The process of recruiting Indochinese laborers to France during World War I (1914-1918)

Abstract

When the World War I broke out, Indochina sent about 50,000 laborers (mostly Vietnamese) to France to work in factories and defense enterprises. To mobilize this force, the French colonial government implemented a systematic and rigorous recruitment process from the central to local levels. Based on various historical sources, particularly documents stored at the National Archives Centers, and through historical and logical research methods, this study highlights several key issues: Firstly, the labor shortage in France during World War I; secondly, efforts to recruit Indochinese workers to France; and finally, the challenges and obstacles of the recruitment process. This article initially outlines the enrolment process, and the challenges faced by French colonialists in recruiting Indochinese laborers during the World War I.