Misplaced Pages

#71928

101-449: A native of Reims , he was appointed Intendant of Finances on 4 May 1661. Colbert took over as Controller-General of Finances , a newly created position, in the aftermath of the arrest of Nicolas Fouquet for embezzlement, an event that led to the abolishment of the office of Superintendent of Finances . He worked to develop the domestic economy by raising tariffs and encouraging major public works projects, as well as to ensure that

202-442: A Jesuit college, working for a Parisian banker; as well as working for the father of Jean Chapelain . Before the age of 20, Colbert had a post in the war office, a position generally attributed to the marriage of an uncle to the sister of Secretary of War Michel Le Tellier . Colbert spent some time as an inspector of troops, eventually becoming the personal secretary of Le Tellier. In 1647, through unknown means, Colbert acquired

303-431: A borrower and strengthened the credit of the government, though the controls on this process were either ineffective or non-existent. The long wars, and the greed of the courtiers, made it necessary at times for Fouquet to meet the demand for funds by borrowing upon his own good credit. Fouquet was aware of the risks he was running – he feared ruining his family and his friends who had helped him lend money to

404-574: A departure from history, most of these films show him dying in the 1660s. Fouquet was portrayed by Robert Lindsay in Nick Dear's play Power . Fouquet's life (and his rivalry with Colbert) is one of the background plots/stories in the historical novel Imprimatur by Rita Monaldi and Francesco Sorti . Fouquet and his arrest also figure prominently in Roberto Rossellini 's 1966 film The Taking of Power by Louis XIV , where Fouquet

505-599: A dramatic and whimsical fashion. Pets are welcome. A Christmas market was held on the parvis of Reims Cathedral (Place du Cardinal-Luçon). It has since been moved in front of the Reims train station. In takes place in the month before Christmas, in 2023 this will be November 24th until December 24th. The Christmas market in Reims is the 3rd largest Christmas market in France. There are 150 different stalls each with various regional crafts, gifts, foods and specialities. This includes

606-529: A famous poutine stand. The market last year was open on Mondays from 2pm to 8pm, Tuesday to Thursday from 10:30am to 10pm, Friday from 10:30am to 10pm, Saturday from 10am to 10pm, and Sundays from 10pm to 8pm. Access to the Christmas market is free and it is accessible to people with reduced mobility. Dogs are welcome if they are on a leash. Close by, there is a large traditional Christmas tree. Restaurants and bars are concentrated around Place Drouet d'Erlon in

707-598: A few of the many artists and authors who received his invitations, and for some, his patronage. These extravagant expenditures and displays of the superintendent's wealth ultimately intensified the ill-will of the king. In 1638, Fouquet received as a gift some of his father's shares in the Company of the American Islands. In 1640, he became one of the first shareholders in the Société du Cap Nord and, in 1642, of

808-481: A lenient decision, "commuted" the sentence to life imprisonment at the fort of Pignerol and confiscation of Fouquet's property. He also launched a vendetta against Fouquet's friends, supporters and family. In December 1664, Fouquet was taken to the prison fortress of Pignerol in the Alps (in what is now Italy). He remained there, incarcerated in harsh conditions, until his death in 1680. There, Eustache Dauger ,

909-462: A member of the Académie française ; and proposed one very characteristic rule with the intention of expediting the great Dictionary , in which he had a great interest: no one could count as present at any meeting unless he arrived before the hour of commencement and remained till the hour for leaving. In 1673 Colbert presided over the first exhibition of the works of living painters; and he enriched

1010-555: A minister. As a child, Louis had observed the armed conflict that threatened his monarchy during the Fronde and had solid reasons to be concerned about rebellion. As superintendent, Fouquet headed the enormously wealthy and influential corps of partisans ( tax farmers ), which, if challenged as a group, could have caused the king serious trouble. By crafty devices, Fouquet was induced to sell his office of procureur général , causing him to lose his immunity from royal prosecution; he paid

1111-555: A mirror in Fouquet's estate near Paris. The cassette contained a plan of defence written in 1657 at a time when Fouquet was on bad terms with Mazarin, that was modified in 1659. The plan instructed his supporters on what they should do if he were ever to be arrested, including taking up arms. It also envisaged a naval operation in the Bay of the Seine. The accusations that were the subject of

SECTION 10

#1732771795072

1212-457: A patron, however highly ranked, but had to agree in this case for reasons of diplomacy between France and the Holy See . While in France, Bernini also sculpted a marble portrait bust of Louis XIV (Versailles palace). However the relations between the two strong-willed men, Colbert and Bernini, proved melodramatically stormy. Bernini's Louvre design was ultimately rejected. Colbert himself became

1313-565: A policy focusing on the unification of French trade. His régime improved roads and canals. Pierre Paul Riquet (1604–1680) planned and constructed the Canal du Midi under Colbert's patronage. To encourage overseas trade with the Levant , Senegal , Guinea and other places, Colbert granted privileges to companies, but, like the noted French East India Company , all proved unsuccessful. Colbert took much interest in art and literature. He possessed

