Basically what the title says. Obviously the ancien régime was chronically short on cash, but willingly shrinking your current and future tax base on the surface seems like a bad decision. Did the accounting work in the kingdom’s favor in the long run, or was this a desperate bid to stay afloat pre-revolution? Thanks in advance!
There's more to be said on the topic, but you may like to read my earlier post addressing justifications for exemptions from Ancien Regime taxation. In short, selling privileges provided the monarchy with easy access to money when it needed it, but locked it into an arbitrary system of taxation that brought long-term problems.