This edited article about Blondin originally appeared in Look and Learn issue number 683 published on 15 February 1975.

Blondin (Francois Gravelet) pushes a wheelbarrow across a tightrope over Niagara Falls

Thousands of people stared fascinated at a rope stretched across Niagara Falls on 30th June, 1859. The rope was over a thousand feet long and a hundred and sixty feet above the roaring tumult of the river.

Suddenly the crowd froze with excitement. A man had started to walk along the rope from the American side. Half-way across, he lay down; then he proceeded to do a backwards somersault. He reached the far side and, as the cheers rang out, a band struck up the Marseillaise.

The tightrope walker started back to the American side carrying a chair. When he reached the middle of the rope, he balanced the chair on two legs and sat down on it.

The performer’s name was Blondin, and he was the greatest of all rope-walkers.

Over the centuries, the world of the circus and of acrobats has cast such a spell over so many people that it is surprising how few of its great performers are remembered by name. But there is no danger of Blondin being forgotten because, indoors as well as out, he took spectacular risks which caught the imagination of literally millions of people who never actually saw him perform.

We have selected three of the best pictures from our large collection of 19th and early 20th century educational trade cards.
The first picture shows the Marble junk at the Summer Palace in Peking.

Marble junk at the Summer Palace in Peking

The second picture shows Victor Schoelcher bringing news of their freedom to the slaves of Martinique, c.1848.

Victor Schoelcher bringing news of their freedom to the slaves of Martinique, c1848

The third picture shows Pompeii and the Temple of the God Apollo.

The Temple of the God Apollo at Pompeii

High-resolution scans of all educational cards can be found in the Look and Learn picture library.

We have selected three of the best pictures from our large collection of 19th and early 20th century educational trade cards.
The first picture shows Don Quixote.

Don Quixote

The second picture shows the Armenian Massacres, 1894-1896.

Armenian Massacres, 1894-1896

The third picture shows a novel illustration of the physics of Lightning.

Lightning

High-resolution scans of all educational cards can be found in the Look and Learn picture library.

We have selected three of the best pictures from our large collection of 19th and early 20th century educational trade cards.
The first picture shows the Goltzsch Viaduct Railway Bridge, Mylau, Germany.

The Goltzsch Viaduct Railway bridge, Mylau, Germany

The second picture shows Dante exiled from Florence.

Dante exiled from Florence

The third picture shows the assassination of Jean-Paul Marat by Charlotte Corday.

The assassination of Jean-Paul Marat by Charlotte Corday, French Revolution, 13 July 1793

High-resolution scans of all educational cards can be found in the Look and Learn picture library.

We have selected three of the best pictures from our large collection of 19th and early 20th century educational trade cards.
The first picture shows traditional Pentecost celebrations in Russia.

Traditional Pentecost celebrations in Russia

The second picture shows the Vesuvius funicular railway in Italy.

Vesuvius funicular railway, Italy

The third picture shows Gladstone defending his policy for Irish Home Rule in the House of Commons.

Gladstone defending his policy for Irish Home Rule in the House of Commons

High-resolution scans of all educational cards can be found in the Look and Learn picture library.

We have selected three of the best pictures from our large collection of 19th and early 20th century educational trade cards.
The first picture shows Harlequin and other characters from Die Puppenfee (The Fairy Doll), a ballet by the Austrian composer Josef Bayer.

Die Puppenfee (The Fairy Doll), a ballet by the Austrian composer Josef Bayer

The second picture shows Wilhelm I proclaimed Emperor of Germany in Versailles, 1871.

Wilhelm I proclaimed Emperor of Germany in Versailles, 1871

The third picture shows a New York street with elevated railway.

A New York street – elevated railway

High-resolution scans of all educational cards can be found in the Look and Learn picture library.

We have selected three of the best pictures from our large collection of 19th and early 20th century educational trade cards.
The first picture shows Isaac Newton, English physicist and mathematician.

Isaac Newton, English physicist and mathematician

The second picture shows the principal street of New York City.

Principal street of New York City

The third picture shows Sir John Franklin’s expedition in search of the Northwest Passage, 1847.

Sir John Franklin's expedition in search of the Northwest Passage, 1847

High-resolution scans of all educational cards can be found in the Look and Learn picture library.

We have selected three of the best pictures from our large collection of 19th and early 20th century educational trade cards.
The first picture shows the Titanic sending an SOS message by wireless, 1912.

The Titanic sending an SOS message by wireless, 1912

The second picture shows Sinbad thrown alive into the pits of the dead.

Sinbad is thrown alive into the pits of the dead

The third picture shows a giant television screen in a public square from a series on predictions for the future.

Giant television screen in a public square from a series on predictions for the future.

High-resolution scans of all educational cards can be found in the Look and Learn picture library.

This stylised poster-like image of Che Guevara is a powerful portrait of one of the world’s most famous Freedom Fighters who soared to fame during the Cuban Revolution, and whose Marxist ideas often seemed less potent than his iconic face, which has come to symbolise rebellion and the counter-cultural fervour of youth the world over.

Che Guevara

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This sombre picture depicts the six farm workers known as the Tolpuddle Martyrs, being sentenced to deportation for forming a trade union in the little Dorsetshire village of Tolpuddle. The conviction of the defendants angered many, and the case became a cause celebre leading to their later acquittal.

Tolpuddle Martyrs

Many more pictures of famous trials can be found at the Look and Learn picture library.