FONTANES, Louis de. - French man of letters and statistician, born at Niort on 6 March 1757, died in Paris on 17 March 1821.
He was a member of the Institute and a professor at the École Centrale. During his exile in London at the time of the Revolution he met Chateaubriand and became his friend. Protected by Napoleon, he rose under him to the highest offices. He left many writings in political and philosophical journals, but reveals himself as a writer and poet of mediocre merit. He opposed the success of Le Génie du christianisme and the reorganisation of the schools.
Bibl.: C. A. Sainte-Beuve, Portraits littéraires, II, Paris 1844, pp. 207-305; A. Tornes, F. Étude biographique et historique, Poitiers 1901; A. Wilson, F. (1757-1821), Paris 1928; E. Gibert, Das Gespräch in F. Gesellschaftsromanen, Leipzig 1930. Elena Boscioco