Chapter XLI
1758
THE VICTORY OF CARILLON
A WINTER OF GAYETY AND FOREBODING
SIXTY LEAGUES ON THE ICE--SHIPS ARRIVE--FAMINE CEASES--ENGLISH MOBILIZATION--TICONDEROGA (CARILLON)--MILITARY JEALOUSIES--SAINT-SAUVEUR--RECONCILIATION OF MONTCALM AND VAUDREUIL--ENMITIES RENEWED--WINTER IN MONTREAL--HIGH COST OF LIVING--THE "ENCYCLOPEDIA"--AVARICE AND GRAFT--MADAME DE VAUDREUIL.
In the last week of February, 1758, Montcalm returned to Montreal. Writing on February 22d, he adds: "I have just arrived at Montreal, having made sixty leagues on the ice, a delightful though cold manner of traveling." Evidently Montreal was much quieter than Quebec, for Montcalm was now able to attend steadily to his correspondence and to his military preparations until the opening of navigation. Meanwhile the famine still continued; yet we find the spoilers, Varin and Bréard, returning to France, Péan about to do the same, to put their booty in safety, already sensing the impending crisis which will end this period of sad memories in the last days of the French régime. At length, on the evening of May 19th, eight vessels, laden with 7,500 quarts of flour, arrived at Quebec, with news of some more to come, and the spectre of famine ceased to haunt the colony.
With the arrival of the vessels came the news that interested the military circles of Montreal; the replacement of M. de Paulmy, the minister of war, by the Maréchal de Belle-Isle.
There came, too, information of the energetic efforts being made by William Pitt in England to complete the conquest of India and America, the humiliation of France, and the British supremacy of the seas.
This was no idle scheme. Already a formidable fleet and a powerful army were preparing to besiege Louisbourg under Admiral Boscawen and Major General Jeffrey Amherst, with Brigadiers Whitmore, Lawrence and James Wolfe as their able lieutenants.
On June 13th twenty-three vessels of the line, eighteen frigates and fireships, and 157 transports, bearing about 12,000 troops, left Halifax and ran before the wind towards the maritime boulevard of France in America, surnamed the Dunkerque of the new world. On the frontier of Lake St. Sacrement, Lord Loudon had been replaced by Major General Abercromby, who with more than six thousand regulars and nine thousand provincials was to take Carillon and invade Canada by Lake Champlain and the Richelieu River. Finally Brigadier John Forbes was organizing an army of six to seven thousand men destined to wrest from France the Fort Duquesne and the Ohio region.
The last terrible struggle was soon to commence. Montreal was the scene of much activity. The troops had been moved to Carillon, the district around Ticonderoga and the frontier of Lake St. Sacrement, but it was not until June 24th that Montcalm, after a serious conflict with Vaudreuil, left Montreal to direct the campaign and on June 30th at 3 o'clock in the afternoon arrived at the dilapidated fort of Carillon with a force of about 3,400 men. On July 1st he had chosen his camp at Lachute, at the sawmill.[208]
Under him were the staff officers whom he brought from France and with whom Montrealers had become well acquainted. We would desire to follow this campaign out for this reason, but we must content ourselves with chronicling how, on July 5th, Abercromby embarked his army of 15,000 men in 900 small boats and 130 whale boats on Lake George (St. Sacrement), and moved down to Ticonderoga; how on July 6th the English army disembarked at the head of the rapids; how on the same day Lord Howe, "the soul of the army," was killed in a skirmish, and how the great victory of July 8th was due to Montcalm, when the English retreated, leaving behind them, according to General Abercromby's account, in killed, wounded and missing, 1,944 officers and men. The loss of the French, not counting that of Langy's detachment, was but 377.
Montcalm announced the victory thus to his wife: "Without Indians, almost without Canadian or colony troops--I had only 400--along with Lévis and Bourlamaque and the troops of the line, 3,100 fighting men,--I have beaten an army of 25,000 men."[209]
And he wrote to his friend Doreil: "What a day for France! If I had had two hundred Indians to send out at the head of a thousand picked men, under the Chevalier de Lévis, not many would have escaped. Ah, my dear Doreil, what soldiers are ours! Never saw I the like. Why were they not at Louisbourg?"
On the day of the victory he caused a great cross to be erected on the battlefield inscribed with these lines, attributing the victory to Divine interposition:
"Quid dux! Quid miles! Quid strata ingentia ligna! En signum! En victor! Deus hic, Deus ipse triumphat." "Soldier and chief and ramparts' strength are nought; Behold the conquering cross! 'Tis God the triumph wrought."
It was a famous victory, on the height of Ticonderoga, and no sweeter name than Carillon falls from a French Canadian's lips to this day.
Once more was Montcalm victorious, but it was to bring him bitter trouble with Vaudreuil and those surrounding him at Montreal, since the glory was due to the troops from France. On July 11th, when the English under Abercromby were in full retreat, M. de Rigaud and several colonial officers, with a good number of colonials and savages, arrived at Carillon, to be followed by more than two thousand others, on July 13th.
The object of this manoeuvre of Vaudreuil in sending this tardy reinforcement seemed to Montcalm and his officers an excuse for Vaudreuil to complain to the court, that having been reinforced he had not pursued the English, as the previous year he had not taken Fort Lydius, being unwilling to complete the victory and so give glory to the colonial troops. At Montreal feelings ran high and bitter; there were two camps, those who found fault with every action of the royal troops, and those who--the ladies especially--saw in the delay in sending the reinforcement a desire to abandon the poor battalions to the enemy.
At Carillon the colonial troops could not hide their chagrin and jealousy at not having participated more fully in the victory of the 8th of July, nor could the French regulars on their part dissimulate their satisfaction at having won the battle almost without Canadian "colony troops." Again the two hostile prejudices were in evidence and manifested themselves even in the letters of their leaders, Montcalm from Carillon, and Vaudreuil from Montreal, to the minister of war.
This acrimonious rivalry which existed between the higher military officers and the Canadian officers and functionaries, though not so largely shared by the soldiers and common people, who for the most part maintained good relations amongst themselves, is a mark of this unhappy period, and must be mentioned if we are to present a true picture of Montreal as the headquarters of military life of this period.
An epistolary duel was carried on from Montreal and Carillon veiled in the language of courtesy, but none the less bitter. In justification of the uselessness of pursuing the enemy, Montcalm relied on the experience of the men on the spot, while Vaudreuil, seated in his bureau at Montreal, "believed himself in a position at a distance of fifty leagues to determine war operations in a country he has never seen, and where the best generals would be embarrassed even after having seen it."
There are few generals who can so conduct campaigns. Von Moltke was one, Vaudreuil was not another; nor was his secretary.
Montcalm in his letters to the governor saw the hand of an enemy--that of the governor's secretary, Grasset de Saint-Sauveur.[210]
The author of the "Mémoires du Canada (Mémoires et réflections politiques et militaires sur la guerre du Canada depuis 1756 jusqu'à 1760)," says of this secretary: "M. de la Jonquière has placed too much confidence, as he explained himself, in a secretary named Saint-Sauveur. For this man, without honour and without sentiment, has employed all means, licit or illicit, to make his fortune. He asked and obtained from his master the exclusive right to sell eau de vie to the Indians. From that moment he attracted public enmity as well as did his master, who was said to be a half partner in the proceeds of the traffic." At the end of the same "Mémoire," speaking of the functionaries who remained in Canada in 1760 the author writes again: "Saint-Sauveur, the governor's secretary, has remained also. I have had the pleasure of hearing the English governor, Murray, speak in 1759 of this man, saying that he desired this man to fall into his hands; that if France, or rather the French government, had tolerated vice in this man, he wished to correct him; that he was a traitor to his master; that he had abused the confidence given him; that they only saw in him cheating (friponnerie) and illicit trading; that he himself was grieved at the blindness of this general (Vaudreuil). It is doubtful whether this man dare cross over into France. It is an established fact that he is worth more than 1,200,000 livres."
With a view of a reconciliation, on August 7th Montcalm sent Bougainville from Carillon to the governor of Montreal to make personal explanations, and on the 13th the aide-de-camp returned. We learn the success of his mission from his letter written to the minister of war on August 10th: "Union appears to me today perfectly established in good faith between our chiefs." In his journal on his return to Carillon he writes of his impressions and his delicate mission at Montreal: "I have been sent by the Marquis of Montcalm to the Marquis de Vaudreuil with the order to stifle, if possible, this leaven of discord which is being fermented and which perhaps may have been hurtful to the good of the service. Thus our general still makes the advances. Public interest is the rule of his conduct and he has acted ceaselessly in the spirit of the words of Themistocles, 'Strike! But hear!' It appears that the Marquis de Vaudreuil in all his bickerings has followed the impressions of subalterns interested in creating variances, rather than his own ideas. What is, however, his own is his 'amour propre' and a jealousy of a rival--a foundation on which the mischief makers readily build. The appearances are that my journey has not been unfruitful. I hope that facts will prove it so."
Meanwhile Montcalm remained at Carillon, holding the position so as effectively to prevent any return of the English. On September 1st a courier came from Montreal with news that the English were on Lake Ontario and had arrived within three leagues of Fort Frontenac. This was followed shortly by the news of the fall of Louisbourg. This latter was at first discredited by Montcalm, but the entry in his journal, at once heartbreaking and laconic, tells its own tale: "September 6, 1758--News from Quebec announcing the capture of Louisbourg; from Montreal, that of Frontenac."
That night Montcalm left Carillon secretly with Pontleroy and Bougainville, called by Vaudreuil to consult on the critical conjuncture in which the French possessions in America were now placed.
