ABSTRACT
The ultimate motivation was the French imperial need to defend their Louisiana claim by fortifying its Mississippi Valley gateway against competing colonial interests. The proximate motivation was the need for a convenient lower-river port and company office for the commercial development of Louisiana. This particular spot offered the right mix of accessibility, defendability, riverine position, arability, and natural resources toward those ends, in an environment that lacked superior alternatives. Bienville's wisdom became apparent around the time of Du Lac's visit, as New Orleans emerged as one of the most important cities in America. It was shown again after Hurricane Katrina, when the French Quarter and other historical areas all evaded flooding. German geographer Friedrich Ratzel contemplated New Orleans's site-versus-situation dilemma in his 1870s assessment of urban America. "New Orleans," he judged, "is just as poorly located as a city, or more precisely as a dwelling place, as it is excellently located as a commercial site".
