Eugène-François Vidocq
Eugène-François Vidocq | |
|---|---|
Portrait d'Eugène Vidocq (1775–1857), aventurier et chef de la police de sûreté by Achille Devéria, c. 1828. | |
| Born | July 24, 1775 |
| Died | May 11, 1857 (aged 81) |
| Known for | Innovations in criminalistics |
| Spouses | Anne Marie Louise Chevalier
(m. 1795; div. 1805)Jeanne-Victoire Guérin
(m. 1820; died 1824)Fleuride Albertine Maniez
(m. 1830; died 1847) |
Eugène-François Vidocq (French: [øʒɛn fʁɑ̃swa vidɔk]; 24 July 1775 – 11 May 1857) was a French criminal turned criminalist, whose life story inspired several writers, including Victor Hugo, Edgar Allan Poe, and Honoré de Balzac. He was the founder and first director of France's first criminal investigative agency, the Sûreté Nationale, as well as the head of the first known private detective agency. Vidocq is considered to be the father of the French national police force. He is also regarded as the first private detective.