The Célérifère was an 18th century non-steerable hobby horse style machine invented in 1790 in France by a nobleman named Comte Mede de Sivrac. It was once considered an essential part of the evolution of the bicycle as it preceded the Draisenne.
However, subsequent research in the 20th century revealed that the 1790 Célérifère and its inventor Count de Sivrac were in fact a hoax!
Apparently the story was fabricated in 1891 by a French journalist named Louis Baudry de Saunier, as a patriotic myth to claim French priority over the German inventor Karl von Drais, who actually patented the steerable draisine (hobby horse) in 1817.
Nevertheless, this elaborate hoax appeared in so many books on the history of the bicycle that the hoax itself became part of the bicycle’s history…
1790 Célérifère Hobby Horse (Replica)
23″ Wheels with metal band ‘tyres’
LENGTH: 77″
WIDTH: 10″
HEIGHT: 44″
When Roger Street published his book ‘The Pedestrian Hobby Horse’ in 1998, he included the Célérifère because at that time its lack of authenticity was not yet known. He commissioned a local craftsman to build him a replica of the mythological machine. It was named Oliver, and it was illustrated on page 83 of his book. However, in due course he was contacted by Roland Sauvaget who showed him an article written by Jacques Seray, the editor of ‘Les Audax’ which exposed the hoax. Roger then had to publish a correction for his book.
Roger had a tricycle museum in Christchurch, the area where I grew up. So when I became interested in vintage bicycles many years ago I visited Roger and, despite the fact that I knew very little about them, I found him to be patient and very generous with his knowledge. After his museum closed down, I bought some of his tricycles (subsequently sold). After Roger passed away in 2025 (RIP) I purchased the replica Célérifère from his family and I am pleased to be able to present Oliver to you here and tell his story.
I’ve ridden Oliver the Célérifère. It’s larger and a bit heavier than the regular hobby horse replicas that I’ve used over the years, but apart from the lack of steering is pretty much the same to ride as long as you don’t need to turn. To turn, you inch it round by leaning it over to one side so that the rear wheel is on its edge while you move it in the desired direction. I took these photos in Regency Square, Brighton. As you can see, Oliver has a kindly face. The original engraving shows a less friendly face, so I assume that Roger didn’t want Oliver to scare the kids.
THE BICYCLE: or THE WHEEL and THE WAY
BICYCLE BEGINNINGS
THE ROCKING HORSE
As the Célérifère was illustrated with a horse’s head, I’ve included this information from the ‘The Rocking Horse’ about early examples for comparison.
