Top of page

Book/Printed Material A Full and Impartial Account of the Company of Mississippi, Otherwise called the French East-India Company. Projected and Settled by Mister Law. A Full and Impartial Account of the Company of Mississipi, otherwise call'd the French East-India Company. Projected and settled by Mr. Law

About this Item

Title

  • A Full and Impartial Account of the Company of Mississippi, Otherwise called the French East-India Company. Projected and Settled by Mister Law.

Other Title

  • A Full and Impartial Account of the Company of Mississipi, otherwise call'd the French East-India Company. Projected and settled by Mr. Law

Summary

  • John Law was a Scottish financier and adventurer who was also an authority on banking and the circulation of money. He convinced the regent of France, Philippe d'Orléans, that he could liquidate the French government's debt by a system of credit based on paper money. In 1716 he launched the Banque générale, which had the authority to issue notes. The following year he founded the Compagnie d'Occident (Company of the West), the capital for which was raised by the sale of 500-livre shares, payable only in government notes. The first shares were called "mothers," then, aided by the initial success, came the "daughters" and the "granddaughters." Using advertisements and public relations in which he presented the Mississippi as a land of plenty, Law generated extraordinary enthusiasm for his scheme. In exchange for obtaining the trade monopoly for Louisiana, the Company of the West had to provide for the colony's defense-the upkeep of fortifications and troops and gifts to the Indians. It also had to transport to the colony, over the next 25 years, 6,000 colonists and 3,000 African slaves. In 1719, the Company of the West acquired several other overseas companies (including the Senegal, East Indies, and China companies) to form the Compagnie des Indes (Company of the Indies). The issue of excessive quantities of bank notes weakened confidence, however, and Law's system collapsed. Law was ruined and fled to Brussels in December 1720. This small, bilingual volume, with French and English texts on facing pages, was published in London in 1720, just before the collapse of Law's economic system. The volume emphasized the spectacular rise of the Company of the West and the effect of its stocks on the economy of the entire Kingdom of France. The work includes a description of the Mississippi Country and an account of the discoveries by Louis Jolliet (1645-1700) and Robert Cavelier de La Salle (1643-87).

Names

  • Law, John, 1671-1729 Author.

Created / Published

  • London : R. Francklin, 1720.

Headings

  • -  France
  • -  United States of America--Louisiana
  • -  United States of America--Mississippi
  • -  1720
  • -  Banks and banking
  • -  Company of the Indies
  • -  Company of the West
  • -  Economic conditions
  • -  France in America
  • -  France--Colonies
  • -  Joliet, Louis, 1645-1700
  • -  La Salle, Robert Cavelier, sieur de, 1643-1687
  • -  Law, John, 1671-1729
  • -  Mississippi River Valley
  • -  New France

Notes

  • -  Title devised, in English, by Library staff.
  • -  Original resource extent: 79 pages.
  • -  Original resource at: National Library of France.
  • -  Content in English and French.
  • -  Description based on data extracted from World Digital Library, which may be extracted from partner institutions.

Medium

  • 1 online resource.

Digital Id

Library of Congress Control Number

  • 2021667017

Online Format

  • compressed data
  • pdf
  • image

Additional Metadata Formats

IIIF Presentation Manifest

Rights & Access

The Library of Congress is unaware of any copyright or other restrictions in the World Digital Library Collection. Absent any such restrictions, these materials are free to use and reuse. Researchers are encouraged to review the source information attached to each item. For information on contacting WDL partner organizations, see this archived list of partners

The Library asks that researchers approach the materials in this collection with respect for the culture and sensibilities of the people whose lives, ideas, and creativity are documented here.

Credit Line: [Original Source citation], World Digital Library

More about Copyright and other Restrictions

For additional information and contact information for many of the partner organizations, see this archived capture of the World Digital Library site from 2021.

For guidance about compiling full citations consult Citing Primary Sources.

Cite This Item

Citations are generated automatically from bibliographic data as a convenience, and may not be complete or accurate.

Chicago citation style:

Law, John, Author. A Full and Impartial Account of the Company of Mississippi, Otherwise called the French East-India Company. Projected and Settled by Mister Law. London: R. Francklin, 1720. Pdf. https://www.loc.gov/item/2021667017/.

APA citation style:

Law, J. (1720) A Full and Impartial Account of the Company of Mississippi, Otherwise called the French East-India Company. Projected and Settled by Mister Law. London: R. Francklin. [Pdf] Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/2021667017/.

MLA citation style:

Law, John, Author. A Full and Impartial Account of the Company of Mississippi, Otherwise called the French East-India Company. Projected and Settled by Mister Law. London: R. Francklin, 1720. Pdf. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, <www.loc.gov/item/2021667017/>.