Perrault, Claude, the son of an advocate in parliament, was born at Paris in 1613; and was bred a physician, though he never practised but among his relations, friends, and the poor. He discovered early a particular taste for the sciences and fine arts; of which he acquired a consummate knowledge without the assistance of a master: he excelled in architecture, painting, sculpture, mathematics, physics, and all those arts that relate to designing and mechanics. The entrance into the Louvre, which was designed by him, is, according to the judgment of Voltaire, one of the most august monuments of architecture in the world. M. Colbert put him upon translating Vitruvius into French; which he performed, and published it in 1673, folio, with figures from his own drawings; which are said to have been more exactly finished than the plates themselves. When the academy of sciences was established, he was one of its first members, and was chiefly depended on for mechanics and natural philosophy. His works are, Memoires pour servir à l'Histoire naturelle des Animaux, folio, 1676, with figures; Essais de Physique, 4 vols. 12mo, 1688; Recueil des plusieurs machines de nouvelle invention, 4to, 1700, &c. He died in 1688.

Perrault, Charles, the brother of Claude, was born at Paris in 1626, with as great a genius for arts, and a greater for letters, than his brother. Colbert chose him first clerk of the buildings, of which he was superintendent, and afterward made him comptroller general of the finances under him. He was one of the first members of the academy of the belles lettres and inscriptions, and was received into the French academy in 1671. His poem, La Peinture, printed in 1688, was universally admired: that entitled La vie de Louis le Grand, in which he exalted the modern authors above the ancient, was a prelude to a war with all the learned. After he had disengaged himself from this contest, he applied himself to draw up eulogies of several great men of the 17th century, with their portraits, of which he has collected 102. There are other esteemed works of Perrault.—Besides these there were two other brothers, Peter and Nicholas, who made themselves known in the literary world.

Perron, James Davy Du, a cardinal, distinguished by his abilities and learning, was born in the canton of Bern in 1556. He was educated by Julian Davy, his father, a learned Calvinist, who taught him Latin and the mathematics; after which, he by himself became acquainted with the Greek and Hebrew, philosophy, and the poets. Philip Desportes, abbot of Tyron, made him known to Henry III, king of France, who conceived a great esteem for him. Some time after, Du Perron abjured Calvinism, and afterwards embraced the ecclesiastical function; and having given great proofs of his wit and learning, he was chosen to pronounce the funeral oration of Mary queen of Scots. After the murder of Henry III, he retired to the house of Cardinal de Bourbon, and took great pains in bringing back the Protestants to the church of Rome. Among others he gained over Henry Spondanus, afterwards bishop of Pamiers. He also chiefly contributed to engage Henry IV, to change his religion; and that prince sent him to negotiate his reconciliation to the holy see, to which he succeeded. Du Perron was consecrated bishop of Evreux while he resided at Rome. On his return to France, he wrote, preached, and disputed against the reformed; particularly against Du Plessis Mornay, with whom he had a public conference in the presence of the king at Fontainebleau. He was made cardinal in 1624 by Pope Clement VIII, at the solicitation of Henry IV, who afterwards nominated him to the archbishopric of Sens. The king at length sent him to Rome with Cardinal Joyeuse, in order to terminate the disputes which had arisen between Paul V. and the Venetians. It is said that this pope had such a high opinion of the address of the cardinal Du Perron, that he used to say, "Let us pray to God to inspire the cardinal Du Perron, for he will persuade us to do whatever he pleases." After the death of Henry IV, he retired into the country, where he put the last hand to his work; and, setting up a printing-house, corrected every sheet himself. He died at Paris in 1618. His works were collected after his death, and published at Paris in 3 vols. folio.

Perrot, Nicholas, Sieur d'Ablancourt, one of the first geniuses of his age, was born at Chalons in 1656. After studying philosophy about three years, he was sent to Paris to follow the law. At eighteen years of age he was admitted advocate of parliament, and frequented the bar; but he soon conceived a distaste for it, and therefore discontinued his practice. This displeased an uncle, but whose favour he recovered by quitting the Protestant religion. He could not, however, be prevailed upon to take orders in the Romish church; and some years after, he had a desire to return to the religion he had abjured. But, that he might not do anything rashly, he resolved to study philosophy and divinity. For that purpose he chose for his master Mr Stuart a Scotsman and Lutheran, a man of great learning. Almost three years he spent in the most assiduous study; and then set out from Paris to Champagne, where he abjured the Roman Catholic, and once more embraced the Protestant religion. In 1637 he was admitted a member of the French academy; a little after which he undertook a translation of Tacitus. Whilst he was engaged in that laborious task, he retired to his small estate of Ablancourt, and lived there till his death in 1664. He was a man of fine understanding, of great piety and integrity, and of universal learning. Moreri has given a catalogue of his works, the greatest part of which consist of translations, which seemed rather originals.

Perruke, Peruke, or Periwig, was anciently a name for a long head of natural hair; such, particularly, as there was care taken in the adjusting and trimming of. Menage derives the word rather fancifully from the Latin, pilus, "hair." It is derived, according to this critic, thus, pilus, pelas, pelatus, peluticus, pelutica, perutica, peraca, perraque. The Latins called it coma; whence part of Gaul took the denomination of Gallia Comata, from the long hair which the inhabitants wore as a sign of freedom. An ancient author says, that Absalom's perruke weighed 200 shekels.

The word is now used for a set of false hair, curled, buckled, and sewed together on a frame or cawl; an Perry, Captain John, was a famous engineer who resided long in Russia, having been recommended to the czar Peter while in England, as a person capable of serving him on a variety of occasions relating to his new design of establishing a fleet, making his rivers navigable, &c. His salary in this service was 300l. per annum, besides travelling expenses and subsistence money on whatever service he should be employed, together with a further reward to his satisfaction at the conclusion of any work he should finish.

After some conversation with the czar himself, particularly respecting a communication between the rivers Volga and Don, he was employed on that work for three summers successively; but not being well supplied with men, partly on account of the ill success of the czar's arms against the Swedes at the battle of Narva, and partly by the discouragement of the governor of Astracan, he was ordered at the end of 1707 to stop, and next year was employed in refitting the ships at Veronese, and 1709 in making the river of that name navigable; but after repeated disappointments, and a variety of fruitless applications for his salary, he at last quitted the kingdom under the protection of Mr Whitworth, the English ambassador, in 1712: (See his narrative in the Preface to The State of Russia). In 1721 he was employed in stopping with success the breach at Dagenham, in which several other undertakers had failed; and the same year about the harbour at Dublin, to the objections against which he then published an Answer. He was author of The State of Russia, 1716, 8vo, and an account of the stopping of Dagenham Breach, 1721, 8vo; and died February 11, 1733.