French Marie-Joseph-François Garnier
born July 25, 1839, Saint-Étienne, France
died Dec. 21, 1873, near Hanoi, Viet.
French naval officer, colonial administrator, and explorer.
Son of an army officer, he joined the navy and participated in the French advance into southern Vietnam in 1861. An enthusiastic believer in France's imperial destiny, he promoted the exploration of the Mekong River and took part in the first European expedition to enter the Chinese province of Yunnan from the south (1866–68). His account, Voyage d'exploration en Indo-Chine, 1866–68 (1873), is a valuable record of the political and economic situation of the countries through which he passed. Summoned to Saigon in 1873 to rein in unauthorized trading with China, he instead tried to seize territory for France in northern Vietnam and was killed in the attempt.