884, Cambodia.
This aggrandizement of France at the cost of China finally resulted
in a declaration of war on the part of the latter country against
France in August, 1884, lasting until June, 1885, and resulting in
the confirmation of the French possessions in the Far East, not,
however, until the French troops had suffered severe reverses. In
1885 a protectorate was established over Madagascar.

The beginning and continuation of French expansion in other parts of
the world necessarily brought France into closer and more frequent
contact with other countries. French statesmen soon began to see the
necessity of making friends amongst the other nations if they hoped
to lead France back into the position amongst the great powers which
it had a right to occupy on account of its history as well as its
extent and ability. Throughout the first twenty years after the
Franco-Prussian War, France may be considered to have been on
friendly terms with practically all European nations with the
possible exception of Germany; but these friendships during that
period had not yet ripened into intimacy nor had they even resulted
in the establishment of definite alliances with any one of the
nations. The feeling against Germany, which was, of course, based on
the defeat which France had suffered at the hands of its eastern
neighbor, was not particularly pronounced during this period and,
unless French interests would finally have resulted in the
conclusion of alliances with countries which brought it into
commercial and political conflict with Germany, there seemed to be
no good reason in the late nineties why France and Germany could not
have found a common basis of understanding. In spite of this fact it
is true that French statesmen and especially French politicians had
never entirely given up the idea of revenging the defeat of 1870,
even though in a great many instances the desire for revenge was
secondary only, whereas the desire for the reconquest of lost
territory was the chief driving power. However, as we have said, in
1889 French relations with the world were pleasant enough to make it
possible for the republic to again extend an invitation to all
civilized nations to come to Paris for another exhibition which was
opened in May of that year, 1889. In the same year a bill was passed
making army service universal. In 1890 representatives of the
various nations again met at Paris at an international commercial
conference. In 18