Royal Institution for Blind Youth

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The Royal Institution for Blind Youth (Institution Royale des Jeunes Aveugles), founded in 1785 by Valentin Haüy in Paris, was the first school for the blind in the world.

It was not until the late 18th century that society began to take an interest in the education of the blind. Until that time they were considered mostly uneducable and untrainable. One of the major figures in the movement to educate the blind was Sébastien Guillié. He established the first ophthalmological clinic in France and became director of the in Paris. Out of all of the schools students the most famous was Louis Braille who invented the braille system.

[edit] Further Reading

Louis Braille: A Touch of Genius, C. Michael Mellor, National Braille Press, 2006. Includes sections on Valentin Haüy, Institution Royale des Jeunes Aveugles, Sébastien Guillié, and of course Louis Braille.