Louis A. Bertrand

Who was Louis A. Bertrand?

Louis Auguste Bertrand, born John Francis Elias Flandin, was an early leader of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in France.

Bertrand was born near Marseilles, France. He early went into trade and traveled abroad. In 1848, he was in Paris and a member of the Revolutionary Committee of 1848. He was then sent into prison for three months. At this time he changed his name to protect his wife and child.

After the revolution Bertrand edited Le Populaire. In 1850, he met John Taylor and shortly thereafter was baptized a member of the LDS Church. He then worked on the translation of the Book of Mormon into French.

Bertrand was involved in the publication of the church periodical L'Etoile du Deseret. In 1853, he was serving as a missionary in Jersey. While there he taught Victor Hugo, but in Bertrand's assessment Hugo was "too full of revolution to think much about the gospel of Jesus Christ". Despite earnest efforts, the work began to decline after 1855 under the pressure of continual political turmoil. Laws under Louis Napoleon hampered publication and limited the size of public gatherings; police were instructed to be especially vigilant in routing Mormon meetings.