Concerning Pondicherry (now Puducherry), which statement is correct?

1. The first European power to occupy Pondicherry were the Portuguese.
2. The second European power to occupy Pondicherry were the French.
3. The English never occupied Pondicherry.

Explanation

The Portuguese were the first European power to occupy Pondicherry, where they established a factory in the early 16th century.

The Dutch were the second European power to occupy Pondicherry. They captured the settlement in 1693, after the Portuguese—the first occupiers—had established a factory in the 16th century, and before the long-term establishment of French rule. Although the French had made Pondicherry their primary settlement in 1674, the Dutch occupation lasted for a brief period, after which the French ultimately retained control until 1954.

The English East India Company captured Pondicherry from the French in 1761 during the Seven Years’ War. While the French had earlier lost the territory to the Dutch in 1693, the British occupation of 1761 resulted in the destruction of the city’s fortifications before Pondicherry was returned to the French under the Treaty of Paris (1763).