finance ministers Flashcards
For what period was Turgot finance minister
1774-76
What effective economies was Turgot able to make
- cut royal expenses
- demand that gov departments submit their expenses to the controller general
- removal or reduction of a number of pensions
- some reforms of the tax-farming system to increase efficiency
Which of Turgot’s proposals was met with a lot of resistance
Six Edicts
What was the nature of the Six Edicts
four of the edicts were concerned with suppressing dues and offices
the two that were met with the most opposition were the 5th (suppressed the guilds) and 6th which abolished the corvee in favour of a tax paid my land owners
What is a remonstrance
a document sent by a parlement to the monarch protesting against a royal decree or details of that decree
Who opposed the most to the six edicts
paris parlement
How were the six edicts eventually registered
lit de justice- March 1776
When was Turgot ordered to hand in his registration
May 1776
In what period was Necker first finance minister
1777-1781
How did Necker continue Turgot’s cost cutting measures
- reducing royal household expenses and pensions
- appointing salaried officials rather than venal corporations to run the royal estates
- removing the vingtieme on industry
What other reforms did Necker try to make
tried to make royal accounting system more professional
restructured financial administration- reduced no of collective bodies and replaced venal accounts with paid secretaries
reduced no of tax farmers from 60 to 40 and abolished the 48 posts of receiver generals of direct taxes replacing them with 12 salaried officials who had to submit their receipts to Necker
How much were tax farmers reduced by under Necker
from 60 to 40
When was the compte rendu au roi published
1781
How many copies had been sold of the Compte Rendu within weeks of it being published
100,000
What was the problem with Necker’s Compte Rendu
Necker’s statement was inaccurate
Why did Necker lie in the Compte Rendu
needed to raise more loans to deal with France’s debt which had grown significantly since France’s entry to american war in 1778
How did Necker lie in the compte rendu
disguised the high interest payments as normal expenditure to suggest that France was in a stronger financial position than was really the case
appeared to suggest that France had a surplus of 10 million livres rather than a substantial deficit
Why was Necker so popular with ordinary people
due to his attacks on vested interests and because he involved France in a successful was without raising taxes
In what period was Calonne the finance minister
1783-87
When was Calonne forced to put together a reform package
1786
Why was Calonne forced to create a reform package
due to hostility of Parlement and the scale of the French debt
What was the estimated income/expenditure in 1786 (balance of payments)
income- 475 million livres
expenditure- 587 million livres
What did Calonne’s reform programme include
- a general land tax
- establishment of provincial assemblies
- stamp duty
- end of corvee royale (replaced by tax on landowners)
- removal of controls of grain trade
- removal of internal customs barriers to boost commerce
Why was an ‘Assembly of Notables’ called
due to the political deadlock over Calonne’s reforms
In what period was Brienne the finance minister
May 1787-August 1788
When did Necker become the finance minister again
13-16 July 1789
Who was in the assembly of notables
144 representatives of the nobility including clerical nobility
What did the Assembly of notables do
they attacked Calonne’s proposals as they didn’t trust him particularly after the publication of the compte rendu which said there was a surplus
What led to Calonne’s dismissal
in April 1787 he tried to appeal to the public behind the backs of the assembly claiming that its members only considered their own interests and privileges which provoked further criticism
How did Brienne stave off bankruptcy
took out new loans at a very high rate of interest
How did Brienne attempt to force his proposals through
took them directly to the parlements
