1. French Louisiane
Pages

2. III. Bienville Takes Charge 2nd Natchez War
I. Early Exploration
Hernando De Soto
Sieur de La Salle
II. Iberville
Baton Rouge and Pontchartrain
First Settlements
Early Colonists V. The Code Noir
III. Bienville Takes Charge 2nd Natchez War
Coureurs de Bois Bienville Returns
Louisiane Economics VI. End of French Louisiane
French Government French & Indian Wars
IV. Proprietor of Louisiane Treaties
Crozat
John Law

3. Early Exploration
Soon after Christopher Columbus landed in the Bahamas Spanish conquistadors found gold in Mexico. Soon other European nations sent explorers to the “New World” in hopes of finding riches.
Hernando De Soto and 600 men landed in Florida looking for gold in 1541.
De Soto discovered the Mississippi River
Treated natives brutally
Died of fever and men made boats and floated to Mexico
Less than half of the 600 survived.

5. Early Exploration
By the late 1600s, Spain, England and France established colonies in North America.
Sieur de La Salle (1682) believed the French should establish a colony at the mouth of the Mississippi River. This would help France control much of N. America and it would prevent enemies from traveling up river to Canada. He also believed Gulf Coast was perfect to set up the fur trade.
With permission from King Louis La Salle left Canada and went down river.
Reached the mouth and declared that the French owned all the land drained by the Mississippi River. Named it Louisiane which means “Louis’s Land”

8. Early Exploration
La Salle went back to France to gather supplies, ships and people. His second expedition was a disaster.
Sailed too far west and landed in Texas.
Ship sank during a storm
Set up Fort Louis (present day Texas ~ 1865)
After two years he and his crew tried to walk along the coast to Canada. His men murdered him.

10. Location of Fort Saint Louis

11. La Salle

12. Iberville
French Minister of Marine, Louis de Pontchartrain, sent Sieur de Iberville (1699) to set up a colony on the Mississippi River before the English.
First anchored at Ship Island and met Biloxi Indians
From there they set out with 49 men to find the M.R.
With the help of natives they found the river and went up stream to the Red River.
Found an area he called “Baton Rouge” (Red Stick)
Named Lake Ponchartrain and Maurepas and the Isle of Orleans

15. Iberville
Fort Maurepas was built on Biloxi Bay (Present day Ocean Springs, MS. ~ Capital of Louisiana )
English Turn
Bienville, younger brother was exploring mouth of M.R. and found British
Lied and told them they already had established a fort.
Fort de la Boulaye
Fort Louis de la Mobile
Dauphin Island.

16. Location of Fort Maurepas

17. Iberville 200 colonists accompanied Iberville to LA
82 were counted a year later
Included soldiers, sailors, explorers, voyageurs and 13 Caribbean pirates.
Iberville returns to France a third time, due to war he became captain of a fleet. This left Bienville,22, governor of the colony.

18. Bienville Takes Charge
First problem Bienville faced was lack of European women at the colony.
Coreurs de Bois “runners of the woods”
Bienville worried: Thought they were losing their souls
Worried about their loyalty
Wanted them to settle down and become farmers
Pelican Girls were sent by the Bishop of Quebec
Population rose to 195

19. Bienville

21. Economics in Louisiane
Mercantilism: economy base on raw materials
Closed system
All materials sent back to France then made into finished products and sold back to colonist
Many found it more profitable to illegally trade with the Spanish.
Louisiane depended on the fur trade
Deerskins
Wasn’t very profitable
Lack of knowledge contributed to poor farming by the colonist.
Colonies relied on the help from natives who taught settlers how to farm.

22. French Government Louisiane Colony had two officials:
Governor: Leader of colony
Commissary: in charge of warehouse, trade and supplies
Bienville was convicted of corruption. He was ordered back to France, however the new governor died and Bienville was reappointed.

23. Proprietor of Louisiane
King Louis XIV grew tired of sinking money into the colony. However, he did not want England to take control of the Mississippi River.
(France and England were bitter enemies)
He began looking for a proprietor.
someone to take economic control of the colony

24. Antoine Crozat The first charter(contract) went to Antoine Crozat.
15 year monopoly on the colony
Controlled all untitled land
Crozat will keep all profits, appoint officials and remain exempt from tariffs.
Give the king a fifth of all profits ( royal fifth )
Govern by French Law

25. Crozat Antoine Cadillac was appointed govenor.
Corrupt and liked to wear formal clothing even in wilderness.
Created Superior Council
Hired St. Denis to start settlement at Natchitoches ~ 1714
(oldest permanent settlement in La)
First Natchez War
Natchez murdered four French traders
Fort Rosalie

26. John Law Wealthy Scottish who lost all his money gambling.
After killing a man in a duel, fled to France.
Had powerful French friends and was offered the charter to Louisiane, Company of the West.
Reinstated Bienville as governor.
25 monopoly of LA and Canada, however he had to send at least 6,000 French and 3,000 slaves in first 10 years.

27. Law and Population Growth
Propaganda, advertisements about how great LA was
Concessions to wealthy (land grants)
Redemptioner, had to work three years to repay his trip
Sent criminals and misbehaving kids.
Mississippi Bandits (hired gang / “thugs” to roam streets of Paris to seize the homeless, drunks, and street people)
(population ~ 8,000)

28. Law New settlement started at New Orleans. Company of the Indies
Named after Duke of Orleans
New capital
Vieux Carre
Company of the Indies
Mississippi Bubble

29. The Code Noir Laws adopted by the Superior Council Marriage Freedom
Cruelty
Slave Rights
Equal Rights for Freed Slaves (les gens de couleur libres)
Slave Culture
Religion
All baptized
Only Catholic
Anti-Semite attitude

30. The End of French Louisiane
Perier became governor during the Second Natchez war.
Fort Rosalie Massacre
Great Sun and surviors shipped to St. Dominque
St. Jean Baptiste ( Natchitoches )
Ended Laws Proprietorship
10 percent of Louisianes population lost

31. The End of French Louisiane
Bienville restored as governor.
English encouraged Chickasaw to attack French
Could not defeat Chickasaw
Enlisted slaves and promised freedom
Chickasaw gave up
Bienville gives up and never returns to LA
New governor, Vaudreuil, defeats Chickasaw and introduces Mardi Gras
Kerlerec was governor during the French and Indian War

32. The End of French Louisiane
The Treaty of Fountainebleu
France realized they were going to lose New France
Secret treaty in which Spain gains the Louisiana Territory.
The Treaty of Paris
Ends French and Indian War
England gained Canada and all of Louisiana east of the M.R. except the Isle of Orleans.
Spain gains New Orleans and all land west of the M.R.

33. Treaty of Paris ~ Map