Alfred de Vigny

Alfred Victor, Comte de Vigny (1797–1863) was a French Romantic poet, aristocrat, novelist, and dramatist. Coming from an ancient military family that suffered during the French Revolution, Vigny served in the Royal Guard for over a decade during the Bourbon Restoration before resigning to devote himself to literature.

Vigny was the most aristocratic and stoic thinker of the French Romantic movement, famous for withdrawing into what Sainte-Beuve termed his 'ivory tower' (tour d'ivoire). His drama Chatterton championed the tragic plight of misunderstood poets, while his military memoirs Servitude et grandeur militaires explored military duty and honor. In philosophical poems like 'La Mort du loup' ('The Death of the Wolf'), he articulated an ethic of silent endurance in an indifferent universe.