Blind poet and creator of the military academy of Colmar in 1773, nicknamed sometimes The Fountain Alsatian, Théophile-Conrad PFEFFEL is double present today even in Colmar. A patch is on its native house in the 41, Great street and on the building which sheltered its school in the 15, Chauffour street.

Been born on June 28, 1736, blinds, he dedicated itself to a fertile literary activity. Especially poet, he used fables as means of political and social criticism.

PFEFFEL showed himself there engaged author, destroyer of the absolutism of the princes, anticlerical and close to underprivileged persons. He also left a work in particularly important prose and was a co-worker of a feminine magazine.

In 1773, he opened the military academy  where he welcomed about 300 pupils until 1792 and contributed, by its brilliance and aroused curiosity, to converge in Colmar 2200 guests come from complete Europe.

Reserved originally for the Protestant noble young people who intended themselves for the career of weapons, the establishment then widened its recruitment and its function to become an academy suitable to all the States and to all the countries ".

He died May 1st, 1809 in Colmar at the age of 73 years