NU JOAN, au Auguatine monk, who reigned for rnany yews as a petty sovereign on the ishnd of Sundwa, about the middle of the lith century. I FRANCE, a country of Europe, which, in the 18th c,entury, nobly made exertions for empire in the East. They occupied .Madagasear, also the Isles of Bourbon and Franco; formed a factory at Surat and one at Masulipatnm ; were repulsed at Galle, but took, and again lost, Trincomalee ; settled at Pondicherry, which they surrendered to the Dutch. They took and abandoned Surat, but founded Chandermiggur, conquered Mahe, obtained Karikal, repulsed the British fleet off Negapattun, took Madras. Defeated Manz Khan near Madras, at Sadras, and St. Thoin, but were surprised at Cuddalore, twice repulsed and forced to retire. They were besieged in Pondicherry, but repulsed the besiegers. They gained the battle of Amboor, when Atiwar-utl-Din fell ; surprised the carup of Morari Rao ; defeated Muhammad Ali, son of Anwar-ud-Din, stormed Ginji; defeated Nasir Jung ; defeated the British at Volconda. They were shut up at Triehinopoly, where they were twice defeated by Clive, and retreated to Seringham, where they subsequently surrendered to the British. They afterwards defeated the British at Viccravaudi, but sustained a defeat from them at Bahur. They repeatedly defeated the Mahrattas, obtained great power, under M. Bussy, at Hyderabad, and obtained the cession of four provinces on the eastern coast. They defeated the British at Teruvadi, but were defeated at the Golden Rock, at the Sugar-loaf Rock, and took refuge in Seringham ; were re pulsed at Trichinopoly, but surprised the British and Contapara ; made peace with the British, and refused to aid Suraj-ud-Dowla against the British. Subsequently, at Negapatam, they were beaten, but took Cuddalore and Fort St. David, and were repulsed from Tanjore. They were beaten off Tranquebar, at Condore, and off Fort St. David and at Wandiwa,sh, and surrendered Pondicherry. Their efforts ceased from the 16th January 1761. I3y the treaty of Paris in 1763, Muhammad Ali was declared an independent sovereign. They are a brave and conquering nation, and had able leaders, but the officers under Dupldix and Bussy were inferior. France now holds the island of Bourbon, or Reunion, in the Indian Ocean ; also settlements on the coast of Madagascar, at Nossi Ra, the island of St. Marie, and at Bali B4 ; the island of Mayotta, one of the Comoro group, was purchased also, in 1841, from a chieftain, and converted into a colony. In Cambodia France has 56,000 square iniles of territory, with a population of 750,000 souls, and exercises a protectorate over Annam.
The remaining French possessions in India consist of five towns, Chandernuggur, Karikal, Pondicherry, Yanaon, and Mahe. The total
square miles of these is 191i, with a population of 203,887. Pondicherry was restored to France by the peace of 1763 ; in 1778, again taken by Sir Hector Monro, to be restored by the treaty of peace of 20th January 1783. Captured again in 1793 ; again restored by the peace of Amiens in 1801. Recaptured in 1803, and finally restored in 1814 and 1815. France sends annually to 13ritish India above half a million sterling of mer chandise, and takes to the value of eight millions. . During their greatest efforts, Admiral de la Bourdonnais was employed by sea, and Dupleix and Bussy on land. Many eminent 'nen of this nation served in India,—the younger Lally, Law, Dupleix, Bussy, De Suffren, De Boigne, Perron, La Bourdonnais, Dudrenec, Jean Baptiste, Ray mond, and Bernadotte, who was subsequently king of Sweden: The noticeable era of the French power in India was but of short duration, but remarkably brilliant while it lasted. It commenced under the government of M. Dupleix in 1749, and was extinguished by the surrender of Pondicherry in 1761.
In 1601 they had sent two ships to India from St. Maloes, under the command of Lieutenant Bardelicu, but both were lost off the Maldives. In 1604 Henry iv. incorporated the first French East India Company, which the minister Colbert in 1664 re-established on an improved footing, granting a monopoly of the trade for fifty years. In 1668 Surat was selected as ileir first settle ment ; afterwards Trincomalee was taken from the Dutch, but soon again recaptured. In 1672, St. Thomi, now a suburb of Madras, was 'taken from the Dutch, but in 1674 it was again restored to them, and. the same year they occupied Pondi cherry, which they continue to hold. In 1688 Aurangzeb ceded Chandernuggur to the French Company ; in 1727 the Company obtained Mahe, which the nation still retains ; in 1739 they pur chased Karikal from the ruler of Tanjore and in 1752, Yanam and 3Iasulipatam, whicli the French had seized in 1750, were ceded to them, the former definitely.
Between 1735 and 1754, Messrs. Dumas and Dupleix contributed greatly to uphold the French power. Dupleix was appointed governor of Chau dernuggur in 1730, governor of Pondicherry in 1742 and 1746. In 1798 (19th May) the French nation invaded Egypt ; and in 1801 an Indian contingent, under Sir David Baird, sailed for Egypt, where they arrived on the 8th June. It returned from Egypt in July and August 1802. Napoleon Bonaparte returned to France October 1799. On the 22d October 1798, Colonel Roberts surrounded and disarmed the French troops, 11,000 strong, at Hyderabad.