The French East India Company's Forgotten Empire

In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore the rise and fall of the French East India Company (Compagnie des Indes Orientales), the state-backed enterprise that built a fragile empire in India. They trace its founding by Jean-Baptiste Colbert in 1664, the establishment of Pondichéry under François Martin, and the ambitious expansion under Joseph François Dupleix, who nearly expelled the British from the Carnatic. But the company's overreach and the military genius of Robert Clive turned the tide. Lucas explains how the Seven Years' War and the Treaty of Paris (1763) reduced France to a handful of trading posts, leaving a legacy of strategic ambition but little lasting power. Along the way, they discuss Colbert's mercantilist vision, the Mughal politics that enabled French settlement, and the pivotal Carnatic Wars that decided the fate of India. A story of imperial dreams clashing with British naval supremacy, told through the eyes of forgotten governors and desperate battles. #FrenchEastIndiaCompany #Pondichéry #Colbert #Dupleix #CarnaticWars #RobertClive #SevenYearsWar #MughalIndia #FrancoisMartin #TreatyofParis1763 #IndianHistory #ColonialIndia #BritishEmpire #Mercantilism #History #FexingoHistory #Empire #Europe Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo