Jacques Necker
Jacques Necker was a Genevan-born banker who served as France's Director-General of Finances under Louis XVI, becoming the most popular minister of the Old Regime through his reformist reputation and his controversial Compte rendu au roi (1781), which published royal finances for the first time. His dismissal by Louis XVI on 11 July 1789 — two days before the Bastille fell — was widely interpreted as the signal for a royal coup against the Assembly and helped trigger the popular insurrection. He lacked the authority or the programme to halt the Revolution's momentum and retired to Switzerland in 1790.
- Lived: 1732 CE – 1804 CE
- Nationality: french
- Roles: finance_minister, banker, reformer
