Enevold de Falsen (17 October 1755 – 16 November 1808) was a Danish-Norwegian lawyer, poet, actor and statesman.
Falsen instilled his passion for the United States in his son, Christian Magnus Falsen, who later became recognized as the father of the Norwegian Constitution. In Envold De Falsen's paper entitled “What is freedom, and where should we search for it?”, Falsen argued that freedom in Great Britain had been corrupted and France had frittered away the fruits of the revolution. America was described as the nation where freedom had produced the greatest gains. It was described by Falsen as “a long-smoldering fire, which was ignited by Thomas Paine’s boldness, but governed by Benjamin Franklin’s wisdom.” He described George Washington as “the most honest advocate of freedom and the friend of all good men.”
Family
The family 'de Falsen' has been extensively documented. A family book was published in 1915 by Conrad Falsen, living descendants carrying the name Falsen are listed in Danmarks Adels Aarbog and
most of the 2500 descendants of Enevold de Falsen have been traced and computed in database by a living member of the family. To understand why the family played a significant role over more than a century, it is useful to also follow the female lineages. Good documentation on Enevold de Falsen may be found in Store Norske Leksikon. or in Bricka's Dansk Biografisk Lexikon.
