Question

When was the French East India Company established?
A) 1560
B) 1598
C) 1664
D) 1679

Answer 1

Hint: 1) The French East India Company was an imperial commercial organisation established to compete in the East Indies with the British and Dutch trading companies.
2) The company's first General Director was François de la Faye.
3) The British destroyed Pondicherry in 1761 AD. So, in South India, the French lost their power.

Complete answer:
In 1664 AD, the French East India Company was formed during the reign of King Louis XIV to trade with India. The French built their first firm at Surat in 1668 AD, and another French firm at Masulipatam was established in 1669 AD. In 1673 AD, Bengal's Mughal Subedar permitted the French to establish a township at Chandernagore. The French acquired a village called Pondicherry from the Sultan of Bijapur in 1674 AD and built a flourishing city on it, which later became the main French fortress in India. With the passing of time, the French East India Company built its commercial bastians at Mahe, Balasore, Karaikal,and Qasim Bazar.

The ambitions of the French, like those of the British, were strictly commercial from their arrival until 1741 AD. Yanam was captured by the French East India Company in 1723 AD, Mahe on the Malabar Coast in 1725 AD, and Karaikal in 1739 AD. As time went by, their intentions changed and they started to perceive India as their colony. The first step towards this goal was the appointment of Joseph Francois Dupleix as the Governor of the French East India Company in 1741 AD.

Hence, the correct answer is option (C).

Note: 1) The company was unable to financially maintain itself, and in 1769, it was abolished.
2) King Louis XVI issued an edict in 1769 requiring the company to move all of its lands, assets and privileges, estimated at 30 million lives, to the state.
3) In1785, the company was reconstituted and issued 40,000 stock shares, valued at 1,000 livres each.