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

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, Mau ...

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 exis ...

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 Fran ...

, France. His father founded La Maison Charles-Roux, a soap factory, in 1828. His paternal ancestor, Georges Roux, was a merchant in the Antilles in the 18th century. Charles-Roux graduated from Aix-Marseille University, 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 Fraissinet The Compagnie Fraissinet, a Marseilles-based shipping line, played an important role in trade and immigration flows in the Mediterranean, Black Sea, Western Africa and Latin America. The Compagnie Fraissinet added Northern America (New York NY, Pr ...

, 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 Fr ...

. He was also on the board of the Suez Canal Company, 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 ...

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.

Personal life and death

Charles-Roux married Marie-Claire Canaple. They had two sons, François Charles-Roux and Charles Wulfran Marie Louis Charles-Roux (father of Claire De Forbin), and a daughter, who married

Jacques du Tillet Jacques du Tillet (1857–1942) was a French writer and critic. He published four novels. He was a theatre critic for the ''Revue politique et littéraire A revue is a type of multi-act popular theatre, theatrical entertainment that combines ...

. 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)