COLOMBIERS
Conference: Pierre Paul Riquet, the salt gabelle and the genesis of the Canal du Midi
Pierre Pol Riquet, the salt gabelle and the genesis of the Canal du Midi.
Under the reign of Louis XIV, Riquet had a long career behind him in the salt trade and the gabelle when, at the age of 57, he embarked on the construction of the Canal du Midi, a gigantic project – the first of its kind in Europe – to which he devoted the last 14 years of his life, and in which he invested his entire fortune.
Who was this man? How was the salt trade organized in his day? How did the idea of a navigation canal gain ground in Languedoc? And finally, how did Riquet manage to bring it to fruition? These are the themes this conference will explore.
Gérard Crevon, historian of the Canal du Midi and biographer of Riquet, has been conducting in-depth research on these subjects for over 15 years, notably at the Archives des canaux du Midi (Voies navigables de France) and the Archives départementales de la Haute-Garonne.
Among other things, he has published numerous articles on Riquet and the construction of the Canal du Midi, in L?Auta (magazine of the association Les Toulousains de Toulouse). His book, Pierre Paul Riquet, l?audace et la ténacité, published last year, reviews his research into Riquet, the construction of the canal and the port of Sète.
