View source for Jean-Baptiste Colbert

{{short description|French statesman (1619–1683)}}
{{for|his son|Jean-Baptiste Colbert, Marquis de Seignelay}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| name                = 
| honorific-suffix    = Lord of [[Vandières, Marne|Vandières]] and [[Cernay-lès-Reims|Cernay]]
| image               = Colbert1666.jpg
| caption             = ''Portrait de Jean-Baptiste Colbert'' (1655)<br>by [[Philippe de Champaigne]]
| office              = [[Chief minister of France|First Minister of State of France]]
| monarch             = [[Louis XIV]]
| term_start          = 9 March 1661
| term_end            = 6 September 1683
| predecessor         = [[Cardinal Mazarin]]
| successor           = [[François-Michel le Tellier, Marquis de Louvois|The Marquis of Louvois]]
| office1             = [[Secretary of State of the Navy (France)|Secretary of State of the Navy of France]]
| monarch1            = [[Louis XIV]]
| term_start1         = 7 March 1669
| term_end1           = 6 September 1683
| predecessor1        = [[Hugues de Lionne|The Marquis of Fresnes]]
| successor1          = [[Jean-Baptiste Colbert, Marquis de Seignelay|The Marquis of Seignelay]]
| office3             = [[Controller-General of Finances|Controller-General of Finances of France]]
| monarch3            = [[Louis XIV of France|Louis XIV]]
| term_start3         = 12 December 1665
| term_end3           = 6 September 1683
| predecessor3        = Louis Le Tonnelier
| successor3          = Claude Le Pelletier
| office2             = [[Secretary of State of the Maison du Roi|Secretary of State of the Maison du Roi of France]]
| monarch2            = [[Louis XIV]]
| term_start2         = 16 February 1669
| term_end2           = 6 September 1683
| predecessor2        = [[Antoine de Ratabon]]
| successor2          = [[François-Michel le Tellier, Marquis de Louvois|The Marquis of Louvois]]
| birth_date          = {{birth date|df=yes|1619|08|29}}
| birth_place         = [[Reims]], [[Kingdom of France|France]]
| death_date          = {{death date and age|df=yes|1683|09|6|1619|08|29}}
| death_place         = [[Paris]], [[Kingdom of France|France]]
| restingplace        = [[Saint-Eustache, Paris]]
| nationality         = French
| spouse              = {{marriage|Marie Charron|1648|1683}}
| children            = {{plainlist|
*[[Jean-Baptiste Colbert, Marquis de Seignelay|Jean-Baptiste]]
*[[Jacques Nicolas Colbert|Jacques Nicolas]]
*Jean-Jules-Armand}}
| nickname            = ''Le Grand Colbert''<br />(The Great Colbert)
| module              = {{Infobox economist|embed=yes
| institution = {{plainlist|
*{{Lang|fr|[[Académie Française|Académie française]]}}
*{{Lang|fr|[[Académie royale d'architecture]]}}
*{{Lang|fr|[[French Academy of Sciences|Académie des sciences]]}}}}
| field = {{plainlist|
*[[Economics]]
*[[Military science]]
*[[Architecture]]}}
| school_tradition = [[Mercantilism]]
| influences = {{hlist|[[Josiah Child]]|[[Barthélemy de Laffemas]]}}
| contributions = [[Colbertism]]
| awards = [[Order of the Holy Spirit]]
| signature = Signatur Jean-Baptiste Colbert.PNG
}}
| 1namedata1          = Himself
| 1blankname1         = [[Chief minister of France|First Minister of State]]
| 1namedata2          = Himself
| 1blankname2         = [[Chief minister of France|First Minister of State]]
| 1blankname3         = [[Chief minister of France|First Minister of State]]
| 1namedata3          = Himself
}}
'''Jean-Baptiste Colbert''' ({{IPA|fr|ʒɑ̃.ba.tist kɔl.bɛʁ|lang}}; 29 August 1619 – 6 September 1683) was a [[French people|French]] statesman who served as [[Chief minister of France|First Minister of State]] from 1661 until his death in 1683 under the rule of King [[Louis XIV]]. His lasting impact on the organization of the country's politics and markets, known as [[Colbertism]], a doctrine often characterized as a variant of [[mercantilism]], earned him the nickname ''le Grand Colbert'' ({{IPA|fr|lə ɡʁɑ̃ kɔl.bɛʁ|}}; "the Great Colbert").

