Compte rendu

Compte rendu

The Compte rendu (full name Compte rendu au roi, translated as "report to the king") was a document published in February 1781 by Jacques Necker, finance minister to the King, in which he presented the state of France's finances.

Contents

Content of the report

The report stated that ordinary revenues in France were exceeding expenditure by over 10 million livres. The health of the accounts as reported in the Compte rendu boosted confidence among lenders and ordinary people, who saw Necker as a strong financial manager due to his prior experience as a banker; the report bolstered his reputation further. As a consequence, the French government was able to raise new loans to pay for the costs of continued involvement in the American War of Independence.[1]

However, Necker's reporting of the accounts obscured the financial problems which the country was facing: it did not report the extraordinary accounts, where the real cost of the war was to be found and which showed France in a significant deficit - between 1777 and 1781, Necker had raised 520 million livres in new loans.[2] Had these been reported, lenders would have been unlikely to continue to lend money for the war.

Contribution to a revolutionary situation

The Compte rendu was accepted because of Necker's reputation, but it also acted to bolster that reputation; despite the costs of war, it seemed that France remained in a strong financial position. Necker attained high popularity among ordinary people, who were particularly sympathetic to a minister who, unusually for someone in high office, had been a commoner.

After Necker left his position as finance minister, there was a succession of finance ministers under whom the true financial situation came to light. The Compte rendu was also arguably a factor in causing resistance to attempts in 1787 by the then-finance minister Calonne to reform the financial system in 1787. Calonne argued that the state finances were in a poor state and thus required overhaul to ensure greater efficiency in taxation. The Assembly of Notables, to whom the reforms were initially proposed, were sceptical of this explanation, possibly as a consequence of the belief that France remained in a strong position from the time of Necker.

After a succession of different finance ministers, Louis later re-appointed Necker in the view that he was in the best position to manage France's growing credit problems. Necker remained as popular as ever, which meant that when he was dismissed on 11 July 1789, a public outcry ensued. Combined with the simultaneous economic crisis - the price of grain had skyrocketed over the winter of 1787-8 - this contributed to the storming of the Bastille on 14 July.

See also

References

  1. ^ Adcock, M. (2004). Analysing the French Revolution. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
  2. ^ Fenwick, J. and Anderson, J. (2006). Revolution: France. HTAV.

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  • Compte-rendu — Pour les articles homonymes, voir CR. Le compte rendu journalistique Le terme compte rendu (CR) est utilisé lorsqu il s agit de rapporter les éléments importants d une réunion, d une conférence de presse, d une manifestation. Le journaliste qui… …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Compte Rendu — Pour les articles homonymes, voir CR. Le compte rendu journalistique Le terme compte rendu (CR) est utilisé lorsqu il s agit de rapporter les éléments importants d une réunion, d une conférence de presse, d une manifestation. Le journaliste qui… …   Wikipédia en Français

  • compte\ rendu — compte [ kɔ̃t ] n. m. • XIIe; cunte 1080; lat. computus, de computare I ♦ Détermination d une quantité. 1 ♦ Action d évaluer une quantité (⇒ compter); cette quantité. ⇒ 1. calcul, dénombrement, énumération. Faire un compte. Le compte des dépenses …   Encyclopédie Universelle

  • compte rendu — n. m. Exposé, relation (d un fait, d un événement, d une oeuvre). Des comptes rendus de séances. ⇒COMPTE RENDU, subst. masc. Rapport détaillé sur une œuvre artistique, un ouvrage, un événement. Compte rendu de conseil d administration. Des… …   Encyclopédie Universelle

  • Compte rendu — Compte ren du [F.] A report of an officer or agent. [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • compte rendu — index account (evaluation) Burton s Legal Thesaurus. William C. Burton. 2006 …   Law dictionary

  • Compte rendu — Der Compte rendu (voller Name: Compte rendu au Roi; dt: „Rechenschaftsbericht/Finanzbericht an den König“) ist ein Dokument, das am 19. Februar 1781 vom damaligen französischen Finanzminister Jacques Necker veröffentlicht wurde. Darin gibt Necker …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Compte rendu — Pour les articles homonymes, voir CR. Sur les autres projets Wikimedia : « Compte rendu », sur le Wiktionnaire (dictionnaire universel) Sommaire 1 Com …   Wikipédia en Français

  • compte rendu — [ˌkɔcompte rendut rαcompte rendu dju:] noun (plural comptes rendus pronunciation same) a formal report or review. Origin C19: Fr., lit. account rendered …   English new terms dictionary

  • compte rendu, comptes rendus ou compte-rendu, comptes-rendus — ● compte rendu, comptes rendus ou compte rendu, comptes rendus (difficultés) nom masculin Orthographe Les deux graphies, compte rendu et compte rendu, sont admises. On écrit de plus en plus souvent compte rendu, avec un trait d union. Plur. : des …   Encyclopédie Universelle

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