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In 1608, Samuel de Champlain and 28 other Frenchmen sailed up the St. Lawrence River, landing where Quebec city would later stand. They constructed a group of buildings beside the edge of the river and named it the Habitation of Quebec. Champlain dedicated the rest of his life (until his death in 1635) to building up, and ensuring the prosperity of this French colony. He helped establish homes, businesses, churches, and farms, as well as encourage immigration from France. -
In 1615 Champlain created an alliance with the Huron Nation. The French agreed to fight the Iroquois alongside the Huron in order to continue the fur trade with the Huron. The colony’s survival and prosperity relied on the fur trade. -
Champlain brought Catholic missionaries from France to convert the Native people. In 1625, Jesuit priests (e.g. Fr. Jean Brebeuf) arrived in New France, and in 1639 Ursuline nuns (e.g. Sister Marie de l’Incarnation) arrived. Their main mission was to convert the Huron people; however, the missionaries also came to teach, serve, and care for the French settlers, contributing to the growth and prosperity of New France. -
From 1627 to 1663, the Company of One Hundred Associations (a powerful group of French investors established by Cardinal Richelieu at the request of Samuel de Champlain) controlled New France. Although New France grew during this time, the Iroquois and their British allies were attacking the French Canadians and Huron. France sent little support; the French colonists lived in fear, trade did not develop, and New France land ceased to be cleared and farmed. -
In 1663, during King Louis XIV’s reign in France, the king dismissed the Compony of One Hundred Associates and made New France a royal colony to be controlled by the monarchy. Louis XIV was committed to building up New France and treating the colony as an important part of France’s empire. -
Beginning in 1663, King Louis XIV sent French soldiers, workers, and young women (filles du roi) to New France to work in and populate the colony. The king also gave tracts of land to army officials and other French noblemen, encouraging French citizens to farm, become landlords, and settle in New France. These actions contributed greatly to New France's growth and prosperity during the 1600s. -
Members of the Carignan-Salieres Regiment were sent to New France by order of Louis XIV, and in 1666 they carried out an attack on the Iroquois Confederacy. They burned their villages around Lake Champlain and destroyed their crops and winter stock of grain. This led to the signing of a peace treaty between the Iroquois and French colonists. -
In 1669, Louis XIV ordered all able-bodied men in New France aged 16-60 to join Quebec’s militia to defend the colony. This contributed to the colony's growth and welfare because the militia defended New France’s people and properties, and helped build roads, bridges, and other structures. -
The governor of New France, Louis Buade, Comte de Frontenac, urged expeditions to gain more territory in North America. By 1682, New France’s territory had expanded significantly throughout the continent, stretching from Newfoundland in the north, and easterly to what is now known as Manitoba. -
The Seven Years’ War broke out between France and Britain in 1756 and was fought in Europe and North America. France prioritized winning in Europe, so Britain concentrated on winning the battle in North America. Britain’s prime minister William Pitt sent ample troops and supplies to North America while France sent little aid to New France. -
During the summer of 1758, British general Jeffrey Amherst led attacks on Fort Louisbourg – France’s main shipping route through St. Lawrence River. The governor of Louisbourg, Augustin de Drucour, surrendered to Amherst on July 26, 1758. New France was cut off from new French troops and supply ships, leading to famine and illness within Quebec. In addition, Britain now had access to the heart of New France. -
General James Wolfe arrived from Britain with 200 ships and 15,000 new troops and began a nine-week siege of Quebec on July 12, 1759. When General Louis-Joseph de Montcalm (commander of France’s forces in North America) requested aid for New France, King Louis XV sent 400 undisciplined soldiers and 1/3 of the requested supplies. Quebec was the center of New France, so Britain's eventual conquest of Quebec was a critical event in New France’s downfall. -
The Battle of the Plains of Abraham on Sept. 13, 1759 was the final attack on Quebec. The night before the attack, General Wolfe strategically placed his troops on the cliffs outside the city. When French forces came out to meet the British, the French were cut down. Those who were not killed abandoned the fight, and Quebec surrendered to Britain. -
After the conquest of Quebec, the only remaining French post was the city of Montreal. During the winter of 1759-60, French general Francois-Gaston de Levis waited in Montreal for troops and supplies to arrive from France. When British ships arrived first, General Levi voluntarily surrendered and Governor Vaudreuil of New France admitted defeat. On Sept. 8, 1760, Vaudreuil signed the Articles of Capitulation, surrendering the whole of New France to General Jeffrey Amherst and Great Britain. -
On Feb. 10, 1763, after Britain and France spent two years negotiating terms for the peace treaty after the Seven Years’ War, the Treaty of Paris was signed. In the terms of this treaty France gave up claim to New France except for two small islands off Newfoundland: St. Pierre and Miquelon.