New France and the West, 1701–1713

mSTO•UA•S OF •.W F•t•C•. often speculate on what might have happened if the French, instead of reaching out for control of a continent from their colony in the St. Lawrence Valley, had remained concentrated within the main setfiements. One school of thought contends that the clash with the Enghsh colonies, and perhaps even the Conquest itself, would have been avoided; another maintains that this sort of contraction could only have resulted in the loss of the fur trade and in economic stagnation. Although the problem may never be definitely resolved, an examination of New France's western policy between 1701 and 1713 does bring to light some basic problems that did arise when J•rome de Pontchartrain, the Minister of the Marine, attempted to reverse the expansion which had begun in the 1670's. While the policy he formulated id not require that the French withdraw from the interior altogether it did reduce the size and modify the nature of their commitments in the Great Lakes and Mississippi Valley regions. To examine the aims, character, and effects of this t•ohcy is the purpose of the present article. Besides the obvious interest e question holds for students of French relations with the English colonies and the Indian tribes it also provides insights into the activities and rivalries of a number of groups in Canada which were struggling to gain control of the West. The French North American empire, which included the Great Lakes region, a considerable portion of the Mississippi Valley, and Hudson Bay until 1713, had first emerged as an organized structure during the 1680's. The southern and western zones had been opened to French commerce and influence by the fur-trading associates of Governor Frontenac, notably La Salle and Du Lhut, while the northern regions had been penetrated by a rival association of Montreal

Ancient history · Character (mathematics) · CONQUEST · Economic history · Empire · Genealogy · Geography · American Environmental and Regional History · Canadian Identity and History · Historical Studies and Socio-cultural Analysis · History

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