History
The monument was erected in 1937 and inaugurated on 3 April 1938 by governor Crocicchia. [1] A subsidy of 5,000 rupees was entered into the colonial budget and was granted "to the committee designated by the decree of 14 January 1936, for the erection of a monument to the memory of the inhabitants of French India who died for France during the 1914–1918 war." [4] It was designed by the sculptor Gaston Petit and an architect named Delafon. [5]
A bronze plaque lists the names of soldiers who died during the First World War. Further plaques were added, listing the names of soldiers who died during World War II, the French War in Indochina and the Algerian War. The monument remains the property of France. [6]
The memorial is decorated and illuminated yearly on Bastille Day (14 July) in honour of the soldiers from the colony who took part in World War I. [7] French government officials visit the memorial on occasion and lay flowers at the foot of the monument. [8] A "Defense and Citizenship Day" is held every November, offering students from the Lycée français de Pondichéry and other local schools the chance to attend presentations on the rights and duties of French citizen followed by presentations on national defense. They then attend a ceremony at the memorial on 11 November to honour the end of the First World War. [9]
Puducherry, also known as Pondicherry, is a union territory of India, consisting of four small geographically unconnected districts. It was formed out of four territories of former French India, namely Pondichéry, Karikal (Karaikal), Mahé and Yanaon, excluding Chandannagar (Chandernagore), and it is named after the largest district, Puducherry, which was also the capital of French India. Historically known as Pondicherry, the territory changed its official name to Puducherry on 1 October 2006.
French India, formally the Établissements français dans l'Inde, was a French colony comprising five geographically separated enclaves on the Indian subcontinent that had initially been factories of the French East India Company. They were de facto incorporated into the Republic of India in 1950 and 1954. The enclaves were Pondichéry, Karikal, Yanam on the Coromandel Coast, Mahé on the Malabar Coast and Chandernagor in Bengal. The French also possessed several loges inside other towns, but after 1816, the British denied all French claims to these, which were not reoccupied.
Yanam is a town located in the Yanam district in Puducherry. It has a population of 35,000 and is entirely surrounded by Andhra Pradesh. It was formerly a French colony for nearly 200 years, and, though united with India in 1954, is still sometimes known as "French Yanam". It possesses a blend of French culture and the Telugu culture, nicknamed Frelugu. During French rule, the Tuesday market at Yanam was popular among the Telugu people in the Madras Presidency, who visited Yanam to buy foreign and smuggled goods during Yanam People's Festival held in January. After implementation of the Child Marriage Restraint Act, 1929 in British India, Telugu people often traveled to Yanam to conduct child marriages, which remained legal under the French administration.
The Lycée français international de Pondichéry is an international French school in Pondicherry, Puducherry, India. The school provides education from pre-primary to lycée, 3 to 18 years old.
The Puducherry Legislative Assembly is the unicameral legislature of the Indian union territory (UT) of Puducherry, which comprises four districts: Puducherry, Karaikal, Mahé and Yanam. Out of eight union territories of India, only three have legislatures and they are Delhi, Puducherry and Jammu and Kashmir. After delimitation shortly after its formation, the Puducherry legislative assembly has 33 seats, of which 5 are reserved for candidates from scheduled castes and 3 members are nominated by the Government of India. 30 out of 33 Members are elected directly by the people on the basis of universal adult franchise and the remaining three are nominated by the central government. These nominated members enjoy same powers as elected members of the assembly.
The City of Puducherry on the southeast coast of India does not have a recorded history from antiquity. Puducherry has history recorded only after the advent of the colonial powers such as the Dutch, Portuguese, English and the French. Nearby places such as Arikanmedu, Kakayanthoppe, Villianur, and Bahur, which were annexed by the French East India Company over a period of time and became the Union Territory of Puducherry after Independence, have written histories that predate the colonial era.
Yanaon was one of the five principal settlements of French India between 1731 and 1954. It was referred to in British records as Yanam.
France–India relations are the bilateral relations between France and India, two countries that have traditionally been close and friendly. Both countries have a 'special relationship' with each other, so much so that by August 2019, France has been called "India's new best friend" by a researcher of the Hudson Institute. Both nations have a centuries-old history of trade relations. From the 17th century until 1954, France maintained a colonial presence in the Indian subcontinent; Puducherry, one of its former Indian territories, is a popular tourism destination for French travellers to India.
The Monuments aux Morts of the Eastern Somme are French war memorials commemorating those who died in World War I on the eastern side of the Somme region.
The War memorials (Oise) or Monuments aux Morts of Oise are French war memorials commemorating those men of the region who died in World War I.
The War Memorials of Aisne or Monuments aux Morts of Aisne are French war memorials in the Aisne, in the region of Picardy, commemorating those men of the Aisne region who died in World War I
Charles Desvergnes (1860–1928) was a French sculptor.
The French community in India consists mainly of Indian citizens of French ancestry who are descended from former French settlers and colonists who settled in India since the 17th century, as well as recent expatriates from France.
The first election to the Representative Assembly of French India was held on 15 December 1946 to constitute the First Representative Assembly of French India. The election included Pondichéry, Karaikal, Chandernagor, Mahé and Yanaon. The election was won by the National Democratic Front of Deiva Zivarattinam, that won 30 out of 44 seats.
Claude Grange was a French sculptor.
The Établissements français de l'Inde, previously known as Indes orientales was a constituency in the French National Assembly between 1789 and 1954.
The Treaty establishing De Jure Cession of French Establishments in India was a treaty signed between France and India in 1956 that ceded French territories in India to the Republic of India.
Maurice Paquirissamypoullé, or Paquirissamy-Poullé, was a rice trader and politician from the colony of Karaikal in French India. He represented the colony in the Council of the Republic from 1947 until 1955, when his seat was dissolved following the union with India. He did what he could to ensure a peaceful transition of power.
In 1946, French India became Overseas territory of France. Then, in the same year on 25 October, the Representative Assembly of French India of 44 members has been created that replaced the general council of 30 members.
After the merger of French settlements into an Indian union, a new assembly, named the Pondicherry Representative Assembly, was created by the government of India. After the "de facto transfer day" of 1 October 1954, before 16 August 1962 also referred to as "de-jure transfer day". During this transition period, general elections to the representative assembly were held in 1955 and 1959. After the de-jure transfer day, legal integration of French settlements into the Indian Union was complete. However, this assembly, like its predecessor, was advisory in its role, which led to frequent contention between the popular government and the chief commissioner.