1414-554: A refuge in case of disgrace. Heightening the concerns of the king, Fouquet was found to have ordered several warships in the Netherlands, which could have served both his colonial ambitions and as an implicit threat to the king. In addition, Fouquet used a straw man to assume the position of Viceroy ( vice-roi ) of the Americas without the king’s knowledge. On 17 August 1661, Louis was entertained at Vaux-le-Vicomte with

1515-656: A remarkably fine private library, which he delighted to fill with valuable manuscripts from every part of Europe and the Near East where France had placed a consul. He employed Pierre de Carcavi and Étienne Baluze as librarians. Colbert's grandson sold the manuscript collection in 1732 to the Bibliothèque Royale . Colbert founded a number of institutions: He reorganised the Academy of Painting and Sculpture which Mazarin had established. Wishing to increase

1616-532: A special court where judges and prosecutors were handpicked by Colbert for being hostile to Fouquet and sympathetic to the king; and the trial was held in written form – Fouquet, a convincing orator, was not allowed to speak in his own defense. Nevertheless, some of the charges against Fouquet were supported by evidence that Fouquet found difficult to refute, notably the ‘cassette of Saint Mandé ’. The cassette contained incriminating documents that had been found after his arrest; they were hidden behind

1717-528: A sumptuous fête, at which Molière 's Les Fâcheux was produced for the first time. The fête also included a lavish meal served on gold and silver plates for hundreds of members of the court; there were also fireworks, a ballet and light shows. The king was astounded by this display of luxury. Although this fête is sometimes cited as the reason for Fouquet's downfall, Louis XIV secretly was plotting with Colbert to get rid of him in May and June 1661. The splendour of

1818-468: A teenager, accomplished this task with brio . In 1636, at just 20, his father bought him the post of maître des requêtes for 150,000 livres (under the Ancien Régime, many government posts were purchased by the people holding them). In 1640, he married the rich and well-connected Louise Fourché and received around 160,000 livres from the dowry, plus other rents and land. Louise died in 1641 at

1919-677: A white dove at the baptism of Frankish king Clovis I in 496. For this reason, Reims is often referred to in French as la cité des sacres ("the Coronation City"). Reims is recognized for the diversity of its heritage, ranging from Romanesque to Art-déco . Reims Cathedral , the adjacent Palace of Tau , and the Abbey of Saint-Remi were listed together as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1991 because of their outstanding Romanesque and Gothic architecture and their historical importance to

2020-429: A wide variety of fields. The authorities established new industries, protected inventors, invited in workmen from foreign countries, and prohibited French workmen from emigrating. To maintain the character of French goods in foreign markets as well as to afford a guarantee to the domestic consumer, Colbert had the quality and quantity of each article fixed by law, punishing breaches of the regulations by public exposure of

2121-517: Is a biscuit frequently associated with Champagne wine. Reims was long renown for its pain d'épices and nonnette . Between 1925 and 1969, Reims hosted the Grand Prix de la Marne automobile race at the circuit of Reims-Gueux . The French Grand Prix took place here 14 times between 1938 and 1966. As of 2021 , the football club Stade Reims , based in the city, competed in the Ligue 1 ,

SECTION 20

#1732771795072

2222-548: Is a candidate in the bid to become the European Capital of Culture in 2028. The Palace of Tau contains such exhibits as statues formerly displayed by the cathedral, treasures of the cathedral from past centuries, and royal attire from coronations of French kings. The Musée Saint-Remi , formerly the Abbey of Saint-Remi, contains tapestries from the 16th century donated by the archbishop Robert de Lenoncourt (uncle of

2323-563: Is derived from the accusative case of the latter, Rēmos . Christianity had become established in the city by 260, at which period Saint Sixtus of Reims founded the Diocese of Reims (which would be elevated to an archdiocese around 750). The consul Jovinus , an influential supporter of the new faith, repelled the Alamanni who invaded Champagne in 336, but the Vandals captured

2424-736: Is housed in the former Abbey of Saint-Denis. Part of the former Collège des Jésuites has also become a contemporary art gallery: the FRAC Champagne-Ardenne. The Museum of the Surrender is the building in which on 7 May 1945, General Eisenhower and the Allies received the unconditional surrender of the German Wehrmacht . Venues include the Reims Opera House , built in 1873 and renovated in 1931–1932, and

2525-459: Is played by Pierre Barrat. In the second of Peter Greenaway 's Tulse Luper films , a Nazi general by the name of Foestling, played by Marcel Iureș , becomes obsessed with Fouquet and attempts to recreate his life and death. Fouquet is described but not mentioned by name in an episode of HBO's The Sopranos . Carmine Lupertazzi Jr. makes a comparison of John Sacrimoni to King Louis' finance minister who tried to outshine him and his estate: "In

