Carte de visite Paul Frecker The son of a Protestant family of Nimes, Franþois Guizot was educated at Geneva. He began a legal career in Paris in 1805, but soon took up literary work, later becoming a professor of modern history at the University of Paris. His lectures there formed a centre of political opposition to the Restoration. As an opposition deputy he was involved in the July Revolution of 1830 and became one of the leading exponents of the bourgeois July Monarchy of Louis-Philippe. Turning more and more to conservatism, he eventually became premier in 1847. His leadership provided a stable government, but his complacent acceptance of the established order led to his overthrow in the February Revolution of 1848, which forced the abdication of Louis-Philippe. Guizot devoted the rest of his life to writing. The best know of his works, Histoire de la Revolution d'Angleterre (6 volumes, 1826-1856), illustrates his critical approach and his devotion to original sources as well as his admiration for middle-of-the-road British revolutionism.
