Charles-Michel de l'Epee (1712-1789) founded the first public school for the hearing-impaired in France. He devoted his life to developing the world's first sign alphabet for the deaf. Epee is also credited with creating a systematic method of teaching the hearing-impaired. His manual alphabet, which he called French Sign Language, was adapted into American Sign Language a few decades after his death.

Epee was born in the city of Versailles, France, on November 25, 1712. His father was an architect in the employ of France's king, Louis XIV, who built a palatial new capital in the city. As a teen, Epee studied theology, but during this era French Catholics were battling a reform movement called Jansenism, and all priests were expected to sign a condemnation of it before their ordination. Jansenism, which gained ground in the 1640s, was based on teachings of St. Augustine and discouraged taking the sacrament of...