ABSTRACT
In the long eighteenth century, (commercial) access to the French West Indies was regulated by the Exclusif Colonial. French subjects were privileged, whereas foreigners were subjected to heavy restrictions. However, these strict and concise metropolitan regulations were but awkwardly applicable to the complex and occasionally pressing realities in the colonies themselves. For example, subjecthood was not as easily defined, and foreign provisioning was at times a necessity to keep the (lesser) colonies socially and economically viable. This chapter explores the relationship between foreignness and illegality in Guadeloupe, and studies how these notions were understood and interpreted by its (senior) administrators, who had to balance between law and practice, and make decisions that were acceptable to all. Ultimately, this offers a dynamic and grounded view of in- and out-siders in the early modern French West Indies.
