French Company of the Eastern Indies

The Compagnie of the Eastern Indies - more precisely French Company for the trade of the Eastern Indies - is a commercial company created by Colbert in 1664 whose object was “to sail and negotiate since the Cape of Good Hope almost in all Eastern Indies and seas”, with monopoly of the remote trade for fifty years.

The purpose of its creation was to give to France a tool international business with powerful Asia and to compete with the English Compagnie of the Eastern Indies and Dutch Compagnie of the Eastern Indies. However, the war of attrition with the Dutchmen then the frontal shock with the English in India will lead it to its loss, after only one century of existence.

Birth of the French trade with Asia

Scattered initiatives countered by the Dutchmen

As of the middle of the 16th century, according to the trace of the Portuguese - first to open the Southeast Asia and highways to India -, some French explorers, with the corsairs and the adventurers arm with the ships to join " Cathay " and " Indes" and to bring back spices of them. They will not meet practically any business success.

As from 1600, the first commercial forwardings of tradesmen inhabitants of Saint Malo or Dieppois are regularly launched towards Asia. A series of transitory companies of trade which profit by letters patent from a commercial monopoly are launched (Company Roy and Godefroy in 1604 become Compagnie of Moluques in 1615, Compagnie of Montmorency for the Eastern Indies, created in 1611 by Charles de Montmorency-Damville, Admiral de France). They do not generate a significant trade flow the more so as their vessels are systematically destroyed or confiscated by the Dutchmen of the VOC (Dutch Compagnie of the Eastern Indies).

See also: Dutch Company of the Eastern Indies

The political volunteer of Richelieu

The arrival of Richelieu to the capacity in 1624 and the signature of the treaty of Compiegne with the United Provinces (Netherlands) which recognizes the freedom of the trade towards the “Western and Eastern Indies” revival the activity of French in direction of Asia with a double goal, missionary and commercial. The terrestrial road is explored with the network of the brothers capuchins of the Père Joseph and it is a missionary - the Pacific de Provins - which succeeds in establishing into 1628 of the official bonds between France and the Perse opening by the Persian Gulf the highway to India.

The Royal decree of 1629, known as Code Michau, encourages the French to create companies of trade to the image of the Dutchmen and the English.

As from the years 1630, the French are interested in the south of the Indian Ocean and take possession of sites and ports - in particular Fort-Dauphin and Port-Louis - with Madagascar and in the Mascareignes (island Bourbon, island of France, island Rodrigues); The company of the East is created by letter patent of July 1642 with 15 years monopoly on Madagascar and the surrounding islands.

Beyond these islands, the road of the Indies east taken again by missionaries under the impulse of the Jesuit Alexandre of Rhodos and of the Company of the Blessed Sacrament and which privileges the Indochinese peninsula.

In 1660, finally the Company of China is founded, with all the powerful ones of the time, like Mazarin or Fouquet, often members of the Company of Blessed Sacrament. But this one is devoted exclusively to marketing activities.

Creation of the Company

A company organized by Colbert

Imagined by Colbert, it is created by the " Declaration of the bearing King establishment of a Company for the trade of the Indies orientales" signed by Louis XIV the August 27th 1664 and of the letters patent recorded by the Parliament of Paris. The statutes make of it a royal Manufacture with all the associated privileges, in particular exemption of taxes, exclusive monopoly of the trade in the Eastern hemisphere (to which is added at the 18th century, the west coasts of Africa (Senegal, Guinea), guaranteed on royal treasure, capacity to name ambassadors, to declare the war and to conclude from the treaties. It is equipped with a start-up capital of 8,8 million delivers S and of a currency: “ quocumque Florebo ferar ”, (“I will flower where I will be carried”).

The Company is seen defining objectives vaster than its name suggests it and which are of three orders: the trade , obviously, and the fight against the English and Dutch products; the policy , while contributing to the development of a national marine and by affirming the French presence on the seas; culture and the religion : by propagating French civilization and by évangélisant the “pagan ones”.

Its first director named by Colbert is François Charon an exiled huguenot having work 30 years within the VOC. From 1666, the port of Lorient lately created becomes the seat about it.

The first successes in the South of the Indian Ocean

While failing to create true a colony on the island of Madagascar (Fort-Dauphin), it however succeeds in establishing ports on the Bourbon island and the island of France, two islands close, today the Réunion and the Mauritius. Its capital is then of 15 million books (the royal family subscribes 3 of them). It has during 50 years the monopoly of the trade between Cape Horn and the Cape of Good Hope.

The Guerre of Holland disorganizes operation of it. In 1682, the company loses its privilege. In 1719, it is absorbed by the Company founded by John Law

Provisional victim of financial handling of Law

In 1719, at the edge of the Bankruptcy, John Law amalgamates it with other French trading companies to form the perpetual Company of the Indies. However, it finds its independence in 1723.

Dupleix and the conquest of India

A penetration successful in India

In 1719, it is established in India. With the decline of the Empire moghol, the Company decides to intervene in the Indian political matters in order to protect its interests, in particular by forging alliances with the local leaders of India of the south. Vincent Pierre Fromager is director of the Co of the Indies. In 1741, Joseph François Dupleix, which will receive the title of Nabab in 1750 by the emperor moghol, follows an aggressive policy against the British.

Frontal competition with the English

In spite of several defeats inflicted by the British Robert Cleaves, the strategy of Dupleix shows its fruits and the British will take again soon his policy on their account. In 1753, the sales of the Company are almost equivalent to that of the English Compagnie of the Eastern Indies.

However, the French shareholders do not support any more from now on this deviation of the strict commercial axis and Dupleix is revoked in 1754.

Failure

The Company was at its time considered as a solid and sure placement. Voltaire had placed part of its economies there, without necessarily knowing the detail of the operations covered by this one.

But in 1763, after the treated of Paris, France loses its first colonial empire, in particular its territories of the Deccan in India. It remains to him in India only the five counters of Pondichéry, Karikal, Yanaon, Mahé and Chandernagor, which it will preserve in the form of the French Établissements of India until in 1949.

The Company was touched hard by the seven year old War, with the loss of its establishments in Asia being added that of part of its fleet. In spite of these reverses and its debt, it succeeds has to rectify its commercial situation, but not to regain the confidence of Choiseul, anxious to control the public expenditure

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