Why was France a latecomer in the colonial race?

Answer 1

There are two answers to this. One is that France was not really a latecomer, as the French overseas empire was established not long after those of the Spanish and Portuguese and for a wihle it was fairly large. The other is that France was traditionally more of a land power than a naval power, and during the beginnings of the colonial era, the French kings were primarily concerned with expanding their hold over neighboring territories in Europe, not overseas. So, while the French empire wasn't actually started late, not much energy was put into developing it compared to what the Spanish and Portuguese were doing at the time. Furthermore, most of France's empire in the Americas was lost due to the Seven Years War (where they lost Quebec), Haitian independence and the Lousiana Purchase. This meant that the French were largely starting over in the 1800's in building their empire in Africa and Asia.