Vincent de Gournay in the context of Physiocracy

⭐ Core Definition: Vincent de Gournay

Jacques Claude Marie Vincent de Gournay (French: [də ɡuʁnɛ]; 28 May 1712, Saint-Malo, Province of Brittany – 27 June 1759, Cádiz), was a French economist, who became an intendant of commerce. Some historians of economics believe that he coined the phrase laissez faire, laissez passer. Evidence was to be found when the French State parted the East India Company privilege (monopoly) on the slave trade. He is also credited with coining the term "bureaucracy". Together with François Quesnay, whose disciple he was, he was a leader of the Physiocratic School.

Gournay's father was Claude Vincent, a merchant in Saint-Malo as well as a secretary to the king. Gournay didn't write much, but had a great influence on French economic thought through his conversations with many important theorists. He became instrumental in popularizing the work of Richard Cantillon in France.

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Vincent de Gournay in the context of Laissez-faire

Laissez-faire (/ˌlɛseɪˈfɛər/ LESS-ay-FAIR, from French: laissez faire [lɛse fɛːʁ] , lit. 'let do') is a type of economic system in which transactions between private individuals are free from any form of economic interventionism (such as subsidies or regulations). As a system of thought, laissez-faire rests on the following axioms: "the individual is the basic unit in society, i.e., the standard of measurement in social calculus; the individual has a natural right to freedom; and the physical order of nature is a harmonious and self-regulating system." The original phrase was laissez faire, laissez passer, with the second part meaning "let (things) pass". It is generally attributed to Vincent de Gournay.

Another basic principle of laissez-faire holds that markets should naturally be competitive, a rule that the early advocates of laissez-faire always emphasized.

View the full Wikipedia page for Laissez-faire

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