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132-480: Louisiana included two regions, now known as Upper Louisiana ( la Haute-Louisiane ), which began north of the Arkansas River , and Lower Louisiana ( la Basse-Louisiane ). The U.S. state of Louisiana is named for the historical region, although it is only a small part of the vast lands claimed by France. French exploration of the area began during the reign of Louis XIV, but the vast French Louisiana

264-568: A shallop arrived from the Spanish settlement at Pensacola to the east, with the news that d'Iberville and Serigny had reached there with the king's ships, the Renommée of fifty guns, and the Palmier of 44 guns. This was welcome news to the garrison, which had been living for more than 3 months on little more than corn. They had lost more than 60 men due to disease, leaving only 150 persons in

396-548: A French monopoly on trade. Colbert wanted to reduce the expenditure of the monarchy. It was, however, necessary to invest much money and to mobilize important human resources retain the American colony. Much work was done on the economic infrastructure (factories, ports) in metropolitan France, but the investment was not enough in Louisiana. No plan to facilitate the movement of goods or men was ever carried out. The French budget

528-620: A fundamental place in the control of the territory. Soldiers built forts and frequently negotiated with the Native Americans. The coureurs des bois (literally "runners of the woods") played an important part, though not well documented, in the expansion of French influence in North America. By the end of the 17th century, these adventurers had journeyed the length of the Mississippi River. They were motivated by

660-527: A game of political alliances greatly marked the history of Louisiana, in direct and indirect ways. Within those shifting conditions, the French desire to limit British influence in North America was a constant issue in royal politics. Louis XIV took care to limit the appearance of intermediary bodies and countervailing powers in North America. He did not want an assembly of notables or parliament . In

792-643: A length of time fixed by the contract of service to pay off their passage. During this time, they were "temporary semi-slaves". To increase the colonial population, the crown sent filles à la cassette ("casket girls," referring to the small trunks they arrived with), young Frenchwomen, to marry the soldiers. They were given a dowry financed by the King. This practice built upon the 17th-century precedent when Louis XIV paid for transport and dowries for about 800 filles du roi (King's Daughters) to emigrate to New France to encourage marriage and formation of families in

924-527: A magazine for storage of goods and provisions which had been brought from France. On January 16th, Bienville commenced to build the Fort Louis de la Mobile , about 12 leagues above the present city of Mobile , on the right bank of the river. It was the official center of the Gulf Coast colony for the next nine years, until the new Fort Conde was built. (Mobile city developed around it.) In 1717, when

1056-485: A mile from the original site (which is on private property) in the 20th century and was open to the public. It was badly damaged by Hurricane Katrina on August 29, 2005, when coastal Mississippi was devastated by a storm surge exceeding 30 feet (9 m) plus higher waves. Within a few hours, all coastal towns were flooded more than 90%. Residents who had not evacuated, survived by swimming to treetops or roof lines of taller buildings. A park has since been constructed at

1188-667: A missionary in French Canada, was at a mission station on Lake Superior , when he met native traders from the Illinois Confederation . He learned about the great river that ran through their country to the south and west. In 1673–74, with a commission from the Canadian government, Marquette and Louis Jolliet explored the Mississippi River territory from Green Bay to the Arkansas River , including

1320-516: A plant common in the preparation of gumbo . While the Code Noir required that the slaves receive a Christian education, many secretly practiced animism and often combined elements of the two faiths. The commonly accepted definition of Louisiana Creole today is the community whose members are a descendant of the "native-born" individuals of la Louisiane. Some individuals may not have each ethnic heritage, and some may have additional ancestries. It

1452-783: A real threat to the groups of isolated colonists; in 1729, their attacks killed 250 in Lower Louisiana. Forces of the Native American Natchez people took Fort Rosalie (now Natchez, Mississippi ) by surprise, killing, among others, pregnant women. The French responded with warfare during the next two years: some Natchez were captured and deported as slaves to Saint Domingue ; others left the area if they escaped. Colonists were often young men, volunteers recruited in French ports or in Paris. Many served as indentured servants ; they were required to remain in Louisiana for

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1584-566: A single Catholic diocese, whose seat was in Quebec. The archbishop, named and paid by the king, was spiritual head of all New France. With loose religious supervision, the fervor of the population was very weak; Louisianans tended to practice their faith much less than did their counterparts in France and Canada. The tithe, a tax by the clergy on the congregations, produced less revenue than in France. The Church nevertheless played an important part in

1716-605: Is associated with the misnomer the Cajun French dialect and with Louisiana Creole French, a related creole language. Spoken widely in what is now the U.S. state of Louisiana, it is now considered to have been relabeled as "Cajun French". Colonial French is conventionally described as the form of French spoken in Lower French Louisiana prior to the mass arrival of Acadians after the Great Upheaval of

1848-408: Is difficult to estimate the total population of France's colonies in North America. While historians have relatively precise sources regarding the colonists and enslaved Africans, estimates of Native American peoples is difficult. During the 18th century, the society of Louisiana became quite creolized . Colonial French (commonly known as Colonial Louisiana French) is a variety of Louisiana French. It

1980-553: Is estimated that 7,000 European immigrants settled in Louisiana during the 18th century—a hundredth the number of inhabitants of the Thirteen Colonies on the Atlantic coast. Initially, creole was the term used for Europeans (and sometimes, separately for Africans) born in Louisiana, in contrast to those who immigrated there. Louisiana attracted considerably fewer French colonists than did its West Indian colonies. After

2112-569: Is known among the educated that it has been incorrectly relabelled "Cajun French" by Cajuns and CODOFIL. Following the Great Upheaval in 1764, when many Acadians were exiled to French Louisiana, Louisiana French was adopted by the Acadians. Some scholars suggested that it survived as the prestige dialect spoken by Creoles, both white and of color, into the 21st century. There are populations of Creoles and Cajuns among other ethnic groups in

2244-704: Is the French Canadian Toussaint Charbonneau , husband to Sacagawea , who gave birth to Jean-Baptiste. They took part in the Lewis and Clark Expedition in 1804–1806. Illinois Country The Illinois Country (French: Pays des Illinois [pɛ.i dez‿i.ji.nwa] ; lit.   ' land of the Illinois people ' ; Spanish: País de los ilinueses ), also referred to as Upper Louisiana (French: Haute-Louisiane [ot.lwi.zjan] ; Spanish: Alta Luisiana ),

