Henri Coudreau (1859–1899) was one of the greatest explorers of the nineteenth century. He was highly regarded in his own time as a thoroughly modern expedition leader, and his reports on the anthropological and geographical features of the region were of great value in the expansion of French colonial power. In this magisterial two-volume work, Coudreau describes the history of French settlement and rule in Guyana, and its people, flora and fauna, drawing particular attention to the natural resources ready to be exploited in the region. Based on four years of observations dating from his arrival in Cayenne in 1881, and drawing on extensive field work, the first volume is an informative survey of French Guyana, enlivened by personal experience and opinion, intended to give politicians in France an up to date account of the state of affairs in the colony.