Abstract Managing an Information Explosion
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ABSTRACT MANAGING AN INFORMATION EXPLOSION: CIVILIAN ADMINISTRATION AND THE ARMY OF LOUIS XIV, 1661-1701 Robert Fulton, PhD Department of History Northern Illinois University, 2016 Dr. Brian Sandberg, Director This dissertation examines the operations of the civilian administration of the War Department in early modern France during the reign of Louis XIV. Specifically, it analyzes the documents that represent a wide variety of information types which circulated within the War Department’s administrative networks. I connect these sources and their significance to the work of a new group of civilian agents, the premier commis, and utilize them to infer in what manner they were able to effectively manage a rapidly increasing volume of information materials and to influence state development in a profound manner. This examination found these information sources to be increasing not only in volume but in sophistication and standardization, reflecting a growing sense of professionalism and specialization within the civilian administration. In this endeavor, the premier commis operated within the bureaux to continuously manage administrative operations and workloads, progressively constructing an information state between the 1670s and the 1690s. The premier commis repeatedly struggled with rapid and increasing information flows, while crafting regular and systematic methods of managing and ordering the massive amounts of information that circulated within War Department networks. Their efforts to manage the diverse logistical needs of French armies resulted in growing administrative power which reflected a transformation to administrative governance in France. i NORTHERN ILLINOIS UNIVERSITY DE KALB, ILLINOIS AUGUST 2016 MANAGING AN INFORMATION EXPLOSION: CIVILIAN ADMINISTRATION AND THE ARMY OF LOUIS XIV, 1661-1701 BY ROBERT FULTON ©2016 Robert J. Fulton, Jr. A DISSERTATION SUBMITTED TO THE GRADUATE SCHOOL IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY DEPARTMENT OF HISTORY Doctoral Director: Brian Sandberg ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This dissertation represents the culmination of a career change which I had initiated in 2007, and frankly would not have seen the light of day without the ongoing and valued support of my director, Dr. Brian Sandberg of Northern Illinois University. He has been tireless in his encouragement and in providing guidance and new ideas every step of the way. I have been fortunate to have the benefit of his thinking all through this journey. I also want to express my appreciation to my other dissertation committee members, Aaron Fogleman, and Ismael Montana, who have all helped me to mold and craft my analysis and conclusions. At each step they have willingly written many letters of recommendation and provided much advice and counsel. Professional advice and support has come from a wide variety of historians, including John A. Lynn, David Kammerling Smith, Erik Thomson, Randolph Head, Lynn Mollenauer, James Allen, Michael Breen, and Dan Rosenberg. James Collins and Jacob Soll have both graciously encouraged me in my research, giving me ideas and providing support for my direction. Greg Bereiter here in the U.S. was always a willing “trailblazer” for me and I have valued his friendship. Ben Trotter and I had any number of e-mail and voice conversations about information management and the direction of my research. Our panel presentation at the Western Society Conference in 2014 was a culmination of many hours of correspondence and it was an honor for me to present with such a distinguished colleague. iii I am grateful to Dr. Hervé Drévillon in Paris, who was kind enough to introduce me to several important historians of Louis XIV, and whose support I value. Attending his seminars and the Geoffrey Parker colloquiums was an extremely enjoyable and rewarding experience. He introduced me to two of his graduate students, Emilié Dosquet and Jackie Rolin, who provided generous hospitality and a willingness to discuss our work and research efforts. Emilié was very patient with my French and open with guidance. Patrick Lizé was always an entertaining companion in the archives and when sharing drinks afterwards. I am indebted to his friendship and the friendship of Guy Malbosc. Guy helped me to “decipher” the intricacies of Le Grand Chiffre and openly shared his past researches with me, something which has strengthened this dissertation importantly. Dr. Thierry Sarmant opened his doors at the Musée de Carnavalet to meet with me on a number of evenings to discuss commis paleography. Dr. Sarmant helped me to understand some of the routine processes that have remained hidden to others. My archival research in Paris was funded through a research grant from the Société des professeurs français et francophones d’Amérique (SPFFA) during the 2013-2014 academic year. Seminar and dissertation completion funding came from grants provided by the NIU Department of History, the NIU Graduate School, and The Newberry Library. During this journey, a number of NIU professors have helped to shape my approach and direct my inquiries in a more focused fashion. I am grateful to Sean Farrell, Jim Schmidt, Heide Fehrenbach, Kristin Huffine, Anne Hanley, Andy Bruno, and Kristine Worobec (now in Washington, D.C.) for their support and encouragement throughout the course of my graduate studies at NIU. The Atlantic World group, hosted by Aaron Fogleman, was always one of the highlights of my semesters at NIU. Aaron provided a vibrant and collegial environment in which graduate students could meet informally iv with professors to discuss recent research and share ideas openly and supportively. These meetings proved invaluable in shaping different ideas. Dr. Norval Bard at North Central College has helped me with difficult French translations and is a wonderful and valued friend. Jim Bono at UIC, another highly valued friend, provided new thinking with regards to networks and complex systems from his own Ph.D. research. I want to thank Dr. Lorna Martens at the University of Virginia for the rental of her apartment in the Oberkampf area, which I found to be a charming and quite delightful venue in which to live, work, and play in Paris. I also want to express my appreciation to the Thursday morning Men’s Group at the American Church in Paris: Pastor Scott Herr, Dominque Grelet, Brent Anderson, Hugh Bovier, Paul Grayson, and the rest. Jim Hobbes and his wife took me in for Thanksgiving dinner in November. Jim was supportive and happily devoted time many weeks to meet me for coffee. Charles Genet was an especially gracious and supportive friend. I miss our lunches and discussions and am thankful to him for our tour of Epernay and Champagne country. I could not have journeyed to this point without the support of my entire family, including my mother, and especially from my wife Sandy. My daughters Jennifer and Sara have encouraged and at times provoked me with comments such as, “Dad, who cares about an old, dead guy.” The love of my whole family has helped me keep this entire project in its proper perspective. v DEDICATION I am dedicating this work to my wife, Sandy Disbrow Fulton, who has loved and encouraged me in this endeavor for the last ten years. She has been my inspiration and my reassurance. vi TABLE OF CONTENTS Page LIST OF TABLES ......................................................................................................................... ix LIST OF FIGURES .........................................................................................................................x LIST OF APPENDICES ................................................................................................................ xi ABBREVIATIONS ...................................................................................................................... xii Chapter INTRODUCTION ...........................................................................................................................1 The Premier Commis as Information Managers ..................................................................3 Conceptualizing the Information State ................................................................................9 War, Information, and the Royal State ..............................................................................23 Organization .......................................................................................................................46 Part I: The Information Managers 1. DIRECTING THE WAR DEPARTMENT ...............................................................................51 Information Agents in the War Department ......................................................................55 Education and Preparation of the Premier Commis ...........................................................71 The Premier Commis and the Developing “Science” of Administration ..........................89 The Premier Commis as Information Managers ..............................................................111 The Premier Commis and Processes of Change ..............................................................124 vii Chapter Page 2. NETWORKING AN INFORMATION ECOSYSTEM ..........................................................128 Networking Connections .................................................................................................131 Interconnectedness and Information Transfer .................................................................141 Moving “Packets