2376-718: The Canadiens to cross the Mississippi to live in St. Louis or Ste. Genevieve . The British soon relaxed their policy and later extended the Province of Quebec to the region. The British took control of Fort de Chartres on October 10, 1765 and renamed it Fort Cavendish . The British softened the initial expulsion order and offered the Canadien inhabitants the same rights and privileges enjoyed under French rule. In September 1768,

2508-609: The Company of the Indies in 1719). Hoping to make a fortune mining precious metals in the area, the company with a military contingent sent from New Orleans built a fort to protect its interests. Construction began on the first Fort de Chartres (in present-day Illinois) in 1718 and was completed in 1720. The original fort was located on the east bank of the Mississippi River, downriver (south) from Cahokia and upriver of Kaskaskia . The nearby settlement of Prairie du Rocher, Illinois ,

2640-487: The Illinois Country ( French : Pays des Illinois ), which consisted of settlements in what are now the states of Missouri , Illinois , and Indiana ; and Lower Louisiana , which comprised parts of the modern states of Louisiana , Arkansas , Mississippi , and Alabama . Both areas were dominated numerically by Native American tribes. At times, fewer than two hundred French soldiers were assigned to all of

2772-695: The Illinois River valley. In 1675, Marquette returned to found a Jesuit mission at the Grand Village of the Illinois . Over the next decades missions, trade posts, and forts were established in the region. By 1714, the principal European, non-native inhabitants were Canadien fur traders , missionaries and soldiers, dealing with Native Americans, particularly the group known as the Kaskaskia . The main French settlements were established at Kaskaskia , Cahokia , and Sainte Genevieve . By 1752,

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2904-489: The Illinois River , and from there west to the mouth of the Rock River (at present-day Rock Island, Illinois ). Thus, Vincennes and Peoria were the limit of Louisiana's reach. The outposts at Ouiatenon (on the upper Wabash near present-day Lafayette, Indiana ), Fort Miamis (near present-day Fort Wayne, Indiana ), and Prairie du Chien operated as dependencies of Canada. This boundary remained in effect through

3036-613: The Quapaw Indians. In April 1682, they arrived at the mouth of the Mississippi. Cavelier eventually returned to Versailles , where he convinced the Minister of the Marine to grant the command of Louisiana to him. He claimed that Louisiana was close to New Spain by drawing a map showing the Mississippi as much farther west than it really was. With four ships and 320 emigrants, Cavelier set sail for Louisiana. Cavelier did not find

3168-701: The Wabash valley up to the mouth of the Vermilion River (near present-day Danville, Illinois ); from there, northwest to le Rocher on the Illinois River , and from there west to the mouth of the Rock River (at present-day Rock Island, Illinois ). Thus, Vincennes and Peoria were near the limit of Louisiana's reach; the outposts at Ouiatenon (on the upper Wabash near present-day Lafayette, Indiana ), Checagou , Fort Miamis (near present-day Fort Wayne, Indiana ) and Prairie du Chien operated as dependencies of Canada. This boundary between Canada and

3300-638: The Wabash River in Indiana . Explored in 1673 from Green Bay to the Arkansas River by the Canadien expedition of Louis Jolliet and Jacques Marquette , the area was claimed by France . It was settled primarily from the Pays d'en Haut in the context of the fur trade , and in the establishment of missions from Canada by French Catholic religious orders . Over time, the fur trade took some French to

3432-558: The West Indies for sale as slaves, or to Canada. In Louisiana, planters generally preferred using African slaves, though some had Native American servants. In 1717, John Law , the French Comptroller General of Finances, decided to import African slaves into Louisiana. His objective was to develop the plantation economy of Lower Louisiana. The Royal Indies Company held a monopoly over the slave trade in

3564-650: The governor-general of Louisiana in New Orleans. The geographical limits of Upper Louisiana were never precisely defined, but the term gradually came to describe the country southwest of the Great Lakes . A royal ordinance of 1722 may have featured the broadest definition of the region: all land claimed by France south of the Great Lakes and north of the mouth of the Ohio River , including both banks of

3696-708: The river's mouth in the Mississippi River Delta and tried to establish a colony on the Texas coast. Cavelier was assassinated in 1687 by members of his exploration party, reportedly near what is now Navasota, Texas . [REDACTED]   Kingdom of France 1718–1763 [REDACTED]   Kingdom of Spain 1763–1802 [REDACTED]   French First Republic 1802–1803 [REDACTED]   United States of America 1803–1861 [REDACTED]   Confederate States of America 1861–1862 [REDACTED]   United States of America 1862–present It

3828-548: The thirteen British colonies on the Atlantic seaboard; the French claim extended to the Appalachian Mountains. The Rocky Mountains marked the western extent of the French claim, while Louisiana's southern border was the Gulf of Mexico. The general flatness of the land aided movement through the territory; its average elevation is less than 1,000 metres (3,300 ft). The topography becomes more mountainous towards

3960-537: The 1660s, the colony was royal property. In 1685, Louis XIV banned all publishing in New France. Between 1712 and 1731, the French possession came under the control of Antoine Crozat , a rich businessman, then under that of the Mississippi Company (created by John Law ), which recruited immigrants to settle the colony. In 1731, Louisiana reverted to royal rule. In contrast to Metropolitan France ,

4092-696: The 1673 expedition of Louis Joliet and Jacques Marquette , which charted the upper Mississippi. As noted above, Upper Louisiana was primarily settled by colonists from French Canada . There was further substantial intermarriage and integration with the local Illinois peoples . French settlers were attracted by the availability of arable farmland as well as by the forests, abundant with animals suitable for hunting and trapping . Between 1699 and 1760, six major settlements were established in Upper Louisiana: Cahokia , Kaskaskia , Fort de Chartres , Saint Philippe , and Prairie du Rocher , all on

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4224-571: The British established a Court of Justice, the first court of common law in the Mississippi Valley (the French law system is called civil law ). After severe flooding in 1772, the British saw little value in maintaining the fort and abandoned it. They moved the military garrison to the fort at Kaskaskia and renamed it Fort Gage . Chartres' ruined but intact magazine is considered the oldest surviving European structure in Illinois and

