Turgot, Anne Robert Jacques (1727–1781)

French liberal political economist and minister of finance under Louis XVI 1774–76. He was a close associate of the physiocrat school of economists, but believed that the state should intervene to improve social conditions. However, his attempts at reform were resented by the privileged classes and he was dismissed.

Turgot was born in Paris. As financial administrator of the impoverished province of Limoges, from 1761–73, his reforms resulted in dramatic improvements, and brought him to the attention of the court. Louis XVI promoted him to the position of comptroller-general, in which role he tried to make taxation fairer, and to improve the conditions of both the rural peasantry and poor town dwellers. His works include Réflexions sur la formation et la distribution de richesses/Thoughts on the Creation of Wealth and its Distribution, 1766.