1.7 Economics pre-1685

Question 1

how did Colbert succeed in revitalising French industry?

Answer 1

• he established high end domestic manufacturing companies

• for example the point-de-france that produced venetian lace was established in several towns
• tapestry goods produced by the gobelins rivalled imports

Question 2

how were Colbert’s efforts to revitalise French industry damaging to the country?

Answer 2

• the focus on industry meants agriculture was almost ignored which was a rich source of capital
• Louis and the nobility ignored Colbert’s call to invest in industry for example French soap only received 0.02% of GDP from 1665-1668
• subsidies from the government ceased during the Dutch war
• Gobelins was costly and stopped entreupenerial development - private industries only received 2.5% of the 20 million livres awarded to the Gobelins each year

Question 3

how did Colbert increase government control over industry?

Answer 3

• from 1664 to 1683 Colbert brought in 150 decrees controlling industry such as the 1669 law that insisted on a minimum thread count
• 1673 guild membership was made compulsory

Question 4

what were some downsides to Colbert’s increase of government control over industry?

Answer 4

• measures imposed were excessive and showed a distrust of free enterprise
• they were widely ignored
• Colbert overestimated state power and there were protests on his policies

Question 5

what skilled migrants did Colbert attract?

Answer 5

• Dutch tapestry makers
• Italian silk workers, glassblowers and lace makers
• English coalminers and naval constructors

Question 6

what damaged the level of skilled workers in France?

Answer 6

the 1685 revocation of the edict of nantes that caused 37% of the countries Huguenots to flee the country, many of whom were skilled workers

Question 7

by how much were import tariffs increased by and what effect did this have?

Answer 7

• they were trebled in 1667
• this led to lower tax yields as people could not afford taxes due to high tariffs
• this increased inflation and led to retaliatory tariffs such as the ones of French wine

Question 8

what colonial trading companies were established

Answer 8

• the 1664 west and east indies company
• the 1670 company of the north
• the 1671 levant trading company

Question 9

what were the successes of the creation of trading companies?

Answer 9

• 800 single females 15-30 known as the king’s daughters helped to increase New France’s population by 52% 1663-1672
• French wine, textiles and west indian sugar sustained a healthy baltic trade before being destroyed in 1688
• Lyon’s archbishop persuaded local merchants to invest 1 million livres in the east india company that gained entry into the spice market

Question 10

what are statistics to show the success of the trading companies?

Answer 10

• from 1664-1704 the number of individual merchants trading overseas doubled
• there was a 93% increase in merchant ships weighing over 300 tons

Question 11

what are the three limitations of the trading companies?

Answer 11

1. there was a European economic depression from 1660-1685 that meant nobles had to be wise with investments - office sales and inheritance rights offered a safer alternative
2. nobles saw trading companies as traps to force them to pay the taille- they were significantly more interested in wars
3. the English and Dutch were unquestionable superior to the French trading companies that meant they lost 6.5 million livres in 11 years

Question 12

what did Colbert do with direct taxation?

Answer 12

• reduced it from 60% to 40% to allow the economy to grow
• he also increased the efficiency of tax collection and tackled corruption through the codification of law

Question 13

what were the successes of Colbert’s approach on direct taxation

Answer 13

• intendants supervised collections, tackling embezzlement and underpayment
• 20% of taxation was lost in 1683 compared to 52% in 1661
• taille yields in pays d’election were 6 million livres higher in 1676-78 than in 1672

Question 14

what were the failures of Colbert’s approach on direct taxation?

Answer 14

• from 1662-1683 taille yields in pays d’etat were 94% lower than in pays d’election
• specifically, pays d’etat yielded 2.1 million livres whereas pays d’election yielded 36.5 million livres
• 30% of direct tax was still lost to tax avoidance

Question 15

what was Colbert’s approach to indirect taxation?

Answer 15

• he increased indirect taxes on salt, drink and tobacco
• money lost through direct taxation was made up here

this is custom duties, sale tax etc.

Question 16

what were the successes of Colbert’s approach on indirect taxation?

Answer 16

• he allegedly reduced debts by 67%
• increased royal tax and achieved 79% net revenue

Question 17

what were the failures of Colbert’s approach on indirect taxation?

Answer 17

• his increase of indirect taxation caused serious revolts in Bordeaux in 1674 and Brittany in 1675 that required 10,000 troops to restore order
• Colbert’s claimed successes were found to have major discrepancies by Coblert’s successor

Question 18

how did Colbert attempt to modernise infrastructure?

Answer 18

• he incentivised commercial investments by offering gifts, lucrative pensions, tax breaks and titles of nobility

Question 19

how was Colbert successful in modernising infrastructure?

Answer 19

• the canal des deux Mers was opened in 1681
• it was 170 miles long with 100 locks and 3 aquaducts that reduced transport costs by 75%
• a postal system was also established with 800 offices
• colbert spent 600,000 livres on improving roads and subjected peasants to the corvee (months forced labour on highway maintenance)
• this led to the completion of France’s first paved road (between Paris and Orleans)

Question 20

how Colbert not successful in modernising infrastructure?

Answer 20

• he had little success in standardising tolls
• private investment in trade remained inadequate
• the Rhine kept its 40 tolls
• local authorities resisted road improvements as they got to keep spilled goods
• bandit crime was rife
• the canal des deux mers took 7.5 million of taxpayers money even when peasants were facing starvation

Question 21

how did Colbert use fines to his advantage?

Answer 21

• the chambre de justice fined 500 financiers for corruption
• 156 million livres were gained from fines from 1661-1665

Question 22

what were intendants?

Answer 22

crown administrators sent to provinces to enforce edicts and taxation

Question 23

what were the pays d’etat?

Answer 23

outlying provinces that retained some powers of self-government, including the ability to decide on and levy taxes

Question 24

what were the pays d’election?

Answer 24

France’s central provinces, subordinate to royal control

Question 25

what were the pays d’imposition?

Answer 25

Newly acquired provinces

Question 26

what was the name of the council concerned with administrative reports from the provinces and domestic affairs?

Answer 26

the conseil des depeches

Question 27

who were rentiers?

Answer 27

money lenders to the crown, a type of financier

Question 28

what was the paulette?

Answer 28

an annual tax paid to the crown by officiers worth 1/60th of the office’s value which made their office alienable

Question 29

what was the toise

Answer 29

Mazarin’s tax on the building of houses outside the walls of Paris