Never since the beginning of the "Seven Years' War" was the situation so menacing for the colony. With the loss of Frontenac, the French were no longer masters of Lake Ontario; Niagara was in a perilous position and French prestige had suffered a mortal blow in the regions of the Great Lakes. With the capture of Louisbourg, the English held the gateway of Canada. Their return to Lake Ontario and the destruction of Frontenac would open to them the route of the higher reaches of the St. Lawrence, onward to Montreal.
Montreal was reached on September 6th and Montcalm stayed there four days. During that time he drew up for Vaudreuil three "mémoires," one on the defence of the frontier of Lake Ontario, another on that of Lake Champlain, and a third on the defence of Quebec, as well as on general operations and regulations. These, in spite of the apparent cessation of personal hostilities, and the renewal of courtesies, seem to have displeased Vaudreuil. The latter "mémoire" on the reorganization of the army and the future methods of conducting war in Canada was looked upon by Vaudreuil and his secretary as a personal offence. In his letter of November 1st to the minister of marine, Vaudreuil calls to his attention "the faults of this 'mémoire,' the passion with which it is treated, the desire to censure the government, the desire of innovation, and more particularly that of lording it over the colonists."
The Montreal clique saw in the frank attempt of Montcalm to solve the situation another depreciation of the colonial forces.
While in Montreal it was arranged, with Vaudreuil's consent, that Bougainville should be sent to France at the end of the campaign to expose the Canadian situation to the king.
On September 13th Montcalm was on his way back to Carillon. But the enemy never returned. At the end of October news arrived that the English had broken up their camp at William Henry and had left Lake St. Sacrement. On November 4th, leaving behind at Carillon a garrison of 400 men, Montcalm left Montreal with the Languedoc battalion, which was soon to be followed by the other battalions. The war of 1758 was over.
The rigorous winter season set in very early this year and the return to Montreal from Carillon was a painful journey to Montcalm and his troops. A disastrous wind on Lake Champlain separated the vessels and nigh foundered several. The cold was intense and the last vessels found themselves hampered by the ice. Yet the victorious general reached St. John without harm. "I will venture to say," he wrote to Bourlamaque, "that my vessels carry Caesar and his fortunes."
On November 9th he reached Montreal. Then started the work of distributing the troops for winter quarters, many of them being stationed round about the Montreal district. The battalion of La Sarre was stationed on the Ile Jésus, Lachenaie, Terrebonne, Mascouche and l'Assomption; the royal Roussillons at La Prairie, Longueuil, Boucherville, Varennes and Verchères; that of Languedoc, in the governmental district of Three Rivers, from Ste. Anne to Batiscan; that of Guyenne, at Contrecoeur, the River Chambly, St. Ours, Sorel; the first battalion of the Berry regiment in the Beaupré district, and the second on the Ile d'Orleans; and that of Béarn at Sault-au-Récollet, Longue Pointe, Pointe aux Trembles, the Rivière des Prairies, St. Sulpice, La Valtrie and Repentigny.
In Montreal Montcalm's first care was to make representations to the governor and the Intendant Bigot, of the insufficient salary of the soldiers and the officers especially, owing to the high cost of living. In his journal Montcalm gives a comparative table of the tariffs of 1758, 1755, and 1743. For example, in 1743 a sheep cost four livres; in 1755, ten; and in 1758, forty. In 1753 a pound of pork cost three sous, ten in 1755, one livre and ten sous in 1758. In 1743 a pound of butter cost five sous; twelve sous in 1755, and forty sous in 1758.
This application brought a supplementary payment of forty-five livres a month to the captains, and thirty to the lieutenants. Yet it must be added that the officers affected much disedifying ostentation and magnificence in their high rate of living, and many abused the facility they had of borrowing money. On November 12th de Bougainville and M. de Doreil, of the commissary department, were sent as representatives to the court to tell of the condition of affairs in Canada. The governor, Vaudreuil, somewhat distrusted these as friends of Montcalm but he had an ally in Péan, who had left as early as August 13th, with warm recommendations. The ostensible purpose of the adjutant major of Quebec was to take the waters at Barèges for the cure of a wounded arm, but M. Doreil, writing to the minister in the same month and warning him that Péan was one of the chief causes of the maladministration of the colony, suggests that he was anxious to clear away with his fortune of 2,000,000, which he had rapidly amassed. "I have not dared to say 4,000,000, although according to public report I could have done so."
The mails to France and the favourable envoys bore Montcalm's urgent demand for peace, peace, peace at any price to meet the contingencies of the hour. Montcalm had no illusions; he foresaw final disaster owing to the weakness of the mother country, worn out by the European war, and to the supremacy of the English force by sea which would effectively cut off all supplies and reinforcements, could they be sent. Yet he did not despair, but prepared to meet the imminent invasion should peace not be declared. His letters to his family reveal a secret presentiment that he might never again see his dear Candiac or Montpellier.
Montcalm remained in Montreal till December 22d. His letters to Bourlamaque show that he spent the time intervening in a very quiet manner, going out little, reading much and finding the days very long. He read with interest the "Dictionnaire Encyclopédique," then in all its novelty and vogue. This vast literary, philosophic and scientific enterprise, which was to have such an effect on French thought, pernicious in its skepticism and anti-religious spirit, had been interdicted in 1752 after the publication of the first two volumes; but on its resumption by 1758 it had already given forth eight volumes. Montcalm wrote to Bourlamaque that he was skipping over the articles he did not wish to know about, and leaving those he could not understand.
Montcalm spent January and February amid the gayeties of Quebec and the pleasant company of the Rue du Parloir, which appealed to him so strongly. His correspondence with his lieutenant gives us an insight into the causes leading to the impending ruin which he foresaw surely stealing onward. He was not happy; he had a presentiment of the brooding catastrophe and foresaw the supreme crisis. Thus he wrote of January 4, 1759: "A ball on Sunday. Peace, or all will go wrong; 1759 will be worse than 1758. Ah! how black I see things!" Another day: "The colony is lost if peace does not come. I see nothing that can save her. Those who govern it have serious cause to reproach themselves. I have none for myself."
Again: "Pleasures at Quebec have been most keenly pursued in spite of the prevailing misery and the approaching loss of the colony. There have never been so many balls, nor such heavy games of chance in spite of the prohibition of last year. The governor general and the intendant have authorized it."
In March, Montcalm was again in the more sober atmosphere of Montreal, preparing military memoirs, and reading, according to his letter to Bourlamaque, in the third volume of the Encyclopedia, "the beautiful articles on Christianity, citation, comedy, comic, college, council, colony, commerce, etc." He was also preparing his letters for France. In a letter dated April 12, 1759, to the minister of war, the Maréchal de Belle-Isle, he threw away all reserve and decided to tell all he saw and knew, thus to expose in its heartbreaking reality the desperate state of the colony, to lay bare the plagues that were gnawing it, the corruption and the depredations which were conspiring with the English invasions to precipitate its downfall. "Except for an unexpected good fortune," he wrote, "of a great diversion into the English colonies by sea, or of great mistakes on the side of the enemy, Canada will be taken this campaign or certainly next.
"The English have sixty thousand men, we at most ten thousand to eleven thousand. Our government has no money. Advance pay and provisions are wanting. In default of these the English will win. The fields are uncultivated. We need cattle. The Canadians are discouraged. There is no confidence in M. de Vaudreuil or in M. Bigot. M. de Vaudreuil is in no position to direct a war campaign. He is inactive; he gives his confidence to experimenters rather than to the general sent from France. M. Bigot appears to be engaged only in making a great fortune for himself, his adherents and hangers-on. Avarice has obtained the master hand. The officers, the government storekeepers and clerks, ... are making astounding fortunes.... The expenses which have been paid at Quebec by the treasurer of the colony reach twenty-four millions; the year before they were only twelve to thirteen millions. This year they will mount up to thirty-six millions. It seems that all are hurrying to make their fortunes before the loss of the colony, which many perhaps desire as an impenetrable veil to hide their bad conduct."
He then enumerates particular instances of glaring acts of "grafting" and illicit trading. For example: "Is it necessary to transport the artillery, gun carriages, wagons and utensils? M. Mercier, who commands the artillery, is the contractor under different names; everything is done badly and dearly; this officer, who came as a simple soldier twenty years ago, will soon become rich to the amount of about six hundred thousand or seven hundred thousand livres, perhaps a million if this lasts. I have often spoken of this to M. de Vaudreuil or to M. Bigot. Each one throws the fault onto his colleague."
"The people," he continues, "frightened by these expenses, fear a deterioration in the value of the paper money of the country; a bad effect follows--the cost of living increases. The Canadians who have not taken part in illicit profits hate the government.... Even should peace come, the colony is ruined if the whole government is not changed." Thus he wrote to his responsible chief in France.
In his journal he is naturally fuller in his condemnations and he remarks: "One would need to have the pen always in hand to write down all these 'friponneries.' O! tempora! O mores!"
This season was a painful one for him; he laments over the present and the future. "Pauvre roi! Pauvre France! Cara patria!" In another letter to Bourlamaque he surveys his own position: "In a short time I shall be forty-seven years of age. The dignity of a marshal of France would flatter me as well as any other man; it would be fine to have it in six years, but to buy it by this kind of life would be at too dear a price."
