Félix de Beaujour

Félix de Beaujour combined diplomatic service with studies of trade and government. Born at Callas in 1765, he studied at Aix and Paris before serving in legations at Munich and Dresden and in consular posts in Greece and Sweden. His Tableau du commerce de la Grèce, published after his return to Paris, drew on those commercial interests. He joined the Tribunat and became its president in October 1803. ¹

Beaujour then went to the United States as a French commissary general and briefly served as chargé d’affaires. His duties included settling the disposal of French military property left at New Orleans after the transfer of Louisiana. In February 1808, Secretary of War Henry Dearborn sent Madison an agreement he had made with Beaujour, with Turreau’s approval, for the sale of ordnance and stores. Dearborn also reported a conflicting local transaction, damaged or missing articles, and an outstanding refund. ^{2, 3}

The American mission furnished material for Beaujour’s Aperçu des États-Unis au commencement du XIXe siècle, published in 1814. Under the Restoration he became consul general at Smyrna and inspected French consulates in the Levant. He continued publishing on political institutions and the Ottoman Empire, represented Marseille in the Chamber of Deputies from 1831 to 1834, and became a peer in 1835. He died the following year. ¹