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Hi Andrés

Without wanting to be pedantic, I think the poor old French deserve more credit. And I'm a Brit!

The forerunner of the British Nautical Almanac was first published in Paris as long ago as 1687. It was called the 'Connoissance [sic] des Temps': http://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/bpt6k6506709d.image. This link takes you to a list covering the years 1804 to 1935: http://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/cb34354613f/date

Interestingly an account (by the great French astronomer Lalande) of how to find longitude from lunar observations appeared in the Connoissance des Temps of 1761 (published in 1759) - six years before Maskelyne published the first NA and the accompanying 'Tables Requisite to be used with the Astronomical and Nautical Ephemeris'.

It's also worth pointing out that the French established their hydrographic office (Le Dépôt des Cartes et Plans de la Marine) in 1720. The British were late starters in this field - the Admiralty Hydrographic Office wasn't set up until 1795. The Royal Navy often had to rely on French charts (which sometimes suppressed crucial information) during the Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars!

All the best

David