4356-737: The British, and Pontiac led a coalition of the Illini, and Kickapoo, Miami, Ojibway, Ottawa, Potawatomi, Seneca, Wea, and Wyandot against the British. Pursuant to the Treaty of Paris (1763) Captain Thomas Sterling and the 42nd Regiment of Foot took command of Fort de Chartres , from the French commandant, Captain Louis St. Ange de Bellerive in 1765. During the Revolutionary War, General George Rogers Clark took possession of

4488-517: The British. Other Acadians were transported there by the British after they were expelled from Acadia. About 4,000 are thought to have settled in Louisiana, gradually forming the Cajun community. Social mobility was easier in America than in France at the time. The seigneurial system was not imposed on the banks of the Mississippi, although the long lot land division scheme of the seigneurial system

4620-451: The French commandant Sauvolle de la Villantry (c.1671–1701). M. d'Iberville originally intended to establish a French colony along the Mississippi River . However, because of its flooding, he had been unable to find a suitable location during his first voyage of discovery up the Mississippi in March 1699. He returned from his river journey on April 1, and spent another week in searching

4752-587: The French settlers on the east bank of the Mississippi crossed the river to what had become Spanish Louisiana ) the eastern Illinois Country became part of the British Province of Quebec , and later the United States' Northwest Territory . French colonists who migrated after they lost control over New France founded outposts such as the important settlement of St. Louis (1764). This became a French fur-trading center, connected to trading posts on

4884-432: The Great Lakes and north of the mouth of the Ohio River , including both banks of the Mississippi as well as the lower Missouri Valley . In 1723, the area around the Wabash River became a separate district. A generation later, trade conflicts between Canada and Louisiana led to a more defined boundary between the French colonies; in 1745, Louisiana governor general Vaudreuil set the northeastern bounds of his domain as

5016-460: The Houmas, Avoyelles, Choctaw, and other tribal remnants, all present in pre-Acadian Louisiana and still present in contemporary Louisiana. According to the demographer Russel Thornton, North America contained approximately seven million native inhabitants in 1500. The population plummeted from the 16th century onward, primarily because of the new infectious diseases carried by Europeans, to which

5148-632: The Illinois Country region became an organized territory of the United States with the establishment of the Northwest Territory in 1787. In 1803, the old Illinois Country area west of the Mississippi was gained by the U.S. in the Louisiana Purchase . 40°15′N 90°15′W  /  40.250°N 90.250°W  / 40.250; -90.250 Fort Maurepas Fort Maurepas , later known as Old Biloxi ,

5280-408: The Illinois Country remained in effect until the Treaty of Paris in 1763, after which France surrendered its remaining territory east of the Mississippi to Great Britain. (Although British forces had occupied the "Canadian" posts in the Illinois and Wabash countries in 1761, they did not occupy Vincennes or the Mississippi River settlements at Cahokia and Kaskaskia until 1764, after the ratification of

5412-466: The Illinois Country were defined in a variety of ways, but the region now known as the American Bottom was nearly at the center of all descriptions. One of the earliest known geographic features designated as Ilinois was what later became known as Lake Michigan , on a map prepared in 1671 by French Jesuits . Early French missionaries and traders referred to the area southwest and southeast of

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5544-459: The Illinois Country were in the first half of the 17th century, led by explorers and missionaries based in Canada. Étienne Brûlé explored the upper Illinois country in 1615 but did not document his experiences. Joseph de La Roche Daillon reached an oil spring at the northeasternmost fringe of the Mississippi River basin during his 1627 missionary journey. In 1669–70, Father Jacques Marquette ,

5676-581: The Meskwaki in 1730. French explorers led by René-Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle built Fort St. Louis on a large butte by the Illinois River in the winter of 1682. Called Le Rocher , the butte provided an advantageous position for the fort above the river. A wooden palisade was the only form of defenses that La Salle used in securing the site. Inside the fort were a few wooden houses and native shelters. The French intended St. Louis to be

5808-596: The Mississippi River was ceded to the British and became part of the British Province of Quebec ; the land west of the river was ceded to Spanish Louisiana . During the American Revolutionary War , Virginian George Rogers Clark led the Illinois campaign against the British. Illinois Country east of the Mississippi River along with what was then much of Ohio Country became part of Illinois County, Virginia , claimed by right of conquest. The county

5940-679: The Mississippi and its tributaries. The United States ceded the part north of the 49th parallel to the United Kingdom in the Treaty of 1818 . It is part of present-day Alberta and Saskatchewan . In the 18th century, Louisiana included most of the Mississippi River basin (see drawing alongside) from what is now the Midwestern United States south to the coast of the Gulf of Mexico. Within this vast territory, only two areas saw substantial French settlement: Upper Louisiana ( French : Haute-Louisiane ), also known as

6072-414: The Mississippi as well as the lower Missouri Valley . A generation later, trade conflicts between Canada and Louisiana led to a defined boundary between the French colonies; in 1745, Louisiana governor general Vaudreuil set the northeastern bounds of his domain as the Wabash valley up to the mouth of the Vermilion River (near present-day Danville, Illinois ); from there, northwest to le Rocher on

6204-571: The Missouri and Upper Mississippi rivers, leading to later French settlement in that area. In the 1762 Treaty of Fontainebleau , France ceded Louisiana west of the Mississippi River to Spain, its ally in the war, as compensation for the loss of Spanish Florida to Britain. Even after France had lost its claim to Louisiana, francophone settlement of Upper Louisiana continued for the next four decades. French explorers and frontiersmen, such as Pedro Vial , were often employed as guides and interpreters by

6336-445: The Native Americans had no acquired immunity. At the end of the 17th century, there were likely no more than 100,000 to 200,000 Native Americans in Lower Louisiana. French colonists forced a small number of Native Americans into slavery, in spite of official prohibition. These slaves were persons who had been captured by rival tribes during raids and in battle, and sold to French colonists. At the time, many were sent to Saint Domingue in

6468-528: The Native Americans. They also looked for ways to relate Indian practices to Christian worship, and helped show the Natives how these were related. A syncretic religion developed among new Christians. Sincere and permanent conversions were limited in number; many who received missionary instruction tended to assimilate the Holy Trinity into their belief of "spirits", or rejected the concept outright. It

