François-René, vicomte de Chateaubriand (September 4, 1768 - July 4, 1848) was a French writer and diplomat.

A major figure in early French Romanticism, he acquired fame with Le Génie du christianisme (The Genius of the Christian religion), an apology for the Christian faith which contributed to the post-revolutionary religious revival in France. His autobiography Mémoires d'outre-tombe (Memoirs from beyond the grave) is today considered as his most accomplished work.