A native of [[Reims]], he was appointed [[Intendant (government official)|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 [[Economics|economy]] by raising [[tariff]]s and encouraging major [[public works]] projects, as well as to ensure that the [[Louis XIV's East India Company|French East India Company]] had access to foreign markets, so that they could always obtain [[coffee]], [[cotton]], [[dyewoods]], [[fur]], [[Black pepper|pepper]], and [[sugar]]. He acted to create a favorable [[balance of trade]] and increase [[Colony|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.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Richardt|first=Aimé|title=Colbert et le colbertisme|year=1997|quote=Promulgué deux ans après la mort de Colbert (en 1685), le code noir avait été conçu par lui sous le nom de code des colonies.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=JVugAAAAMAAJ|page=261|publisher=Tallandier |isbn=9782235021562|language=fr}}</ref> In addition, he founded France's [[merchant navy]] (''marine marchande''), becoming [[Secretary of State of the Navy (France)|Secretary of State of the Navy]] in 1669.

His effective [[Market (economics)|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 [[Flanders|Flemish]] [[Textile|cloth]] [[manufacturing]] in France, he founded royal [[tapestry]] works at [[Gobelins Manufactory|Gobelins]] and supported those at [[Beauvais tapestry|Beauvais]]. He issued more than 150 [[edict]]s to [[Regulation|regulate]] the [[guild]]s.<ref>One such [[law]] had the intention of improving the quality of cloth. The edict declared that if the authorities found a [[merchant]]'s cloth unsatisfactory on three separate occasions, they were to tie him to a post with the cloth attached to him.</ref> 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.

==Biography==
===Early life===
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 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 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 [[Feudal barony|Barony]] of [[Seignelay]].

===Rise to power===
Colbert was recommended to King [[Louis XIV]] by Mazarin. While [[Cardinal Mazarin]] was in exile, Louis's trust in Colbert grew. In 1652, Colbert 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 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.<ref name=EB1911>Chisholm 1911.</ref>

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 [[Bâtiments du Roi|Superintendent of buildings]]; in 1665 he became [[Controller-General of Finances]]; in 1669, he became [[Secretary of State of the Navy (France)|Secretary of State of the Navy]]; he also gained appointments as minister of [[commerce]], of the [[colony|colonies]], and of the [[palace]]. In short, Colbert acquired power in every department except that of war.<ref name=EB1911/>

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 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.<ref name=EB1911/>

===Economic reform===
[[File:Colbert-5.jpg|thumb|Colbert ''en grande tenue'' by [[Claude Lefèbvre]], 1666]]

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 des finances|intendant]]'' for 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 [[French forestry ordinance of 1669|forestry ordinance of 1669]].<ref name=":2">{{Cite journal |last=Bamford |first=Paul Walden |date=1955 |title=French Forest Legislation and Administration, 1660-1789 |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/3739851 |journal=Agricultural History |volume=29 |issue=3 |pages=97–107 |jstor=3739851 |issn=0002-1482}}</ref> When he had severely punished guilty officials, he turned his attention to 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 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 the [[economics|economy]] back from the brink of [[bankruptcy]]. Nevertheless, despite his best efforts, France grew increasingly [[poverty|impoverished]] because of the King's excessive spending on wars.<ref name="Letters to John Law">{{cite book|url= |title=Letters to John Law|author=Gavin John Adams|publisher=Newton Page|year=2012|isbn=978-1934619087|page=xxiii}}</ref>

===Economic theory===
{{Further|Colbertism|Protectionism}}

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,{{Citation needed|date=June 2024}} France fostered manufacturing enterprises in a wide variety of fields. The authorities established new industries, protected inventors, invited in workmen from foreign countries, and prohibited French workmen from emigrating.<ref name=EB1911/>