6600-519: The Potawatomi, attacked a band of Illini along the Illinois River. The tribe climbed to the butte to seek refuge from the attack. The Ottawa and Potawatomi continued the siege until the Illini tribe starved to death. After hearing the story, Europeans referred to the butte as Starved Rock . On January 1, 1718, a trade monopoly was granted to John Law and his Company of the West (which was to become

6732-490: The Sioux Indians in the interests of France. Meanwhile, the French had established forts and settlements in the Illinois country . Learning of the French colony at Old Biloxi, Canadians came by the boatload down the Mississippi from the upper country (today's Quebec). Fathers Davion and Montigny, accompanied by a few Frenchmen, were th first visitors at the fort, having made the journey downriver in canoes. In May 1700,

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6864-608: The Spanish and later by the Americans. The Spanish lieutenant governors at St. Louis maintained the traditional "Illinois Country" nomenclature, using titles such as "commander in chief of the western part and districts of Illinois" and administrators commonly referred to their capital St. Louis "of the Ylinuses". In 1800 Spain returned its part of Louisiana to France in the Third Treaty of San Ildefonso , but France sold it to

6996-444: The United States in the Louisiana Purchase of 1803. Through this time, but especially following the Louisiana Purchase, French Creoles, as they called themselves, began to move further into the Missouri Ozarks , where they formed mining communities such as Mine à Breton and La Vieille Mine ( Old Mines ). A unique dialect, known as Missouri French , developed in Upper Louisiana. It is distinguished from both Louisiana French and

7128-458: The United States. France regained sovereignty from Spain of the western territory in the secret Third Treaty of San Ildefonso of 1800. Napoleon Bonaparte made plans to further develop France's control but strained by operations in the Caribbean and Europe, he sold the territory to the United States in the Louisiana Purchase of 1803, ending France's presence. Remnants of France's long tenure are still found, especially in New Orleans and along

7260-422: The University of Alabama introduced the term "Plantation Society French" for the prestige dialect. There is a history of diglossia between Plantation Society French and Louisiana Creole French. Plantation Society French, at any rate, is quite close to the Standard French of the time of its origin, with some possible differences in pronunciation and vocabulary use. It is still spoken by the Louisiana Indians, such as

7392-421: The area. It imported approximately 6,000 slaves from Africa between 1719 and 1743. A small portion of these were sent to the Illinois Country to cultivate the fields or to work the lead mines. The economy of Lower Louisiana consequently became slave-dependent. As in other French colonies, the treatment of the slaves was regulated by the Code Noir . The slaves often had a degree of autonomy beyond that suggested by

7524-401: The army in the event of conflict with the other colonial powers; in 1717, the colony of Mississippi counted 300 soldiers out of 550 people (Havard G, Vidal C, History of French America , p. 225.). However, the colonial army, like that of France, suffered from desertions. Certain soldiers fled to become coureurs de bois . There were few mutinies because repression was severe. The army held

7656-400: The budget, set prices, presided the Superior Council ( Conseil supérieur —the court of justice), and organized the census. Appointed by the king, Louisiana's commissaire-ordonnateur had broad powers that sometimes conflicted with those of the governor general. The military outposts of the hinterland were directed by commanders. The French possessions of North America were under the authority of

7788-402: The capitulation of French forces in Canada in 1760 until the Treaty of Paris in 1763, after which France surrendered its remaining territory east of the Mississippi to Great Britain. (Although British forces had occupied the "Canadian" posts in the Illinois and Wabash countries in 1761, they did not occupy Vincennes or the Mississippi River settlements at Cahokia and Kaskaskia until 1764, after

7920-413: The centralised government had difficulty maintaining communications over the long distance and sailing time that separated France from Louisiana. Toward the end of the 17th century and the beginning of the 18th, the colonists on the Gulf of Mexico were left almost completely to fend for themselves; they counted far more on the assistance of the Native Americans than on France. The distance had its advantages:

8052-432: The channel at Dauphine island (present-day Dauphin Island ) had become choked with sand, de l'Épinay and de Bienville decided to make use of the harbor at Ship Island . They ordered a new fort to be constructed on the mainland opposite, selecting a place one league west of Old Biloxi for a site across Biloxi Bay. The transport ship Dauphine , commanded by M. Berranger, had arrived with many carpenters and masons. They built

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8184-405: The coast, destroying whole villages. The Mississippi River Delta was plagued with periodic floods and yellow fever epidemics, to which malaria and cholera were added as part of the Eurasian diseases that arrived with the Europeans. These conditions slowed colonization. Moreover, French villages and forts were not necessarily safe from enemy offensives. Attacks by Native Americans represented

8316-422: The code. Initially, during public holidays, slaves were permitted to sell a portion of the crops they had cultivated. Some would hunt, cut wood or keep livestock far from the plantation. Lastly, although interracial marriages and regroupings of slaves were prohibited, planters often kept slave mistresses. The life and work of the slaves was difficult, with the intense harvest season and processing of sugar undoubtedly

8448-411: The colonists smuggled goods into the colony with impunity. Jean-Baptiste Colbert , Louis XIV's Minister of the Navy and Trade, was eager to stuff the coffers of the Crown. He dissolved the trading companies and took care to increase the production of the country and the colonies. Being a mercantilist , he believed it was necessary to sell as much as possible and to reduce reliance on imports. He imposed

8580-430: The colony never became self-sustaining. The climate and soil were different than they were familiar with. On the return of d'Iberville to Old Biloxi in January 1700, he brought with him sixty Canadian immigrants and a large supply of provisions and stores. On this second voyage, he was instructed: to breed the Buffalo at Biloxi; to seek for pearls; to examine the wild mulberry with the view to silk [silk worms on leaves];

8712-419: The colony, on both sides of the Mississippi. In the mid-1720s, Louisiana Indians numbered well over 35,000, forming a clear majority of the colony's population." Generally speaking, the French colony of Louisiana bordered the Great Lakes , particularly Lake Michigan and Lake Erie towards the north; this region was the "Upper Country" of the French province of Canada . To the east was territory disputed with

