Nicolas Baudeau (; 25 April 1730 – 1792) was a Catholic cleric,

theologian Theology is the study of religious belief from a religious perspective, with a focus on the nature of divinity. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of ...

and

economist An economist is a professional and practitioner in the social sciences, social science discipline of economics. The individual may also study, develop, and apply theories and concepts from economics and write about economic policy. Within this ...

, who was born in

Amboise Amboise (; ) is a commune in the Indre-et-Loire department in central France. Today a small market town, it was once home to the French royal court. Geography Amboise lies on the banks of the river Loire, east of Tours. It is also about awa ...

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

Biography

Baudeau became a monk at Chancelade Abbey, where he taught theology. In 1765 he founded the first economics periodical to be published in France, ''Éphémérides du citoyen'', and was at first an opponent of the

physiocrats Physiocracy (; from the Greek for "government of nature") is an economic theory developed by a group of 18th-century Age of Enlightenment French economists. They believed that the wealth of nations derived solely from the value of "land agricult ...

. In 1766, however, he became a proponent of physiocracy. He died in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

in 1792. The French word ''"économiste"'' first appeared in print in a book by Baudeau. Early usage of the concept of an "

entrepreneur Entrepreneurship is the creation or extraction of economic value in ways that generally entail beyond the minimal amount of risk (assumed by a traditional business), and potentially involving values besides simply economic ones. An entreprene ...

" can also be attributed to Baudeau. One of Baudeau's influential works, ''Idées d'un citoyen sur l'administration des finances du Roi'', was critical of the commission established in 1764 by Clément Charles François de Laverdy for the purpose of drafting new laws on vagabonds, beggars, and the central distribution of alms. Baudeau argued that the governmental provision of alms to the poor was a more important goal than the passing of laws prohibiting poverty. In 1768, Baudeau was recruited by Ignacy Jakub Massalski, the

Bishop of Vilnius Bishops of Vilnius diocese from 1388 and archdiocese (archdiocese of Vilnius) from 1925:" ...

, in order to bring physiocratic ideas to

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...

. The main focus of his work there had to do with facilitating exports of Polish grain to France. Baudeau died in 1792 in Paris.

Works

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Baudeau, Nicolas 1730 births 1792 deaths People from Amboise Physiocrats 18th-century French economists 18th-century French theologians