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Detailed Map of French
Colonization history
by James Mayfield (Chairman, European Heritage Library)
 Print
this Article About
the Author Bibliography/Sources
Below is one of our exclusive
and detailed maps of the French Colonial Empire from the establishment
of the first colonies in the 16th century until the eventual
dissolution caused by internal political conflicts, the defeat
of France in the 7-Years' War and of Napoleon's First French
Empire, and the decolonization borne of the global post-WWII
liberalism movement.
Long considered a nation
of effeminate "weaklings" prone to hoisting the
white flag at the first sign of danger, the French actually
forged one of the greatest empires the world has ever known,
forever shaping their domains' societies, economies, and linguistic
evolution. French ambitions emerged out of the need to compete
with growing maritime empires of the Portuguese, Dutch, and
Spaniards, firstly exploring the Caribbean, Canada, the Indian
territories of the American northeast, Oceania, and finally
to conquer the resilient tribes of Africa and the powerful
nations of Vietnam and Thailand (from which it took Laos and
Cambodia). The French Revolution, despite its modern associations
with liberalism and equality, only pushed the drive for colonial
domination and imperialism further. France's empire was effectively
doomed with the conquest of France by Germany during World
War II. Lebanon and Syria's Muslim colonial subjects, who
enjoyed German support, quickly took the opportunity to declare
independence from the weakened state. This was a foreshadow
of France's post-war problems to follow. Seeking to re-establish
the French nation into its former glory so tainted by its
humiliating defeat in the war, the 4th French Republic struggled
to put down the revolt of their subjects in more than a dozen
colonies. The Algerian War of Independence, which cost anywhere
from 200,000 to even a million lives by some liberal estimates,
is often considered to have led to the dissolution of the
4th French Republic, the severing of nearly all of France's
colonial empire, and the establishment of the modern 5th French
Republic. Today, France still has among the most overseas
colonial territories, including French Polynesia (Tahiti),
French Guyana, Martinique, etc.
This EHL map shows the dates
of colonial rule and each province's ultimate fate (transfer
to another power, independence, etc.). Disparate trading settlements
are not shown; only full colonial possessions are marked.
Click the below map
for the full-size version! Click on the map again to zoom.
If an error has been made,
please notify the EHL Staff.
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ABOUT
THE AUTHOR:
James Mayfield is a historian
and the Chairman of the European Heritage Library. I have
a Cum Laude BA in History with a Minor in Germanic Studies
(language and history), am presently working for my Masters
in History, and plan to immediately progress to my PhD Doctorate.
I have a special academic interest in Europe's diverse ethnic
identities, languages, and cultures, and the political struggles
of native European and immigrant minority identities. See
my staff entry for more information.
BIBLIOGRAPHY/SOURCES
USED:
The image used as the basis
for the map is widely redistributed and is not protected.
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