Földvári Books

The First Manual of Public Finance

Hennequin, Jean

Le guidon general des finances, Contenant La conservation & interpretation des droicts sacrez & inalienables du domaine du Roy & coronne de France. Avec l'instruction du maniement de toutes ses finances, tant ordinaires qu'extraordinaires: Necessaire non seulement aux comptables d'icelles finances, mais aussi aux gens tant ecclesistiques, Nobles, Praticie[n]s, que autres, pour euiter aux saisies de leurs fiefs & temporels, ensemble cognoistre les torts & exactions que leur pourroient faire les Receueurs aians l'administration & recouurement à faire d'iceux droicts. Divisé en cinq parties. Par Jean Hennequin Champenois.

A Paris: Chez Abel L’Angelier, au premier pillier de la grand Salle du Palais, M. D. LXXXVI [1586]. Second edition (first in 1585). With woodcut initials, woodcut and typographical headpieces. In 17th century leather. Spine with five raised bands with red, gilt title vignette, compartments richly gilt. Gilt turn-ins. Panels ruled with blind frame. Edges tinted. 8°; ff. [8], 334 (=304), [16]. Ownership inscriptions from the 17th century on title page recto and verso (on recto by Franciscus Augier, on verso illegible, dated to 1669). Antoine Mouradian’s bookplate on the inner front panel. Binding rubbed, corners bumped. Small damage to the spine at the head, affecting the hinges. Some light brown stains here and there. Water stain to the lower corner to the last quire. The outer margin of Q8 artistically restored at the lower corner, no effect to print space, bound after R1. Otherwise a clean and firm copy in very good condition.

The second edition of the first manual of public finances.

Jean Hennequin’s lengthy treatise in five parts, deals with the domain of the kingdom, the history of administration, finance, and taxation in France in the sixteenth century, and it is known as the first book to be published on the topic of public finances. (Soula)

Very less is known about the author, whose family originated from Champagne, and “had its tentacles through the entire robe nobility or northern France". (Parsons p. 47) Jean Hennequin seigneur de Bernonville (1526–1597) was a Parisian economist and thinker, auditor at the Court of Auditors (Chambres des comptes). Some sources erroneously identify him with his namesake, a disciple and collaborator of Giordano Bruno during his stay in Paris in the early 1580s. (Vidal pp. 298–299)

Le guidon general des financiers was very successful and became very popular immediately after its publication in 1585, the present, second edition appeared in the subsequent year, and about fifteen editions and re-edited versions were printed until the mid 17th century.

This edition is one of scarcest, WorldCat locates only one copy in Paris (Bibliothèque Sainte-Geneviève), USTC shows one more in Bordeaux (Bibliothèque municipale).

FB 25041, USTC 48611

Bibl.: Parsons, J.: Making Money in Sixteenth-Century France. Currency, Culture, and the State. Ithaca; London Cornell University Press 2014.; Soula, M.: Le premier manuel de Finances publiques : Le guidon général des financiers de Jean Hennequin (1585). Un outil au service de l'absolutisme financier. In: Revue française de finances publiques, 97 (2007), pp. 199–209.; Vidal, D.: Critique de la raison mystique. Benoît de Canfield: possession et dépossession au XVIIe siècle. Grenoble: J. Millon, 1990.

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Price: €3,500.00