2626-599: Is the prefecture . Reims co-operates with 142 other communes in the Communauté urbaine du Grand Reims . Rue de Vesle is the main commercial street (continued under other names), traversing the city from southwest to northeast through the Place Royale . The economy of Reims is driven by the wine and Champagne industries and innovation in the bio-economic field. Reims Cathedral is an example of French Gothic architecture . The Basilica of Saint-Remi , founded in

2727-724: The Hôtel de Ville dates back to the same century. The Place Royale was built in the 18th century. Some of the 1792 September Massacres took place in Reims. In the invasions of the War of the Sixth Coalition in 1814, anti-Napoleonic allied armies captured and re-captured Reims. "In 1852, the Eastern Railways completed the Paris-Strasbourg main line with branch lines to Reims and Metz." In 1870–1871, during

2828-469: The noblesse de robe (members of the nobility under the Ancien Régime who had high positions in government, especially in law and finance). He was the second child of François IV Fouquet (who held numerous high positions in government) and of Marie de Maupeou (who came from a family of the noblesse de robe and who was famous for her piety and charitable works). Contrary to the pretensions of

2929-621: The East India Company (Société des Indes Orientales). After his father’s death in 1641, he inherited and managed the family's interests in several other chartered companies for French colonization (Sénégal, New France). Moreover, the family, through Fouquet's father and other family ties, was already active in maritime transport and had a network of influential contacts in Brittany. Over a period of many years, Fouquet undertook to develop these existing strengths. Specifically, Fouquet

3030-567: The Franco-Prussian War , the victorious Germans made it the seat of a governor-general and impoverished it with heavy requisitions. In 1874 the construction of a chain of detached forts started in the vicinity, the French Army having selected Reims as one of the chief defences of the northern approaches to Paris. In the meantime, British inventor and manufacturer Isaac Holden had opened plants at Reims and Croix , which "by

3131-646: The French East India Company had access to foreign markets, so that they could always obtain coffee , cotton , dyewoods , fur , pepper , and sugar . He acted to create a favorable balance of trade and increase colonial holdings . As there was slavery in the colonies, in 1682, Colbert commissioned the beginning of a project that would become the Code Noir in 1685, two years after his death. In addition, he founded France's merchant navy ( marine marchande ), becoming Secretary of State of

Jean-Baptiste Colbert - Misplaced Pages Continue

3232-532: The Fêtes Johanniques commemorate the entrance of Joan of Arc into Reims in 1429 and the coronation of Charles VII of France in the cathedral. In August and September there are regular evening light shows called Regalia projected onto the Reims Cathedral. It has a duration of 15 minutes and is free of charge. Regalia is an open-air multimedia show telling the story of the French coronations in

3333-643: The Jesuits at the age of 13, Fouquet received his law degree from the University of Paris. Richelieu advised Fouquet on this career choice. In 1634, Fouquet was appointed councilor of the Parliament of Metz. Richelieu charged him with the sensitive task of verifying the accounts to determine whether or not Charles IV of Lorraine was skimming money that rightfully was due to the King of France. Fouquet, still

3434-564: The Louvre with hundreds of pictures and statues. He gave many pensions to men of letters, among whom we find Molière , Corneille , Racine , Boileau , P D Huet (1630–1721) and Antoine Varillas (1626–1696); and even foreigners, as Huygens , Carlo Roberto Dati the Dellacruscan . Evidence exists to show that by this munificence he hoped to draw out praises of his sovereign and himself; but this motive certainly does not account for all

3535-695: The Man in the Iron Mask , who is often identified as the true king or even as an identical twin brother of Louis XIV. As such, he is a pivotal character in Alexandre Dumas ' novel The Vicomte de Bragelonne , where he is depicted heroically. Aramis , an ally of Fouquet, tries to seize power by replacing Louis XIV with his identical twin brother. It is Fouquet who, out of sheer loyalty to the crown, foils Aramis's plot and saves Louis. This does not, however, prevent his downfall. James Whale 's film The Man in

3636-567: The Reims Manège and Circus , dating from 1865 and 1867. The Comédie de Reims was inaugurated in 1966. Libraries in Reims include a Carnegie library which was built in the 1920s. At the beginning of the year, the FARaway - Festival des Arts à Reims is a two-week event of music, dance, theatre, exhibitions, and installations at various cultural venues around the city. Every year in June,

3737-780: The Vesle river, a tributary of the Aisne . Founded by the Gauls , Reims became a major city in the Roman Empire . Reims later played a prominent ceremonial role in French monarchical history as the traditional site of the coronation of the kings of France . The royal anointing was performed at the Cathedral of Reims , which housed the Holy Ampulla of chrism allegedly brought by

3838-432: The cardinal of the same name ), marble capitals from the fourth century AD, furniture, jewellery, pottery, weapons and glasswork from the sixth to eighth centuries, medieval sculpture, the façade of the 13th-century musicians' House, remnants from an earlier abbey building, and also exhibits of Gallo-Roman arts and crafts and a room of pottery, jewellery and weapons from Gallic civilization, as well as an exhibit of items from