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 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.<ref name=EB1911/>

By his firm maintenance of 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.<ref name=EB1911/>

Unable to abolish the duties on the passage of goods from [[provinces of France|province to province]], he did what he could to induce the provinces to equalize them.<ref name=EB1911/> Currency exchange rates still remained between these provinces despite a policy focusing on the unification of French trade.{{Citation needed|date=June 2024}} His régime improved roads and canals. [[Pierre Paul Riquet]] (1604–1680) planned and constructed the [[Canal du Midi]] under Colbert's patronage.<ref name=EB1911/>

To encourage overseas trade with the [[Levant]], [[Senegal]], [[Guinea]] and other places, Colbert granted privileges to companies, but, like the noted [[Louis XIV's East India Company|French East India Company]], all proved unsuccessful.<ref name=EB1911/>

===Promoter of culture and science===
[[File:Jean Baptiste Colbert -Antoine Coysevox - Musée du Louvre Sculptures MR 2115 ; N 15273.jpg|thumb|190px|Bust of Colbert by [[Antoine Coysevox]], Paris, [[Louvre]]]]

Colbert took much interest in art and literature. He possessed 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 Nationale|Bibliothèque Royale]].<ref>{{cite book|last=Busby|first=Keith|title=Les Manuscrits de Chrétien de Troyes|year=1993|publisher=Rodopi|isbn=978-9051836035|pages=113–114}}</ref>

Colbert founded a number of institutions:
* in 1663 the [[Académie des Inscriptions et Médailles|Academy of Inscriptions and Medals]]
* in 1666 the [[French Academy of Sciences|Academy of Sciences]]
* in 1667 the [[Paris Observatory]], which he employed [[Claude Perrault]] to build and brought [[Giovanni Domenico Cassini]] (1625–1712) from Italy to superintend
* in 1669 the [[Académie d'Opéra]], later renamed the Académie Royale de Musique
* in 1671 the [[Académie Royale d'Architecture|Academy of Architecture]]
* Academies at [[Arles]], [[Soissons]], [[Nîmes]] and many other towns

He reorganised the [[Académie de peinture et de sculpture|Academy of Painting and Sculpture]] which Mazarin had established. Wishing to increase 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#Visit to France and service to King Louis XIV|Gian Lorenzo Bernini]], to Paris (June–October 1665), in order to design the new [[Louvre Colonnade|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 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.<ref>For Colbert and Bernini in Paris in 1665, see Franco Mormando, ''Bernini: His Life and His Rome'' (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2011), pp. 245–288. {{ISBN?}}</ref>

In 1666 Colbert established an ''Académie dedicated to the development of science and advising the government in this field''. For the [[French Academy of Sciences]] he chose scientists, mathematicians, as well as physicists which at the time included anatomists, botanists, and zoologists. The first session was held on 22 December 1666 in Paris.<ref>{{cite web|title=History of the Academy 1666-1699 the first Academy of Sciences|url=https://www.academie-sciences.fr/en/history-academy|publisher=Academie des Sciences}}</ref> Colbert himself became a member of the [[Académie Française]]. He proposed one very characteristic rule with the intention of expediting the great ''[[Le dictionnaire de l'Académie française|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 the [[Louvre]] with hundreds of pictures and statues.

He gave many pensions to men of letters, among whom we find [[Molière]], [[Pierre Corneille|Corneille]], [[Jean Racine|Racine]], [[Nicolas Boileau-Despréaux|Boileau]], [[Pierre Daniel Huet|P D Huet]] (1630–1721) and [[Antoine Varillas]] (1626–1696); and even foreigners, as [[Christiaan Huygens|Huygens]], [[Carlo Roberto Dati]] the [[Accademia della Crusca|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 the splendid, if in some cases specious, services that he rendered to literature, science and art.

