Charles Alexandre de Calonne | |
|---|---|
_-_Google_Art_Project.jpg) Portrait of Calonne by Élisabeth-Louise Vigée-Le Brun (1784, Royal Collection) | |
| Controller-General of Finances | |
| In office 3 November 1783 – 17 May 1787 | |
| Monarch | Louis XVI |
| Preceded by | Henri Lefèvre d'Ormesson |
| Succeeded by | Michel Bouvard de Fourqueux |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 20 January 1734 Douai, French Flanders and Hainaut, France |
| Died | 30 October 1802 (aged 68) Paris, Seine, France |
| Spouses | Marie Joséphine Marquet
(m. 1766; died 1770)Anne-Rose de Nettine
(m. 1788–1802) |
| Children | 1 son |
| Alma mater | University of Paris |
| Profession | Statesman, parliamentarian |
| Signature |  |
Charles Alexandre de Calonne (20 January 1734 – 30 October 1802), titled Count of Hannonville in 1759,[1] was a French statesman, best known for being Louis XVI's Controller-General of Finances (minister of finance) in the years leading up to the French revolution.
Calonne attempted repeatedly to pass reforms that lowered government spending and implemented property added value tax among other things, but failed due to popular opposition to his policies from the Parlement and the Assembly of Notables. Realizing that the Parlement of Paris would never agree to reform, Calonne handpicked an Assembly of Notables in 1787 to approve new taxes. When they refused, Calonne's reputation plummeted and he was forced to leave the country.
- ^ John Nichols (April 1795). "The superlatively fine collection of ..." The Gentleman's Magazine. E. Cave.