3939-453: The corporation system, each industry remained in the hands of certain privileged bourgeois ; while the lower classes found opportunities of advancement closed. He did, however, wisely consult the interests of internal commerce. Unable to abolish the duties on the passage of goods from province to province , he did what he could to induce the provinces to equalize them. Currency exchange rates still remained between these provinces despite

4040-426: The economy back from the brink of bankruptcy . Nevertheless, despite his best efforts, France grew increasingly impoverished because of the King's excessive spending on wars. Having introduced a measure of order and economy into the workings of the government, Colbert called for the enrichment of the country by means of commerce. Through Colbert's dirigiste policies, France fostered manufacturing enterprises in

4141-603: The guilds . The Académie des sciences was founded in 1666 at his suggestion; he was a member of the Académie française from 1 March 1667 to his death, where he occupied the 24th seat, to which Jean de La Fontaine was later elected. His son Jean-Baptiste Colbert, Marquis de Seignelay (1651–1690), succeeded him as Navy Secretary. Colbert's father and grandfather were merchants in his birthplace of Reims , France . He claimed to have Scottish ancestry. A widespread (but unconfirmed) belief exists that he spent his early youth at

Jean-Baptiste Colbert - Misplaced Pages Continue

4242-466: The 11th century "over the chapel of St. Christophe where St. Remi was buried", is "the largest Romanesque church in northern France, though with later additions." The Church of Saint-Jacques dates from the 13th to the 16th centuries. A few blocks from the cathedral, it stands as of 2009 in a neighbourhood of shopping and restaurants. The churches of Saint-Maurice (partly rebuilt in 1867), Saint-André, and Saint-Thomas (erected from 1847 to 1853, under

4343-647: The 1870s [...] were producing almost 12 million kilograms of combed wool a year [...] and accounted for 27 percent of all the wool consumed by French industry." On 30 October 1908, Henri Farman made the first cross-country flight from Châlons to Reims. In August 1909 Reims hosted the first international aviation meet , the Grande Semaine d'Aviation de la Champagne . Major aviation personages such as Glenn Curtiss , Louis Blériot and Louis Paulhan participated. Hostilities in World War I greatly damaged

4444-609: The Archbishop's palace and as the residence of the kings of France on the occasion of their coronations, with royal banquets taking place in the Salle du Tau . Louis VII granted the city a communal charter in 1139. The Treaty of Troyes (1420) ceded it to the English, who had made a futile attempt to take it by siege in 1360; French patriots expelled them on the approach of Joan of Arc , who in 1429 had Charles VII consecrated in

4545-526: The Count of Vaux, was with him when he died. Although no death certificate was established, he is said to have died of apoplexy following a long illness. He was initially buried in the local church, Saint Claire de Pignerol. However, a year after his death, his remains were moved from there to the unmarked family crypt in the Église Sainte-Marie-des-Anges in Paris. Fouquet's story is often entwined with that of

4646-675: The French monarchy. Reims also lies on the northern edge of the Champagne wine region and is linked to its production and export. Before the Roman conquest of northern Gaul , Reims had served as the Remi tribe's capital, founded c.  80 BC . In the course of Julius Caesar 's conquest of Gaul (58–51 BC), the Remi allied themselves with the Romans , and by their fidelity throughout

4747-406: The Iron Mask (1939) is very loosely adapted from Dumas' novel, and by contrast, depicts Fouquet as the story's main villain, who tries to keep the existence of the king's twin brother a secret. Fouquet is portrayed by Joseph Schildkraut . In the 1977 version , Fouquet is portrayed by Patrick McGoohan . In The Fifth Musketeer (1979), based on the same novel, he is portrayed by Ian McShane . In

4848-613: The Navy in 1669. His effective market reforms included the foundation of the Manufacture royale de glaces de miroirs in 1665 to supplant the importation of Venetian glass , which was forbidden in 1672 as soon as the national glass manufacturing industry was on sound footing. Also encouraging the technical expertise of Flemish cloth manufacturing in France, he founded royal tapestry works at Gobelins and supported those at Beauvais . He issued more than 150 edicts to regulate

4949-439: The Navy ; he also gained appointments as minister of commerce , of the colonies , and of the palace . In short, Colbert acquired power in every department except that of war. A great financial and fiscal reform now claimed all his energies. Not only the nobility, but many others who had no legal claim to exemption, paid no taxes; the bulk of the burden fell on the rural poor. Supported by the young king Louis XIV , Colbert aimed

5050-547: The Palaeolithic to the Neolithic periods. Another section of the museum features a permanent military exhibition. The Automobile Museum Reims-Champagne , established in 1985 by Philippe Charbonneaux , houses a collection of automobiles dating from 1903 to the present day. The museum has five collections: automobiles, motorcycles and two-wheelers, pedal cars, miniature toys, and enamel plaques. The Museum of Fine Arts

