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In The Agency of Empire: Connections and Strategies in French Expansion (1686-1746) Elisabeth Heijmans places directors and their connections at the centre of the developments and operations of French overseas companies. The focus on directors’ decisions and networks challenges the conception of French overseas companies as highly centralized and controlled by the state.Through the cases of companies operating in Pondicherry (Coromandel Coast) and Ouidah (Bight of Benin), Elisabeth Heijmans demonstrates the participation of actors not only in Paris but also in provinces, ports and trading posts in the French expansion. The analysis brings to the fore connections across imperial, cultural and religious boundaries in order to diverge from traditional national narratives of the French early modern empire.
Elisabeth Heijmans, Ph.D. (2018), Leiden University, is post-doctoral researcher in Economic and Social History. She published ‘Investing in French Overseas Companies: A Bad Deal? The Liquidation Processes of Companies Operating on the West Coast of Africa and in India (1664–1719)’ in: Itinerario (43:1).
AcknowledgementsGeneral Series Editor’s PrefaceList of AbbreviationsList of Maps, Tables, Figures and GraphsGlossaryIntroduction1When Principals Become Agents1Structure and Continuity2Metropolitan Directors3Upward Social Mobility and the Chamber of Justice4Safe Investment? Institutional Factors5Market Access2Overseas Directors as Mediators1Overseas and Company Contexts2Trading Systems and Commercial Actors in Pondicherry and Ouidah3Multiplicity of Interests within Companies3Cross-cultural Relations with Rulers1Sovereign Powers2Negotiating Cross-cultural Relations3Competition and Foreign Intermediaries4Inter-imperial Cooperation1European Power Dynamics2Means of Cooperation3Motives of Cooperation4Nuances of Competitive Interactions5Attempts at Self-sustainability1Accessing Funds2Integrating Regional Trading NetworksConclusionBibliographyIndex
Cátia A.P. Antunes, Alejandro García-Monton, Elisabeth Heijmans, Gerhard de Kok, Susana Münch Miranda, Edgar Pereira, João Paulo Salvado, Julie Svalastog, Cátia a. P. Antunes, Cátia a P Antunes