Dedicated to the preservation of images from published postcards depicting French Indochina.
By 1893, a mere 35 years after her initial military expedition in Tourane (Da Nang) in Dai Viet, France had taken control of a vast swath of land in the region of Indochina.
The territory which France had seized through shear military might and strong-arm diplomacy was approximately 289,891 square miles (749,045 square km). It was more land than France herself. The land was already rich in culture and long on history as the Khmers, the Laotians and the Viet people have all been there for centuries. They had their own national identities and boundaries. They were their own masters before France took control. She called her new eastern empire L’Indochine Francais. We called it French Indochina.
French Indochina was partitioned into 5 distinct regions – Tonkin, Annam, Cochinchina, Laos and Cambodia. Technically, only Cochinchina was under direct French rule under the Treaty of Sai Gon and the other four regions were merely French protectorates. The reality is that they were all under French rule until 1954 when France suffered a major military defeat near the village of Dien Bien Phu. Shortly after this military defeat, France decided that it was time to remove herself out of French Indochina. Hence, four recognized countries came into existence after France left - North Vietnam, South Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos.
During the French occupation of French Indochina, thousands of postcards were produced for the eager tourists visiting the Pearl of the Orient. Aside from the mercantile nature of the postcard production, it could be said that they also reflect how France viewed the people and the land that they were overseeing – exotic, barbaric and backward. It was all things that could be use to justify the French proclaimed mission to civilize and Christianize the savages.
Thanks to these postcards, the world can still get a glimpse of what these regions were like during the French Occupation. One should keep in mind that the portrayal of subject matters in these postcards did not always reflect the true nature of the societies or the people of the Viet, the Khmers and the Laotians. Often times, the people were reduced to mere props against some benign backgrounds. They were often represented to be anything but a people with a rich and ancient culture, a people with a highly developed society that was as old if not older than France herself. They were in essence the reflection of France's idealized view of her colonies.
These postcard images are hereby preserved for they do captured a moment in history that is forever a part of a collective heritage for three groups of people in the French Indochina peninsula. Many places, buildings and monuments in these postcards have since been destroyed or altered since their captured on films, but thanks to these postcards, may their memories and stories never be forgotten.
The territory which France had seized through shear military might and strong-arm diplomacy was approximately 289,891 square miles (749,045 square km). It was more land than France herself. The land was already rich in culture and long on history as the Khmers, the Laotians and the Viet people have all been there for centuries. They had their own national identities and boundaries. They were their own masters before France took control. She called her new eastern empire L’Indochine Francais. We called it French Indochina.
French Indochina was partitioned into 5 distinct regions – Tonkin, Annam, Cochinchina, Laos and Cambodia. Technically, only Cochinchina was under direct French rule under the Treaty of Sai Gon and the other four regions were merely French protectorates. The reality is that they were all under French rule until 1954 when France suffered a major military defeat near the village of Dien Bien Phu. Shortly after this military defeat, France decided that it was time to remove herself out of French Indochina. Hence, four recognized countries came into existence after France left - North Vietnam, South Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos.
During the French occupation of French Indochina, thousands of postcards were produced for the eager tourists visiting the Pearl of the Orient. Aside from the mercantile nature of the postcard production, it could be said that they also reflect how France viewed the people and the land that they were overseeing – exotic, barbaric and backward. It was all things that could be use to justify the French proclaimed mission to civilize and Christianize the savages.
Thanks to these postcards, the world can still get a glimpse of what these regions were like during the French Occupation. One should keep in mind that the portrayal of subject matters in these postcards did not always reflect the true nature of the societies or the people of the Viet, the Khmers and the Laotians. Often times, the people were reduced to mere props against some benign backgrounds. They were often represented to be anything but a people with a rich and ancient culture, a people with a highly developed society that was as old if not older than France herself. They were in essence the reflection of France's idealized view of her colonies.
These postcard images are hereby preserved for they do captured a moment in history that is forever a part of a collective heritage for three groups of people in the French Indochina peninsula. Many places, buildings and monuments in these postcards have since been destroyed or altered since their captured on films, but thanks to these postcards, may their memories and stories never be forgotten.
Credits & Contributors
1. “Virtual Cities Projects” - Virtual Saigon by the Lyons Institute of East Asian Studies (IAO), Lyon, France - http://saigon.virtualcities.fr 2. Postal History Archive – http://www.world-covers.com |
Photographers & Artists
Poujade de Ladevèze Fernand Nadal Ludovic Crespin Comiel This list will be updated as soon as more names are found. |
This site is maintained by P.V. Tran. The names, places and events described herein are to the best of my knowledge. However, if any errors were made, please inform me as such so that I can correct the narratives. I would also be indebted to all those wishing to contribute any images to this archive.