5151-427: The age of 21, six months after giving birth to a daughter. Fouquet was 26 years old. Cardinal Richelieu died in 1642, but Fouquet was successful in impressing his successor as chief minister, Cardinal Mazarin , who became his protector (over the long term, the relationship was tense ). From 1642 to 1650, Fouquet held various intendancies , at first in the provinces and then with the army of Mazarin. In 1648, Fouquet

SECTION 50

#1732771795072

5252-659: The cathedral. Louis XI cruelly suppressed a revolt at Reims, caused in 1461 by the salt tax . During the French Wars of Religion the city sided with the Catholic League (1585), but submitted to King Henri IV after the battle of Ivry (1590). At about the same time, the English College had been "at Reims for some years." The city was stricken with plague in 1635, and again in 1668, followed by an epidemic of typhus in 1693–1694. The construction of

5353-447: The central actor in a debt situation that was fundamentally untenable. Fouquet had drawn up a plan to bring some order to public finances, but he never made progress in implementing it, though it was taken up later by Colbert. Instead, it was business as usual: fraudulent operations were entered into with impunity, and the financiers were maintained in the position of clients via official favours and generous aid whenever they needed it. In

5454-778: The chateau was the forerunner of the Palace of Versailles . To design it, he brought together a team that the king later used for Versailles: the architect Louis Le Vau , the painter Charles Le Brun , and the garden designer André le Nôtre . At Vaux and other major properties he owned (notably, his estate in Saint-Mandé , which bordered on the Château de Vincennes ), Fouquet gathered rare manuscripts, paintings, jewels and antiques in profusion, and above all surrounded himself with artists and authors. Jean de La Fontaine , Pierre Corneille , Molière, Madame de Sevigné and Paul Scarron were

5555-466: The city centre. Reims, along with Épernay and Ay , functions as one of the centres of champagne production. Many of the largest champagne-producing houses , known as les grandes marques , have their headquarters in Reims, and most open for tasting and tours. Champagne ages in the many caves and tunnels under Reims, which form a sort of maze below the city. Carved from chalk , some of these passages date back to Roman times. The biscuit rose de Reims

5656-527: The city in 406 and slew Bishop Nicasius ; in 451 Attila the Hun put Reims to fire and sword. In 496—ten years after Clovis , King of the Salian Franks, won his victory at Soissons (486)— Remigius , the bishop of Reims, baptized him using the oil of the sacred phial–purportedly brought from heaven by a dove for the baptism of Clovis and subsequently preserved in the Abbey of Saint-Remi . For centuries

5757-609: The city. German bombardment and a subsequent fire in 1914 did severe damage to the cathedral. The ruined cathedral became one of the central images of anti-German propaganda produced in France during the war, which presented it, along with the ruins of the Ypres Cloth Hall and the University Library in Louvain , as evidence that German aggression targeted cultural landmarks of European civilization. Since

5858-536: The classical " liberal arts ". (Adalberon also played a leading role in the dynastic revolution which elevated the Capetian dynasty in the place of the Carolingians .) The archbishops held the important prerogative of the consecration of the kings of France – a privilege which they exercised (except in a few cases) from the time of Philippe II Augustus (anointed 1179, reigned 1180–1223) to that of Charles X (anointed 1825). The Palace of Tau , built between 1498 and 1509 and partly rebuilt in 1675, would later serve as

5959-442: The coast of Brittany. He strengthened the island’s existing fortifications and built a port and warehouses (he also fortified the île d'Yeu ). These were major construction projects which caused the king enough concern that he had a spy sent to Belle-Île-en-Mer. The spy reported that there was a garrison of 200 soldiers, 400 cannon and a stockpile of ammunition sufficient for a force of 6000 soldiers. Fouquet planned to use Belle-Île as

6060-424: The colonization of French Islands, including missionary work and trade and investment. Fouquet's family was extremely devout. They had planned that Nicolas would join the clergy. Out of the family’s 11 children who survived into adulthood, all 5 girls took vows. Among the male children, 4 took the cloth and 2 became bishops. Only Nicolas and his brother Gilles were laymen. After some preliminary schooling with

6161-407: The confiscated goods of an uncle, Pussort. In 1648, he and his wife Marie Charron, received 40,000 crowns from an unknown source; and in 1649 Colbert became the councilor of state, i.e. a political minister. In 1657, he purchased the Barony of Seignelay . Colbert was recommended to King Louis XIV by Mazarin. While Cardinal Mazarin was in exile, Louis's trust in Colbert grew. In 1652 Colbert

SECTION 60

#1732771795072

6262-479: The crown. In December 1658, he presented his resignation to Mazarin, but, unfortunately for him, it was not accepted. The disorder in the accounts became hopeless, but was also normal – the kingdom had a long history of poorly controlled royal finances. In any case, debt issuance could not resolve the deplorable economic situation of the realm without an underlying ability and willingness to rein in expenditures and to bring in tax revenues. Fouquet became