8844-424: The colony. By contrast, other arrivals were described as women "of easy virtue", vagrants or outlaws, and those without family, who arrived in Louisiana with a lettre de cachet ; they were sent by force to the colony, especially during the Régence period early in the reign of Louis XV . Their stories inspired the novel Story of the Knight of Grieux and Manon Lescaut , written by Abbé Prévost in 1731. In 1721,

8976-399: The colony. Bienville was ordered to evacuate Biloxi, and move to a settlement on the Mobile River . On January 5, 1702, Bienville departed for the Mobile River, leaving 20 men under the command of M. de Boisbriant as garrison at the fort. At Dauphin Island , Bienville met with his brothers de Serigny and Chateaugue, who had arrived with a detachment of sailors and workmen. They were to build

9108-443: The crossing of the Atlantic Ocean, which lasted several months, the colonists had several challenges ahead of them. Their living conditions were difficult: uprooted, they had to face a new, often hostile, environment. Many of these immigrants died during the maritime crossing or soon after their arrival. Physical conditions were harsh, and the tropical climate was difficult for colonists. Hurricanes, unknown in France, periodically struck

9240-478: The early 18th century, the capital of French Louisiana was moved from Mobile to Nouveau-Biloxi (present-day Biloxi ), across Biloxi Bay . However, later in the same year, Fort Maurepas (at Old Biloxi) burned. It was never reconstructed. Later, during June–August 1722, the capital was moved again, by colonial governor Bienville , from Biloxi to deeper waters in the Mississippi River at a new inland harbor town named La Nouvelle-Orléans ( New Orleans ), built for

9372-441: The east side of the Mississippi River in present-day Illinois; and Ste. Genevieve across the river in today's Missouri. The region was initially governed as part of Canada, but was declared to be part of Louisiana in 1712, with the grant of the Louisiana country to Antoine Crozat . By the 1720s a formal government infrastructure had formed; leaders of the towns reported to the commandant of Fort de Chartres , who in turn reported to

9504-680: The end of the French and Indian War . The British Crown declared almost all the land between the Appalachian Mountains and the Mississippi River from Florida to Newfoundland a Native American territory called the Indian Reserve following the Royal Proclamation of 1763 . The government ordered settlers to leave or get a special license to remain. This and the desire to live in a Catholic territory caused many of

9636-482: The establishment of Fort Maurepas , near modern Biloxi, Mississippi , in 1699. A colonial government soon emerged, with its capital originally at Mobile , later at Biloxi and finally at New Orleans (in 1722, four years after the city's founding). The government was led by a governor-general , and Louisiana became an increasingly important colony in the early 18th century. The earliest settlers of Upper Louisiana mostly came from French Canada, while Lower Louisiana

9768-560: The exploration of French Louisiana; it sent missions, primarily carried out by Jesuits , to convert Native Americans. It also founded schools and hospitals: By 1720, the Ursulines were operating a hospital in New Orleans. The church and its missionaries established contact with the numerous Amerindian tribes. Certain priests, such as Father Marquette in the 17th century, took part in exploratory missions. The Jesuits translated collections of prayers into numerous Amerindian languages to convert

9900-627: The exploration of the Mississippi River, which they called the Sioux Tongo (the large river) or Michissipi . They reached the mouth of the Arkansas River , and then returned upstream, having learned that the great river ran toward the Gulf of Mexico, not toward the Pacific Ocean as they had presumed. In 1675, Marquette founded a mission in the Native American village of Kaskaskias on the Illinois River . A permanent settlement

10032-522: The far reaches of the Rocky Mountains , especially along the branches of the broad Missouri River valley. The "Illinois" in the territory's name is a reference to the Illinois Confederation , a group of related Algonquian native peoples . The Illinois Country was governed from the French province of Canada until 1717 when, by order of King Louis XV , it was annexed to the French province of Louisiana , becoming known as "Upper Louisiana". By

10164-738: The first of several forts to defend against English incursions and keep their settlements confined to the East Coast . Accompanying the French to the region were allied members of several native tribes from eastern areas, who integrated with the Kaskaskia: the Miami , Shawnee , and Mahican . The tribes established a new settlement at the base of the butte known as Hotel Plaza. After La Salle's five-year monopoly ended New France governor Joseph-Antoine de La Barre wished to put Fort Saint Louis along with Fort Frontenac under his jurisdiction. By orders of

10296-462: The first slaves to be freed was Louis Congo , who, in 1725, received freedom, land, and compensation in exchange for becoming the public executioner of New Orleans. Some freed slaves (notably women and former soldiers) formed small communities, which suffered from segregation ; justice was more severe against them, and they did not have right to possess weapons. Slaves contributed to the creolization of Louisianan society. They brought okra from Africa,

10428-593: The fort are found at the site today. The region was periodically occupied by a variety of native tribes who were forced westward by the expansion of European settlements. These included the Potawatomi , Ottawa , and Ojibwe . On April 20, 1769, an Illinois Confederation warrior assassinated Chief Pontiac while he was on a diplomatic mission in Cahokia . According to local legend , the Ottawa, along with their allies

10560-438: The fort in 1691. De Tonti reorganized the settlers at Fort Pimitoui in modern-day Peoria . French troops commanded by Pierre-Charles de Liette occupied Fort St. Louis from 1714 to 1718; De Liette's jurisdiction over the region ended when the territory was transferred from Canada to Louisiana . Fur trappers and traders used the fort periodically in the early 18th century until it became too dilapidated. No surface remains of

10692-470: The fort, including detachments of soldiers to place with the Canadians (the French also had a colony in what is now Quebec and along the upper Mississippi River) and workmen, and sailors to serve on the gunboats. Altogether about 100 people were left at Fort Maurepas while Iberville sailed back to France on May 4, 1699. Those remaining included: Few of the colonists were experienced with agriculture, and

10824-462: The government applied a single unified law of the land: the Custom of Paris for civil law (rather egalitarian for the time); the "Code Louis", consisting of the 1667 ordinance on civil procedure and 1670 ordinance on criminal procedure ; the 1673 "Code Savary" for trade; and the 1685 Code noir for slavery. This served as an equaliser for a while; riots and revolts against authority were rare. But,

