Jules Charles-Roux (14 November 1841 – 6 March 1918) was a French businessman and politician. He served as the vice president of the

Suez Canal Company Suez ( ar, السويس '; ) is a seaport city (population of about 750,000 ) in north-eastern Egypt, located on the north coast of the Gulf of Suez (a branch of the Red Sea), near the southern terminus of the Suez Canal, having the same b ...

. He served as a corporate director of shipping companies in the

Antilles The Antilles (; gcf, label=Antillean Creole, Antiy; es, Antillas; french: Antilles; nl, Antillen; ht, Antiy; pap, Antias; Jamaican Patois: ''Antiliiz'') is an archipelago bordered by the Caribbean Sea to the south and west, the Gulf of Mex ...

West Africa West Africa or Western Africa is the westernmost region of Africa. The United Nations defines Western Africa as the 16 countries of Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Ivory Coast, Liberia, Mali, Maurit ...

and

French Indochina French Indochina (previously spelled as French Indo-China),; vi, Đông Dương thuộc Pháp, , lit. 'East Ocean under French Control; km, ឥណ្ឌូចិនបារាំង, ; th, อินโดจีนฝรั่งเศส, ...

. He was a supporter of the

French colonial empire The French colonial empire () comprised the overseas colonies, protectorates and mandate territories that came under French rule from the 16th century onward. A distinction is generally made between the "First French Colonial Empire", that exist ...

Early life

Jules Charles-Roux was born on 14 November 1841 in

Marseille Marseille ( , , ; also spelled in English as Marseilles; oc, Marselha ) is the prefecture of the French department of Bouches-du-Rhône and capital of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Situated in the camargue region of southern Franc ...

, France. His father founded La Maison Charles-Roux, a soap factory, in 1828. His paternal ancestor,

Georges Roux Georges Raymond Nicolas Albert Roux (; November 16, 1914 – August 12, 1999) was a French writer, author of the popular history books about the Ancient Near East, ''Ancient Iraq'' and ''La Mésopotamie''. Son of a French Army officer, Roux m ...

, was a merchant in the

in the 18th century. Charles-Roux graduated from

Aix-Marseille University Aix-Marseille University (AMU; french: Aix-Marseille Université; formally incorporated as ''Université d'Aix-Marseille'') is a public research university located in the Provence region of southern France. It was founded in 1409 when Louis II o ...

, where he studied chemistry.

Career

Charles-Roux started his career by working for his father's company. He subsequently worked for the Marseille chamber of commerce. Charles-Roux served on the boards of directors of the

Compagnie Générale Transatlantique The Compagnie Générale Transatlantique (CGT, and commonly named "Transat"), typically known overseas as the French Line, was a French shipping company. Established in 1855 by the Péreire brothers, brothers Émile and Issac Péreire under the ...

, the Compagnie Fraissinet, the Companie des Messageries Maritimes, the Compagnie des correspondances fluviales du Tonkin, the Distilleries de la Méditerranée and the

Banque de France The Bank of France ( French: ''Banque de France''), headquartered in Paris, is the central bank of France. Founded in 1800, it began as a private institution for managing state debts and issuing notes. It is responsible for the accounts of the F ...

. He was also on the board of the

, eventually serving as its vice president in 1897. Charles-Roux was a supporter of the

and free market economics, partly due to the influence of

Léon Say Jean-Baptiste-Léon Say (6 June 1826, Paris – 21 April 1896, Paris) was a French statesman and diplomat. One of the 19th-century's noted economists, he served as French Finance Minister from 1872 until 1883. Biography The Say family is a mos ...

. He served on the city council of Marseille from 1887 to 1889. He served as a member of the

Chamber of Deputies The chamber of deputies is the lower house in many bicameral legislatures and the sole house in some unicameral legislatures. Description Historically, French Chamber of Deputies was the lower house of the French Parliament during the Bourbon R ...

from 1889 to 1898. During his tenure, he supported pro-French tariffs and subsidies to French shipping companies. Charles-Roux was a collector of old manuscripts. He was a Commander of the

Legion of Honour The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleon, ...

, a Commander of the Order of Christ, and an Officer of the

Order of the Medjidie Order of the Medjidie ( ota, نشانِ مجیدی, August 29, 1852 – 1922) is a military and civilian order of the Ottoman Empire. The Order was instituted in 1851 by Sultan Abdulmejid I. History Instituted in 1851, the Order was awarded in fi ...

Personal life and death

Charles-Roux married Marie-Claire Canaple. They had two sons,

François Charles-Roux François Charles-Roux (19 November 1879 – 26 June 1961) was a French businessman, historian and diplomat. He was born in Marseille. Biography Charles-Roux, the son of Jules Charles-Roux, studied at the École libre des sciences politiques. ...

and Charles Wulfran Marie Louis Charles-Roux (father of

Claire De Forbin Claire de Forbin La Barben (; 10 April 1908 – 1992) fought with the French Resistance during World War II. Married to the last marquess of Forbin-la Barben, she was the lover of Isabel Pell and Mercedes de Acosta. Biography Claire Charles-Roux w ...

), and a daughter, who married Jacques du Tillet. Charles-Roux died on 6 March 1918 in Paris.

Works

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Charles-Roux, Jules 1841 births 1918 deaths Businesspeople from Marseille Politicians from Marseille French republicans Members of the 5th Chamber of Deputies of the French Third Republic Members of the 6th Chamber of Deputies of the French Third Republic French corporate directors French book and manuscript collectors Aix-Marseille University alumni Commandeurs of the Légion d'honneur Commanders of the Order of Christ (Portugal)