In his journal he unburdens himself more fully. "O, king, worthy of being better served," he writes. "Dear fatherland, crushed with taxes, to enrich cheats and greedy ones!... Shall I keep my innocence as I have done up to the present, in the midst of corruption? I shall have defended the colony; I shall have owed 10,000 écus; but I shall see men enriching themselves like a Ralig, a Coban, a Cécile, a set of men without faith, rascals interested in the provision enterprise, gaining in one year four or five hundred thousand livres, arising from their outrageous expenditures; a Maurin, a clerk at 100 crowns, an abortion by nature, a snail in figure, traveling with a suite of calèches and carriages, spending more in conveyances, harness and in horses than a young coxcomb and giddy-headed farmer-general of revenues. And this uphold of provisions, an enterprise formed since the time of M. de la Porte, who went shares in it! Will France never produce an enlightened head of its marine department, a reformer of abuses? The peculations of a Verres, of a Marius, of which Juvenal speaks, do not come near these."
When not otherwise engaged in his literary and military studies--for social life seems to have been not very attractive to him in Montreal--Montcalm would confer with the governor, with whom the appearance of courtesy at least was preserved, though at times with underlying mutual antipathies. On one occasion he entered the office of Vaudreuil, whom he surprised listening indulgently to M. d'Eschambault, his nephew by marriage, inveighing against the French officers, accusing them of insubordinate speech against the authorities after the unfortunate events following Carillon. Caught in the act, the governor, flushing up, took the opportunity to complain bitterly of the French officers. Montcalm profited by the occasion also to unburden his heart on the subject of all the unworthy hawking of tittle-tattle and exaggerations productive of harm to the service, and he dealt "a long and strong, but respectful" lesson to both of them. "I should trust," wrote Montcalm to Bourlamaque, "that this will correct tale-bearers and those who listen to them."
Another incident related to Bourlamaque also gives a picture of the strained relations of the two military factions in Montreal. One day, in the governor's office, an officer of the colonial militia saw fit to say in the presence of Vaudreuil, Montcalm and others, that during the siege of William Henry, General Webb had great fear at Fort Lydius, that Orange and New York were without troops, and that this fort could have been easily taken. This being a favourite topic with the governor, he commented on it with eagerness. Stung to the quick by this recurrence to an old sore, Montcalm gave anew the reasons which had prevented him making the second siege in 1757, adding that it was no use feeding still on chimeras. "I concluded, by saying modestly, that I did my best at the seat of war, following my feeble lights, and that if he was not satisfied with his second in command, he had better make the campaign in person, so as to carry out his own ideas. The tears sprang to his eyes and he muttered between his teeth that such might be the case. The conversation finished on my part by saying: 'I shall be delighted and I shall willingly serve under you.'
"Madame de Vaudreuil wished to intervene. 'Madame,' I said, 'permit me, without departing from the respect due to you, to have the honour to tell you that ladies ought not to mix in war affairs.' Madame again wished to interrupt. 'Madame,' I said, 'without departing from the respect due to you, allow me to have the honour to inform you that if Madame de Montcalm were here and heard us speaking of war affairs with M. le Marquis de Vaudreuil, she would maintain silence.'"
"This scene, before his officers, three of them colonials, will be embroidered and reimbroidered; but here it is."
FOOTNOTES:
[208] The following, according to Montcalm's journal, was the military strength of the French on July 8th: The Marquis de Montcalm, maréchal des camps; Chevalier de Lévis, brigadier; Sieur de Bourlamaque, colonel; the Sieur de Bougainville, aide maréchal des logis; Chevalier de Montreuil, aide major général; Brigade de la Reine, 345 men; Béarn, 410; Guyenne, 470; Brigade de la Sarre, 460; Languedoc, 426; Brigade de Royal Roussillon, 480; First Batallion of the Berry Brigade, 450; Second Batallion, a guard of 50 at Fort Carillon; troops of the marine department, 150; Canadian forces, 250; savages, 15; total 3,506.
[209] There were only 14,000 men, including reserves, engaged in the attack.
[210] Saint-Sauveur had been employed in the same secretarial functions by M. de la Jonquière, and under both he seems to have used his position unduly to increase his fortune.
Chapter XLII
1759
THE FALL OF QUEBEC
MONTREAL THE SEAT OF GOVERNMENT
THE SPRING ICE SHOVE--NEWS FROM FRANCE--MILITARY HONOURS SENT BUT POOR REINFORCEMENTS--PROJECTED FRENCH INVASION OF ENGLAND--GLOOM IN CANADA--THE MONTREAL MILITIA AT THE SIEGE OF QUEBEC--FALL OF QUEBEC, MONTREAL SEAT OF GOVERNMENT--THE WINTER ATTEMPT TO REGAIN QUEBEC--THE EXPECTED FRENCH FLEET NEVER ARRIVES--RETREAT OF FRENCH TO MONTREAL.
At the commencement of April, the violent breaking up of the ice of the St. Lawrence proclaimed that spring had arrived. "It was a sight," said Montcalm, "to see the masses of ice heaping up, mountain-like, amidst great noise. The ice shove took place at 7.30 A. M. It happens from time to time and makes one fear for a part of Montreal, which is built too near the river. One year it bore down all the walls of the town. This year it has battered the Château de Callières, a house at the extremity of the town, so called, because it was the dwelling of the governor general of that name."
The troops began to be moved. At last the vessels from France reached Quebec and Bougainville returned to Montreal on May 14th to render his report to the governor general, confirming his letters, arriving ahead. The situation now unfolded by Bougainville, with the letters from the court at Versailles and the ministers of war and marine to Vaudreuil and Montcalm, was one of intense anxiety. France was in a pitiable state of degeneracy. A weak king sat without honour on its throne, surrounded by ministers without pride and without patriotism, sad successors of a Henry IV, a Richelieu, a Louis XIV and a Colbert. There was no consistent policy in the king's council. The king, who had boasted "après moi, le déluge," was a nobody, and Madame la Marquise de Pompadour virtually prime minister, all powerful. There was no credit. The finances were inadequate to pay for the toilettes and the shameful splendours of the Pompadour, whose budget was greater than that of Canada under the infamous government of Louis XV. France saw its erstwhile moral and political grandeur in decay; its administration of its foreign and home affairs a by-word heightened by the scandalous disorders of the court of a king who was a gamester and a high liver.
It is no wonder then that Bougainville, after three months' insistent solicitations in France with M. Berryer, the minister of marine, the Marshal de Belle-Isle and the Pompadour, could only obtain the reinforcement for Canada of 400 men and some ammunition, and inadequate supplies of provisions. In his journal he notes that "M. Berryer who, from being a lieutenant of the police in Paris, had been made minister of marine, would not understand that Canada was the barrier of our other colonies and that the English would not attack any others until they had chased us out of it. This minister was fond of proverbs and he told me pertinently that one did not seek to save the stables when the house was on fire." Hence the small reinforcements for the stables of Canada.
Honours, however, were thickly scattered. Montcalm had been made a lieutenant-general, with an increase of salary, with the red ribbon of knighthood of the Order of St. Louis; de Lévis became a maréchal de camp; Bourlamaque had been created a brigadier, Bougainville a colonel, and both had received supplementary pensions; M. de Vaudreuil was named Grand Croix of the Order of St. Louis; M. de Rigaud, his brother, received for life the concession of the Port of Baie Verte (Green Bay). Many other officers received pensions, promotions or the Cross of St. Louis.
Without the necessary reinforcements the colony appeared abandoned. The argument given for this to Vaudreuil and Bigot in a letter dated February 3d from the minister of marine was that "the continuation of the war in Europe, the too great risks by sea and the necessity of reuniting the naval forces, did not allow of their separation or the hazarding of a part of them to afford the uncertain succour which would be employed more usefully for the state and the relief of Canada, in expeditions more prompt and decisive later."
Yet in spite of the news that the English counted on invading Carillon and Quebec--Amherst at Carillon and Wolfe at Quebec--Montcalm's instructions were "to hearken to no capitulation, but to defend himself foot by foot, and not to imitate the shameful conduct of Louisbourg."[211] Vaudreuil had to keep his foot in Canada at any price. The letter of M. Berryer to Montcalm and Vaudreuil, dated February 10, 1759, put this explicitly: "Your principal object, which you ought not to lose sight of, must be to preserve at least a sufficient portion of this colony and to hold it, in view of recovering the whole on the declaration of peace, it being a very different thing, in a treaty to stipulate for the restitution of the whole of a colony, than for that only of dependent portions lost in the hazard of war.... Moreover, His Majesty will not lose sight of you during this campaign.... He will busy himself about means to assist you effectively, not only through the new reinforcements he may send you, but still more by efficient manoeuvres to procure diversions of the strength likely otherwise to oppose you."
This enigmatic, mysterious allusion, not then understood, was to nothing less than to the projected invasion of England which, it was thought, would withdraw the English forces from Canada. This plan, conceived by M. Machault, prompted by the Maréchal de Belle-Isle and enthusiastically adopted by Choiseul, forty-six years before Napoleon, was actually attempted. But Pitt, becoming aware of the preparations, quickly encircled the British Isles and Ireland with a powerful fleet and organized the militia forces on land, and sent Rodney, Boscawen and Hawke to attack the French fleets when mobilizing. Lavisse, in the "Histoire de France," 8, II, p. 219, tells the result: "The Atlantic fleet was rendered as powerless as was that of the Mediterranean with the loss to France of twenty-nine vessels of the line and thirty-five frigates; its fleet was reduced to nearly nothing. It was no longer in the position to defend its colonies."[212]
It was a gloomy lookout for the military authorities at Montreal. To them it seemed as if the government at home, unmindful of the sacrifice of its heroes in Canada by field, flood and ice, was ready to abandon the "few arpents of snow" as too great a burden for its weak shoulders and to shamefully lower the fleur-de-lys to the flag of England.[214]
The forces at the disposal of Canada were, according to the census taken in January, only 15,229. The census of February, 1759, gave a total population in Canada of 82,000, with 20,000 able to bear arms. (Cf., Rameau, "La France aux Colonies," p. 86.) This would not include the regular army and the domiciliated Indians.
