Childhood

Jacques-Yves Cousteau was born in St.-André-de-Cubzac, a small village in Gironde estuary, where the rivers of Dordogne and Garonne meet before flowing out into the Atlantic Ocean. Although the region was known for its vineyards, Cousteau’s father, Daniel Cousteau, was a lawyer, and after marrying Cousteau’s mother, Elizabeth Duranthon, the couple left for Paris, and rarely returned since.

Paris
Cousteau’s elder brother and only sibling, Pierre-Antoine, was born in Paris in December, 1906, one year after Daniel and Elizabeth Cousteau arrived in the city. Daniel had only one client, American James Hyde, to whom he was a legal advisor. This required him to travel with Hyde’s entourage very often. After returning to St.-André-de-Cubzac to show the baby to the family, Elizabeth joined her husband on his travels around the world. This went on for four years until Elizabeth was pregnant with her second child. The couple hence decided that Elizabeth should go back to St.-André-de-Cubzac to have the baby.

Jacques-Yves Cousteau was born on 11 June, 1910, in the Duranthon house. For the next few years of Cousteau’s life, the family would travel with Hyde until the latter left for America to escape from the war. With no income, the family relied solely on Elizabeth’s family fortune until it ran out, forcing them to once again, return to St.-André-de-Cubzac. Reduced to depending on the family farm for food, Cousteau became a gaunt and sickly child. He was awkward among other children, and hardly joined them for games.

New York
When the war ended, Daniel met Eugene Higgins, a young American expatriate who had came to France after inheriting a large sum of money from his father. Higgins was interested in getting Daniel to work for him, and Daniel jumped at the opportunity, resulting the Cousteaus to move to New York. Although Daniel still had to travel frequently due to his work with Higgins, this time, Elizabeth refused to go with him, preferring her sons to enjoy a stable childhood in New York.

However, Cousteau was unable to fit in with his American schoolmates due to his accent and shyness. Pierre- Antoine became his only friend. Alone most of the time, Cousteau developed a fascination for the mechanics, often staying home to build models. This interest would later blossom into his innovations of underwater cameras and breathing equipment.

Back in Paris
By the time Cousteau turned 13, the family returned to Paris. Although they were back in a familiar place, Cousteau still felt alone. His brother had decided to enter politics and was hardly at home. Left to his own devices, Cousteau spent most of his time in his bedroom making models. The release of the film Vingt mille lieues sous les mers (20 000 Leagues Under the Sea) piqued the young Cousteau’s interest in filming, and since then, he became obsessed with making his own short films. This took a toll on his grades, and he was sent to a strict boarding school in Alsace-Lorraine.

Cousteau was surrounded by children who were deemed unruly and undisciplined. However, he managed to graduate as the second in class in 1929. After his graduation, Cousteau, thinking that he would never make it as a film director, decided to join École Navale, the French Navy to pursue his second passion – aviation.