6363-410: The delinquent and destruction of the goods concerned, and, on the third offense, by the pillory . Colbert prohibited the production of certain products that might have suited consumers, and the time-consuming supervision he imposed on commercial enterprises may have acted as a hindrance to improvement. Other parts of Colbert's schemes have met with less equivocal condemnation. By his firm maintenance of

6464-448: The end of World War I, an international effort to restore the cathedral from the ruins has continued. During World War II , the city suffered additional damage. On the morning of 7 May 1945, at 2:41, General Eisenhower and the Allies received the unconditional surrender of the German Wehrmacht in Reims. General Alfred Jodl , German Chief-of-Staff, signed the surrender at the Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Force ( SHAEF ) as

6565-423: The entertainment only aggravated Fouquet's precarious position by calling attention to the immense gap between his ostentatious wealth and the visible poverty of the crown. The king was also concerned about Fouquet's carefully cultivated network of friends and clients, which made him one of the most influential individuals in the realm. Then only 22 years old, the king was afraid to act openly against so powerful

6666-456: The events at the crowning of Clovis I became a symbol used by the monarchy to claim the divine right to rule. Meetings of Pope Stephen II (752–757) with Pepin the Short , and of Pope Leo III (795–816) with Charlemagne (died 814), took place at Reims; here Pope Stephen IV crowned Louis the Debonnaire in 816. King Louis IV gave the city and countship of Reims to the archbishop Artaldus in 940. King Louis VII (reigned 1137–1180) gave

6767-415: The family, the Fouquets did not come from a lineage of noble blood. They were originally, in fact, merchants in the cloth trade, based in Angers. Fouquet's father later amassed great wealth as a shipowner in Brittany. He was noticed by Cardinal Richelieu , who gave him important positions in government. In 1628, he became an executive associate in the Company of the American Islands , a chartered company for

6868-410: The first blow at the man accused of being the greatest of the royal embezzlers, the superintendent Nicolas Fouquet . Fouquet's fall secured Colbert's own advancement. After the abolition of the office of superintendent and of many other offices dependent upon it, control of France's finances fell to a royal council. The sovereign functioned as its president, but Colbert, though only an intendant for

6969-502: The first four years, operated as its ruling spirit, enjoying as he did king's favor and confidence. His ruthlessness in the execution of his functions may have set a dangerous precedent, but it probably struck him necessary in that the council could not defer to individual interests. This way of administering his policies was particularly in evidence in his preparation and enforcement of his forestry ordinance of 1669 . When he had severely punished guilty officials, he turned his attention to

7070-429: The government's fraudulent creditors. Here he had a simple way of operating. He repudiated some of the public loans and reduced the interest rate on others. The amount of the reduction was initially his own decision but ultimately that of a council he established to examine all claims against the state. Much more serious difficulties met his attempts to introduce equality in taxation among the various classes. Cutting back

7171-401: The highest tier of French football. Stade Reims became the outstanding team of France in the 1950s and early 1960s and reached the final of the European Cup of Champions twice in that era. In October 2018, the city hosted the second Teqball World Cup. The city has hosted the Reims Marathon since 1984. Reims is served by two main railway stations: Gare de Reims in the city centre,

7272-593: The hub for regional transport, and the new Gare de Champagne-Ardenne TGV 5 kilometres (3 miles) southwest of the city with high-speed rail connections to Paris, Metz, Nancy and Strasbourg. There are two other railway stations for local services in the southern suburbs: Franchet d'Esperey and Reims-Maison-Blanche . The motorways A4 (Paris-Strasbourg), A26 (Calais-Langres) and A34 intersect near Reims. Nicolas Fouquet Nicolas Fouquet, marquis de Belle-Île, vicomte de Melun et Vaux ( French pronunciation: [nikɔla fukɛ] ; 27 January 1615 – 23 March 1680)

7373-407: The important position of procureur général to the parlement of Paris, thereby raising him to the most elite ranks of the noblesse de robe . Fouquet's already great wealth was augmented by his marriage in 1651 to 15-year old Marie-Madeleine de Castille. She belonged to a wealthy, well-connected family of the noblesse de robe . Fouquet had five children with her. During Mazarin's exile during

7474-471: The king announced that he was going to Nantes for the opening of the meeting of the provincial estates of Brittany. He required his ministers, including Fouquet, to go with him. On 5 September 1661, Fouquet was leaving the council chamber, flattered with the assurance of the king's esteem, when he was arrested by d’Artagnan , lieutenant of the king's musketeers. It is reported that the arrest took Fouquet completely by surprise because he apparently thought that he

7575-459: The king's displeasure with adverse reports about the deficit and unflattering reports about Fouquet. However, Fouquet had some protections – his high position at the parlement (he remained procureur général ) gave him immunity from prosecution by any authority except the Parlement , which he largely controlled. Another reason Fouquet may have felt secure is that what he was doing

