French In Vietnam

French in Vietnam

SOCIAL EFFECTS

When the French were in Vietnam, they did some good things like starting schools. They taught in French and Viet languages and even opened a university in Hanoi in 1902. A few students from Vietnam got scholarships to study in France. But, these opportunities were mostly in cities. Kids from farming families didn't get much education. The schools often taught more about French culture, making it seem better than Vietnamese culture. The French also changed the look of Vietnamese cities, destroying old buildings and temples.

POLITICAL EFFECTS

The French rule in Vietnam was pretty disorganized and often harsh. France didn't have a clear plan for Vietnam; they just wanted to control it for economic reasons. They had many different governors come in with their own ideas, which led to a lot of power misuse and corruption.

ECONOMIC EFFECTS

The main reason the French were in Vietnam was for money. They changed Vietnam's economy to make more money for themselves, taking over land and setting up big farms. Many Vietnamese had to work on these farms instead of for themselves. The French also made the Vietnamese pay a lot of taxes, which made life harder for them.

Dutch Colonial Era

The Dutch controlled spice production in Indonesia tightly between 1680 and 1800. They made the local people work very hard, almost like slaves, to grow food and spices. If people didn't produce enough, they were punished harshly. Some Indonesian groups fought against the Dutch, especially on the island of Java. It took the Dutch a long time to fully control Java.

The Dutch East India Company made a lot of money, but they also spent a lot trying to keep control of Indonesia. They had to fight other European countries and control the local people. Eventually, the company went bankrupt in 1800. Later, the Dutch government took over and established a system where villages had to dedicate land or labor to the government. This made the Dutch government very rich because they sold spices and other crops in Europe.

However, focusing on these cash crops meant there wasn't enough food for the local people, leading to famine and disease. In the late 1800s and early 1900s, the Dutch worked on big projects to improve transportation and the economy in Indonesia. They built ports, roads, and improved water systems, which helped the people a bit and helped the country's economy grow after they gained independence.