===Death===
[[File:Colbert tomb at St-Eustache 2011-03.jpg|thumb|200px|The tomb of Colbert, by [[Antoine Coysevox]] and [[Jean-Baptiste Tuby]], 1685, in [[Église Saint-Eustache, Paris]]<ref>The tomb, commissioned by Colbert's widow in 1685, was designed by [[Charles Le Brun]], director of official arts in France; Tuby assisted Colbert, providing one of the accompanying figures; the tomb was dismantled at the [[French Revolution]] and reinstated, in rearranged form, in 1818.</ref>]]

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 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 stone]]s. A huge stone was found in his [[urinary tract]], which would explain his pain.

==Legacy==
[[File:Blason Colbert.svg|thumb|upright|Coat of arms of the [[Colbert family]]]]

The main building of the [[Ministry of the Economy and Finance building]], completed in 1989, is named after him.

Colbert had nine children, including :
* Jeanne-Marie Colbert (1650–1732) , married [[Charles Honoré d'Albert, duc de Luynes]]
* [[Jean-Baptiste Colbert, Marquis de Seignelay]] (1651–1690) , followed his father as [[Secretary of State of the Navy (France)|Secretary of State of the Navy]]
* [[Jacques-Nicolas Colbert]] (1654–1707) , [[Archbishop of Rouen]]
* Henriette-Louise (1657–1733) , married [[Paul de Beauvilliers, 2nd duc de Saint-Aignan]]
* Antoine-Martin Colbert (1659–1689), killed after the [[Battle of Walcourt]]
* [[Jean-Jules-Armand Colbert]] (1664–1704), marquis de Blainville, killed at the [[Battle of Blenheim]]
* Charles-Edouard Colbert (1670–1690), comte de Sceaux, killed at the [[Battle of Fleurus (1690)|Battle of Fleurus]]

His policies inspired those of [[Alexander Hamilton]], the first treasury secretary of the United States.<ref>{{cite book|last=Chernow|first=Ron|title=Alexander Hamilton|url=https://archive.org/details/alexanderhamilto00cher|url-access=registration|year=2004|publisher=Penguin Press|location=New York|pages=[https://archive.org/details/alexanderhamilto00cher/page/170 170]|isbn=9781594200090 }}</ref>

Six ships of the [[French Navy]] bore his name:
* A steam corvette in 1848
* A battleship in 1875
* A cargo ship in 1914
* A dundee in 1916
* A [[French cruiser Colbert (1928)|French heavy cruiser]], launched 1928
* A [[French cruiser Colbert (C611)|French missile cruiser]], launched 1956

In literature, the power struggle between Colbert and Fouquet is one of the main plotlines of [[Alexandre Dumas|Alexandre Dumas, père]]'s novel ''[[The Vicomte of Bragelonne: Ten Years Later|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.

==The Code Noir==
Colbert's statue stands outside the [[National Assembly (France)|Assemblée nationale]]. It was vandalized in 2020 due to Colbert's part in drafting the [[Code Noir]].<ref>{{Cite web|date=2020-06-24|title=France Colbert row: Statue vandalised over slavery code|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-53163714|publisher=BBC}}</ref> This legal instrument sanctioned a intentionally brutal system of torture and repression to enforce institutional [[slavery]] in the French colonial empire and restrict the enterprise of free Black people.<ref>{{Cite web|date=2020-06-24|title=Jean-Baptiste Colbert by Philippe de Champaigne 1655 |url=https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/435886|publisher=Metropolitan Museum of Art}}</ref>

==Quotes==
* "It is simply, and solely, the abundance of money within a [[Sovereign state|state]] [which] makes the difference in its grandeur and power."<ref>{{cite book|author=Arvind Subramanian|title=Eclipse: Living in the Shadow of China's Economic Dominance|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=N3opPesO6VcC|year=2011|publisher=Peterson Institute|isbn=978-0-88132-641-3|page=[https://archive.org/details/eclipselivingins0000subr/page/126 126]}}</ref>
* "The art of [[taxation]] consists in so plucking the goose as to obtain the largest [number] of feathers with the least possible amount of hissing."<ref>{{cite book|author1=Roman Frydman|author2=Kenneth Murphy|author3=Andrzej Rapaczyński|title=Capitalism With a Comrade's Face: Studies in the Postcommunist Transition|url=https://archive.org/details/capitalismwithco0000fryd|url-access=registration|year=1998|publisher=Central European University Press|isbn=978-963-9116-06-1}}</ref>

