intendant

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intendant , French administrative official who served as the chief royal representative in the provinces under the ancien régime. The intendants first gained importance under Cardinal Richelieu, Louis XIII's principal minister, in the early 17th cent.; he used them extensively to consolidate the country and undermine feudal authority. At first the intendant lacked power outside his specific commission from the king. Under Louis XIV's rule (1643–1715), however, the intendant became a vital permanent state official, appointed by the king. Granted full powers in the fields of justice, finance, and police in the provinces, the intendant often tried civil and criminal cases, suspended unsuitable judges, summoned special tribunals, regulated municipal government, stamped out banditry and smuggling, levied and collected taxes, and drew the militia by lot. Initially, intendants were non-nobles, dependent upon royal favor for advancement. As faithful instruments of royal centralization they aroused the hostility of the local authorities, notably the parlements and the provincial governors. During the abortive revolution known as the Fronde (1648–53) the office was virtually abolished, but it was reinstated in 1653 after the rebellion had been crushed. Distributed throughout the realm, each généralité had one intendant by 1689. In the 18th cent. all intendants were from the nobility; at the outbreak of the French Revolution (1789) there were 33 in France. The authority of the intendants was severely shaken in the provincial revolts of 1788. A symbol of royal absolutism, the office was abolished (Dec., 1789) by the Constituent Assembly early in the French Revolution.

Bibliography: See study by V. Gruder (1968).

intendant An agent of the French king under the ANCIEN RÉGIME. The office was developed as an emergency measure to counter disobedience during the 1630s, building on an earlier practice of sending royal officials from the central councils on tours of inspection in the provinces. Under RICHELIEU and LOUIS XIV their authority was extended into every sphere of administration, and they became the principal link between the central government and the provinces. They supervised local courts, oversaw the tax system, and kept the crown informed about the political and economic situation in their généralités (administrative units). The office was abolished at the Revolution, but many of the same functions were later performed by the préfets.

Intendant (Ger.). Superintendent. Administrative dir. (not necessarily artistic or mus. dir.) of a Ger. opera house or th.

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