When the news of several large-scale iron ore and coal mines newly discovered in the north reached Poitou, the Three Estates Conference in Genoa was being held.
Those who lost the bid were relieved by this news, but their voices were quickly drowned in the heated discussion on the topic of the Level 3 Conference.
As expected, the representative of the Koval family, Sidya Kovar, proposed at the meeting a 1/20 tax on all land owners.
Unsurprisingly, this proposal met with strong opposition from church representatives.
The reason of the church is that the church's land does not belong to individual priests, they are only the custodians of these lands. The church emphasizes that this privilege lies in thousands of years of tradition, in the recognition of successive dynasties, and in the guarantee of selfless dedication to God.
At the same time, the church also proposed that the urban rich also own a large amount of land in the countryside, and they should also pay 1/20 tax.
Representatives of the urban wealthy countered that their assets in the city have already paid various taxes, including market tax, transaction tax, housing tax, etc., and threatened that if they paid more, they would have to declare bankruptcy, which would cause economic recession and massive unemployment.
, which in turn will trigger riots among the unemployed.
The meeting lasted for three days. Among all 108 representatives of the meeting, the power of the church showed a decline. In the past, when the second estate and the third estate were evenly matched, the church played a key minority role.
Times are changing too fast.
The aristocracy is becoming divided. Some people still adhere to traditions, including ideas, while some people are passively or actively trying to adapt to the arrival of the new economy and changes in the situation.
Almost all of the powerful Third Estate sided with the Koval family, and at least one-third of the nobility clearly held the same position, which reflected the great influence of the Koval family among the nobility.
The side supporting Sidya was very vocal inside the court, and they also mobilized public opinion outside the court, but it was not enough to ensure that the motion passed with a majority vote.
Privately, under the leadership of Sidya, they lobbied and networked around to gain more support. The grapevine said that a yes vote was worth 50,000 gold louis.
The opposing nobles are all those who own more land, and also include some rural landowners. They have no other sources of income and mainly rely on land rent. Land is their foundation. Therefore, they are worried that the 1/20 tax will become common.
Taxes will reduce their income. Therefore, they advance and retreat together with the church, barely maintaining a balance with the other party.
The debate was fierce inside the venue, but there were divergent opinions outside the venue. Everyone who was concerned about the conference expressed their opinions in newspapers. Some liberal scholars and young people gave speeches outside the venue, calling for equality before taxation.
So, when the meeting fell into a stalemate, Sean put forward his own idea:
First, establish a tax threshold. Anyone who owns more than 10 hectares of land must pay 1/20 of the tax. Implement a stepped tax payment. The more land, the more the tax, but the maximum does not exceed 1/20 of the annual output value.
.This ensured the interests of small landowners and nobles who did not own much land.
At the same time, it also allows the church to calculate it separately according to the parish, rather than calculating it as a whole or making a one-time payment, which can actually reduce the church's expenditure a lot.
This article actually has the effect of inhibiting land annexation. Not only will those big families no longer be keen on increasing land, but in order to pay less taxes and avoid taxes, they will naturally disperse the land into the hands of family members - if these family members operate
If he is not good at it or lacks cash on hand, he may sell his small piece of land to his tenants or farmer neighbors.
Second, increase the number of representatives of the third level (this is what the third level most wants). We can continue to discuss in depth how much the quota will be increased.
The premise is to halve the tax burden of farmers and other people who pay military service tax and poll tax, and also reduce and exempt some miscellaneous taxes, such as road taxes - such miscellaneous taxes are actually only borne by farmers who do not actually use them, and are very
It is unreasonable and has been complained by most people.
As a rough estimate, in the first proposition alone, the 1/20 tax (actually land tax) paid by the rich in Genoa every year is a huge number, nearly 7 million per year. If other taxes are added, the total will be 1,500.
More than ten thousand,
The year before last, in 1830, Genoa paid a total of only 10 million in various taxes to the imperial treasury, which completely exceeded Genoa's annual tax apportionment to the empire, and there was even a lot of surplus. Therefore, it is completely feasible to reduce the burden on farmers and the poor.
Third, among the 30 provinces in the empire, Genoa, as the first province to impose a 1/20 tax, deserves an official reward from the empire.
Since Genoa is a member of the Estates-General and has certain autonomy in taxation, it was natural to refuse to establish the 1/20 tax. Agreeing to establish this tax reflects the Genoese people's irrefutable loyalty to the empire. This loyalty should
Be respected and rewarded.
