For those of you that don't know, the French nearly discovered New Zealand before Captain Cook, in fact there are French street-signs in the South Island even today! I'm thinking, perhaps France could colonise NZ. Examining French policy, I think that today in such a TL NZ would be majority Maori. What if?
A French NZ
- Thread starter Pericles
- Start date
It is possible I guess.
What you would have to consider is that Maori contact with Europe is going to do the usual thing with regards to demographics. There will be a lot of disease and losses to infighting between the various tribes. France won't do much to stop that because it couldn't without spending a lot of money on garrisons across the country and why on earth would they?
So the initial demographic collapse will be an issue, then the South Island, as per OTL will seem largely empty as Maori had been unable to effectively settle the vast majority of it as they did not have the right crops to do so. Their crops were labour intensive and did not seem to grow well in most of the South due to it be slightly too cool. As such the population was in the low thousands or thereabouts, relying on a more hunter gatherer lifestyle compared to the hundreds of thousands of settled cultivating Maori in the North Island.
The French, unless stern, will end up with European/French settlers there. If Australia is still British you will still see thousands of British seep over into NZ to trade or farm. Many of those people simply wanted a fresh start (many were ex convicts) and unless the French kept expelling them, they would end up as per OTL - small settlements or trading stations, with farms in the south.
Then once there is a reasonable European/French population in the South they will likely wish to encourage more settlement for the usual reasons.
What you would have to consider is that Maori contact with Europe is going to do the usual thing with regards to demographics. There will be a lot of disease and losses to infighting between the various tribes. France won't do much to stop that because it couldn't without spending a lot of money on garrisons across the country and why on earth would they?
So the initial demographic collapse will be an issue, then the South Island, as per OTL will seem largely empty as Maori had been unable to effectively settle the vast majority of it as they did not have the right crops to do so. Their crops were labour intensive and did not seem to grow well in most of the South due to it be slightly too cool. As such the population was in the low thousands or thereabouts, relying on a more hunter gatherer lifestyle compared to the hundreds of thousands of settled cultivating Maori in the North Island.
The French, unless stern, will end up with European/French settlers there. If Australia is still British you will still see thousands of British seep over into NZ to trade or farm. Many of those people simply wanted a fresh start (many were ex convicts) and unless the French kept expelling them, they would end up as per OTL - small settlements or trading stations, with farms in the south.
Then once there is a reasonable European/French population in the South they will likely wish to encourage more settlement for the usual reasons.
The French settlement in Akaroa was a failed attempt. The British even raised their flag when the first group of settlers arrived from France. The ship captain told the settlers that they had to fly the Union Jack to appease the British temporarily.
The Akaroans are very fond of their French history though, hence the street signs. But that's only in one very small town.
Akaroa failed because the British told the French that it couldn't go anywhere and the French gave way. The British allowed the French to stay and the French government even provided support to the colony for a decade or so, if I recall correctly.
If Britain hadn't been in a position locally to tell the French navy to eff off, the colony probably would have been fine.
If Britain hadn't been in a position locally to tell the French navy to eff off, the colony probably would have been fine.
katchen
Banned
When I lived in Australia I read a story that the French wanted to establish an Australian style penal colony in New Zealand and then in Western Australia. They kept worrying about permission from the rest of Europe because the Borurbon and then the Orleans Regime thought France was still on parole for it's Napoleonic aggression. Finally in 1856, Napoleon III established a penal colony on New Caledonia. Which is why New Caledonia is half European today.