==See also==
{{Portal|Biography}}
* [[French West India Company]]
* [[Nicolas Fouquet]]
* [[French forestry ordinance of 1669|French forestry Ordinance of 1669]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==Sources==
* Ames, Glenn J. ''Colbert, Mercantilism, and the French Quest for Asian Trade'' (1996)
* {{cite EB1911|wstitle=Colbert, Jean Baptiste}}
* Clément, Jean-Pierre. ''[[gutenberg:27215|Vie de Colbert]]'', (Paris, 1846)
: ''Lettres, instructions, et Memoires de Colbert'', (eight volumes, Paris, 1861–82)
: ''Histoire de Colbert et son administration'', edited by Mademoiselle Clément, (Paris, 1874)
* Gordault, ''Colbert, ministre de Louis XIV'', (Tours, 1885)
* Lavisse, ''Histoire de France'', volume vii, part i, (Tours, 1905)
* Sargent, ''Economic Policy of Colbert'', (London, 1899), which contains a bibliography of works relating to Colbert and his time.
* [[Luc-Normand Tellier|Tellier, Luc-Normand]], ''[http://www.puq.ca/catalogue/livres/face-aux-colbert-1409.html Face aux Colbert : les Le Tellier, Vauban, Turgot ... et l'avènement du libéralisme]'', Presses de l'Université du Québec, 1987, 816 pages.
*Soll, Jacob ''[http://www.tnr.com/article/books-and-arts/the-colbert-report?page=0,0 The Information Master: Jean-Baptiste Colbert's Secret State Intelligence System];'' (University of Michigan Press 2009).

==Further reading==
* [[Cole, Charles Woolsey]] (1939). ''Colbert and a Century of French Mercantilism'', two volumes. New York: Columbia University Press. [https://archive.org/details/bwb_P8-BNW-321_1/page/n9/mode/2up Vol. 1] and [https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.1318/page/n5/mode/1up vol.2] at [[Internet Archive]].

==External links==
* {{Commons-inline}}
{{Wikiquote}}
* [https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/27215 ''Histoire de la vie et de l'administration de Colbert''] by Jean-Pierre Clément
* [http://dla.library.upenn.edu/dla/ead/detail.html?id=EAD_upenn_rbml_MsColl579 Jean-Baptiste Colbert Correspondence] Kislak Center for Special Collections, Rare Books and Manuscripts, University of Pennsylvania
* {{cite book |last= Colyar|first= H. A. de |chapter=Jean Baptiste Colbert |editor1= Macdonell, John |editor1-link = John Macdonell (judge)|editor2= Manson, Edward William Donoghue |title= Great Jurists of the World |place= London |publisher= John Murray |year= 1913 |pages= [https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.13326/page/n273 248]–282 |url=https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.13326|access-date= 9 March 2019 |via= Internet Archive}}

{{Académie française Seat 24}}
{{Finance Ministers of France}}
{{Mercantilists}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Colbert, Jean-Baptiste}}
[[Category:1619 births]]
[[Category:1683 deaths]]
[[Category:Colbert family|Jean-Baptiste]]
[[Category:Finance ministers of France]]
[[Category:French economists]]
[[Category:French Roman Catholics]]
[[Category:Government ministers of France]]
[[Category:Politicians from Reims]]
[[Category:Heads of the Bâtiments du Roi]]
[[Category:Members of the Académie Française]]
[[Category:Mercantilists]]
[[Category:Burials at Saint-Eustache, Paris]]
[[Category:Louis XIV]]
[[Category:17th-century French politicians]]
[[Category:People associated with the Affair of the Poisons]]
[[Category:17th-century French businesspeople]]
[[Category:Court of Louis XIV]]