Therefore, Sean proposed to use the 10 million taxes handed over to the treasury in 1830 as a basis. The excess should be divided between Genoa and the treasury in a ratio of seven to three. This would not only meet the empire's growing tax requirements, but also ensure that the province has certain financial resources.
.
Part of the proceeds from the Government House of Genoa will be used for the economic development, public expenditure and people's welfare of the province, including, of course, increasing the salaries of officials and ordinary civil servants.
Fourth, cancel the tax differences between cities in the province, unify tax rates and taxation methods, all goods and commodities are not taxed twice within the province, and no one is allowed to set up checkpoints at will. This also pleases the third party.
level, which is a disguised form of tax reduction for the third level.
Obviously, Sean is extremely well prepared, the data is detailed and reliable, and his views are clear and easy to understand.
Once his proposal was launched, most people, whether it was the Governor or Sidya Koval, who was hostile to Sean, gave Sean's proposal warm applause.
When the church representative took the step that Sean handed up, the general trend was that a small number of stubborn nobles had to surrender - this part of the nobles who only had land and no other income actually suffered the most.
Because Sean's tax package fully takes into account the interests of all parties, whether it is the Holy City, the church of the province, the nobility, the landowners and the urban bourgeoisie, and even the interests of the farmers who have no right to participate in the discussion are taken into consideration. It is fair.
, pertinent and forward-looking, and ambitious.
When Sean walked off the stage, all the delegates stood up.
They rushed to shake hands and hug him, and even the church representatives, who had always been steady and calm, frequently thanked him.
At this moment, people seemed to realize that a young man was truly rising in the land of Genoa.
In view of the importance of Sean's proposal and the support of the majority of people, for the sake of caution, at the suggestion of Governor Byrne, the moderator of the meeting, Mr. Sieyes, adjourned the meeting for three days to allow the staff of the Governor's Palace to discuss Sean's proposal.
Based on the proposal, a more specific and practical plan is proposed.
The new plan no longer focuses on whether taxes should be paid. Instead, the representatives are concerned about how to secure the interests of their own groups. They have to compare every penny and the debate becomes more intense.
After a three-day break, the meeting continued for another seven days. When the resolution was reached, everyone was exhausted.
People have only realized that Sean's proposal takes into account the principles of fairness and progress, and that it is conducive to resolving the current impasse while taking into account the future.
However, only a few people are vaguely aware that this proposal will have far-reaching impact - for the first time, it is determined in a provincial decree that "taxpaying is the obligation of citizens", "taxpayers are equal" and "taxes are collected from the people and used by the people".
"people" and other norms - this is a subversion of historical tradition.
If the final resolution is passed and implemented, it will cool down capital's enthusiasm for land, allow the rich to turn their attention to the capitalist economy, and guide capital to invest in industries other than land. The unification of local tax systems and the elimination of circulation barriers will
The great development of the capitalist commodity economy has initially cleared away obstacles.
But if we say who is the big winner, apart from the third level, it is of course Sean.
At this meeting, he did his best to unite the majority of the people and allowed the two opposing factions to reach a preliminary consensus, which was not easy.
At the same time, Sean's personal income is also very rich.
Not only did he acquire a large stretch of coast east of the Port of Poitou for the construction of docks and shipyards at the symbolic price of 1 gold louis, he also prompted the Estates-General to authorize the Governor's Palace to negotiate forcefully with the tax-holding company, and finally reached a 73% share of tea.
In the tax agreement, the tax rate is also 1/20, instead of being taxed at the luxury goods rate. Sean and his tea planting group members can also save a lot of tax.
This is another win-win agreement for all three parties. This tax has been levied since 1834. When all the tea gardens in Genoa are built and tea is sold, it is expected that the tax company and the province will receive tens of millions every year in 1835.
of taxes.
And one thing is that when the tea tax reaches tens of millions, the weight of Sean's words will obviously increase a lot compared to now.
All in all, Sean's rapid rise has been very eye-catching.
Countess Koval, who also achieved her goal, wrote in a letter to her husband:
"The Viscount of Rocky Mount has become the leader of most people. The cardinal has a close relationship with him. Some nobles see him as a model for making a fortune. The governor sees him as a reliable 'financier' because he brings great benefits to the government."
He received huge taxes, and the bankers regarded him as his big patron and rushed to provide him with loans. As for the scholars, they touted him as the "future of Genoa".
This young man seems to be born with the talents of a politician and an extraordinary business acumen... In short, he is not a traditional aristocrat. Perhaps it is his military experience that gives him the temperament of a leader.
Now it seems that his existence has affected your authority among the Genoese people, making your family the background for his success. Please make plans as soon as possible."