10956-445: The governor, traders and his officer were escorted to Illinois. On August 11, 1683, LaSalle's armorer, Pierre Prudhomme , obtained approximately one and three-quarters of a mile of the north portage shore. During the earliest of the French and Indian Wars , the French used the fort as a refuge against attacks by Iroquois, who were allied with the British. The Iroquois forced the settlers, then commanded by Henri de Tonti , to abandon

11088-424: The hardest. The maintenance of canals for rice irrigation and travel also involved much labor. Slave residences and furnishings as supplied by planters were modest. The slaves were given simple straw pallets as beds. They typically had some trunks and kitchen utensils. The condition of the slaves depended on the treatment they received from their masters. When it was excessively cruel, the slaves often fled and hid in

11220-487: The hope of finding gold or of carrying out a profitable fur trade with the Indians. The fur trade, often practiced without authorization, was a difficult activity, carried on most of the time by young unmarried men. Many ultimately wished to go on to more sedentary agricultural activities. Meanwhile, a good number of them were integrated into native communities, learned the languages, and took native wives. A well-known example

11352-493: The king. The garrison at the fort was removed to Kaskaskia, Illinois in 1747, about 18 miles to the south. A new stone fort was planned near the old fort and was described as "nearly complete" in 1754, although construction continued until 1760. The new stone fort was headquarters for the French Illinois Country for less than 20 years, as it was turned over to the British in 1763 with the Treaty of Paris at

11484-598: The lake, including much of the upper Mississippi Valley, by this name. Illinois was also the name given to an area inhabited by the Illiniwek . A map of 1685 labels a large area southwest of the lake les Ilinois ; in 1688, the Italian cartographer Vincenzo Coronelli labeled the region (in Italian) as Illinois country. In 1721, the seventh military district of Louisiana was named Illinois . It included more than half of

11616-457: The land claimed by France east of the Mississippi and Spain acquired Louisiana west of the Mississippi. Many French settlers moved west across the river to escape British control. On the west bank, the Spanish also continued to refer to the western region governed from St. Louis as the District of Illinois and referred to St. Louis as the city of Illinois . The first French explorations of

11748-435: The latter city were still under construction. The name Biloxi in French was spelled Bilocci , in a transliteration of the name of the local Native American tribe. The military camp was also known in French as Fort Maurepas to honor Louis Phélypeaux, comte de Maurepas from the city of Maurepas . It appeared as "Fort Bilocci" on English maps updated circa the years 1710/1725. French Louisiana (part of New France )

11880-413: The live stock, such as bulls, cows, hogs, fowls, turkeys, etc. . . . The fort was made with four bastions, two of them squared logs, from 2-3 feet [1 m] thick, placed one upon the other, with embrasures for port holes, and a ditch all around. The other two bastions were stockaded with heavy timbers which took four men to lift one of them. Twelve guns were mounted. The best men were selected to remain at

12012-518: The marshes or in New Orleans. The Maroon societies that runaway slaves founded were often short-lived; Louisiana did not have the larger and semi-permanent Maroon villages that developed in the West Indies. Meanwhile, slave revolts were not as frequent in this area as they were in the Caribbean. The possibility of being set free was rather low; the slaves could not purchase their freedom. One of

12144-417: The mid-18th century, major settlements included Cahokia , Kaskaskia , Chartres , Saint Philippe , and Prairie du Rocher , all on the east side of the Mississippi in present-day Illinois; and Ste. Genevieve across the river in what is now Missouri, as well as Fort Vincennes in what is now Indiana. As a consequence of the French defeat in the French and Indian War in 1764, the Illinois Country east of

12276-509: The mid-18th century, which resulted in the birth of the Cajun dialect. The prestige dialect still used by Creoles and Cajuns is often identified as deriving from Colonial French, but some linguists differentiate between the two, referring to the latter as Plantation Society French. Historically spoken by Louisiana Creole population in lower French Louisiana, Colonial French is generally considered to have been adopted by whites, blacks and Cajuns. It

12408-500: The mid-eighteenth century, slaves accounted for as much as a third of the population. Following the British occupation of the east bank of the Mississippi in 1765, some Canadien settlers remained in the area, while others crossed the river, forming new settlements such as St. Louis . The British faced an uprising of Native Americans known as Pontiac's War . Longtime allies of the French, the Kaskaskia and Peoria tribes had resisted

12540-692: The new fort, known as New Biloxi ( Nouveau-Biloxi ) and also as Fort Louis . In 1719, Fort Maurepas (at Old Biloxi) was burned; it was never reconstructed by the French. Another fort and magazines were also constructed on Ship Island, in the Gulf of Mexico . In 1719, the administrative capital of French Louisiana was moved to Old Biloxi from Mobile (or Mobille ), during the War of the Quadruple Alliance (1718–1720) against Spain. Due to hurricanes and shifting sand bars blocking harbor waters during

12672-487: The parishes of St. Martin, Avoyelles, Iberia, Pointe-Coupée, St. Charles, St. Landry, St. Mary, St. Tammany, Plaquemines, and other parishes south of Orleans, that still speak this prestige dialect. However, linguists have pointed out this prestige dialect is distinct from the pre-Upheaval Colonial French, and is largely derived from the standard French of the mid-19th century, Spanish, African languages, and Native Americans languages. As such, in 1998 linguist Michael Picone of

12804-576: The part of the Illinois Country east of the Mississippi for Virginia . In November 1778, the Virginia legislature created the county of Illinois , comprising all of the lands lying west of the Ohio River to which Virginia had any claim, with Kaskaskia as the county seat. Captain John Todd was named as governor. However, this government was limited to the former Canadien settlements and was rather ineffective. For their assistance to General Clark in

12936-482: The peace treaty was ratified.) As part of a general report on conditions in the newly conquered Province of Canada, Gen. Thomas Gage (then commandant at Montreal) explained in 1762 that, although the boundary between Louisiana and Canada was not exact, it was understood that the upper Mississippi (above the mouth of the Illinois) was in Canadian trading territory. Following the transfer of power (at which time many of

13068-454: The peace treaty. ) As part of a general report on conditions in the newly conquered lands, Gen. Thomas Gage , then commandant at Montreal , explained in 1762 that, although the boundary between Louisiana and Canada was not exact, it was understood that the upper Mississippi above the mouth of the Illinois was in Canadian trading territory. Distinctions became somewhat clearer after the Treaty of Paris in 1763, when Britain acquired Canada and