Smith, in his "History of Canada," states that "when the government wanted the services of the militia as soldiers, the colonel of militia, or the town major, in consequence of a requisition from the governor general, sent orders to the several captains of militia in the country parishes to furnish a certain number of militiamen, chosen by those officers, who ordered the drafts into town under an escort commanded by an officer of militia, who conducted them to the town major, where they were each furnished with a gun, a capot, a Canadian cloak, a breechclout, a cotton shirt, a cap, a pair of leggings, a pair of Indian shoes and a blanket; after which they were marched to the garrison for which they were destined. The militia were generally reviewed once or twice a year to inspect their arms."
They acted as bushrangers and would march with the French regulars to the tune of "Malbrouk s'en va-t'en guerre."
To these had been communicated, by Vaudreuil, the king's order to fight even to extinction, and the governor general, to his honour, added: "For my part, I am determined to consent to no capitulation, convinced of its dangerous consequences for all the Canadians. The thing is so certain that it would be incomparably sweeter for them, their wives and their children, to be buried under the ruins of the colony."
With these few but resolute troops Canada had now to defend herself, attacked at three points--Quebec, Carillon and Niagara--against overwhelming odds. Quebec was the first objective of attack by the English, and on May 21st Montcalm left Montreal to put it in a position, as far as it was possible, to stand the siege. On May 24th he was joined by Vaudreuil. The story of the siege of Quebec, which lasted two months and twelve days--from July 6th to September 18th--is foreign to our purpose; but we must know that the militia of the town of Montreal, to the number of 1,150, acquitted themselves honourably on that heroic occasion. On September 13th Quebec dates its fall. It was the fatal day of the disaster on the Plains of Abraham, where Montcalm, bearing his death wound, was led on his horse by three soldiers by the St. Louis gate to the city. At 5 o'clock on the morning of September 14th he breathed his last like a Christian hero, believing in the promises of immortality. Wolfe also had met his fate in the same engagement.[215]
On October 18th the English fleet left Quebec. The town was desolate. After the death of Wolfe, Monckton put Murray in command of the garrison, with twenty gunships. Brigadier General Murray remained there with 7,300 men, at once governor and commander in chief. Lord Townshend and Admiral Saunders, with the rest of the fleet, returned to England with the embalmed body of Wolfe.
The City of Champlain was in other hands. It is attributed to Madame de Pompadour that on receipt of the news she uttered the frivolous comment, "At last, the king will sleep in peace." By Louis XV, this new wound to French national pride was received with indifference. Already beaten at Rosbach, Crevelt and Meudon, what mattered another loss so far away? Nevertheless he sent, at the entreaty of Vaudreuil, inadequate forces, which the English fleet never allowed to reach their destination.
The loss of Quebec was looked upon by the English, at home and in America, as the virtual conquest of Canada. England rejoiced with bonfire celebrations and the New England pulpits resounded with the oratory of thanksgiving for the conquest. France received the news with pain, but with no surprise. Patriotism was dead and there was little talk of sending a strong reinforcement. The ministers were content with sending 400 men, with three or four vessels loaded with provisions and warlike stores, and convoyed by a frigate.[216] Yet the Canadians did not despair. With indomitable courage, and buoyed up perhaps by the hope that some big scheme for their succour was being devised in Paris, they held to their policy under General de Lévis, now in command, of disputing the position foot by foot. With the loss of the capital, Montreal became the seat of civil and religious governments, as well as the military headquarters. By the end of 1759 it was a small remnant that now remained to the French--the narrow strip of territory on the St. Lawrence from Jacques Cartier and Kingston, Montreal and Ile aux Noix being the only posts of importance still to be reduced.
During the winter of 1759-60, while petty hostilities were kept up with the enemy to divert their attention, busy preparations were being made in Montreal to advance to the recapture of Quebec at the breaking up of the ice. The historian, Parkman, in his "Montcalm and Wolfe," Vol. II, Ch. 29, thus describes this period:
"The difficulty was to find means of transportation. The depth of the snow and the want of draught animals made it necessary to wait till the river became navigable; but preparation was begun at once. Lévis was the soul of the enterprise. Provisions were gathered from afar and near; cannon, mortars and munitions of war were brought from the frontier posts, and butcher knives weritted to the muzzles of guns to serve the Canadians in place of bayonets. All the working men about Montreal were busied in making tools and gun carriages. Stores were impressed from the merchants; and certain articles which could not otherwise be had, were smuggled, with extraordinary address, out of Quebec itself. Early in spring the militia received orders to muster for the march. There were doubts and discontent, 'but,' says a contemporary, 'sensible people dared not speak, for if they did they were set down as English.' Some there were who in secret called the scheme 'Lévis' folly.' Yet it was perfectly rational, well conceived and conducted with vigour and skill. Two frigates, two sloops of war and a number of smaller craft still remained in the river, under the command of Vauquelin, the brave officer who had distinguished himself at the siege of Louisbourg. The stores and cannon were placed on board these vessels and the army embarked in a fleet of bateaux, and on the 20th of April the whole set out together for the scene of action. They comprised eight battalions of troops of the line and two of colony troops, with the colonial artillery, 3,000 Canadians and 400 Indians. When they left Montreal, their effective strength, besides Indians, is said by Lévis to have been 6,910, a number which was increased as they advanced by the garrisons of Jacques Cartier, Deschambault and Pointe aux Trembles, as well as by the Canadians on both sides of the St. Lawrence below Three Rivers, for Vaudreuil had ordered the militia captains to join his standard with all their followers, armed and equipped, on pain of death. (Vaudreuil aux Capitaines de Milice, 16 avril 1760.) These accessions appear to have raised his force to between eight and nine thousand."
The story of the journey to Quebec, of the Battle of St. Foy and the second battle on the Plains of Abraham, although engrossing in its interest, takes us too far afield. Suffice it to say that the siege of Quebec was raised by the French during the night of May 16-17, after a short but brave campaign. Then followed their retreat.
The victory would have been with them if the expected fleet from France had arrived. The moment was critical; each side was scanning the St. Lawrence for their countries' flags, the red for England and the white for France. The British frigate Lowestoffe was the first to arrive on May 9th, to be followed a week later by the ship of the line, Vanguard, and the frigate, Diana. These latter arrived in the harbour on the evening of the 15th and on the next morning passed the town to attack Vauquelin's fleet in the river above, with the result of their destruction and the loss of the stores of food and ammunition.[217]
The little French fleet never arrived. They had run into the Baie des Chaleurs to escape from pursuing enemies. There they were found, and the frigate and the four vessels convoyed by it were burned by Captain Byron, then cruising with a powerful fleet in the Gulf of St. Lawrence. France was responsible for her delay and niggardliness in succouring her own.
FOOTNOTES:
[211] Berryer wrote to Vaudreuil: "M. de Montcalm ought to be consulted not only on the operations but on all points of administration which shall have a bearing on the defence and the administration of the colony."
[212] The very walls of Versailles, the residence of the king, were placarded with doggerels, among which were many of a mo treasonable character. All of these pointed to the feminine influence over the king. Such couplets as these:
Bateaux plats à vendre[213] Soldats à louer Ministres à vendre Généraux à louer O, France! le sexe femelle Fit toujours ton destin. Tel bonheur fait d'une pucelle Ton malheur vient d'une catin.
[213] Referring to the numerous boats built for the invasion of England but never used. This scheme originated with La Pompadour. (Walpole's Memoirs of George II, Vol. II.)
[214] The phrase "a few arpents of ice" had been used by Voltaire in a letter dated March 27, 1757. Later, in 1759, in his "Romance Candide," he wrote: "You know that these two nations (France and England) are at war for 'some arpents of snow' towards Canada and that they expend for this fine war more than the whole of Canada is worth."
[215] In 1827 there was erected in Quebec, under the auspices of Lord Dalhousie, then governor-general, a stone obelisk to the memory of the two illustrious rivals, bearing this inscription: "Mortem virtus, communem famam historia, monumentum posteritas dedit." (Valour gave them death in common; history, a common fame; posterity, a monument.)
[216] The influx of refugees increased the cost of living. A dozen eggs or a pound of butter were sold for six francs; a pound of mutton eighty francs. (Cf. Archives de la Marine. November 9, 1759.)
[217] The arrival of the three ships in May was followed by Lord Colville's fleet, so that shortly there were six ships of the line, and eight smaller war vessels, before Quebec. The land force under Lord Rollo did not arrive till early in July.
Chapter XLIII
1760
THE FALL OF MONTREAL
THE CAPITULATION
THE LAST STAND AT MONTREAL--THE APPROACH OF THE BRITISH ARMIES--SURRENDER OF ARMS BY FRENCH ON THE ROUTE--PAPER MONEY VALUELESS--MURRAY'S ADVANCE FROM QUEBEC--HAVILAND'S PROGRESS FROM LAKE CHAMPLAIN--AMHERST'S DESCENT FROM OSWEGO--MONTREAL WITHIN AND WITHOUT--THE COUNCIL OF WAR IN THE CHATEAU VAUDREUIL--THE TERMS OF CAPITULATION--THE NEGOTIATIONS WITH AMHERST--HONOURS OF WAR REFUSED--DE LEVIS' CHAGRIN--THE CAPITULATION SIGNED--THE CONDITIONS--FORMAL POSSESSION OF TOWN BY THE BRITISH--THE END OF THE FRENCH REGIME.
