清代广州贸易中的法国商馆

A Study of the French Factory in Guangzhou in the Eighteenth Century

法国东印度公司在18世纪的海外贸易竞争中不甘落后,借助政府支持积极开展与中国的商业贸易,并在广州设置商行处理各种事务。法国商行的设立、发展及最后的关闭,与法国在国际上与英国争夺海外殖民地及国内革命形势和贸易政策密切相关,它经历了与法国东印度公司同样的命运,即起初在对华贸易中占据一席之地,在18世纪末期逐渐退出历史舞台。本文依据原始文献对这一时期来华法国船只的数量以及法国商馆的管理人员名单进行统计,力图清晰呈现这一特殊历史时期中法国与中国的贸易状况。

Established in 1644 the French East India Company was not content to lag behind international trade in the eighteenth century. The company made active efforts to trade in China with the backing of the French government. The foundation, evolution and closing of the French Factory was closely related to the success or failure of keen overseas competition between France and the other European countries, especially England, and also to its domestic political situation. The French Factory had a common experience with the French East India Company. This paper analyzes the number of boats which came to Guangzhou and the supercargoes of the French Factory analyzing the original statistics in the case records in order to present the picture of prosperity in trade between the two countries in the eighteenth century.