Tocqueville

Tocqueville, ALEXIS CHARLES HENRI MAURICE CLEREL DE (1805-59), French economist and political philosopher, was the son of a French peer, and was born at Verneuil. He became a lawyer, and occupied one or two good posts, and in 1831 was deputed to report on the American prison system. The work resulting from that visit was crowned by the Academy, and in 1835-40 his great work, Democracy in America, was published. It ran through many editions in different languages, and brought its author many honours, including admission to the Academy in 1841. He became a deputy in Parliament, and in 1849 was Minister of Foreign Affairs. His greatest work is his powerful presentment of France before the Revolution, which appeared in 1856, and met with unanimous eulogy.