After the retreat from Quebec, de Lévis made preparations for the last stand at Montreal. Along the trail, posts were stationed: Rochebeaucour with 300 men at Pointe aux Trembles; Repentigny with 200 at Jacques Cartier; Dumas with 1,200 at Deschambault; Bougainville at Ile aux Noix to bar the approach from Lake Champlain, and La Corne to defend the rapids above Montreal. Each of these points was important, as the plan of campaign of the English, organized by Amherst, was to descend to Montreal, the remaining stronghold of the French, by three routes simultaneously--east, west and south--and uniting there at the same time, to invest it with an army of 16,000 and to take it as an easy prey, for its weaknesses were known. Maps were not wanting of it. It was known that its fortifications, made for defence against the Indians alone, could not resist English cannon.
From three widely separated points, three armies were surely and with deadly certainty moving on Montreal. Murray was to ascend the St. Lawrence from Quebec, Brigadier Haviland to force his entrance by way of Lake Champlain, while Amherst was to lead the main army to Montreal, down the St. Lawrence from Lake Ontario. The latter, though the more difficult journey to execute, the rapids being numerous, was undertaken to prevent the French from attempting to escape up-country, and so defer the inevitable day of their humiliation.
At Montreal the governor general, Vaudreuil, waited for the inevitable, but with dogged resistance and hope till the last. "At this time," he wrote to the minister, "I am taking the most just measure to unite our forces, and if our situation permits, fight a battle or several battles. It is to be feared that we shall go down before an enemy so numerous and strong; but whatever may be the event, we shall save the honour of the king's arms. I have the honour to repeat to you, Monseigneur, that if any resource were left me, whatever progress the English might make, I would maintain myself in some part of the colony with my remaining troops, after having fought with the greatest obstinacy; but I am absolutely without the least remnant of the necessary means. In these unhappy circumstances I shall continue to use every manoeuvre and device to keep the enemy in check; but if we succumb in the battles we shall fight, I shall apply myself to obtaining a capitulation which may avert the total ruin of a people who will remain forever French, and who could not survive their misfortunes but for the hope of being restored by the treaty of peace to the rule of His Most Christian Majesty."
If we follow the route of each of the armies whose objective was Montreal, we shall find them making easy progress, for the country was ripe for the change of government. The militia, seeing the colony was lost to France, gave up their arms, as did the regulars, famished and despairing. The greatest cause of despair in the old régime now passing away was the news that not only the home government could not send military succour, but that the royal treasury could not meet colonial bills, the payment of which was now suspended for a time. The people had advanced much money to the government and now they found their paper money almost valueless and discredited.
Vaudreuil and Bigot at Montreal were informed of this deferred payment by an official circular, in which "they were assured, however, that the exchequer bills (letters de change), drawn in 1757 and 1758, would be paid in three months after the anticipated peace, with interest; that those drawn in 1759 would be discharged in like manner, eighteen months after peace; and as for the intendant's promissory notes (ordonnances), they would be liquidated as soon as convenient. This news startled those concerned like a thunderbolt; there was owing by France to the colonials more than forty million francs (say 1,600,000 pounds sterling), and there was scarcely any one of them who was not a creditor of the state." (Bell's translation of Garneau's "History of Canada," Vol. II, p. 201.)
Murray began his advance on Montreal on July 14th and ascended the St. Lawrence with 2,200 men, convoyed by three frigates and twelve gunboats, carrying twenty-four 18 and 12-pounders. With the bateaux they amounted to thirty-five vessels. Later in the journey, these were joined by some thirteen hundred men under Lord Rollo, arriving from Louisbourg. On August 4th the fleet was in sight of Three Rivers. Beyond some skirmishes along the banks, the progress had been triumphant, notwithstanding the elaborate preparations made by de Lévis to prevent its advance. The habitants, previously warned, on July 13th, to remain quietly in their homes offered little resistance, but for the most part accepted the oath of allegiance or at least neutrality. This done, they gladly enough sold their eggs and farm produce. Three Rivers was passed on August 5th. No attack was made on the French garrison, "because," says Knox, the soldier historian, who was with Murray, "a delay here would be absurd, as that wretched place must share the fate of Montreal. Our fleet sailed this morning. The French troops, apparently two thousand, lined their different works and were, in general, clothed as regulars, except a very few Canadians and about fifty Picts, or savages, their bodies being painted of a reddish colour and their faces of different colours, which I plainly discerned with my glass.
"Their light cavalry, which paraded along shore, seemed to be well appointed, clothed in blue faced with scarlet, but their officers had white uniforms. In fine, their troops, batteries, fair-looking houses; their situation on the banks of a delightful river; our fleet sailing triumphantly before them, with our floating batteries drawn up in line of battle; the country on both sides interspersed with neat settlements, together with the verdure of the fields and trees and the clear, pleasant weather, afforded as agreeable a prospect as the most lively imagination can conceive." (Knox, II.)
As the fleet advanced among the Islands of St. Peter, the writer had new material for his picturesque pen. "I think nothing could equal the beauties of our navigation this morning; the meandering course of the narrow channel; the awfulness and solemnity of the dark forests with which these islands are covered; the fragrancy of the spontaneous fruits, shrubs and flowers; the verdure of the water by the reflection of the neighbouring woods; the wild chirping notes of the feathered inhabitants; the masts and sails of ships appearing as if among the trees, both ahead and astern, formed together an enchanting diversity."
On August 12th the British were before Sorel. Hither Bourlamaque had come and had intrenched two or three thousand troops and militia along the strand, while Dumas, with another body, was on the northern shore. His object, and that of de Lévis, was to prevent the juncture of Haviland's force, reported to be coming from Lake Champlain by the Richelieu River, at its mouth at Sorel, with Murray's force. The one hope of the French was to be able to attack, in detail, each of the three portions of the advancing army, for once these united, there was no hope of success. Murray fired on Sorel. It was quickly deserted, the inhabitants joining Bourlamaque. On landing Murray burned a settlement near Sorel as a lesson, following on his proclamation advising the habitants to remain quietly at home and not engage as combatants, for fear of retribution to follow. "I was under the cruel necessity of burning the greatest part of these poor unhappy people's houses," he wrote to Pitt on August 24, 1760. "I pray God this example may suffice, for my nature revolts when this becomes a necessary part of my duty." The effect was immediate, for, in spite of counter proclamations of Vaudreuil from Montreal, before the end of the month, half of Bourlamaque's army gave in their allegiance.
On the 24th of August Murray's fleet reached Contrecoeur, about eighteen miles east of the Island of Montreal, and there he waited until he could communicate with Haviland and Amherst.
Meanwhile Haviland's force from Lake Champlain was advancing to Montreal with uninterrupted success. On August 16th he had left Crown Point with 3,400 regulars, provincials and Indians, convoyed by one brig, three sloops and four floating stages bearing the artillery. It had been hoped that there was a good chance to stop this advance and for this reason Bougainville, with 1,700 men, had been stationed at Ile aux Noix. By the 21st the English force had passed around the east of the island and had constructed batteries, from which shells were thrown into the defences. By the 26th Bougainville was compelled to realize that the port could not be held. Accordingly he left the garrison of fifty men, of wounded and invalids, with orders to surrender on the 28th. On the 27th he landed above the fort on the west bank unobserved, and passing through the woods, joined Roquemaure at St. Johns in safety, twelve miles below. Next day the surrender of Ile aux Noix took place. Haviland followed on to St. Johns and Chambly, driving Bougainville and Roquemaure to join Bourlamaque on the St. Lawrence. Now came fresh desertions from the Canadian ranks and new oaths of allegiance. Haviland desirous to get in touch with Murray's army sent Rogers, of the Rangers, to announce his arrival. But it was not until September 6th that Rogers was able to reach Colonel Haldimand at the head of the light infantry and grenadiers.
Meanwhile, Haldimand crossed the country to Longueuil, opposite Montreal, and encamped immediately opposite Murray's forces on September 6th.
The main body of the English army under Amherst, 10,170 strong, including 760 Indians under Sir William Johnson, had meanwhile proceeded by the Mohawk River and Oneida Lake to Oswego. The story of its descent to Montreal may be told by Parkman.[218]
"The army of Amherst had gathered at Oswego in July. On the 10th of August it was all afloat on Lake Ontario, to the number 10,147 men, besides about seven hundred Indians under Sir William Johnson. Before the 15th, the whole had reached 'La Présentation,' otherwise called Oswegatchie, or La Galette, the seat of Father Piquet's mission. Nearby was a French armed brig, the Ottawa, with ten cannon and a hundred men, threatening destruction to Amherst's bateaux and whaleboats. Five gunboats attacked and captured her. Then the army advanced again and were presently joined by two armed vessels of their own which had lingered behind, bewildered among the channels of the Thousand Islands.
