A fiziokraták "utazó nagykövete": Nicolas Baudeau (1730 - 1792)

Nicolas Baudeau (1730-1792) was a theologian, historian and "economist-philosopher" of the second half of the eighteenth century. His name appears in manuals as a popularizer of the ideas of Quesnay and as the founder of the first journal of economics of the Physiocrats, but we are not familiar with his writings, although he was an original thinker and a very active practical man. His oeuvre encompasses a wide area of historical, legal, economic, social, political and moral issues, publishing and consulting activities, down to new technologies, technical solutions, especially new techniques to produce bread. Significant part of his work was the dialogue of opinions against: Condillac, Galiani, Graslin, Forbonnais, Necker, etc., the "anti-physiocrats" being his discussion partners. Throughout Europe he diffused and taught the doctrines of the Physiocrats. He was the travelling ambassador of their ideas. He deeply believed in their program: competition, free commerce, free enterprise, public education, social care, etc. to promote the country's (countries') prosperity and well-being. The goal of this paper is to present some quite neglected writings of Baudeau, especially his debate over a laissez-faire economy against those who argued for the care and responsibility of State. In the appendix see the Hungarian translation of "Explication du Tableau économique á M*** par M.l'abbé Baudeau.