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| 1720s in France | |
|---|---|
| Decade | 1720s |
| Country | France |
| Monarch | Louis XV |
| Regent | Philippe II, Duke of Orléans (regency until 1723) |
| Capital | Paris |
| Major events | Mississippi Bubble; Treaty of The Hague (1720); birth of Louis XV's majority; death of Philippe II, Duke of Orléans |
| Currency | Livre tournois |
1720s in France The 1720s in France were a decade of political transition, financial crisis, and cultural vibrancy under Louis XV and the concluding years of the Regency of Philippe d'Orléans. The period was defined by the collapse of the Mississippi Company and the Mississippi Bubble, administrative reforms, and intense activity in Parisian salons, Académie française, and provincial courts. International diplomacy with powers such as Great Britain, the Dutch Republic, the Spanish Empire, and the Holy Roman Empire shaped military and commercial alignments.
The decade saw the end of the Regency of Philippe d'Orléans and the assumption of personal rule by Louis XV in 1723, accompanied by shifts in ministerial power involving figures like Cardinal Dubois, Louis Henri, Duke of Bourbon, and André-Hercule de Fleury. Parliamentary conflicts featured the Parlement of Paris resisting royal edicts and asserting remonstrance rights, while provincial estates such as the États de Bretagne and the Estates of Burgundy navigated tax remittances under the crown. The crown negotiated with financiers such as John Law (banker) and institutions like the Compagnie d'Occident over debt consolidation, and legal cases in Paris and Rouen probed limits of royal prerogative. Royal household politics involved the Duc de Maine and members of the House of Bourbon, while patrons such as Marquise de Pompadour would later reflect ongoing courtly culture.
The decade is dominated by the Mississippi Bubble precipitated by the schemes of John Law (banker) and the rise of the Compagnie d'Occident (the Louisiana Company), which impacted Parisian banks, provincial financiers, and foreign creditors from Amsterdam to London. The crash of 1720 led to banking collapses, mixtures of specie and paper money debates, and legislative responses by the King's Council and ministers including Philippe II, Duke of Orléans and Cardinal Dubois. The crash influenced commercial relations with the Dutch East India Company, affected trade through ports such as Bordeaux and Marseille, and altered fiscal policy regarding the Livre tournois and state debt instruments. Economic distress spurred speculative litigation in the Chambre des comptes and provoked peasants' and creditors' unrest in regions like Normandy and Brittany.
Parisian society revolved around salons hosted by figures such as Madame de Lambert, Madame de Tencin, and Madame de Staël's predecessors, while provincial urban centers like Lyon and Toulouse maintained guild culture and civic festivals. The decade featured patronage networks linking aristocrats like the Duc de Richelieu and clergy such as Cardinal de Rohan to artists and intellectuals from the Académie des Inscriptions et Belles-Lettres and the Académie royale de peinture et de sculpture. Rituals at the Palace of Versailles continued under courtiers including members of the House of Orléans and reinforced aristocratic identity, even as commoners in Paris and rural communities responded to price shocks and taxes with petitions to provincial parlements and municipal councils.
Literary life flourished with contributions from authors and dramatists such as Voltaire, Marivaux, Alain-René Lesage, Nicolas Boileau-Despréaux's influence lingering, and Pierre de Marivaux publishing works that probed sentiment and society. The Enlightenment salons and the Philosophes—including Émilie du Châtelet and early networks of Denis Diderot—began shaping critical discourse alongside periodicals like Mercure de France and pamphleteers responding to the Mississippi crisis. In the visual arts, painters from the Rococo movement such as Antoine Watteau (influence persisting) and sculptors associated with the Académie royale de peinture et de sculpture produced work for patrons in Versailles and aristocratic hôtels. Theatre thrived at institutions including the Comédie-Française and the Opéra de Paris, featuring performers and librettists tied to court and public stages.
Scientific inquiry continued in institutions like the Académie des Sciences with members such as René Antoine Ferchault de Réaumur contributing to natural history and experimental methods, while engineers influenced by Séraphin-Louis Grandjean de Montigny and military designers applied advances in fortification. Cartography and colonial navigation were advanced by expeditions linked to the Compagnie des Indes and cartographers mapping Louisiana and the Antilles. Medical practitioners in Paris hospitals and professors at the University of Paris debated inoculation practices following experiments by figures such as Lady Mary Wortley Montagu's influence across Europe and studied public health responses to urban disease in ports like Marseille.
France negotiated treaties such as the Treaty of The Hague (1720) in a European balance involving Great Britain, the Dutch Republic, and the Holy Roman Empire, while colonial competition involved the Spanish Empire, Portugal, and British America. Naval deployments centered on Mediterranean and Atlantic squadrons operating from Toulon and Brest and affected commerce protection for vessels tied to the Compagnie des Indes. Military administration modernized via officers trained in schools influenced by engineers like Vauban's legacy and commanders who served in garrison towns such as Strasbourg and Metz. Diplomatic figures including Cardinal Fleury's circles and envoy networks in London and Madrid managed alliances and commercial disputes arising after the Mississippi collapse.
Notable births in the 1720s included future luminaries such as Jean-Baptiste Greuze (painter), Étienne Bézout (mathematician), and Charles-Nicolas Cochin (the younger) (engraver), while deaths included key figures like Philippe II, Duke of Orléans (regent), financiers linked to the Mississippi Company, and cultural personages whose careers spanned the late 17th century and early 18th-century institutions such as the Académie française and the Académie des Sciences.
Category:Decades of France