"Near the head of the rapids, a little below La Galette, stood Fort Lévis, built the year before on an islet in midchannel. Amherst might have passed its batteries with slight loss, continuing his voyage without paying it the honour of a siege; and this is what the French commanders feared that he would do. 'We shall be fortunate,' Lévis wrote to Bourlamaque, 'if the enemy amuse themselves with capturing it. My chief anxiety is, lest Amherst should reach Montreal so soon, that we may not have time to unite our forces to attack Haviland or Murray.' If he had better known the English commander, Lévis would have seen that he was not the man to leave a post of the enemy in his rear under any circumstances; and Amherst had also another reason for wishing to get the garrison into his hands, for he expected to find among them the pilots whom he needed to guide his boats down the rapids. He therefore invested the fort, and on the 23d cannonaded it from his vessels, the mainland and the neighbouring islands. It was commanded by Pouchot, the late commandant of Niagara, made prisoner in the last campaign and since exchanged. As the rocky islet had but little earth, the defences, though thick and strong, were chiefly of logs, which flew in splinters under the bombardment. The French, however, made a brave resistance. The firing lasted all day, was resumed in the morning, and continued two days more, when Pouchot, whose works were in ruins, surrendered himself and his garrison. On this Johnson's Indians prepared to kill the prisoners, and being compelled to desist, three-fourths of them went home in a rage.[219]
"Now began the critical part of the expedition, the descent of the rapids. The Galops, the Rapide Plat, the Long Sault, the Côteau du Lac, were passed in succession, with little loss, till they reached the Cedars, the Buisson and the Cascades, where the reckless surges dashed and pounded in the sun, beautiful and terrible as young tigers at play. Boat after boat, borne on their foaming crests, rushed hard by down the torrent. Forty-six were totally wrecked, eighteen were damaged, and eighty-four men were drowned. Luc La Corne was watching the rapids with a considerable body of Canadians, and it is difficult to see why this bold and enterprising chief allowed the army to descend undisturbed through passes so dangerous. At length the last rapid was left behind, and the flotilla, gliding in peace over the smooth breast of Lake St. Louis, landed at Isle Perrot, a few leagues from Montreal. In the morning, September 6th, the troops embarked again, landing unopposed at Lachine, nine miles from the city, marched down without delay and encamped before its walls.[220]
"The Montreal of that time was a long, narrow assemblage of wooden or stone houses, one or two stories high, above which rose the peaked towers of the seminary, the spires of three churches, the walls of four convents, with the trees of their adjacent gardens; and, conspicuous at the lower end, a high mound of earth crowned by a redoubt, where a few cannon were mounted. The whole was surrounded by a shallow moat and a bastioned stone wall, made for defence against Indians and incapable of resisting cannon."[221]
An idea of Montreal on this evening may now be conceived. Within forty-eight hours the three English armies, with wonderful precision and generalship, had united and invested the city--Amherst in the Northwest, Haviland at Longeuil on the south shore, and Murray also at a distance of a four hours' march.
Within the island the forces of Bourlamaque, Bougainville and Roquemaure, abandoned by the militia, had gathered from the south shore over the river. The corps of Bourlamaque was placed below the city; that of Roquemaure was stationed above; Dumas was posted on the eastern part of the island; Bougainville apparently remained in the town.
"The town," says Parkman, "was crowded with noncombatant refugees. Here, too, was nearly all the remaining force of Canada, consisting of twenty-two hundred troops of the line and some two hundred colony troops; for all the Canadians had by this time gone home. Many of the regulars, especially of the colony troops, had also deserted; and the rest were so broken in discipline that their officers were forced to use entreaties instead of commands. The three armies encamped around the city amounted to seventeen thousand men."[222]
On the night of the 6th a council of the officers was held by Vaudreuil in his château, when a memoir proposing a capitulation was read by Bigot. It set forth that by the desertion of the Canadians and of a great number of the soldiers, the whole force available was 2,400 men. The Indians had made peace with the English and had even offered to aid in conquering the French. It was to be expected, that on the morning, Murray would land on the island of Montreal, and a corps on the southern bank of the river would join the main army; and that it was for the benefit of the colony to obtain an advantageous capitulation. The conclusion was accepted by all present.
At 7 o'clock on the morning of the 7th, de Bougainville was sent with a proposal to Amherst for a cessation of arms for a month. It was refused, and after some conversation, Amherst consented that no movement should be made until 12 o'clock. Vaudreuil, however, at 10 o'clock sent a messenger to Amherst. On this occasion he offered to capitulate and he enclosed the terms on which he proposed to surrender.
These contained fifty-five articles of capitulation. Amherst granted the greater part, modified others and some he flatly refused. Among these latter was a clause that the French troops should march out of the city with arms, cannon and the honours of war. The answer was: "The whole garrison of Montreal, and all of the French troops in Canada, must lay down their arms and shall not serve during the present war."[223]
This hurt the pride of General de Lévis. At this request "Vaudreuil sent back du Lac with a letter asking a reconsideration of the terms."[224] Amherst replied that he had set forth the terms he had determined to grant, and he desired an immediate reply to their acceptance, for the conditions would not be changed. Again de Vaudreuil sent de Bougainville with a request that he would hear his explanation. Amherst gave the same answer, that he could make no change in the conditions; and he desired an immediate reply to know if they were accepted or not. The conditions, however, were not concluded, for de Lévis sent de la Pause, his quartermaster general, to treat with Amherst on the subject of the too rigorous article imposed upon the troops, which he said they could not accept, and he asked Amherst to consider its hardship. Amherst briefly repeated the substance of his former letters and demanded a definite answer by the bearer.[225]
These denials so piqued de Lévis that he threatened to return to St. Helen's Island and defend it to the last extremity; but Vaudreuil ordered him to disarm. Vaudreuil was wise, but no doubt de Lévis' design was to show France that its heroes were staunch to the end and ready literally to preserve some territory, small as it might be, for the fleur-de-lys to wave over in defiance. That night the English slept on their arms again. It was not until the 8th that de Vaudreuil sent his unconditional acceptance of the articles, which were signed on the same day by himself and Jeffrey Amherst.[226]
Amherst, in his despatch to Pitt, tells the circumstances of the actual signature: "The troops passed the night (the 7th) under arms, and early in the morning I received a letter from the Marquis de Vaudreuil to which I replied; then I sent Major Abercromby to the town to bring back the articles of capitulation signed by the Marquis de Vaudreuil. I had then forwarded to the latter a duplicate bearing my signature. Then Colonel Haldimand, with the grenadiers and the light infantry, took possession of the fort and tomorrow he will put into execution the articles of capitulation."--"Archives Canadiennes," Doc. Const. (translated from French version).
The articles of capitulation were written in French, no signed copy in English being extant. The terms are those of the surrender of a conquered people, though the spirit of generosity marks them, on the part of the conquerors.
As had been said the troops were to lay down their arms, were not to serve again during the war and were to be sent back to France, to the first port, by the shortest route. Protection to deserters on both sides was refused; the sick and wounded were to be treated kindly. The demand that the Indians under British arms should be sent away after the signing of the articles was refused on the ground "that there had never been any cruelties practiced by the savages of our army." The demand for protection against disorders on the part of the victorious troops was answered by Amherst laconically: "Good order will be maintained." M. de Vaudreuil, M. de Rigaud, governor of Montreal, and their officers and suites shall be treated with consideration, maintained in the houses till their embarkation. They could carry away their private papers, except those archives that may be necessary for the good government of the country. It was asked that if peace were proclaimed, matters should return to the previous state and the capitulation should be null and void. Amherst answered that the orders of the king on this point would be obeyed. Full facilities were given for the free transportation of officers of state, of justice, of police, etc., and for the soldiers and their wives; a hospital ship for the sick and wounded was to be provided.
All who had business in the country could remain with the permission of M. de Vaudreuil until they had arranged their affairs.
The chief of the commissary department or his representative should be allowed to remain in the country till the following year to satisfy the debts contracted in the colony. The "Company of the Indies" shall maintain the possession of its peltry, but if it is found that His Very Christian Majesty has any share in it, that would be transferred to the benefit of the English king. All in general engaged in trade or possessing property shall be allowed to go to France with their families, etc., but they shall pay for the freightage of their merchandise and furniture, etc.
There was no mention of the use of the French language made on either side. The free exercise of the "Roman Catholic and Apostolic religion" was accorded, the obligation of paying the "dime" to the clergy being reserved to the good will of the king.
The ordinary ecclesiastical functions were to be continued, but the demand that the king of France should continue to name the bishop of the colony, who should always be a Roman Catholic, was refused. As Mgr. de Pontbriand was but lately dead,[227] and as his successor was not yet appointed, this seemed an opportunity for the English, if desired, to control future episcopal elections. In the meantime the power to create new parishes was refused.
The nuns were maintained in their constitutions and privileges; the same considerations for the Jesuits, Recollects and Sulpicians were refused "until the king's pleasure be known." All these communities, however, should be allowed to retain their property with the right of disposing of their possessions and withdrawing with the money to France.
In answer to the condition asked for by de Vaudreuil, that those who remained is the colony should not be liable to bear arms, directly or indirectly, against the king of France or his allies, but should be allowed to observe a strict neutrality, Amherst answered laconically but significantly, "they become the subjects of the king."
Article 42 demanded that the French Canadians shall continue to be governed according to the "coutume de Paris" and the laws and usages established for this country; and they shall not be liable to be subjected to any other taxes than those which were established under the French domination. This is again met by a similar reply as above.
The remaining articles were such as would safeguard the people and would provide for the ordinary rights of seigneurial tenure, of real property, of commerce, of negro and Indian slaves and the exercise of justice. The whole was fairminded, being the offer of the conquered party, almost entirely accepted, with the distinctions recorded above.
By the signatures of Vaudreuil and Amherst, half a continent had been ceded to British arms. The newspapers of the British-American colonies, at the news of the fall of Montreal, recount joyful celebrations. The pulpits of New England spoke in exultant tones, but not of ill will against the conquered race. Their manuscripts are still extant.[228] Thomas Foxcroft, pastor of the Old Church in Boston, proclaimed: "Long had it been the common opinion, 'Delenda est Carthago,' Canada must be conquered, as we could hope for no lasting peace in these parts and now, through the good hand of our God upon us, we see the happy day of its accomplishment."
