Théorie de l'impôt
First edition.
“Mirabeau develops the principles of the new school with a frankness that earned him many supporters and led to his imprisonment” (INED).
A very fine copy preserved in its contemporary binding.
In-4 of VIII and 336 pp.
Marbled calf, triple cold-stamped fillet framing the boards, spine with raised bands adorned with double fillet and gilt floral tools, red morocco title label, decorated edges, red edges, minimal marginal worming without affecting the text Contemporary binding.
255 x 193 mm.
Mirabeau, Victor de Riquetti, marquis de. Theory of Taxation.
S.l. n.d., 1760.
Very rare first edition of this text by Mirabeau, one of the most important economic and financial works of the Ancien Régime.
Goldsmiths, 9602; Kress, 5883; Einaudi, 3946; Tchemerzine, IV, 751; INED, 3209; Paul Jammes, "Le Bûcher bibliographique", no. 568; Belin, "Le Mouvement philosophique", p. 186.
“A work considered by the author as his masterpiece. It was received with such success that there were nearly six twelvemo editions in 1761” (Tchemerzine).
“In it Mirabeau develops the principles of the new school with a frankness which brought him many supporters and also got him imprisoned. He rises up, notably, against the tax farmers-general, gives a severe critique of the fiscal system then in force, and states three conditions necessary for judicious taxation” (INED).
Higgs notes that the book is “of real importance in the history of financial theory” (The Physiocrats, p. 57).
This is the first truly personal work by the Marquis de Mirabeau since his conversion to physiocratic doctrine. Composed with the collaboration of Quesnay, the Théorie de l'impôt helped establish the ideas of the physiocratic movement, of which it is one of the most illustrious achievements.
This philanthropic treatise is divided into nine dialogues dealing with contribution, retribution, pecuniary taxation, trade and industry, internal administration, the nation’s revenues, the suppression of excessive taxation, and the distribution of tax receipts.
“Mirabeau, who had met Quesnay around 1758 and immediately became his devoted and even fanatical disciple, wrote, in 1761, under his inspiration, the "Théorie de l'impôt." In it he laid down the principles of absolute commercial liberty, the consent to taxation, the creation of a single tax levied on the net product of the land, that is, on landed income; he advocated the abolition of entry duties and the general tax farms as the only way to avoid bankruptcy, which he saw as imminent. Six days after publication of the book, which was a great success, Mirabeau was taken to Vincennes. He remained there for eight days; printer Hérissant was forbidden to practice his trade for two months, and various other booksellers and hawkers were arrested” (Belin).
An advocate of a fiscal revolution based on a universal and proportional tax, Mirabeau criticizes the Ancien Régime’s tax system.
Beautiful copy, large-margined, preserved in its elegant contemporary binding.
