Born on January 27, 1814, in Paris, France, Eugène Emmanuel Viollet-le-Duc would go on to become one of the most influential architects and restorers of his time.
His writings on decoration and on the relationship between form and function in architecture had a fundamental influence on a whole new generation of architects, including all the major Art Nouveau artists. His writings also influenced John Ruskin, William Morris and the Arts and Crafts movement, and William Burges admitted in his late life
“We all cribbed on Viollet-le-Duc even though no one could read French.”