French Empire

The French had colonies in America, Asia and Africa.

In America, the French were not interested in land acquisition and colonization. They just wanted access to resources like animal fir.

The French began to explore Canada in the 1500s and followed the rivers down from Hudson Bay to the Louisiana Territory. They were in America for the fir trade and establish trading posts along the Mississippi to New Orleans.

The French began to colonize Canada, but were displaced by the British. They gained the Louisiana Territory in North America from the Spanish and sold it to the US in 1803.

In 1762, during the French and Indian War with Britain, France ceded its America territory west of the Mississippi River to Spain and in 1763 transferred nearly all of its remaining North American holdings to Great Britain. ... In 1801, Spain signed a secret treaty with France to return Louisiana Territory to France.

France later colonized a third of Africa from the 1870s to 1900 and withdrew over time.

France colonized Vietnam in 1887 and withdrew in 1954 after France fell to Germany. This began the movement for Vietnam to become a sovereign country. In 1945, 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/French_colonial_empire

Norb Leahy, Dunwoody GA Tea Party Leader