Henri Léonard Jean Baptiste Bertin
Encyclopedia
Henri Léonard Jean Baptiste Bertin (born March 24, 1720 Périgueux
- September 16, 1792 Spa
(Belgium
)) was a French statesman, and controller general of finances of Louis XV (1759–1763).
(1749) and Lyon
(1754) before being named lieutenant general of police of Paris (1757–1759).
He agreed in 1759 to become controller general of finance on the grounds that France was at war and finance was easier in times of war because all expedients are then allowed. But he warned Louis XV that he would resign once peace returned, which he did in 1763. He created the Land Registry to enable a better distribution of taxes. But his reforms were met with hostility from the parliament of Paris.
He then received, December 14, 1763, a secretariat of State composed strangely detached from the overall control of Finance, whose duties included: the East India Company, manufactures of cotton and painted canvas, the stud and veterinary schools, agriculture and corporate agriculture, mining, inland waterways, canals, public carriages, cabs and couriers, taxi, small items, deposits and collections of charters, lotteries, the exchange of Principality of Dombes, and, like other secretaries of state, grants, pensions, patents and shipments depending on the department. This fairly extensive, included Guienne, Normandy, Champagne, the principality of Dombes, the Lyons, the Berry Islands France and Bourbon and all institutions of the East India Company.
Faced with the encroachment of the general control of finances, Bertin abandoned in 1764 the East India Company and the manufacture of painted cotton cloth, and in 1775 the coaches and express to Turgot
. He however managed to keep the mines, through the abandonment of navigation to the superintendent of finance in charge of bridges and causeways. There was attributed to great difficulty in 1773 issues related to the clearing of communal property.
Bertin was one of the architects of the renovation of Agriculture, and the creator of the Veterinary School of Lyon. Fascinated by China, he allowed two young Chinese Catholics to spend several years of study in France, and then returning to China, and receiving a pension from King Louis XVI. Bertin supported the Jesuit mission to the Emperor of China (fathers Bourgeois and Amiot). Vergennes did not follow his recommendations, which is unfortunate, because China was the natural complement of trade with India, which the British understood very well in the crucial years between 1778 and 1785.
Bertin emigrated in 1791. He was an honorary member of the Academy of Sciences
(1761) and the Académie des Inscriptions et Belles-Lettres
(1772).
Périgueux
Périgueux is a commune in the Dordogne department in Aquitaine in southwestern France.Périgueux is the prefecture of the department and the capital of the region...
- September 16, 1792 Spa
Spa
The term spa is associated with water treatment which is also known as balneotherapy. Spa towns or spa resorts typically offer various health treatments. The belief in the curative powers of mineral waters goes back to prehistoric times. Such practices have been popular worldwide, but are...
(Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
)) was a French statesman, and controller general of finances of Louis XV (1759–1763).
Biography
In 1741, he was a lawyer in Bordeaux, and then advise the Grand Council president, comptroller of RoussillonRoussillon
Roussillon is one of the historical counties of the former Principality of Catalonia, corresponding roughly to the present-day southern French département of Pyrénées-Orientales...
(1749) and Lyon
Lyon
Lyon , is a city in east-central France in the Rhône-Alpes region, situated between Paris and Marseille. Lyon is located at from Paris, from Marseille, from Geneva, from Turin, and from Barcelona. The residents of the city are called Lyonnais....
(1754) before being named lieutenant general of police of Paris (1757–1759).
He agreed in 1759 to become controller general of finance on the grounds that France was at war and finance was easier in times of war because all expedients are then allowed. But he warned Louis XV that he would resign once peace returned, which he did in 1763. He created the Land Registry to enable a better distribution of taxes. But his reforms were met with hostility from the parliament of Paris.
He then received, December 14, 1763, a secretariat of State composed strangely detached from the overall control of Finance, whose duties included: the East India Company, manufactures of cotton and painted canvas, the stud and veterinary schools, agriculture and corporate agriculture, mining, inland waterways, canals, public carriages, cabs and couriers, taxi, small items, deposits and collections of charters, lotteries, the exchange of Principality of Dombes, and, like other secretaries of state, grants, pensions, patents and shipments depending on the department. This fairly extensive, included Guienne, Normandy, Champagne, the principality of Dombes, the Lyons, the Berry Islands France and Bourbon and all institutions of the East India Company.
Faced with the encroachment of the general control of finances, Bertin abandoned in 1764 the East India Company and the manufacture of painted cotton cloth, and in 1775 the coaches and express to Turgot
Anne Robert Jacques Turgot, Baron de Laune
Anne-Robert-Jacques Turgot, Baron de Laune , often referred to as Turgot, was a French economist and statesman. Turgot was a student of Francois Quesnay and as such belonged to the Physiocratic school of economic thought...
. He however managed to keep the mines, through the abandonment of navigation to the superintendent of finance in charge of bridges and causeways. There was attributed to great difficulty in 1773 issues related to the clearing of communal property.
Bertin was one of the architects of the renovation of Agriculture, and the creator of the Veterinary School of Lyon. Fascinated by China, he allowed two young Chinese Catholics to spend several years of study in France, and then returning to China, and receiving a pension from King Louis XVI. Bertin supported the Jesuit mission to the Emperor of China (fathers Bourgeois and Amiot). Vergennes did not follow his recommendations, which is unfortunate, because China was the natural complement of trade with India, which the British understood very well in the crucial years between 1778 and 1785.
Bertin emigrated in 1791. He was an honorary member of the Academy of Sciences
Academy of Sciences
An Academy of Sciences is a national academy or another learned society dedicated to sciences.In non-English speaking countries, the range of academic fields of the members of a national Academy of Science often includes fields which would not normally be classed as "science" in English...
(1761) and the Académie des Inscriptions et Belles-Lettres
Académie des Inscriptions et Belles-Lettres
The Académie des Inscriptions et Belles-Lettres is a French learned society devoted to the humanities, founded in February 1663 as one of the five academies of the Institut de France.-History:...
(1772).