Franceville (present-day Port Vila) was a municipality located on Efate, or Sandwich Island. It was established in 1889 in order to gain basic legal status, during the period when the

New Hebrides New Hebrides, officially the New Hebrides Condominium (french: link=no, Condominium des Nouvelles-Hébrides, "Condominium of the New Hebrides") and named after the Hebrides, Hebrides Scottish archipelago, was the colonial name for the isla ...

was a neutral territory under the loose jurisdiction of the

Anglo-French Joint Naval Commission The Anglo-French Joint Naval Commission was in charge of the territory of the New Hebrides in the period 1887–1889 and again in 1890–1906. It was briefly suspended by the constitution of the unrecognized independent state of Franceville. His ...

. In 1878, the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and ...

and

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

declared all of the New Hebrides to be neutral territory. For the protection of the French and British citizens in New Hebrides, a joint naval commission was established under the Convention of 16 October 1887. However, the convention claimed no jurisdiction over internal native affairs. The lack of a functional government led to rising discontent among the colonists. The French were especially inconvenienced because French law only recognized marriages when contracted under a civil authority (the nearest one being in

New Caledonia ) , anthem = "" , image_map = New Caledonia on the globe (small islands magnified) (Polynesia centered).svg , map_alt = Location of New Caledonia , map_caption = Location of New Caledonia , mapsize = 290px , subdivision_type = Sovereign st ...

), whereas British law recognized marriages conducted by local clergy. On 9 August 1889, Franceville declared itself an independent commune under the leadership of elected

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well ...

president President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...

Ferdinand-Albert Chevillard, and with its own red, white and blue flag with five stars. This community became one of the first self-governing nations in recorded history to practice

universal suffrage Universal suffrage (also called universal franchise, general suffrage, and common suffrage of the common man) gives the right to vote to all adult citizens, regardless of wealth, income, gender, social status, race, ethnicity, or political sta ...

without distinction of sex or race. Although the district's population at the time consisted of about 500 natives and fewer than 50 whites, only white males were permitted to hold office. One of its elected presidents was R. D. Polk, a native of

Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the List of U.S. states and territories by area, 36th-largest by ...

and relative of James K. Polk. The new government was soon suppressed, and by June 1890, Franceville as a commune was reported to have been "practically broken up." An 1891 census reported 29 adult Europeans, making it the largest European settlement in the New Hebrides. In 1906, the naval commission was replaced by a more structured British-French

Condominium A condominium (or condo for short) is an ownership structure whereby a building is divided into several units that are each separately owned, surrounded by common areas that are jointly owned. The term can be applied to the building or complex ...

See also

References

Further reading