PONDICHERRY- History

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     The French converted this obscure little village into a flourishing trading centre.They established a settlement in Pondicherry in 1673. The French were the last European power to come to India for trade.

     The Dutch and the English had already established themselves at various centres in India. The Dutch were the first to cross swords with the French. They captured Pondicherry in 1693 but returned it to France under the Traty of Ryswick in 1699.

      Pondicherry regained its prosperity in a few years. In 1706 Pondicherry had a population of 40,000 while the English town of Calcutta had barely 22,000. In the meantime, the French East India Company had run into financial difficulties and the Company was forced to abandon their trading posts in Bantum, Surat and Masulipatnam.

      In 1720 the Company was reconstituted as the "Perpetual Company of the Indies" and new French establishments sprang up in the East. Mauritius was occupied in 1721, Mahe on the Malabar Coast soon after, Yanam in 1731 and Karaikal in 1738.

      With the appointment of Dupleix as Governor of Pondicherry in 1742 France became involved in Indian politics. Dupleix harboured ambitions of establishing a French Empire in India.

     At last British paramountcy was established in India, Pondicherry
ceased to be of any political importance and the British let the French continue in their possessions in India.

      The French Government handed over the Administration of their territories in India in November, 1954. The territories thus handed over were constituted into the Union Territory of Pondicherry.

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