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François Quesnay (1694–1774), a French economist who founded the Physiocratic School of economic thought. Quesnay’s original contribution, and the basis of physiocracy, held that all wealth originated from the land and that agriculture alone could increase and multiply wealth. Industry and commerce, according to the physiocrats, were basically “sterile” and could not add to the wealth created by the land. His chief work was the Tableau économique (economic table), published in 1758; it is said to have been printed by the King’s own hands. Quesnay and his followers believed that the Tableau summed up the natural law of economy. Quesnay and other physiocrats greatly influenced the views of Adam Smith and the fields of biophysical and ecological economics in the 20th century.
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Cutler Cleveland (Lead Author);Peter Saundry (Topic Editor) "Quesnay, François". In: Encyclopedia of Earth. Eds. Cutler J. Cleveland (Washington, D.C.: Environmental Information Coalition, National Council for Science and the Environment). [First published in the Encyclopedia of Earth August 18, 2006; Last revised Date August 18, 2006; Retrieved February 9, 2012 <http://www.eoearth.org/article/Quesnay%2C_Fran%C3%A7ois>
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The Encyclopedia of Earth Cutler J. Cleveland is the founding Editor-in-Chief of the Encyclopedia of Earth. Dr. Cleveland is currently a Professor in the Department of Geography and Environment at Boston University, with joint appointments in the Center for Energy and Environmental Studies and the Pardee Center for the Study of the Longer Range Future. He also is a Senior Fellow at the National Council for Science and the Environment in Washington D.C. Dr. Cleveland is als ... (Full Bio)
François Quesnay (1694–1774), a French economist who founded the Physiocratic School of economic thought. Quesnay’s original contribution, and the basis of physiocracy, held that all wealth originated from the land and that agriculture alone could increase and multiply wealth. Industry and commerce, according to the physiocrats, were basically “sterile” and could not add to the wealth created by the land. His chief work was the Tableau économique (economic table), published in 1758; it is said to have been printed by the King’s own hands. Quesnay and his followers believed that the Tableau summed up the natural law of economy. Quesnay and other physiocrats greatly influenced the views of Adam Smith and the fields of biophysical and ecological economics in the 20th century.
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