French Explorers of the Eighteenth Century

France had established a colony at the Falkland Islands (Malouines) in 1764. Spain, however, claimed that the islands belonged to the continent of South America, and France acknowledged Spain's right in 1776, when Louis de Bougainville was ordered to proceed to the Falklands to deliver them officially to the Spaniards. He was also ordered to proceed to the East Indies by crossing the south seas between the tropics. Bougainville's trip seemed to awaken France to the advisability of taking a share in the investigations and the profits that might accrue therefrom. However, the Government did not move until it sent La Pérouse out in 1785, though two minor voyages were made before that for business purposes. A chronological list of French explorers follows:

Date	Commander	Ships	Islands Visited
1766-1769	Bougainville	Boudeuse and Étoile	Tuamotus, Society, Samoa
1769-1770	Surville	St. Jean Baptiste	New Zealand
1771-1773	Marion de Fresne, Crozet	Mascarin and Marquis de Castries	New Zealand
1785-1788	La Pérouse	Boussole and Astrolabe	Hawaii, Easter, Tonga, Samoa
1790-1792	Marchand	Solide	Marquesas, Hawaii
1791-1793	D'Entrecasteaux	Recherche and Espérance	New Zealand, Tonga