ABSTRACT
Henri Brunschwig’s book can be accepted as a significant part of the historiographical developments of the 1960s, in which an important debate about the nature and the causes of modern imperialism took place. Looking back on the historiographical developments one can conclude that Henri Brunschwig started an important dicussion by asking fundamental questions about the most important aspects of French imperialism. The “myths” were the attempts to find an economic explanation for French imperialism. The reality was different. In fact, French colonial expansion was the consequence of a traditional policy of grandeur, strengthened by the virulent nationalism of the late nineteenth century and, in France, colored in a particular way by the defeat of 1870. In the economic interpretation of modern imperialism, protectionism is an important factor. Colonial and imperialist policies were definitely conceived and executed in France, but they were indeed very largely influenced by the holders of local power.
