Economic+Factors

**//15th and 16th Century Paris, France: The World's Luxury Marketplace //**
 []  A burgeoning colonial empire with global trade networks, France became impirialistic adversaries with Spain during the late 1500’s. This sparked the assasination of Henri III and attempted seizure of the thrown by the Spaniards vis-à-vis the Catholic Church. Inevitably unsuccessful, the Spanish declared war on France in 1596. In the early 17th Century, the syncronization of the expanding colonies and the war with Spain created inflationary pressures that suppressed the lifestyles of the working-class citizen. The aristocracy leveraged their nation’s economy on luxuries, soft commodities and manufactured goods such as furs, fish, alcohol and guns. In a state of constant conflict, Paris created meager inroads to economic prowess over this same time period. Below is a link to Claudin de Semisy's (1490-1562) composition of Tant que je vivrai (As Long as I Live). This should convey the ethos of social struggles overshadowed by a rigid capitalist structure.

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**Empowering the Nation's People **
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The economic transition was from an archaic lord-serfdom bondage known as feudalism, to a merchant capitalist system with overpowering aristocrats. In general, the 15th century saw a modest recovery and the aristocrats were the first to prosper. The decorative arts blossomed, supported by intensifying worldwide trade headed by Venice in Italy and the Hanseatic League in the Baltic. ====== 

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In 1515 Francis I, a fan of the arts, claimed the French throne and encouraged the Renaissance movements in culture. In order to boost the economic prosperity of Paris, the king supported the city’s bourgeoisie (middle-class people, mainly merchants and artisans)(Pioch 2006). The cloth retail and paper manufacturing global markets employed a large portion of the Parisian working class during the mid 1500's. ======

[[image:Francis_I_(1515-1547)-fr.svg.png]]


[]  (Iannuzzo, 2004) Paris regularly had three major currencies commonly traded in the city. These currencies were from the major colonial powers of Britain, Spain and France's écu au soleil (cross and shield). From 1500 to 1600 the currency of France had lost a great deal of its consumer purchasing power. []  This chart shows tax receipts with respect to coin and bushels of wheat. In the late 1500's, notice how the coin receipts remained constant or increased slightly, while the receipts in terms of bushels of wheat drop dramatically. This was caused by Henri IV's spending and the harsh winters that desimated crop yeilds, driving up prices.
 * Monetary History**

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif;">**Fiscal Taxation Efforts** <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 14.7px; line-height: normal; white-space: pre;">[] <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 70%;"> <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif;"> The introduction of a paulette allowed court officials to insure the rights of their position for their lineage. The tax was equal to one-sixteenth (1/16) of the estate’s capital. This concept conceived by the Duke of Sully, took six years to balance the soveirgn budget deficit created by Henry IV’s lavish spending. This taxation on the aristocracy was exactly what was needed at the time. It allowed for the wealthy to pay in advance for future economic benefit. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif;"> <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-weight: normal; font-style: normal;"> [] <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif;"> (Iannuzzo, 2004)
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif;">Expansionary Fatigue **<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif;">

The economy of Paris became much more complex as citizens had local infrastructure such as theatres, breweries, and gambling on which to spend their descretionary wages. The sweet music did not last and property values began to rise as relative wages dropped. Homelessness and vagrancy were becoming too common, and alcoholism became a public safety issue. By the end of the 16th century, the aristocracy had quickly siezed the opportunity to buy up available property and build out their lovely estates.