Louis Charles Mahe De La Bourdonnais
(born 1795, died 1840) France, Louis Charles Mahe De La Bourdonnais was born in Ile Bourbon on the French island of Reunion. He was sent to Paris where in 1814 he learnt to play chess but he only took up the game seriously in 1818. About 1820 Alexandre Louis Honore Lebreton Deschapelles took on La Bourdonnais as his pupil and when he retired La Bourdonnais became not only the undisputed Champion of France but also the World's leading player. In 1834 La Bourdonnais met Irish master Alexander McDonnell in a series of six matches with La Bourdonnais winning (+45, =13, -27) overall. In 1838 he became ill with a stroke and then later with dropsy (old term for edema/oedema). He passed away in 1840.