HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

''Recettes générales'', commonly known as ''généralités'' (), were the administrative divisions of France under the
Ancien Régime ''Ancien'' may refer to * the French word for " ancient, old" ** Société des anciens textes français * the French for "former, senior" ** Virelai ancien A ''virelai'' is a form of medieval French verse used often in poetry and music. It is ...
and are often considered to prefigure the current '' préfectures''. At the time of the French Revolution, there were thirty-six ''généralités''. Among the multiple divisions utilised for various purposes by the kings' administrators, ''généralités'' emerged gradually from the 14th to the 16th centuries. Initially fiscal, their role steadily increased to become by the late 17th century — under the authority of an '' intendant'' (reporting to the
Controller-General of Finances The Controller-General or Comptroller-General of Finances (french: Contrôleur général des finances) was the name of the minister in charge of finances in France from 1661 to 1791. It replaced the former position of Superintendent of Finances ('' ...
) — the very framework of royal administration and centralisation.


History

Before the 14th century, oversight of the collection of royal taxes fell generally to the ''
bailli A bailiff (french: bailli, ) was the king's administrative representative during the ''ancien régime'' in northern France, where the bailiff was responsible for the application of justice and control of the administration and local finances in h ...
s'' and ''sénéchaux'' in their circumscriptions. Reforms in the 14th and 15th centuries saw France's royal financial administration run by two financial boards which worked in a collegial manner: the four ''généraux des finances'' (also called ''général conseiller'' or ''receveur général'' ) oversaw the collection of taxes ('' taille'', ''aides'', '' gabelle'', etc.) and the four ''trésoriers de France'' (treasurers) oversaw revenues from royal lands (the '' domaine royal''). Together they were often referred to as ''messieurs des finances''. The four members of each board were divided by geographical circumscriptions (although the term ''généralité'' is not found before the end of the 15th century); the areas were named Languedoïl (center and southwest of the country), Languedoc ( Languedoc,
Lyonnais The Lyonnais () is a historical province of France which owes its name to the city of Lyon. The geographical area known as the ''Lyonnais'' became part of the Kingdom of Burgundy after the division of the Carolingian Empire. The disintegratio ...
,
Forez Forez is a former province of France, corresponding approximately to the central part of the modern Loire ''département'' and a part of the Haute-Loire and Puy-de-Dôme ''départements''. The final "z" in Forez () is not pronounced in the Loir ...
,
Beaujolais Beaujolais ( , ) is a French ''Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée'' (AOC) wine generally made of the Gamay grape, which has a thin skin and is low in tannins. Like most AOC wines they are not labeled varietally. Whites from the region, which mak ...
), Outre-Seine-et-Yonne ( Île-de-France,
Champagne Champagne (, ) is a sparkling wine originated and produced in the Champagne wine region of France under the rules of the appellation, that demand specific vineyard practices, sourcing of grapes exclusively from designated places within it, sp ...
), and Normandy (the latter was created in 1449; the other three were created earlier), with the directors of the Languedoïl region typically having an honorific preeminence. By 1484, the number of ''généralités'' had increased to six. In the 16th century, the kings of France, in an effort to exert a more direct control over royal finances and to circumvent the double-board (accused of poor oversight), instituted numerous administrative reforms, including the restructuring of the financial administration and an increase in the number of ''généralités''. On December 7, 1542, by edict of
Francis I Francis I or Francis the First may refer to: * Francesco I Gonzaga (1366–1407) * Francis I, Duke of Brittany (1414–1450), reigned 1442–1450 * Francis I of France (1494–1547), King of France, reigned 1515–1547 * Francis I, Duke of Saxe-Lau ...
, France was divided into sixteen ''généralités''. The number increased to twenty-one at the end of the 16th century, and to thirty-six by the time of the French Revolution. The last two were created in 1784. The administration of the ''généralités'' of the early modern period went through a variety of reforms. In 1577 Henry III established five treasurers (''trésoriers généraux'') in each ''généralité'' who would form a bureau of finances. In the 17th century, oversight of the ''généralités'' was subsumed by the " intendants of finance, justice and police", and the expression ''généralité'' and ''intendance'' became roughly synonymous.


List of généralités-intendants


See also

*
Ancien Régime in France ''Ancien'' may refer to * the French word for "ancient, old" ** Société des anciens textes français * the French for "former, senior" ** Virelai ancien ** Ancien Régime ''Ancien'' may refer to * the French word for " ancient, old" ** Société ...
* Provinces of France * Taille


References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Generalite Taxation in France Subdivisions of France Economic history of the Ancien Régime * de:Historische Provinzen Frankreichs#Liste der Généralités