Abstract
At varous times in its colonial history, Saigon was known as ‘the pearl of the Far East’, ‘the door to Far East Asia’, or ‘Oriental Paris’. In this way it is a microcosm of the political, economic and social history of Viet Nam, and a reflection of the diverging interests of France and its colony. Thus, although a study of Saigon must be specific, it can still contribute to the overall development of colonial history, since the history of the city can be summarised as the growth of its economic functions to the detriment of the others. But, as the nerve centre of colonial exploitation, did Saigon have the capability to assume the role of an economic capital in Indochina?
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References
The word ‘arroyo’, from Spanish, means a kind of channel between two streams. The rach Thi Nghè is the‘arroyo de l’Avalanche’ and the rach Cho Soi the ‘arroyo chinois’.
For the origin and toponymy of Saigon seeLe Courier de Saigon, 20 January 1868; J. Bouchot, Documents pour servir à l’histoire de Saigon (Saigon, 1927); L. Malleret, ‘Eléments d’une monographie des anciennes fortifications et citadelles de Saigon’, Bulletin de la Société des Etudes Indochinoises (hereafterBSEI) 4 (1935); Thai Van Kiem, ‘Interprétation d’une carte ancienne de Saigon’, BSEI 4 (1962).
The Don Dien were agricultural settlements created in the 15th century and granted by the state to former soldiers, who had become peasant farmers, who, in exchange, assured the defense of the borderlands of the Vietnamese empire. The Don Dien were abolished in September 1867 under the government of Admiral de la Grandière. See L. Pallu, ‘Une colonie militaire annamite’, Revue des Deux Mondes (1862).
For this first intervention of France in Vietnamese affairs, see L. Cadière, ‘Les Français au service de GiaLong’, Bulletin des Amis du Vieux Hué (hereafterBAVH) (1926); G. Taboulet, ‘Le Traité de Versailles (28 septembre 1787) et les causes de sa non exécution’, BSEI 2(1938); G. Taboulet, La Geste française en Indochine 2 vols. (Paris, 1955), vol. 1; C. Rageau, Gia Long et les Européens autour du Traité de Versailles (28 novembre 1787), unpublished Ille cycle thesis, University of Paris, 1968.
See J. White, ‘Voyage en Cochinchine’, BAVH 1-2 (1937).
See ‘Le Journal de voyage de G. Ginlayson’, BSEI 1–2 (1939).
With regard to this phenomenon of discontinuity, see J. Chesneaux, ‘L’implantation géographique des intérêts coloniaux au Viêtnam et ses rapports avec l’économie traditionelle’, in: J. Chesneaux, G. Boudarel and D. Hémery (eds.), Tradition et Révolution au Viêtnam (Paris, 1971), pp. 74–88.
Regarding the Cochinchinese affair, see G. Taboulet, ‘Les origines immédiates de l’intervention de la France en Indochine (1857–1858)’, Revue d’Histoire des Colonies françaises (1954); J. Laffey, ‘Les raisons de l’impérialisme français en Extrême-Orient’, Revue d’Histoire Moderne et Contemporaine (1969); E. Vo Duc Hanh, La place du catholicisme dans les relations entre la France et le Viêtnam de1851 à 1870 2 vols. (Leiden, 1969 ); N. Lê, Les missions étrangères et la pénétration française au Viêt-Nam ( Paris, La Haye, 1975 ).
Archives Centrales de l’Indochine B.11(14) cited in P. Boudet, ‘Chasseloup Laubat et la politique coloniale du Second Empire’, BSEI (1947): 47
According to F. Bobrie, ‘Finances publiques et conquête coloniale: le coût budgétaire de l’expansion française entre 1850 et 1913’, Annales ESC (1976):1239: ‘The first noteworthy result is, to our mind, the reasonable cost of the colonial expansion which remains always below 10% to the final state budget expenses’.
This assertion is based on four facts. Rather than Saigon, the European powers aimed at Poulo Condore, islet of Cochinchina and situated on the navigation routes. After an attempt of settlement by British, the French inclosed the sovereignty of the island in the treaty of union between France and Viet Nam.
On the role of the admiral-governors in the Cochinchinese administration, see H.F. L’Homme, Le Gouvernement des amiraux-gouverneurs en Cochinchine (1861–1879) (Paris, 1901); J. Perin, ‘Les marins dans la conquête et l’organisation de l’Indochine’, BSEI 2 (1937); M. Osborne, The French Presence in Cochinchina and Cambodia. Rule and Response (1859–1905) (Ithaca, N.Y., 1969); J.A. Bising, The Admiral’s Government: A History of the Naval Colony that was French Indochina (1862-1879) (New York, 1972 ).
See the description of Saigon in 1863 by E. de Hailly, ‘Souvenirs d’une campagne dans l’Extrême-Orient’, Revue des Deux Mondes (1866).
See Col. Coffyn, ‘Note à l’appui d’un projet de la ville de Saigon’, in: J. Bouchot, Documents pour servir à l’histoire de Saigon, p. 37.
P. Doumer, La situation en Indochine (1897–1901) (Hanoi, 1902), p. 37.
See the table of ships entering the port of Saigon inExposition Coloniale Internationale, Section Economique, Les ports autonomes de l’Indochine (Paris, 1931), p. 19.
Lacking real census figures until 1921, the figures are only indicative for this period. Meanwhile, some punctual works give us a clear picture of the population of Saigon and Cholon. According to the moment and duration of the harvest, Saigon registered a wave of migration to the country and vice versa. This floating population can be estimated at 15 to 20,000 people.
See R.B. Smith, ‘Bui Ouang Chieu and the Constitutionalist Party in French Cochinchina, 1917–1930’, Modern Asian Studies 2 (1969).
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Guillaume, X. (1985). Saigon, or the Failure of an Ambition (1858–1945). In: Ross, R.J., Telkamp, G.J. (eds) Colonial Cities. Comparative Studies in Overseas History, vol 5. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-009-6119-7_11
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