7676-683: The man identified by historical research as the Man in the Iron Mask but whose real name never was spoken or written, is said to have served as one of Fouquet's valets (but the link between Fouquet's imprisonment and the Man in the Iron Mask is controversial ). Fouquet's wife was not allowed to write to him until 1672 and she was allowed to visit him only once, in 1679. The former minister bore his imprisonment with fortitude; he composed several translations and devotionals there. According to official records, Fouquet died in Pignerol on 23 March 1680. His son,

7777-463: The meantime, the peasants and commoners in the cities paid the price for this disorder. With Mazarin's death on 9 March 1661, Fouquet expected to be made chief minister, but Louis XIV was suspicious of his loyalty to the crown and his poorly disguised ambition. Upon assuming his kingly duties, it was with Fouquet in mind that Louis XIV made the well known statement that he would be his own chief minister. Colbert, perhaps seeking to succeed Fouquet, fed

7878-596: The merchant classes. When the king resolved to make all France Roman Catholic and revoked the Edict of Nantes , he followed him and urged his subordinates to do all they could to promote conversions . Colbert had nine children, including : His policies inspired those of Alexander Hamilton , the first treasury secretary of the United States. Six ships of the French Navy bore his name: In literature,

7979-407: The money received from the sale (about 1 million livres) into the royal treasury as a gesture to earn the favor of the king. :140, At the same time, he was weighed down by his own recent faux pas  – notably, when he tried unsuccessfully to recruit a mistress of the king as a spy (the mistress refused Fouquet's offer of money and duly reported it to the king). After his visit to Vaux,

8080-446: The number of the privileged proved impossible, but Colbert firmly resisted false claims for exemption and lightened direct taxation by increasing indirect taxes, from which the privileged could not escape. At the same time, he undertook improvements to the way taxes were collected. Colbert's relentless hard work and thrift made him an esteemed minister. He achieved a reputation for improving the state of French manufacturing and bringing

8181-420: The patronage of Cardinal Gousset , now buried within its walls ) also draw tourists. The Protestant Church of Reims , built in 1921–1923 over designs by Charles Letrosne , is an example of flamboyant neo-Gothic architecture. The Hôtel de Ville , erected in the 17th century and enlarged in the 19th, features a pediment with an equestrian statue of Louis XIII (reigned 1610 to 1643). Narcisse Brunette

8282-484: The power struggle between Colbert and Fouquet is one of the main plotlines of Alexandre Dumas, père 's novel The Vicomte of Bragelonne , the second sequel to The Three Musketeers . Dumas paints Colbert as an uncouth and ruthless schemer who stops at little, in contrast to the more refined Fouquet, counselled by Aramis , but also as a visionary patriot. Colbert's statue stands outside the Assemblée nationale . It

8383-492: The prestige of the image of France and the French royal family, Colbert played an active role in bringing the great Italian architect-sculptor, Gian Lorenzo Bernini , to Paris (June–October 1665), in order to design the new East Facade of the Louvre. This was a striking coup and caused a sensation because Bernini, the most famous artist in all of Europe, had never before (or after) consented to travel any significant distance to meet

8484-523: The proposal that suggested seizing part of the wealth of the clergy . In his hatred of idleness, he ventured to suppress no less than seventeen fêtes , and he had a project for reducing the number of persons devoted to clerical and monastic life by increasing the age for taking vows . He showed himself initially unwilling to interfere with heresy , for he realised the commercial value of the Huguenots (French Protestants), who were well represented among

8585-460: The representative for German President Karl Dönitz . The British statesman Leslie Hore-Belisha died of a cerebral haemorrhage while making a speech at the Hôtel de Ville in February 1957. Reims functions as a subprefecture of the department of Marne , in the administrative region of Grand Est . Although Reims is by far the largest commune in its department, Châlons-en-Champagne

8686-410: The royal treasury, the rest being skimmed off by various parties along the way. In this unsettled situation, Fouquet was responsible for decisions as to which funds should be used to meet the demands of the state's creditors, but also for the negotiations with the great financiers who lent money to the king. Fouquet's willingness to honor some of the royal promises enhanced the credibility of the crown as

8787-626: The second Fronde, Fouquet remained loyal to him, protecting his possessions and informing him of what was happening in the court. Upon Mazarin's return, Fouquet demanded and received as a reward the office of superintendent of finance (on 7 February 1653), making him the youngest person to hold this position in the Ancien Regime. The royal finances were in a disastrous state at this time, due to many years of war under Cardinals Richelieu and Mazarin and antiquated revenue practices. Only about half of total tax revenues collected actually ended up in

8888-446: The splendid, if in some cases specious, services that he rendered to literature, science and art. Colbert worked incessantly hard until his final hours. Work was his religion; he once pondered whether it was better to rise early and work or retire very late and work. He concluded that rising early and retiring late would be the ideal combination. Towards the end of his life he suffered from stomach aches, which caused him much distress. He

