But in principle the taxes were in the 14th century sanctioned by the states general. Whatever form they took, they were given the generic name of Aids or _auxilia_, and were considered as occasional and extraordinary subsidies, the king being obliged in principle to "live of his own" (_vivre de son domaine_). Certain aids, it is true, tended to become permanent under the reign of Charles VI.; but the taxes subject to the consent of the states general were at first the sole resource of Charles VII. In the second half of his reign the two chief taxes became permanent: in 1435 that of the aids (a tax on the sale of articles of consumption, especially on wine), with the formal consent of the states general, and that of the _taille_ in 1439. In the latter case the consent of the states general was not given; but only the nobility protested, for at the same time as the royal _taille_ became permanent the seigniorial _taille_ was suppressed. These imposts were increased, on the royal authority, by Louis XI. After his death the states general, which met at Tours in 1484, endeavoured to re-establish the periodical vote of the tax, and only granted it for two years, reducing it to the sum which it had reached at the death of Charles VII. But the promise that they would again be convoked before the expiry of two years was not kept. These imposts and that of the _gabelle_ were henceforth permanent. Together with the taxes there was evolved the system of their administration. Their main outlines were laid down by the states general in the reign of King John, in 1355 and the following years. For the administration of the subsidies which they granted, they nominated from among their own numbers _surintendants generaux_ or _generaux des finances_, and further, for each diocese or equivalent district, _elus_. Both had not only the active administration but also judicial rights, the latter constituting courts of the first instance and the former courts of final appeal. After 1360 the crown again adopted this organization, which had before been only temporary; but henceforth _generaux_ and _elus_ were nominated by the king. The _elus_, or _officiers des elections_, only existed in districts which were subject to the royal _taille_; hence the division, so important in old France, into _pays d'elections_ and _pays d'etats_. The _elus_ kept both administration and jurisdiction; but in the higher stage a differentiation was made: the _generaux des finances_, who numbered four, kept the administration, while their jurisdiction as a court of final appeal was handed over to another body, the _cour des aides_, which had already been founded at the end of the 14th century. Besides the four _generaux des finances_, who administered the taxation, there were four Treasurers of France (_tresoriers de France_), who administered the royal domain; and these eight officials together formed in the 15th century a kind of ministry of finance to the monarchy. The army.