The British progressivism of some of the pulpit utterances is interesting. Eli Forbes, speaking of Amherst, says: "The renowned general, worthy of that most honourable of all titles, the Christian hero; for he loves his enemies and while he subdues them he makes them happy. He transplants British liberty to where till now it was unknown. He acts the general, the Briton, the conqueror, and the Christian. What fair hopes arise from the peaceful and undisturbed enjoyment of this good land, and the blessing of our gracious God with it! Methinks, I see towns enlarged, settlements increased and this howling wilderness becomes a fruitful field which the Lord hath blessed; and to complete the scene, I see churches rise and flourish in every Christian grace where has been the seat of Satan and Indian idolatry."
A sentiment thoroughly admirable, but somewhat faulty in the want of recognition of the heroic missionary work already done for the Christian cause.
On the morning, following the signing of the capitulation, September 9th, the "Place d'Armes" was the rendezvous of a detachment of troops and artillery, who thus formally took possession of the town.[229] Thither the French regiments repaired, and one after another laid down their arms, returning to their own camp on the ramparts. After this act of submission, the British took possession of the gates and placed guards in the town.
On Citadel Hill, to the east of the town, the British flag supplanted the fleur-de-lys of France.
Thus ended Montreal under the French régime.
FOOTNOTES:
[218] "Montcalm and Wolfe," Vol. II.
[219] Sir William Johnson informed Amherst that he was apprehensive the Indians would leave the army. Amherst replied "that he believed his army was fully sufficient the service he was going upon, without their assistance; that although he wished to preserve their friendship, he could not prevail on himself to purchase it at the expense of countenancing the horrid barbarities they wanted to perpetrate;" and he added "that if they quitted the army and committed any acts of cruelty, he would on his return assuredly chastise them." Upon this the whole retired with the exception of 170, who were afterwards distinguished upon their arrival in Montreal by the gift of a medal from the general, that they might be known at the English posts and receive the civil treatment their conduct deserved.--Maubé, p. 306.
Mr. G. E. Hart, in "The Fall of New France," says this medal is well known to numismatists. The obverse has a view of Montreal; the reverse plain, with the name and tribe of the Indians engraved. As it was given before the general's departure, and is very archaic, it must have been made at Montreal at the time.
[220] "The landing was made at Lachine. Two New York and two Connecticut regiments were left to hold the place and guard the boats, while the main force proceeded to the open ground, traversed by the River St. Pierre, which then existed to the west of Montreal, through which the Grand Trunk now runs on leaving the city. There the British troops established themselves, the men, on the night of the 6th of September, lying on their arms."--Kingsford, "History of Canada," Vol. IV, p. 393.
[221] "I locate his (Amherst's) position about the foot of Côte des Neiges, between Guy Street and Clarke Avenue on the one side; Sherbrooke Street and Dorchester Street on the other. The house in which the capitulation was signed existed until quite recently, and was at the head of the hill, near the site of the Côte des Neiges' old tollgate."--G. E. Hart, "The Fall of New France," note on p. 143. There are several other houses claiming to be capitulation house.--Ed.
[222] A list of the forces employed in the expedition against Canada. See Smith, "History of Canada," I, Appendix XXX. "Vaudreuil writes to Charles Langlade, on the 9th, that the three armies amount to 20,000, and raises the number to 32,000 in a letter to the minister next day. Burrows says 20,000; Lévis, for obvious reasons, exaggerates the number to 40,000." Parkman, "Montcalm and Wolfe," Vol. II, p. 372.
[223] Kingsford, IV, p. 401.
[224] An account of the capitulation of Montreal from a French source may be found in the document entitled "Suite de la Campagne en Canada, 1760," which is a part of the "Collection de Documents Relatifs a l'Histoire de la Nouvelle France," Quebec, 1885, Vol. IV, pp. 304-6.
[225] Knox gives an account of this interview which is not authenticated by other evidence. It must, however, be borne in mind that Knox was present with the troops, and that he was generally well informed of what took place. His work was published within a few years after 1760, and there is every reason to believe it was seen by Amherst. "When," says Knox, "the bearer of this billet saw that the general had perused its contents he attempted to support the Chevalier's complaint respecting the article alluded to; but His Excellency commanded him to silence and told him he was fully resolved, for the infamous part the troops of France had acted in exciting the savages to perpetrate the most horrid and unheard of barbarities in the whole progress of war, and for open treacheries as well as flagrant breaches of faith, to manifest to all the world by this capitulation his detestation of such ungenerous practices, and disapprobation of their conduct; he therefore insisted he might decline any remonstrance on the subject."--Knox, II, p. 418.
[226] Kingsford, Vol. IV, p. 403.
[227] M. de Pontbriand died at the seminary on June 8, 1760. The loss of their bishop was looked upon as a veritable disaster. In the funeral oration of June 25th the curé d'office, M. Jolivet, did not dissimulate the fear of all that the Catholic religion was now to be extinguished. But the conquerors were far more merciful than was expected.
[228] Parkman, "Montcalm and Wolfe." Vol. II, p. 377.
[229] At the corner of Notre Dame and McGill Streets is the following tablet: "Récollets Gate. By this gate Amherst took possession, 8th September, 1760. General Hull, U. S. Army, 25 officers, 350 men, entered prisoners of war, 20th September, 1812."
APPENDIX I
THE GOVERNMENT OF LA NOUVELLE FRANCE
THE GOVERNMENT OF MONTREAL UNDER LA NOUVELLE FRANCE--ROYAL COMMISSIONS--VICEROYS--GOVERNORS--INTENDANTS--BISHOPS--FRENCH AND ENGLISH SOVEREIGNS--LOCAL GOVERNORS OF MONTREAL--THE SEIGNEURS OF THE SEMINARY.
UNDER ROYAL COMMISSION
1534 Jacques Cartier, Captain General. 1540 Jean François de la Roque, Sieur de Roberval. 1549 Marquis de la Roche. 1600 Capitaine de Chauvin (acting as administrator). 1603 Commandeur de Chastes. 1607 Pierre du Guast de Monts.
LEADING CONSTITUTIONAL EVENTS OF THE FRENCH REGIME
1608 Governor, sole ruler. 1647 Governor and council. 1663 April. Conseil Souverain created. 1760 April 28th. Conseil Souverain last session.
VICEROYS OF NEW FRANCE
De Soissons, Chas. de Bourbon, October 8, 1612, to November 1, 1612.
Condé, Henri de Bourbon, Prince de, November 20, 1612, to February 10, 1620.
Thémines, Maréchal Pons de Lausière, September 1, 1616, to October 20, 1619.
Montmorency, Henri, Duc de, February 10, 1620, to ----, 1624.
Ventadour, Henri de Lévis, Duc de, March, 1625, to June, 1627.
Damville, François C. de Lévis, Duc de, November, 1644, to ----, 1660.
Feuquières, Isaac de Pas, Marquis de, August 30, 1660, to October 5, 1661.
D'Estrades, Godefroy, Comte, ----, 1662, to February 26, 1686.
D'Estrées, Jean, Comte, May, 1717, to December 27, 1737.
GOVERNORS OF CANADA (LA NOUVELLE FRANCE)
(N. B.--The dates of arrival in Canada are followed rather than that of their commissions.)
Champlain, Samuel de (Lieutenant General), October 15, 1612, to July 20, 1629.
Champlain, Samuel de (Governor), May 23, 1633, to December 25, 1635.
Chateaufort, Marc Antoine Bras de fer de (Administrator), December 25, 1635, to June 11, 1636.
Montmagny, Chevalier Charles Hualt de, June 12, 1636, to August 19, 1648.
D'Ailleboust de Coulonge, Louis, August 20, 1648, to October 12, 1651.
Lauson, Jean de, October 16, 1651, to ----, 1656.
Lauson-Charny, Charles de (Administrator), ----, 1656, to September 12, 1657.
D'Ailleboust de Coulonge, Louis (Administrator), September 13, 1657, to July 10, 1658.
D'Argenson, Pierre de Voyer, Vicomte, July 11, 1658, to August 30, 1661.
D'Avaugour, Pierre Dubois, August 31, 1661, to July 23, 1663.
Mézy, Augustin de Saffray, September 15, 1663, to May 5, 1665.
Courcelles,[230] Daniel de Rémy de, September 12, 1665, to September 11, 1672.
Frontenac, Louis de Buade, Comte de Pallua et de, September 12, 1672, to ----, 1682.
La Barre, LeFebre de, October 9, 1682, to July 31, 1685.
Denonville, Jacques René de Brisay, Marquis de, August 1, 1685, to October 11, 1689.
Frontenac, Louis de Buade (second term), October 12, 1689, to November 28, 1698.
Callières, Hector de (Administrator), November 29, 1698, to September 13, 1699.
Callières, Hector de (Governor), September 14, 1699, to May 26, 1703.
Vaudreuil, Philippe, de Rigaud (Administrator), May 27, 1703, to September 16, 1705.
Vaudreuil, Philippe de Rigaud (Governor), September 17, 1705, to October 10, 1725.
Ramezay, Claude de (Administrator), 1714-1716.
Longueuil, Charles Le Moyne (1st), Baron de (Administrator), 1725-1726.
Beauharnois, Charles, Marquis de, September 2, 1726, to September 18, 1747.
Le Galissonière,[231] Rolland Michel Barrin Comte de (Administrator), September 19, 1747, to August 14, 1749.
La Jonquière, Jacques Pierre de Taffanel, Marquis de, August 15, 1749, to March 17, 1752.
Longueuil, Charles Le Moyne (2d) Baron de (Administrator), March, 1752, to June 24, 1755.
