The Great Expulsion

New Horizons France and England were interested in North America because of the fur trade Champlain had settled a colony at Port Royal, Acadia (now Nova Scotia) in 1604 Making this settlement work was difficult and by 1650 there were only 300 settlers Britain had settled in Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont at the same time and had managed to settle settlers England and France fought throughout the 1600s and this made success in Acadia more difficult for France

Control During the many years of wars between Britain and France, control of Acadian land changed hands many, many times. Acadian lands were in what we now call Nova Scotia. In 1713 Great Britain won the war in Europe and that gave them control over what is now Nova Scotia

Early 1700s By 1713 when Britain took over Acadia it was finally doing well The population had doubled in the past 20 years The long growing season saw plenty of fruits and vegetables being grown The Acadians were a very tight group Families were large and everyone helped everyone else They were an “egalitarian” society which means they believed in equal rights and opportunities Priests were the only officials They cherished their freedom

Port Royal When the British won against France in Europe they got Acadia and its main town, Port Royal. The British now had control over what is now Nova Scotia and along with it 1800 people They were told that they could leave Acadia but they would lose everything they had worked so hard to get. The British told them not to worry they could remain Catholic and continue speaking French. They decided to stay

Port Royal becomes Annapolis The British decide to rename Port Royal to Annapolis after Queen Anne. The Acadians weren’t pleased with this At your table group discuss why this would make the Acadians unhappy

Allegiance In 1717 Colonel Phillips takes over Nova Scotia and he believes that all Acadians must pledge allegiance to the British queen The Acadians did not want to take sides and wanted to be neutral and just continue peacefully as they had always done before. They were also afraid that the French might return and be angry that they had pledged allegiance to the queen and would take it out on them The Acadians never believed that the peace between Britain and France would last so they did not want to commit to one side

Being Told to Swear Allegiance 1717

The Oath “I sincerely promise and swear on my faith as a Christian that I will be utterly loyal, and will truly obey his Majesty King George the second, whom I recognize as the sovereign lord of Acadia or Nova Scotia. May God so help me. ~the oath of allegiance signed by Acadians

The Colonel Leaves Out Some Information When Colonel Phillips reports back to the King and tells them that many have sworn allegiance he does not mention the most important thing of all: Phillips told the Acadians that they could be neutral and still swear allegiance. That meant they did not have to side with the British or French if there was ever another war Make a prediction: Will this be a problem later?

1744 The Acadians were right when they thought peace wouldn’t last In 1744 France and Britain were back at war The Acadians kept their promise of being neutral and resisted calls for help The British King was not happy especially since he never knew that they were told that they could be neutral

1749 King George says they must pledge allegiance and they cannot remain neutral The Acadians refused and asked for permission to leave The British refused because they were afraid that they would move to French settlements nearby and make those settlements stronger This would be in French favour if war broke out yet again

1755 War Again The French were defeated in what is now New Brunswick The British found out that 300 Acadians helped the French They were not amused The British decide to seek revenge on the Acadians Anyone who did not pledge allegiance was hunted down, their land and cattle were seized, houses and crops burned

Britain Seizing Land and Property

Eight more years From 1755 to 1763 Acadians who did not pledge allegiance were hunted down and deported They were shipped away in horrible conditions where few survived One group of Acadians claimed the conditions were so bad that they had to take turns lying down There was no food and no water

Misery and Despair Those who escaped or avoided capture also suffered They lived in the woods or travelled many kilometres by foot to Quebec People that were captured became prisoners of war if they went to England Others were sent to France or colonies along the east coast of what is now the United States The British deliberately tried to separate Acadians and their families so they could not group together and retaliate

Deportation

What happened? Even if they survived the journey to other colonies their misery continued Governors did not know the Acadians were arriving and were angry that they had to provide for them The Acadians lived in poverty for years and were never accepted Their culture and way of life was ruined

WtU Video

Acadians Today The expulsion is considered to be a tragedy, planned with no regard to the suffering it would cause The Acadian culture did survive and today 3 million people claim Acadian heritage Those that survived established communities in New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island and Quebec. Many live in Louisiana, the roots of Cajun cuisine that is loved everywhere All of them celebrate their unique past

2003 In 2003, Queen Elizabeth acknowledged the deportation of the Acadians August 15 th every year is National Acadian Day

Think about it on an exit ticket: How does this picture represent the history of the Acadians? What images do you see? What symbols do you see that tell the story of the Acadian expulsion?