Beyond the Ocean

France and the Atlantic World from the Crusades to the Age of Revolutions
Beyond the Ocean presents a bold reinterpretation of French colonialism from its medieval roots to the Age of Revolutions. Driven by compelling individual stories that are woven into a sweeping chronological narrative, it reveals France’s profound significance to Atlantic history and offers new insights on the interconnected histories of France, West Africa, and the Americas.
A bold reinterpretation of French colonialism from its medieval roots to the early nineteenth centuryBetween 1400 and 1800, the people of Europe, Africa, and the Americas grew ever more connected by overseas trade and colonization. Histories of this transformative era have been dominated by Iberian and British experiences, overlooking the vast reach of the pre-Napoleonic French Empire. Yet by the mid-eighteenth century, France claimed nearly a third of North America, ruled over the Caribbean’s