French India

French India (Fr. Établissements français de l' Inde ) denotes parts of India today, which made a French colony until the mid 20th century. Capital was Pondicherry, a village in 1673 acquired - today's Pondicherry. Headed it was from 1685 by a " Director of the Coromandel Coast ."

French India was 513 km ² and eventually had 300,000 inhabitants ( 1949). Today, approximately corresponding to the union territory of Pondicherry has a size of 480 km ² and about 1.2 million inhabitants ( 2011).

Components

French India consisted of the following parts:

• Yanam ( Yanaon, Godavaridelta; acquired in 1751 )
• Karaikal (K. and Pondicherry, Coromandel Coast, in 1738 acquired)
• Pondicherry, Karikal and P.; Coromandel Coast ( 1674 acquired)
• ( Acquired in 1721 Malabar Coast ) Mahé
• Chandannagar ( Chandernagore, N of Kolkata )

History

The colonization of the Indian territories of France began in 1673. According to military successes against British troops from Joseph François Dupleix 1742 the colony was expanded. The influence of local principalities in the region has been strengthened against the British by this success.

In 1949 it came to a referendum on the dissolution or the whereabouts of French India as free cities of the French Union or connection to India, with only Chandannagar immediately majority decided for connection to the state. The remaining towns followed in 1956, state law until ratified the relevant treaty by the French Parliament in 1963 and today form a union territory.

Pierre Desbassayns ( Senator 1876-1882 ) and Jules Godin ( 1891-1909 ) were in 19th-century France in the Senate active politicians who were closely connected with the territory.