13200-557: The population as "French". After the Seven Years' War , in which Britain defeated France, the settlement attracted a variety of groups: Spanish settlers, refugees from Saint Domingue (particularly after 1791 when the slave uprisings began), opponents of the French Revolution , and Acadians . In 1785, 1633 people of Acadian origin were brought from France to New Orleans, 30 years after having been expelled from Acadia by

13332-514: The population had risen to 2,573. From the 1710s to the 1730s, the Fox Wars between the French, French allied tribes and the Meskwaki (Fox) Native American tribe occurred in what is now northern Illinois, southern Wisconsin, and Michigan, in particular, over the fur trade. During the conflict, in what is now McLean County, Illinois , French and allied forces won a consequential battle against

13464-417: The present state, as well as the land between the Arkansas River and the line of 43 degrees north latitude, between the Rocky Mountains and the Mississippi River. A royal ordinance of 1722—following the transfer of the Illinois Country's governance from Canada to Louisiana—may have featured the broadest definition of the region, making it coterminous with Upper Louisiana: all land claimed by France south of

13596-722: The prosperity of the colony. But the colonists suffered from tropical diseases of the region: many died from yellow fever , including the governor, M. de Sauvolle, who died in the summer of 1701. Bienville became ranking chief in command, and acted as commandant. On September 16, 1700, a party of Choctaw warriors arrived at Biloxi, asking for French troops to help them fight against the Chickasaw , their traditional enemies among native groups. The Choctaw during this period had 40 villages, with more than 5,000 warriors. On October 25, 20 Mobile natives arrived at Fort Maurepas. They were said to have about 400 fighting men. On December 18, 1701,

13728-464: The purpose during 1718-1722. In modern times, a replica of Fort Maurepas was built at the site, then within the town of Ocean Springs, Mississippi. It was badly damaged by Hurricane Katrina in August 2005, when all coastal areas of Mississippi were devastated by a storm tide exceeding 30 feet (9 m), with waves even higher. A replica of the wooden Fort Maurepas was built on front beach about

13860-466: The river (ribbon plots). The Illinois Country French, although they marked long-ribbon plots, did not reside on them. Instead, settlers resided together in farming villages, more like the farming villages of northern France, and practiced communal agriculture. After the port of New Orleans , along the Mississippi River to the south, was founded in 1718, more African slaves were imported to the Illinois Country for use as agricultural and mining laborers. By

13992-536: The settlers were visited by M. Sagan, a traveler from Canada. He carried a request from the French minister to the governor M. de Sauvolle, asking that Sagan be furnished with 24 pirogues and 100 Canadians in order to explore the Missouri River and its branches, a major tributary of the Mississippi that has its confluence at what later developed as Saint Louis. During the absence of d'Iberville, his young brother Bienville made further expeditions to try to secure

14124-491: The ship La Baleine carried nearly 90 women of childbearing age to Louisiana; they were recruited from the Paris prison of La Salpetrière . Most quickly found husbands among the residents of the colony. These women, many of whom were most likely prostitutes or felons, were known as The Baleine Brides . Communities of Swiss and German peoples also settled in French Louisiana, but royal authorities always referred to

14256-489: The shores adjacent to Ship Island , where the fleet had been anchored. On Tuesday, April 7, 1699, d'Iberville and Surgeres observed "an elevated place that appeared very suitable". This spot was on the northeast shore of Biloxi Bay . They had found the bay was 7–8 feet (2 m) deep. They decided to construct the fort there, as they "could find no spot more convenient, and our provisions were failing, we could search no longer". On Wednesday, April 8, they commenced to cut away

14388-674: The site of the fort. It includes a playground, a splash pad, a stage, a two-story structure with a viewing platform overlooking the beach, public restrooms, and an eco-friendly parking lot. The construction included improvements of pathways along the beach, and to the sailors memorial, crosswalks, and fire pits. It provides access to parking on the opposite side of the Biloxi Bay Bridge . Historical documents, reports and translated journals about Fort Maurepas sometimes contain conflicting dates, or other details. They were records of what people knew, and their understanding of time and context

14520-595: The territory's natural resources, such as fur and mineral ores; and to convert the native population to Catholicism. Fur traders began exploring the pays d'en haut (upper country around the Great Lakes) at the time. In 1659, Pierre-Esprit Radisson and Médard Chouart des Groseilliers reached the western end of Lake Superior . Priests founded missions , such as the Mission of Sault Sainte Marie in 1668. On May 17, 1673, Louis Jolliet and Jacques Marquette began

14652-451: The timber for shipbuilding, and to seek for mines. Expeditions in search of gold, jewels and valuable furs were the main goals of the colonists. They made thorough explorations of the Mississippi River and the surrounding country. In 1700, Le Sueur was sent to the upper Mississippi with 20 men to establish a fort in the Sioux country. His government intended to take over the copper mines of

14784-553: The trees preparatory for construction of the fort. All the men "worked vigorously", and by the end of the month, the fort had been finished. They also carved what is known as the Iberville stone , claiming the site for France. This is now held by the Louisiana State Museum. The expedition journal reported: In the meantime, the boats were actively engaged transporting the powder, guns, and ammunition, as well as

14916-492: The various forms of Canadian French , such as Acadian . The dialect continued to be spoken around the Midwest, particularly in Missouri, through the 20th century. It is nearly extinct today, with only a few elderly speakers still able to use it. In 1660, France started a policy of expansion into the interior of North America from what is now eastern Canada. The objectives were to locate a Northwest Passage to China; to exploit

15048-399: The vast varied colony of New France into five smaller provinces, including Louisiana. The Illinois Country, south of the Great Lakes, was added to Louisiana in 1717 and became known as Upper Louisiana. Mobile served as French Louisiana's first "capital". The seat of government moved to Biloxi in 1720, and then to New Orleans in 1722, where the governor lived. While the office of governor general

15180-504: The war, settled Canadien and Indian residents of Illinois Country were given full citizenship. Under the Northwest Ordinance and many subsequent treaties and acts of Congress, the Canadien and Indian residents of Vincennes and Kaskaskia were granted specific exemptions, as they had declared themselves citizens of Virginia. The term Illinois Country was sometimes used in legislation to refer to these settlements. Much of

