AHC - French South African settlement colony

[varyar]

If you were forced at gunpoint to make a TL where southern Africa becomes a French settlement colony (and eventually an African analogue to the USA), how would you do it? How do you get the initial interest and a few outposts on the Cape, and then turn that into a haven for settlers? Any ideas? The POD can be as early as 1500 or so, just after the area was first navigated by Europeans.

[Enigmajones]

Originally Posted by varyar

If you were forced at gunpoint to make a TL where southern Africa becomes a French settlement colony (and eventually an African analogue to the USA), how would you do it? How do you get the initial interest and a few outposts on the Cape, and then turn that into a haven for settlers? Any ideas? The POD can be as early as 1500 or so, just after the area was first navigated by Europeans.

I would dare the man with the gun to shoot.

[varyar]

Originally Posted by Enigmajones

I would dare the man with the gun to shoot.

Come on, I'm not asking for the moon (or the Domination) here. There must be ways to get France to adopt reasonable pro-settlement policies with a POD that early. South Africa isn't a malaria-infested jungle, for one thing. An early discovery of gold might help, no?

[Enigmajones]

Originally Posted by varyar

Come on, I'm not asking for the moon (or the Domination) here. There must be ways to get France to adopt reasonable pro-settlement policies with a POD that early. South Africa isn't a malaria-infested jungle, for one thing. An early discovery of gold might help, no?

I'll be damned before I kowtow to Rifle wielding French Voortrekker fetishists!

But in all seriousness, have the Huegenots set up a cocentrated settlement with the Dutch, and break off from the Boers when they go a trekking.

[Julius Vogel]

I think the populations are just too small to accomplish a fragment French hugenout group within the Dutch Afrikaners. When the settlement is that far away, that small and the two groups have a lot more similarities than differences, compared to their indigenous neighbours or slaves it just seems a leap.

How about some sort of exchange/gift/loan, as part of a Royal Wedding? Lourenço Marques being a gift? The problem was it wasn't really up to much prior to the 19th century, so quite why it would be deemed to be a worthy gift until well after the marriage spoil system ended is unknown

[Enigmajones]

Well I assumed we were taking the leap. Assuming that sanity and reason are required, it seems a little out of place. I was thinking if the Boer Trekkers failed miserably, the British might send a new force to capture native African territory. Using French Huguenot and British settlers. And as long as we're messing around with South African history, lets have the French merge with the Griqua.

[Prism]

Well, there were Huguenots in South Africa in OTL. They just learned to speak Afrikaans.

[Dathi THorfinnsson]

Originally Posted by Prism

Well, there were Huguenots in South Africa in OTL. They just learned to speak Afrikaans.

A pretty fair number of them, actually.