In 1921, Auguste Pavie published À la Conquête des Coeurs, a condensed and revised version of his imposing Mission Pavie. The book is often regarded as a kind of spiritual testament to the author, written at the end of his life.
To mark the centenary of the explorer-diplomat's death on June 7, 1925, this new edition, enhanced by 150 illustrations and maps colored for the first time, offers a captivating account of exploration and diplomacy in Indochina, providing a unique insight into the cultures and landscapes of this fascinating region. It mainly covers the years 1887-1888, during which Auguste Pavie explored Laos and the high valleys of Tonkin. 40,000 kilometers covered, dozens of ethnic communities encountered, manuscripts and objects from Cambodian and Laotian antiquity discovered, hundreds of insect, animal and plant specimens collected, traditional Khmer tales and legends rediscovered. Politically, he is the founder of contemporary Laos, to whom he brought peace, but above all he is the defender of a colonial approach that privileges peoples and cultures.

Author presentation:
Auguste Pavie was born on May 31, 1847 in Dinan (Côtes-d'Armor). He embarked as a private soldier for Indochina. Bored by the boredom of the barracks, Pavie became an employee of the Post and Telegraph Service. Noted for his qualities, he was put in charge of the construction of the telegraph line between Phnom Penh and Bangkok. At the age of 37, he was awarded the Légion d'honneur for his zealous and efficient work. Demonstrating his negotiating skills with the Siamese authorities, Pavie was appointed Vice-Consul in Laos, Luang Prabang (1887), Consul General of France in Bangkok in 1892, then Commissioner General in Laos in 1893. The diplomat played a key role in the expansion of French influence in Indochina. At the same time, he led several explorations in Laos, Siam and Cambodia, which enabled him to map regions as yet unknown to Europeans. Elevated to the rank of Minister Plenipotentiary, Auguste Pavie returned to France for good in 1895. He published the first complete map of Indochina and devoted himself and his collaborators to writing the ten volumes of the Mission Pavie, published from 1898 to 1919. Auguste Pavie died on June 7, 1925 in Thourie (Ille-et-Vilaine) at the age of seventy-eight. A remarkable and complex figure, Pavie left a lasting imprint on the history of French exploration and colonization.