France in the 17th and 18th centuries witnessed cycles of ambitious colonial expansion and spectacular collapse. In this period overseas empire became a lens through which French thinkers viewed the metropole, often with a critical eye. At the same time Enlightenment science found application in the projection and preservation of imperial lines of power. This course approaches early French empire from a variety of angles, including its commercial, military, ethnographic, and medical dimensions, among others. We will explore the better-known New France and the Caribbean, as well as French forays into the Indian Ocean, the Pacific, and beyond. This course fulfills the “Origins to 1789” distribution requirement in European history.