Lamartine, Alphonse de

Lamartine, Alphonse de

(born Oct. 21, 1790, Mâcon, France—died Feb. 28, 1869, Paris) French poet and statesman. After brief military service under Louis XVIII, he turned to literature, writing verse tragedies and elegies. He is chiefly remembered for his successful first collection of poetry, the musical, evocative Méditations poétiques (1820), which established him as a key figure in French Romanticism. From 1830 he was active in politics, speaking for the working classes. After France's Second Republic was proclaimed in 1848, he briefly headed the provisional government until the revolution was crushed. In later years he published novels, poetry, and historical works in a vain struggle against bankruptcy.