Astolphe de Custine, French aristocrat and writer, 1790-1857

Astolphe de Custine was a French aristocrat and writer who is best known for his travel writing, in particular his account of his visit to Russia in 1839 Empire of the Czar: A Journey Through Eternal Russia. This work documents not only Custine’s travels through the Russian empire, but also the social fabric, economy, and way of life during the reign of Nicholas I. He wrote a decently received account of a trip to Spain and was encouraged by Honoré de Balzac to write accounts of other "half-European" parts of Europe, like southern Italy and Russia.