1-158-603 - Oxford Science Archive/Heritage Images

John Law, Comptroller General of France, 1720 (1841). A Scottish economist, gambler, banker, murderer, royal advisor, exile, rake and adventurer, Law (1671-1729) fled to France after killing a man in a duel. Gaining the favour of the Regent of France, the Duc d'Orleans, he became influential in French political and economic circles. He is best known as the founder of the Mississippi Scheme (1717-1720) to develop colonies in the Mississippi valley, which gained him great popularity in France and made him a paper millionaire. The scheme was largely based on speculation rather than actual economic growth however, and a crisis in confidence caused the 'Mississippi Bubble' to burst, forcing Law to leave France, dying in poverty in Venice.