Acadia and the Acadians Before the British Conquest

Acadia and the Acadians Before the British Conquest

â€œAcadia and the Acadians Before the British Conquestâ€ is a translated excerpt of a 1708 book, written by a French traveler, botanist, and surgeon named DiÃ¨reville (also known as Sieur de DiÃ¨reville, DiÃ¨re de DiÃ¨reville, and Marin DiÃ¨res). Relatively little is known about DiÃ¨revilleâ€™s life, except that he was born in France, perhaps at Pont-lâ€™Ã‰veque, Calvados, in Normandy, sometime in the 17th century.

On the 20th of August, 1699, DiÃ¨reville set sail from Rochelle, France, and landed in Acadia. Acadia was a historic region in what is now Maritime Canada (New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, and the GaspÃ© Peninsula of Quebec). Acadia was a French colony founded in the early 1600s by Samuel de Champlain. The first successful French settlement in North America, Port Royal (modern-day Annapolis Royal) was founded there in 1605. It was the easternmost province of New France, the main French colony of North America.

The French-speaking Acadians were descendants of 17th century settlers from France. Relatively few French colonists came to North America, in comparison to the English colonies of what is now the United States, which received far more settlers from the British Isles. Most of the French colonists who did come to Canada went to modern-day Quebec, rather than Acadia. The Acadians seem to have been neglected by the mother country and, consequently, were fairly self-sufficient and self-contained.

DiÃ¨reville spent about a year in Acadia, before returning to France. During his time there he described some local species of plants. DiÃ¨reville brought the bush honeysuckle back to Europe from North America. These plants were classified as part of the genus â€œDiervillaâ€, named in honour of DiÃ¨reville.

In 1708 DiÃ¨reville published â€œRelation du voyage du Port Royal de lâ€™Acadie, ou de la Nouvelle Franceâ€ (â€œRelation of a voyage to Port Royal of Acadia, or of New Franceâ€) in Rouen, France. A translated extract of this book was given to the British as part of the Treaty of Utrecht (1713). Under the terms of that treaty, which ended the Anglo-French conflict in the War of Spanish Succession, France ceded most of Acadia to Great Britain.

North America was the scene of decades of intermittent fighting between Britain and France. During Queen Anneâ€™s War (the North American theatre of the War of Spanish Succession), the British conquered most of Acadia in 1710. The Treaty of Utrecht formalized British control. This put that the French-speaking Acadians under British rule. War between the French and British continued until Britain captured Quebec City during the French and Indian, or Seven Yearsâ€™ War (1754-63).

During that war, Britain effectively seized control over all of French-ruled Canada. British control was recognized by France in the 1763 Treaty of Paris. When war broke out, the British deported the French-speaking Acadians, fearing they would support France. Some Acadians managed to evade deportation. Others went to Louisiana, where their descendants became known as Cajuns- a corruption of Acadian. Many Acadians were allowed to return after the war, and today people of Acadians descent make up a large proportion of the population in modern-day New Brunswick and Nova Scotia, two provinces that were part of historic Acadia.

This text describes Acadian life as it was around 1700, 10 years before the British conquest. DiÃ¨revilleâ€™s description paints a picture of a people who were very self-sufficient, depending largely on local foods, such as fish, maple syrup, livestock, crops, and wild plants and animals. Everyday necessities, such as clothing, were also made from locally available materials. Birthrates were high, so that there was a growing native-born French-speaking Acadian population that did not depend on continuous immigration from France.
Country USA
Binding Kindle Edition
ReleaseDate 2015-09-14
Format Kindle eBook

Country	USA
Binding	Kindle Edition
ReleaseDate	2015-09-14
Format	Kindle eBook

Acadia and the Acadians Before the British Conquest

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