Sebastien Vauban (1633-1707) served as France's foremost military engineer under Louis the XIV. A man of humble birth, Vauban's acumen in planning military fortifications and his direction of sieges against France's enemies helped the regime achieve dominance over much of western Europe during the latter part of the seventeenth century.

Sebastien LePrestre de Vauban was born in 1633 in Saint-Leger-de-Foucherest, in France's Morvan region. He was the son of Urbain Vauban and Edmee Corvignolle, and his grandfather, a notary a century before, had been able to buy a partial fief, which ennobled him and his heirs. Unfortunately, the family was too large to amass any real wealth from their title. Vauban was given the name Sebastien after his godfather, who was the local priest; and also educated Vauban, though he reportedly taught himself math and was fascinated by a chance discovery of a book on military fortifications.

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