Nicolas-Joseph Cugnot

Nicolas-Joseph Cugnot (25 September, 1725 - 2 October, 1804) was a French inventor who built what may have been the world's first self-propelled mechanical vehicle or automobile.

Cugnot was born in in Lorraine. He first built a three-wheeled steam engine powered vehicle for the French Army, for hauling heavy canons, in 1769. The following year he built an improved version. His vehicle was said to be able to pull 4 tonnes and travel at speeds of up to 4 km per hour. In 1771 his vehicle crashed into a brick wall, the first known automobile accident.

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