Between “Île Deserte” and “Île de France”

Abstract

Chapter 3 turns to the problem of dislocation. What happened when French subjects could not reach a legal entrepôt? What kinds of informal and formal legal recourse did they reach for, and in what situations did they obtain aid? Case studies demonstrate that crimes against authority like blasphemy and insolence—perceived or undeniable—could leave conseil participants quite literally stranded. These cases raise questions about how imperial structures, especially courts, could fail subjects marooned outside French jurisdiction. It focuses on local revolts and imperial court suppressions, to understand how judicial crises affected colonial legal regimes.