He was born in Paris, France, where he studied in the Ecole Polytechnique. In 1908 he had a spectacular success in reviving the failing Mors automobile company. As a result, the French government entrusted him with a large part of munitions production during World War I.

He established a great arms factory which, after the War, he turned into an assembly line for the manufacture of automobiles, his main success being the production of an affordable, small car - the little Citroën.

He was responsible for the first traffic-light system in Paris and presented the city with floodlighting for the Arch of Triumph and the Place de la Concorde. He was badly hit by the Depression, which left him broken but at the time of his death one in three cars produced in France was a Citroën.

 

Bibliography:

John REYNOLDS. Andre Citroën: The Henry Ford of France. Pp. XVI, 238. New York: St. Martin Press, 1996

Links:

Grave of Andre Citroën in Montparnasse Cemetery in Paris, France