Évariste Galois

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Évariste Galois

1811–1832

A brilliant young French mathematician, he transformed the study of equations before dying in a duel at just 20. His ideas became the foundation of group theory and changed modern algebra forever.

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About the author

Born near Paris in 1811, Évariste Galois showed extraordinary mathematical talent while still a teenager. He studied at the Lycée Louis-le-Grand during a turbulent period in France and developed bold new ideas about when polynomial equations can be solved by radicals.

Galois connected equations with the symmetries of their roots, creating the key ideas that later grew into what is now called Galois theory and group theory. His work was difficult for many contemporaries to follow, and much of it was only properly appreciated after his death.

His life was as dramatic as his mathematics. Involved in republican politics and repeatedly in trouble with the authorities, he died in 1832 after a duel, only a day after being wounded. Despite his very short life, he remains one of the most legendary figures in mathematics.