Charles Flahault was a French botanist, among the early pioneers of phytogeography, phytosociology, and forest ecology. Born in Bailleul, Nord, he received his Baccalauréat de Lettres in 1872, after which he became a gardener at the Jardin des Plantes de Paris. He entered the Sorbonne in 1874 obtaining his doctoral degree in 1878. He continued his studies at Uppsala University in 1879, then in 1881 joined the University of Montpellier where in 1883 he became professor of botany, and in 1890 he founded the Institut de Botanique. He resided in Montpellier until his death.