SEOUL: France Thursday sent back a shipment of ancient Korean royal books, 145 years after its troops looted them during a retaliatory raid on an island west of Seoul. Two containers carrying 75 volumes of “Uigue”, illustrated manuals on royal protocol written during the Chosun Dynasty (1392-1910), arrived at Incheon airport after being released by the National Library of France. The books will be housed at South Korea's national museum. The remaining 221 volumes will be delivered by the end of next month, the culture ministry said.