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In medieval French law, a maltôte is an extraordinary tax that applied to everyday consumer goods (wine, beer, wax ...), raised to cope with unusual expenses. In general, it was to finance the cost of wars or fortification works.
In medieval French law, a maltôte is an extraordinary tax that applied to everyday consumer goods (wine, beer, wax ...), raised to cope with unusual expenses. In general, it was to finance the cost of wars or fortification works.
Origin
The term "malatolta" was used for it from the 10th century. The first mention of the term "maltôte" seems to be in the ''registre des olim '' in 1273Philip the Fair
Philip IV (April–June 1268 – 29 November 1314), called Philip the Fair (), was King of France from 1285 to 1314. By virtue of his marriage with Joan I of Navarre, he was also King of Navarre and Count of Champagne as Philip I from ...
made himself unpopular by raising maltôte in 1292 to finance the Flanders War: the tax of the denier per pound was payable by both the seller and the purchaser. Because of its unpopular character it was quickly named by the people by the pejorative name of "maltôte". The maltôte was, indeed, frequently badly perceived by the populations who were put at contribution for purposes sometimes very far from their daily concerns. The war in Flanders was thus at the origin of a popular revolt in Rouen, which aimed to oppose the maltôte.Edgard Boutaric, La France sous Philippe le Bel, Plon, 1861Yves Tissier, vocabulaire de l'histoire, Vuibert, 2008
As a matter of fact, the maltôte was a tax between 0.33 (Paris) and 0.50% (Tours).
By extension, the word "maltôte" quickly was used to mean any extraordinary taxes. The use of maltôtes lasted until the eighteenth century.
Etymology
*"Maltôte" could come from:Gabriel Feydel, Remarques morales, philosophiques et grammaticales, sur le Dictionnaire de l'Académie françoise, A. A. Renouard, 1807 - 420 pages *#"mala tolta", from Latin ''malus'' ("bad") and ''tollere'' ("to take away, take, despoil)": "bad tax". *#"mal toste", which would mean "bad greeting", in the sense of "I do not give you hello". The French word "maltôtiers" has been applied to officers or other persons engaged in the collection of taxes, and by extension, to those who demand rights which are not due.See also
*Gabelle
The ''gabelle'' () was a very unpopular French salt tax that was established during the mid-14th century and lasted, with brief lapses and revisions, until 1946. The term ''gabelle'' is derived from the Italian ''gabella'' (a duty), itself orig ...
*Taille
The ''taille'' () was a direct land tax on the French peasantry and non-nobles in ''Ancien Régime'' France. The tax was imposed on each household and was based on how much land it held, and was paid directly to the state.
History
Originally ...
References