French India

State · 1673–1847 CE · at its largest around 1677 CE

France's trading settlements in India, with Pondicherry as capital alongside Chandernagore, Karikal, Mahé and Yanam; they were transferred to independent India in the mid-20th century.

On its lands while it lasted

Vallabhi (c. 476–1948 CE): Capital of Maitraka Dynasty (476–731).
Aurangzeb (1618 CE – 1707 CE): Sixth Mughal emperor under whom the empire reached its greatest extent; his long Deccan wars strained its resources.
Shivaji (1630 CE – 1680 CE): Founder of the Maratha state who fought the Bijapur Sultanate and the Mughals and was crowned Chhatrapati at Raigad in 1674.
Pondicherry (c. 1673 CE): Capital of French India (1673–1847).
Maratha Empire (1674–1818 CE): Maratha state founded by Shivaji's coronation in 1674, which became the dominant power in India in the 18th century before defeat by the British.
Raigad Fort (c. 1677 CE): Capital of Maratha Empire (1677–1818).
Calcutta (Kolkata) (1690 CE): English East India Company trading post established in 1690 that became the capital of British India until 1911.
Arcot (c. 1713 CE): Capital of Carnatic Sultanate (1713–1768).
Port Louis (1735 CE): Capital of Mauritius (1969–today).
Andrianampoinimerina (c. 1745 CE – 1810 CE): King who reunified the Merina kingdom in the central highlands of Madagascar and made Antananarivo its capital.
Tipu Sultan (1751 CE – 1799 CE): Ruler of Mysore who fought the East India Company in several wars and pioneered the military use of iron-cased rockets.
Ram Mohan Roy (1772 CE – 1833 CE): Bengali reformer who founded the Brahmo Samaj and campaigned against sati.
Colombo (c. 1796 CE): Capital of British Ceylon (1796–1814), Sri Lanka (1972–today).
Great Trigonometrical Survey (1802–1871 CE): Survey that measured the Indian subcontinent by triangulation, beginning at Madras in 1802; it established the height of Mount Everest.
Ida Pfeiffer’s journey round the world: China, India and Persia (1847–1848 CE): From Tahiti Pfeiffer sailed to China, then travelled through Singapore, Ceylon and India, up the Persian Gulf to Baghdad and on through Kurdistan and Persia to the Caucasus, returning to Vienna in late 1848.