The French–English rivalry in the 18th century set the backdrop for exploration in the Indian and Pacific oceans. In 1771, two young, ambitious, French naval officers and Breton nobles, Yves-Joseph de Kerguelen and his second-in-command Louis de Saint Aloüarn, were given permission by the King of France, Louis XV, to undertake a voyage to discover and claim in the name of France, Terres Australes.