Political career
In 1634, Fouquet was appointed councilor of the Parlement of Metz. Richelieu charged him with the sensitive task of verifying the accounts to determine whether or not Charles IV of Lorraine was skimming money that rightfully was due to the King of France. Fouquet, still a teenager, accomplished this task with brio.:40–41 In 1636, at just 20, his father bought him the post of maître des requêtes for 150,000 livres (under the Ancien Régime, many government posts were purchased by the people holding them).[1], In 1640, he married the rich and well-connected Louise Fourché and received around 160,000 livres from the dowry, plus other rents and land. Louise died in 1641 at the age of 21, six months after giving birth to a daughter. Fouquet was 26 years old.
Cardinal Richelieu died in 1642, but Fouquet was successful in impressing his successor as chief minister, Cardinal Mazarin, who became his protector (over the long term, the relationship was tense:59–60). From 1642 to 1650, Fouquet held various intendancies, at first in the provinces and then with the army of Mazarin. In 1648, Fouquet was named general intendant of Paris, right as the second Fronde broke out. He ably came to the aid of Mazarin and the Queen Mother, Anne of Austria (who was regent for the young Louis XIV) in defense of the monarchy. As a result, Fouquet earned the lasting loyalty and support of both Mazarin:30 and Anne.
These high-level positions raised his profile with the court. He was permitted in 1650 to buy, for 450,000 livres, the important position of procureur général to the parlement of Paris, thereby raising him to the most elite ranks of the noblesse de robe.
Fouquet's already great wealth was augmented by his marriage in 1651 to 15-year old Marie-Madeleine de Castille. She belonged to a wealthy, well-connected family of the noblesse de robe.:77 Fouquet had five children with her.
During Mazarin's exile during the second Fronde, Fouquet remained loyal to him, protecting his possessions and informing him of what was happening in the court.:59–60 Upon Mazarin's return, Fouquet demanded and received as a reward the office of superintendent of finance (on 7 February 1653), making him the youngest person to hold this position in the Ancien Regime.
The royal finances were in a disastrous state at this time, due to many years of war under Cardinals Richelieu and Mazarin and antiquated revenue practices. Only about half of total tax revenues collected actually ended up in the royal treasury, the rest being skimmed off by various parties along the way. In this unsettled situation, Fouquet was responsible for decisions as to which funds should be used to meet the demands of the state's creditors, but also for the negotiations with the great financiers who lent money to the king. Fouquet's willingness to honor some of the royal promises enhanced the credibility of the crown as a borrower and strengthened the credit of the government, though the controls on this process were either ineffective or non-existent. The long wars, and the greed of the courtiers, made it necessary at times for Fouquet to meet the demand for funds by borrowing upon his own good credit.:33–42 Fouquet was aware of the risks he was running – he feared ruining his family and his friends who had helped him lend money to the crown. In December 1658, he presented his resignation to Mazarin, but, unfortunately for him, it was not accepted.
The disorder in the accounts became hopeless, but was also normal – the kingdom had a long history of poorly controlled royal finances. In any case, debt issuance could not resolve the deplorable economic situation of the realm without an underlying ability and willingness to rein in expenditures and to bring in tax revenues. Fouquet became the central actor in a debt situation that was fundamentally untenable. Fouquet had drawn up a plan to bring some order to public finances, but he never made progress in implementing it, though it was taken up later by Colbert.:63 Instead, it was business as usual: fraudulent operations were entered into with impunity, and the financiers were maintained in the position of clients via official favours and generous aid whenever they needed it. In the meantime, the peasants and commoners in the cities paid the price for this disorder.:33–42
With Mazarin's death on 9 March 1661, Fouquet expected to be made chief minister, but Louis XIV was suspicious of his loyalty to the crown and his poorly disguised ambition. Upon assuming his kingly duties, it was with Fouquet in mind that Louis XIV made the well known statement that he would be his own chief minister. Colbert, perhaps seeking to succeed Fouquet, fed the king's displeasure with adverse reports about the deficit and unflattering reports about Fouquet. However, Fouquet had some protections – his high position at the parlement (he remained procureur général) gave him immunity from prosecution by any authority except the Parlement, which he largely controlled. Another reason Fouquet may have felt secure is that what he was doing was not necessarily illegal – even Colbert later admitted that "Fouquet managed to conduct his robbery while keeping his hands clean.":40