8989-578: The taxes paid by the people reached the King. The paper also contained an attack on Nicolas Fouquet . The postmaster of Paris, a spy of Fouquet's, read the letter, leading to a dispute which Mazarin attempted to suppress. In 1661, Mazarin died and Colbert "made sure of the King's favor" by revealing the location of some of Mazarin's hidden wealth. In January 1664 Colbert became the Superintendent of buildings ; in 1665 he became Controller-General of Finances ; in 1669, he became Secretary of State of

9090-413: The title of duke and peer to William of Champagne , archbishop from 1176 to 1202, and the archbishops of Reims took precedence over the other ecclesiastical peers of the realm . By the 10th century, Reims had become a centre of intellectual culture. Archbishop Adalberon (in office 969 to 988), seconded by the monk Gerbert (afterwards (from 999 to 1003) Pope Silvester II ), founded schools which taught

9191-439: The trial could be punishable by death. They were: During the trial, French public sympathy tended to support Fouquet. La Fontaine , Madame de Sévigné , Jean Loret , and many others wrote on his behalf. The guilty verdict and the sentence of banishment were handed down on 20 December 1664 – out of 22 judges, 13 were for banishment and 9 were for the death penalty. The king, disappointed with what he regarded as

9292-490: The various Gallic insurrections secured the special favour of the imperial power. At its height in Roman times the city had a population in the range of 30,000–50,000 or perhaps up to 100,000. Reims was first called Durocortorum in Latin , which is hypothesized to derive from a Gaulish name meaning "Door of Cortoro-". The city later took its name from the Remi tribe ( Rēmi or Rhēmi ). The modern French name

9393-411: Was active in attempting to forward the French colonial effort and in developing the coast of Brittany as a major location for hosting maritime trade. He cultivated high ranking friends in Brittany. He bought numerous armed ships and proceeded with a quasi-military development, apparently without informing the king. As part of this undertaking, Fouquet had bought Belle-Île-en-Mer in 1658, an island off

9494-483: Was asked to manage the affairs of the Cardinal while he was away. This new responsibility would detach Colbert from his other responsibility as commissaire des guerres . Although Colbert was not a supporter of Mazarin in principle, he would defend the cardinal's interests with unflagging devotion. Colbert's earliest recorded attempt at tax reform came in the form of a mémoire to Mazarin, showing that less than half of

9595-490: Was named general intendant of Paris, right as the second Fronde broke out. He ably came to the aid of Mazarin and the Queen Mother, Anne of Austria (who was regent for the young Louis XIV ) in defense of the monarchy. As a result, Fouquet earned the lasting loyalty and support of both Mazarin and Anne. These high-level positions raised his profile with the court. He was permitted in 1650 to buy, for 450,000 livres,

9696-426: Was not necessarily illegal – even Colbert later admitted that "Fouquet managed to conduct his robbery while keeping his hands clean." In 1641, the 26-year old Fouquet purchased the manor of Vaux-le-Vicomte and its small castle located 50 km south east of Paris. He spent enormous sums over a period of 20 years building a château on his estate. In terms of its size, magnificence and interior decor,

9797-479: Was reduced to eating moist bread dipped in chicken broth for his meals. By 64 he was bedridden and died seven days after his birthday. The surgeons who examined him found that he had been suffering from kidney stones . A huge stone was found in his urinary tract , which would explain his pain. Colbert played a subordinate role in the struggle between the king and the papacy over royal rights concerning vacant bishoprics , and he seems to have sympathised with

9898-413: Was the Superintendent of Finances in France from 1653 until 1661 under King Louis XIV . He had a glittering career, and acquired enormous wealth. He fell out of favor, accused of peculation (maladministration of the state's funds) and lèse-majesté (disrespect to the monarch). The king had him imprisoned from 1661 until his death in 1680. Nicolas Fouquet was born in Paris to an influential family of

9999-495: Was the architect of the city for nearly 50 years in the 19th century. He designed the Reims Manège and Circus , which "combines stone and brick in a fairly sober classical composition." Examples of Art Deco in Reims include the Carnegie library . The Foujita Chapel , built in 1965–1966 over designs and with frescos by Japanese–French artist Tsuguharu Foujita , has been listed as a monument historique since 1992. Reims

10100-712: Was vandalized in 2020 due to Colbert's part in drafting the Code noir . The main building of the Ministry of the Economy and Finance building , completed in 1989, is named after him. Reims Reims ( / r iː m z / REEMZ ; French: [ʁɛ̃s] ; also spelled Rheims in English) is the most populous city in the French department of Marne , and the 12th most populous city in France . The city lies 129 km (80 mi) northeast of Paris on

10201-466: Was very much in the king's good graces. He initially was imprisoned at the Chateau d’Angers . The trial lasted almost three years. Many procedural aspects of the investigation and trial were highly questionable, even by the standards of the 17th century. For example, the officials charged with the investigation answered directly to Fouquet's arch-enemy, Jean-Baptiste Colbert ; the trial was held before

#71928