15312-574: The west, with the notable exception of the Ozark Mountains , which are located in the mid-south. Lower Louisiana consisted of lands in the Lower Mississippi River watershed , including settlements in what are now the U.S. states of Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama. The French first explored it in the 1660s, and a few trading posts were established in the following years; serious attempt at settlement began with

15444-483: Was a vast region of New France claimed in the 1600s that later fell under Spanish and British control before becoming what is now part of the Midwestern United States . While the area claimed included the entire Upper Mississippi River watershed , French colonial settlement was concentrated along the Mississippi and Illinois Rivers in what is now the U.S. states of Illinois and Missouri , with outposts on

15576-504: Was abolished in 1782. In 1784, Virginia ceded its claims to the U.S. government and the area was incorporated as part of the Northwest Territory . The name lived on as Illinois Territory between 1809 and 1818, and as the State of Illinois after its admission to the union in 1818. The Spanish-controlled portion of Illinois Country west of the Mississippi was acquired by the United States in the Louisiana Purchase in 1803. The boundaries of

15708-554: Was adapted to some of the meandering rivers and bayous there. There were few corporations treated hierarchically and strictly regulated. Certain tradesmen managed to build fortunes rather quickly. The large planters of Louisiana were attached to the French way of life: they imported wigs and clothing fashionable in Paris. In the Country of Illinois, the wealthiest constructed stone-built houses and had several slaves. The largest traders mostly wound up settling in New Orleans. The King sent

15840-479: Was colonized by people from all over the French colonial empire , with various waves coming from Canada, France, and the French West Indies . Upper Louisiana, also known as the Illinois Country, was the French territory in the upper Mississippi River Valley , including settlements and fortifications in what are now the states of Missouri, Illinois, and Indiana. French exploration of the area began with

15972-463: Was developed in colonial French Louisiana (New France) in April 1699 along the Gulf of Mexico (at present-day Ocean Springs, Mississippi ). Fort Maurepas was designated temporarily as the capital of Louisiana (New France) in 1699. The capital was moved from Ocean Springs to Mobile (in present-day Alabama) in 1710, then to New Orleans in 1723 on the Mississippi River. Government buildings in

16104-587: Was exhausted because of the wars in Europe, but the colonists in Louisiana did not have to pay royal taxes and were free of the hated gabelle . Under the Ancien Régime , Louisiana formed part of a larger colonial unit, French American territory—New France ( Nouvelle France ), which included a large part of modern-day Canada. New France was initially ruled by a viceroy in 1625, the Duke of Ventadour . The colony

16236-439: Was for many reasons. The reign of Henry IV gave an important impetus to the colonisation of New France. Henry IV, the first Bourbon king, was personally interested in foreign affairs. In the 17th century, the ministers Richelieu and later Colbert advanced colonial politics. Louis XIV and his ministers were worried about the size of the kingdom, over which they constantly competed with other European nations. European rivalry and

16368-514: Was founded by French-Canadian colonists in 1722, a few miles inland from the fort. The fort was to be the seat of government for the Illinois Country and help to control the aggressive Fox Indians . The fort was named after Louis, duc de Chartres , son of the regent of France. Because of frequent flooding, another fort was built further inland in 1725. By 1731, the Company of the Indies had gone defunct and turned Louisiana and its government back to

16500-500: Was known in French as La Louisiane in colonial times. In modern times it is referred to as La Louisiane française to distinguish it from the modern state of Louisiana (also "Louisiane" in French). The fort was completed on May 1, 1699 under direction of French explorer Pierre Le Moyne d'Iberville , who sailed for France on May 4. He appointed his teenage brother Jean-Baptiste Le Moyne de Bienville as second in command after

16632-484: Was limited. Often, such writings compress events to simplify the overall view. In summary, the French claim to La Louisiane (in New France ) began at Fort Maurepas in 1699, moved to Mobile in 1702 (relocated in 1711), and returned to Fort Maurepas (Old Biloxi) in 1719. The main garrison moved to the fort at (New) Biloxi , then to New Orleans during June–August 1722. Several source documents sometimes state "1723" for

16764-578: Was made by 1690. In 1682, René-Robert Cavelier and the Italian Henri de Tonti descended to the Mississippi River Delta . They left Fort Crèvecoeur on the Illinois River, accompanied by 23 Frenchmen and 18 Indians. They built Fort Prud'homme (later the city of Memphis ) and claimed French sovereignty on the whole of the valley, which they called Louisiane in honor of the French king, Louis XIV . They sealed alliances with

16896-418: Was not easy for an absolute monarchy to administer Louisiana, a territory several times larger than European France . Louis XIV and his successors tried to impose their absolutist ambitions on the colony, often without giving the colonial administration enough financial means to do its work. If the leaders of Ancien Régime took control of, and sometimes encouraged, the colonization of New France , it

17028-474: Was not widely developed, due to a lack of human and financial resources. As a result of its defeat in the Seven Years' War , France was forced to cede the east part of the territory in 1763 to the victorious British , and the west part to Spain as compensation for Spain losing Florida . In the 1770s, France decided to aid revolution in Britain's North American colonies , east of the Mississippi, that became

17160-455: Was reconstructed in the 20th century, with much of the rest of the Fort. According to historian Carl J. Ekberg, the French settlement pattern in Illinois Country was generally unique in 17th- and 18th-century French North America. These were unlike other such French settlements, which primarily had been organized in separated homesteads along a river with long rectangular plots stretching back from

17292-462: Was the most eminent, it was not the most powerful. His was a military position that required him to lead the troops and maintain diplomatic relations. The second provincial authority was the commissaire-ordonnateur . His was a civil post with similar functions as that of the intendants in France: the king's administrator and representative, he oversaw justice, the police force, and finances. He managed

17424-655: Was then given a government like the Bourbons ' other possessions. Its capital was Quebec City until 1759. A governor-general , assisted by a single intendant , was charged with ruling this vast region. In theory, Louisiana was subordinate to Canada, and so it was explored and settled chiefly by French-Canadians rather than colonists from France. Given the enormous distance between New Orleans and Quebec, communications outside cities and forts were limited. French settlements were widely dispersed, which afforded them de facto autonomy. The government decided to break up governance of

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