This volume is related to the study of the history and freedom movement in the French territory of Yanam, on the Andhra coast, which was hitherto a neglected area of study. It traces the foundation of the settlement and its historical evolution in the economic, social and political planes before and after French occupation. Special attention has been paid to the development of the freedom movement in Yanam and its final integration with the Indian Union in the year 1954, as part of the Union territory of Pondicherry.

 The volume is significant in the sense that it is a major reference work as far as French colonialism in India is concerned. It is also the only authentic account of the freedom movement in Yanam. It goes into all the details and the actors involved in this freedom movement. In the course of the study, More challenges the views and assertions of European scholars like Louis Dumont, David Washbrook and C.J. Baker.