Located in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, the island of Tahiti became a French colony in June 1880, the year this engraving was published. The colonisation of Polynesia took place in a context of political rivalry with the British, who were also present in the region.
Once settled, the French established a fairly classic colonial policy: assimilation through language, schools, sport and direct administration with a governor with full powers based in Papeete, the island’s main town. But unlike other subjects of the Empire, Tahitians were granted French citizenship. The colonists developed an economy based on the cultivation of coconut plantations and the marketing of mother-of-pearl, vanilla and, above all, phosphate discovered on the surrounding islands. But a large number of land disputes broke out, as the principle of private property clashed with the principle of undivided ownership that had previously been in use on the island.