TOR FIALIN, Duke de (1808-72). A French politician, horn at Saint-Germain-Lespinasse, in the Department of Loire. He joined the hussars in 1828, but after the Revolution of .July. 1830, owing to doubts as to his loyalty, he was expelled from the army on a charge of insubordination. He now became a journalist in Paris, formed the most intimate relations with Louis Na poleon, and commenced a career of Bona partist propagandism throughout France and Germany. in which he displayed extraordinary energy. pertinacity and fertility of resource. Ar ticles from his pen had already appeared in Lc Temps, and in 1834 he founded l'Occident (ran cois as a Bonapartist organ. lie had the chief hand in the affair of Strassburg (See NAPOLEON III.). He also took part in the expedition to Bou logne, whene lie was captured and condemned to twenty yea rs' imprisonment. Iris confinement, however, became almost lmina!, and he passed his time in writing a VOIIIMillons and singular work on the mime des pyramides d'Egypte (1844). On the breaking out of the Revolution in 1848 Persigny hurried to Paris, and set him self, with his accustomed vigor and swiftness, to organize the Bonapartists. Ile was appointed aide
de-camp to the President, Louis Napoleon, and major-general of the Parisian National Guard. In 1849 lie was chosen a member of the Legislative Assembly. He was sent to Berlin as Ambassador at the close of the same year. As was to be expected, Persigny took a prominent part in the coup d'etat of December 2, 1851. In January, 18.i2, he succeeded Morny as Minister of the Inte rior. From 1855 to 1858. and again from 1859 to 1860, Persigny was the French Ambassador to Great Britain. Ile was recalled to France, how ever, in 1860, to resume the office of Min ister of the Interior. This office he resigned in June, Dila when the elections of Paris and other large towns showed dissatisfaction with his policy. In the autumn of the same year lie was created a duke'. He did not long survive the overthrow of the Second Empire. his death oc curring at Nice, January 13, 1872. Consult refer ences under NAPOLEON HI.; also Delarva. Le duo do Persigny et les doctrines de rempire (Paris, 1865) ; Delard, Histoire du Necond Empire (ib., ]S66 75).