:The following article is about a tax. If you're looking for information about a literary character, see A Tale of Two Cities. The gabelle was a very unpopular tax on salt in France before 1790. The term gabelle derives from the Latin term gabulum (a tax). In France, Gabelle was originally applied to taxes on all commodities, but was gradually limited to the tax on salt. In time it became one of the most hated and most grossly unequal taxes in the country, but, though condemned by all supporters… (More on Gabelle)