Karl Freiherr von Drais was a noble German forest official and significant inventor in the Biedermeier period. He is regarded as "the father" and as the inventor of the bicycle.
Karl Drais, c. 1820, then still a baron
Karl von Drais on his original Laufmaschine, the earliest two-wheeler, or hobbyhorse in 1819
A Draisine from around 1820, built with cherry wood and softwood. Displayed at the Kurpfälzisches Museum in Heidelberg, Germany.
Tomb of Karl von Drais, Karlsruhe
A bicycle, also called a pedal cycle, bike, push-bike or cycle, is a human-powered or motor-assisted, pedal-driven, single-track vehicle, with two wheels attached to a frame, one behind the other. A b
Karl Drais
…1851) was a noble German forest official and significant inventor in the Biedermeier period. He is regarded as "the father" and as the inventor of the bicycle. Drais was a prolific inventor, who invented the Laufmaschine ("running machine"), also later called the velocipede, draisine (English) or draisienne…
The most popular bicycle model—and most popular vehicle of any kind in the world—is the Chinese Flying Pigeon, with about 500 million produced.
1886 Swift Safety Bicycle
Women on bicycles on unpaved road, US, late 19th century
A penny-farthing or ordinary bicycle in the Škoda Auto museum in the Czech Republic