Wilmont Kreis

Book Thirteen: Benoît and Bernier. These two lovable and philosophic voyageurs are sadly fictitious but they have provided a wonderful foil for discussing the early years of Québec from a new perspective. You will be pleased that they will continue on in an even more important position in book Fourteen. Read More 

Book Thirteen: Native trappers. As I have indicated, most trapping of beavers was done by the natives and the Europeans traded with them. Although the beaver seems like a large rodent, its ecology is a bit fragile and as the European market grew, the natives attempted to keep up by increasing their trapping. Soon the beaver population dwindled causing the trappers—and European trappers to move further into the interior. Read More 

Book Thirteen: Voyageurs and Coureurs des Bois. These two terms are used for the Canadians who took on the rugged life of traveling into the wild to trade for furs. Originally they were all Coureurs des Bois which means loosely, runner in the woods. These, men worked independently as free traders. As civilization arrived, the government and the rich Canadians who ran the fur trade, buying from the trappers and selling to the French, became known as Voyageurs which means loosely a commercial traveler. They were licensed and controlled by the government and worked with in the law. Coureurs des Bois became a term for outlawed unlicensed traders. Read More 

Book Thirteen: Who traps the beaver? The view of a Canadian Mountain man setting traps in the woods is not really accurate. Most trapping was done by natives. The Indians were much more skilled and it was easier and more profitable for the Canadians to tour the wild each year, stopping at villages to trade European goods valued by the natives, (knives, pans, tools, jewelry, etc. and later even guns). The Canadians would then return to the markets in, Québec, Montreal, and other posts to sell the furs to merchants who would ship them to Europe or occasionally use in Canada. Read More 

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Book Thirteen: More Beavers: Beavers were trapped for fur for centuries in the old world, but by 1600, the European beaver was all but extinct. This shortage was rescued by the timely immigration to a seemingly insatiable source of furs, the New World. Furs were acquired with the help of the natives and sent to the old world where they would be used for coats and other items to keep one warm. Furs were also combed of their hairs to make sleek items with a velour or a smooth surface like leather. Hats were very much in fashion and the beaver provide material for everything from a Davy Crockett type hat to the smooth top hat valued by the rich. Read More 

Book Thirteen: From the very early days of French Canada, even before Champlain, there were two emerging industries: cod fishing in the waters off the Atlantic where this abundant crop could be dried, salted and taken back to Europe and the fur trade where all manor of animals were shot or more commonly trapped for their furs, highly prized in the old world. Of the two, fish was probably the most lucrative, but in the interior regions like Québec, furs were king, and they certainly remain the most famous today. Many animals were prized for their hides, but the beaver is most familiar to today’s audience. Their fur was used for coats to shield from the winter wind, but more famously for the beaver hat. More to come next week. Read More 

Book Thirteen: Early French-Canadian land control. OK, here is my simple-minded description of a convoluted topic. All the land belonged to France, i.e. the King. He, however, gave control to an important Frenchman, in this case Cardinal Richelieu, who in turn gave control to a group known as the Company of 100 Associates. To my knowledge almost all of the people mentioned so far had never seen Canada and likely had little knowledge as to where it even was. The Company in turn divided the land into large strips of land called fiefs or seigneuries. These men, such as Robert Giffard and Jean Juchereau, generally came to and lived in Canada to oversee their land. (Actually still the King’s land). Eventually they began to divide these lands into smaller strips called arriere-fiefs or sous-seigneuries. These were controlled by early settlers like our five families from Perche (Guyon, Langlois, etc.) They could then work some land and rent the rest to tenants who were non-indentured men who came to Canada. They could also employ, engager, who were men who came with an agreement to stay and work for three years, after which they could try to obtain a piece of a sous-seigneurie, find a job, or return to France. The tenants and engager gave a segment of their produce to the sous-seigneurie, who gave a share to the seigneurie, who gave a share to the Company who gave a share Richelieu who gave it to the King. Obviously, the first people to come to Canada did the best with this system. Read More 

Book Thirteen: First families of Canada. By convincing Robert Giffard to bring families as well as workers to reestablish the Canadian colony, Françoise helps grantee the ultimate success of Canada. However the five families from Perche are a meager beginning and it will take more than a generation for enough families and marriageable women to travel to the frozen north. The marriage of Françoise and Noël Langlois (the third in Canadian history) will help as they produce ten children (eight survive) and eventually 74 grandchildren! Read More 

Book Thirteen: Calvados: the place. Today, the department of Calvados is in the region of Normandie. The town of Mortagne is in the department of Orne in the region of Normandie. In 1650, the geography was the same but the political geography has been ever changing. Normandie was called a province in 1650, and Calvados was a comté or county. Mortagne was a town in Perche which was also a comté or county, but today what was Perche is officially called Orne. (However, anyone you ask will tell you they still call it Perche.) In the French Revolution (1790), the traditional political geography of France was changed from Provinces to 83 Departments and the target has been changing ever since. I, for one, now find it incomprehensible. Maybe if I drink some Calvados… Read More 

Happy New Year! I suppose this is a good time to bring up one of the most common subjects readers ask about. CALVADOS: A department in the region of Normandy in northwestern France, its name comes from a group of rocks on the coast. The signature brandy is first mentioned in the 8th century and the first know Normand distillation from the famous Calvados apples of the region was about 1553. The Parisians will tell you it is consumed after a fat-filled Normand meal to make “a hole” in one’s stomach to aid digestion. It is now readily found in U.S. liquor stores and is a bit of an acquired taste. Try it sometime. Read More