How did Jean-Baptiste Colbert encourage the growth of the French merchant navy?

Jean-Baptiste Colbert, serving as secretary of state for the navy starting in 1668, implemented several strategic measures to bolster the French merchant navy and reduce reliance on foreign shipping.1

His efforts included:

• Financial Incentives and Tariffs: To encourage domestic shipbuilding, Colbert provided premiums for ships built within France while imposing duties on vessels constructed abroad.1
• Trading Companies: He promoted the formation of private companies to build ships and sought to secure commercial monopolies by establishing state-backed trading organizations, such as the French East India Company and the West India Company.23
• Labor Restrictions: To ensure a skilled workforce, he prohibited French workmen from emigrating and forbade French seamen from serving foreign powers, under penalty of death.1
• Infrastructure: He invested in the development of naval schools and the fortification of key ports, such as Le Havre, to support maritime commerce and naval operations.1

These initiatives were part of his broader mercantilist goal to increase France's share of international trade and challenge Dutch commercial dominance.2