barbuda, St. Chris- topher, Anguilla, and the Virgin group, the French islands Guadeloupe and Marie Galante, with the Danish and Swedish and most of the Dutch possessions in these waters. The Eng- lish Leeward islands, which in 1872 received a common administration under a governor-in- chief, have an area of 733 sq. m. ; pop. in 1871, 120,491. The islands lying south of lat. 15 N. along the northern coast of South America are called Windward islands. American geog- raphers generally reverse these appellations. LEFEBVRE, Charlemagne Theophile, a French traveller, born in Nantes in 1811, died in Paris in 1859. He was an officer in the navy, and explored several regions, especially Abys- sinia. His companions, the naturalists Dillon and Petit, died in that country, where upon his last journey he contracted a fever which ulti- mately proved fatal* The Voyage en Abys- sinie, execute pendant les annees 1839-'43 (6 vols., Paris), was published by the government at the request of the academy. For this work Lefebvre wrote the first two volumes, and a portion of the third. LEFEBVRE, Francois Joseph, duke of Dantzic, a French marshal, born at Ruffach, Alsace, Oct. 25, 1755, died in Paris, Sept. 14, 1820. He was the son of a miller who had served in the hussars, enlisted in 1773 as a private soldier, was a sergeant at the commencement of the revolution, was rapidly promoted to the rank of general of division (Jan. 10, 1794), and distinguished himself on many occasions by his bravery, especially at the battle of Fleurus (1794). On June 4, 1796, he led the van of Kleber's army in the attack on the Austrian position at Altenkirchen, and on March 25, 1799, at the battle of Stockach, maintained his ground for several hours with 8,000 men against a force of 36,000 Austrians. Having aided Bonaparte to overturn the directory, he was appointed to the command of the military in and around Paris, became a senator, and in 1804 was made a marshal of France. In 1806 he accompanied Napoleon against Prussia, and in the battle of Jena commanded the foot guards. He was next placed in command of the forces sent to reduce Dantzic, which sur- rendered May 24, 1807, after a siege of 51 days ; and on the 28th he received the title of duke of Dantzic. He subsequently served in the peninsula, was present in 1809 at the bat- tles of Eckmiihl and Wagram, and participated in the Russian expedition as commander of the imperial brigade. On the downfall of the em- peror, Louis XVIII. created him chevalier of St. Louis and a peer of France; but having retained his seat in the imperial senate during the hundred days, he was excluded on the sec- ond restoration from the chamber of peers. His rank was restored to him in 1819. LEFEBVRE-DESffOUETTES, Charles, count, a French general, born in Paris, Sept. 14, 1773, lost at sea near Kinsale, Ireland, April 22, 1822. He ran away from college to enter the army, served under Dumouriez in 1792, was an aide-de-camp to Bonaparte at Marengo, be- came colonel in 1804, and distinguished him- self at Austerlitz. He became brigadier gen- eral in 1806 and general of division in 1808, be- gan the siege of Saragossa, but soon afterward joined the corps of Bessieres, and was taken prisoner and sent to England. While on pa- role, he escaped to France, and Napoleon gave him command of the chasseurs of the guard in the campaign of 1809 against Austria. He par- ticipated in the invasion of Russia, contrib- uted largely to the victory of Bautzen (May 21, 1813), was beaten at Altenburg, Sept. 28, by Platoff and Thielmann, and on Oct. 30 gained a brilliant advantage over a corps of Russian cavalry. He led the cavalry at Brienne, Jan. 29, 1814, and received several wounds. He remained at the head of the chasseurs after Napoleon's abdication, but espoused his cause on his return from Elba, and was obliged to fly in disguise. He was named a peer by Na- poleon on his arrival at Paris, and fought with great intrepidity at Fleurus and Waterloo. Af- ter the second restoration he was condemned to death and fled to the United States, where he attempted to found a colony of French refugees at the south. On his way to Belgium, hoping to reenter France, he perished by shipwreck.
