expolier

[CalvadosKid]

"Il eut fallu, pour y réussir, achever d'expolier les départements du Rhin, qui n'avaient qu trop souffert depuis la commencement de la guerre...."

Best I can come up with is "to despoil" or "to strip bare"

 

[jetset]

I vote for your proposition, to strip bare.

 

[wildan1]

I cannot find this term anywhere, including my print version of Le Robert.

Are you sure it is not a typo for exfolier? That could correspond to despoil, I believe.

 

[CalvadosKid]

1

I cannot find this term anywhere, including my print version of Le Robert.

Are you sure it is not a typo for exfolier? That could correspond to despoil, I believe.

Could be, but the rest of the several hundred pages appears error free. It's one of the penalties I pay, I think, for choosing to translate 19th century as opposed to 21st century French

 

[CalvadosKid]

I vote for your proposition, to strip bare.

I love democracy! Many thanks...

 

[bh7]

EXPOLIER, verbe FEW XII spoliare
[FEW XII, 204a : spoliare]
Empl. trans. Expolier qqn de qqc. "Dépouiller qqn (par ruse ou par force) de ce qui lui appartient"

Suggested translation: to spoliate, plunder, rob, despoil, pillage