The Ministry of the Navy (french: Ministère de la Marine) was a section of the
French
French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to France
** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents
** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...
government – apart from the
Ministry of War – that was in charge of the French navy and colonies.
The ministry combined the administration of the
navy, the colonies like
New France and seaborne trade helping for example the
French East India Company. A widely held view at the time was that for states to be powerful, wealthy and prestigious, colonies in the New World need to be maintained for their consequent trade. The maintenance of colonies through naval operations not only served to improve the stature of the state, but was also helpful in destroying their European rivals in
North America
North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...
.
After the
Second World War, the Ministry of the Navy was merged with the War Ministry, absorbing the role of the Minister of the Navy and Colonies, with a
Minister of National Defence directing the entire military French forces.
Creation and history
Since the 16th century, the
Secretary of State of the Navy (French: Secrétaire d'État de la Marine) was responsible for the French early navy and colonies.
In 1624,
Louis XIII's first minister,
Cardinal Richelieu
Armand Jean du Plessis, Duke of Richelieu (; 9 September 1585 – 4 December 1642), known as Cardinal Richelieu, was a French clergyman and statesman. He was also known as ''l'Éminence rouge'', or "the Red Eminence", a term derived from the ...
created the first model of the modern French Navy, also known as the Marine or La Royale, run by the Secretary of State of the Navy. The official French Marine was not established until 7 March 1669 by
Jean-Baptiste Colbert
Jean-Baptiste Colbert (; 29 August 1619 – 6 September 1683) was a French statesman who served as First Minister of State from 1661 until his death in 1683 under the rule of King Louis XIV. His lasting impact on the organization of the countr ...
. At this time, the ministry of marine became an official government department with a permanent staff, holding offices at
Versailles. All of the policies and procedures for the marine were established by Colbert.
The Secretary of State of the Navy was responsible for the administration of both the navy (the "marine royale") and civilian (merchant marine) fleets, and for all France's ports, arsenals, consulates, and colonies, as well as the guardianship for all her commercial companies.
The two French royal fleets (the
Ponant fleet
The ''Flotte du Ponant'' was the designation under the Ancien Regime for the naval vessels of the Royal French Navy in the English Channel, Atlantic Ocean and Americas, the latter principally in the French West Indies and New France. The fleet ca ...
and
Levant fleet) were put under the control of
Colbert from 1662, whilst he was "
intendant des finances" and "minister of state"—but not "secretary of state" : he only became secretary of state in 1669 after having bought his way into the post. From then on, right up to the
French Revolution, a secretary of state had responsibility for the fleet.
To his two original offices (the bureau du Ponant and bureau du Levant) other services were added over time:
*archives department, 1669 ;
*office of the
Ponant consulates, 1709 ;
*office of the colonies, 1710 ;
*bureau des classes, 1711 ;
*department of maps and plans, 1720 ;
*Office of the Levant Consulates, 1738, which was in 1743 merged with the Office of the Ponant Consulates under the name of Office of Commerce and Consulates
These different offices and departments were regrouped into four super-departments by
marshal
Marshal is a term used in several official titles in various branches of society. As marshals became trusted members of the courts of Medieval Europe, the title grew in reputation. During the last few centuries, it has been used for elevated o ...
de Castries in 1786.
In 1791, the Secretary of State of the Navy was changed to Minister of the Navy. Before the 1890s, this position also usually had responsibility for
France's colonies
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 existe ...
, and was usually known as Minister of the Navy and Colonies (French: Ministère de la Marine et des Colonies). In 1947 the naval ministry was absorbed into the
Ministry of Defence
{{unsourced, date=February 2021
A ministry of defence or defense (see spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is an often-used name for the part of a government responsible for matters of defence, found in states ...
.
Personnel
At the head of the marine was the Ministre de la Marine, manned by a French statesman. Ministers of Marine typically came from families of administrative nobility (La Plume), such as the Phelypeaux's. From 1690 until 1749, a Phelypeaux was secretary and minister in charge of the marine and its colonies. The most prominent of the family was
Jean-Frederic Phelypeaux, comte de Pontchartrain et Maurepas. Under his guidance, the marine regained much of the strength and prestige that it had lost during the period of the Regencies (1715–1726). As well, he was able to ascertain much larger than normal budgets for the Marine. Thus under Jean-Frederic's leadership, France was able to regain its reputation as a maritime power.
[Rule, John C., "Jean-Frederic Phelypeaux, comte de Pontchartrain et Maurepas: Reflections on His Life and His Papers", The Journal of the Louisiana Historical Association Vol 6: 1965, p 365-377]
List of ministers
References
Bibliography
*Jean-Philippe Zanco
''Dictionnaire des Ministres de la Marine 1689-1958'' S.P.M. Kronos, Paris 2011.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ministere de la Marine
Naval Minister
Pre-Confederation Canada