In 1715, Mauritius was claimed by France, but it wasn’t until 1721 that French settlers from Reunion made a first attempt at settling the island they named Île de France. During the first years of French rule, a very multiethnic population was created as people from India, Madagascar, Europe, Africa, and China were moved to the island. An attempt was made to develop agriculture, but just as had been the case during Dutch rule, cyclones, droughts, and pests made this quite an unsuccessful endeavour. Slaves, as well as some workers and soldiers, escaped into the forests from which they would frequently launch attacks, soldiers often refused to take orders, and many of those who did stay faithful to their governor were heavy drinkers. Just as had been the case with the Dutch, in the first decade of French rule, the settlement was on the border of collapsing.

The tide quickly turned when Bertrand-François Mahé de La Bourdonnais took up his post as governor of Île de France and Île de Bourbon (Réunion) in 1735. He brought discipline back to the population, and created several businesses for which he often provided the starting capital. Sugar, indigo, cotton, and tobacco plantations were set up, and an adequate labour force imported from India. Port Louis was transformed into a well defended naval base with a state-of-the-art naval workshop, where stores, a market, a theatre, an aqueduct, and a large hospital were built. During the latter part of the 1730‟s, a large number of infrastructures were constructed as well. Slaves were offered training in activities such as shipbuilding and stone cutting. Moreover, they were enrolled as slave hunters and were given a salary. They became very effective in reducing the runaway slave population. La Bourdonnais was replaced in 1746.

The following two decades, agriculture was developed further. Just when Île de France seemed to develop a self-sufficient food production, the Seven Year’s War broke out in 1756. Large numbers of French soldiers on their way to India were called to Mauritius, and quickly the island was threatened with starvation. The war ended in 1763, and four years later, the French government bought Île de France from the East India Company. By this time, 18,777 people, of which over 15,000 were slaves, populated the island. By the end of the eighteenth century, this amount had more than tripled, with slaves constituting over 80% of the island’s population. It is estimated that a total of 160,000 slaves reached Mauritius and Réunion between 1670 and 1810, of which 87% came from various regions in Africa and 13% from India.

In 1787, Port Louis was made into a free port, open to ships of all nations. This caused the number of merchants based in Port Louis to rise from 103 in 1776 to 365 in 1803. During the late eighteenth century, ships from Asia, Africa, Europe, and the Americas brought in various commodities. These included foodstuffs such as rice and wine, textiles, goods required for the maintenance of ships, furniture, ceramics, luxury goods, and most importantly, slaves. It was during this time that the harbour and dockyard were further developed, its equipment modernized, and cleared of silt and shipwrecks.

Wooden houses in Port Louis were replaced by ones made of stone and streets were paved. Barracks and hospitals were constructed for about 2,500 troops, and Port Louis was steadily growing in size. By the early nineteenth century, Ile de France was exporting a large variety of products, including coffee, indigo, tea, textiles, cloves, cinnamon, nutmeg, and ebony. Imports included wine and other liquors, salted food, ceramics, glass, and furniture.

During the American War of Independence, Île de France was again used as a major naval and military base for French campaigns against the British in India. Many soldiers and sailors, on their way to India, called at Port Louis. This gave an enormous boost to the island’s economy. Moreover, corsairs (as well as the French navy) based on Île de France plundered English merchant ships all over the Indian Ocean, which injected considerable sums of money into the island’s economy. Merchants on the island engaged in trade with people from Europe, the Far East, the Middle East, and even the newly formed United States of America.

Due to its strategic position, Great Britain had its eyes set on Île de France. During the first decade of the nineteenth century, British ships occasionally raided the island and set up blockades to cripple trade with the outside world. In November 1810, the British arrived on the island’s northern shores with a fleet of 70 ships carrying 10,000 troops. Over the years British spies had already gathered a lot of intelligence, and by the time of the invasion, the British were in possession of detailed maps of the island. The French, having only 2,000 troops, were greatly outnumbered, and capitulated on 3 December 1810.