Episode 1 of 2
Formation of French Indochina
- When
- 17 October 1887
- Where
- Saigon
French Indochina was formally established on 17 October 1887, consolidating Annam, Tonkin, Cochinchina, and Cambodia into a single union.
The union was created by consolidating existing French protectorates and colonies. Saigon was designated as the capital. Laos was not part of this initial formation, contrary to some legacy claims, as it was added only after the 1893 crisis.
Sources
- French Indochina Wikipedia, revision of 2026-09-26
Machine-drafted from the cited Wikipedia passages and checked by a reviewing model, not by a human editor. Every passage cites the revision it was written from; dates and places follow those passages.