Duquesne-De Menneville, Marquis de, July, 1752, to June 24, 1755.
Vaudreuil-Cavagnal, Pierre de Rigaud (2d), Marquis de, June 25, 1755, to September 8, 1760.
INTENDANTS OF LA NOUVELLE FRANCE
(Robert, commission dated March 21, 1663. Never came to Canada.)
Talon, Jean, First Intendant (1st term), September 23, 1665, to October 22, 1668.
Bouteroue, Claude de, October 22, 1668, to October 22, 1670.
Talon, Jean (2d term), October 23, 1670, to October, 1672.
Duchesnaux, Jacques, September 16, 1675, to October 9, 1682.
De Meulles, Jacques, October 9, 1682, to September 23, 1686.
Champigny, Jean Bochart, September 23, 1686, to October 5, 1702.
Beauharnois, François? de, October 5, 1702, to September 17, 1705.
Raudot, Jacques (father), September 17, 1705, to November 6, 1711.
Raudot, Antoine Denis (son), September 17, 1705, to ----.
Bégon, Michel, October 14, 1712, to September 2, 1726.
(Robert died at sea on board Le Chameau on the day he left La Rochelle, June 24, 1724.)
(De Chazel was lost in the wreck of Le Chameau on his way to Canada on August 27, 1725.)
Dupuy, Claude Thomas, September 2, 1726, to August 30, 1728.
Hocquart, Gilles, August 20, 1731, to September 2, 1748.
Bigot, François, September 2, 1748, to September 8, 1760.
BISHOPS OF QUEBEC (INCLUDING MONTREAL)
Laval,[232] François de, October 1, 1674, to January 24, 1688.
St. Vallier,[233] Jean, Bte. de la Croix Chevrières de, January 25, 1688, to December 26, 1727.
Mornay,[234] Louis François Duplessis de, December 26, 1727, to September 12, 1733.
Dosquet, Pierre Herman, August 23, 1729, to September 12, 1733.
Dosquet, Pierre Herman, September 12, 1733, to June 25, 1739.
L'Auberivière,[235] François Louis de Pourroy de, August 16, 1739, to August, 20, 1740.
Pontbriand, Henri Marie Dubreuil de, April 9, 1741, to November 29, 1784.
FRENCH MINISTERS OF MARINE AND COLONIES
Ruzé de Beaulieu, September 15, 1588, to November 6, 1613.
De Loménie, de la Ville-aux-Clercs, November 7, 1613, to August 12, 1615.
De Loménie, de Brienne, August 13, 1615, to February 23, 1643.
Guénégaud de Plancy, February 23, 1643, to February 4, 1662.
De Lyonne, February 4, 1662, to February, 1669.
Colbert, February 16, 1669, to September 6, 1683.
Colbert, de Seignelay, September 6, 1683, to November 5, 1690.
Phélipeaux, Comte de Pontchartrain, Louis, November 6, 1690, to September 5, 1699.
Phélipeaux, de Pontchartrain, Jérome, September 6, 1699, to November 8, 1715.
"Council of Marine," September 13, 1715, to September 24, 1718.
Fleuriau d'Armenonville, October, 1718, to April 8, 1722.
Morville Fleuriau, Comte de, April 9, 1722, to August 10, 1723.
Maurepas, Phélipeaux, Comte de, November 13, 1723, to April 24, 1749.
Rouillé Comte de Jouy, April 24, 1749, to July 28, 1754.
Machault d'Arnouville, July 28, 1754, to February 1, 1757.
Peraine de Mauras, February 1, 1757, to June 1, 1758.
De Massiac, June 1, 1758, to November 1, 1758.
(Le Normand de Mézy, Assistant), June 1, 1758, to November 1, 1758.
Berryer, November 1, 1758, to October 13, 1761.
Choiseul, Etienne François, Duc de, October 13, 1761, to April 7, 1766.
FRENCH SOVEREIGNS SINCE THE DISCOVERY OF MONTREAL, 1535-1763
François I, January 1, 1515.
Henri II, March 31, 1547.
François II, July 10, 1559.
Charles IX, December 5, 1560.
Henri III, May 30, 1574.
Henri IV, August 2, 1589.
Louis XIII, May 14, 1610.
Louis XIV, May 14, 1642 (72 years' reign).
Louis XV, September 1, 1715, to May 10, 1774.
ENGLISH SOVEREIGNS, 1535-1763
Henry VIII, April 22, 1509.
Edward VI, January 28, 1547.
Mary, July 6, 1553.
Elizabeth, November 17, 1558.
James I, July 24, 1603.
Charles I, March 27, 1625.
"The Commonwealth," January 30, 1649.
Charles II, May 8, 1660.
James II, February 6, 1685.
William and Mary, February 13, 1689.
William III, December 28, 1694.
Anne, March 8, 1702.
George I, August 1, 1714.
George II, June 11, 1727.
George III, October 25, 1760, to 1810.
LOCAL GOVERNORS OF MONTREAL
1--Paul de Chomedey de Maisonneuve, 1642-1665.
2--Etienne Pézard de la Touche,[236] 1664.
3--Zacharie Dupuis (Commandant), 1665-1668.
4--Pierre de St. Paul de Lamothe (Commandant), 1669.
5--De la Fredière (Commandant), 1669.
6--François Marie Perrot, 1669-1674 and 1682.
7--Th. X. Tarieu de Lanaudière (Commandant), 1674-1684 (sometimes written "de la Nougère").
8--Henault des Rivaux,[237] 1684-1685.
9--Louis Hector de Callières, 1685-1698.
10--Philippe de Rigaud, Marquis de Vaudreuil, 1698-1703.
11--Claude de Ramezay, 1703-1724.
12--Charles Le Moyne, 1st Baron de Longueuil, 1724-1733.
13--Jean Bouillet de la Chassaigne, 1730-1733.
14--Du Bois Berthelot de Beaucourt, 1733-1739.
15--Jean Nicholas Roch de Ramezay, 1739-1749.
16--Charles Le Moyne, 2d Baron de Longueuil, 1749-1755.
17--Pierre de Rigaud, 1757-1760.
M. de Maisonneuve was kept in office by the seigneurs until June, 1665, the seigneurs having opposed the nomination made by the _Conseil Souverain_.
SEIGNEURS OF THE SEMINARY
The names of the superiors of the Seminary of St. Sulpice, so long the Seigneurs of Montreal, deserve to be put on record.
1--Gabriel de Queylus, July 29, 1657-October 22, 1661.
2--Gabriel Souart, October 22, 1661-autumn of 1668.
Gabriel de Queylus, autumn 1668-autumn 1671.
3--François Dollier de Casson, 1671-1674.
Gabriel Souart, 1674-autumn 1676.
4--François Lefebre, August, 1676-July, 1678.
François Dollier de Casson, July, 1678-September 27, 1701.
5--François Vachon de Belmont, September 28, 1701-May 22, 1732.
6--Louis Normant de Farradon, May 25, 1732-June 18, 1759.
7--Etienne Montgolfier, June 21, 1759-August 27, 1791.
8--Gabriel Jean Brassier, August 30, 1791-October 20, 1798.
9--Jean Henry Auguste Roux, October 23, 1798-April 7, 1831.
10--Joseph Vincent Quiblier, April 12, 1831-April 21, 1846.
11--Pierre Louis Billaudèle, August 1, 1846-April 21, 1856.
12--Dominique Granet, April 21, 1856-February 9, 1866.
13--Joseph Alexander Baile, March 14, 1866-April 20, 1881.
14--Frederick Louis Colin, April 20, 1881-November 27, 1902.
15--Jean Marie Charles Lecoq, December 3, 1902.
FOOTNOTES:
[230] The Marquis de Tracy was king's lieutenant-general in America. He arrived at Quebec, June 30, 1665, and was virtually governor-general of Canada till his departure, August 28, 1667.
[231] Rolland Michel Barrin, Comte de la Galissonière, was sent out to act as minister during the captivity of de la Jonquière, who on his way was made a prisoner by the English in a naval engagement off Cape Finisterre, May 3, 1747.
[232] Bishop Laval was consecrated as vicar apostolic for New France December 8, 1658, and landed at Quebec, June 16, 1659.
[233] Bishop St. Vallier was on his way back from France on La Seine when it was captured by the English on July 26, 1724. He was made a prisoner and detained in England till June 15, 1709. He then spent four years in France and arrived in Quebec on the 17th of August, 1713.
[234] Bishop Mornay never came to America. He was consecrated at Paris April 22, 1714, as coadjutor to the Bishop of Quebec and in that capacity governed that part of the diocese of Quebec which extended along the Mississippi. François Louis de Pourroy de L'Auberivière arrived at Quebec August 12, 1740, but died eight days later of the fever.
[235] Also Bulletin des Recherches Historiques. Beauceville, Quebec, February, 1914.
[236] Named only.
[237] Named only.
APPENDIX II
AN INVENTORY OF THE CHARTS AND PLANS OF THE ISLAND AND TOWN OF MONTREAL UP TO 1760
By the kindness of the archivist of the district of Montreal, Mr. E. Z. Massicotte, we include the following list of plans, etc., of Montreal, up to 1760. It is not offered as a complete list. Such would necessitate a voluminous book. It is, however, a very representative one, and a contribution to history and archaeology. The compiler has consulted the following works: Dionne, "Inventaire Chronologique," Volume IV; Holmden, "Catalogue des Cartes et plans des Archives Fedérales;" Gagnon, "Essai de Bibliographie;" in addition he has noted the collections in the City Hall, the Château de Ramezay, the Court House, of Montreal, and finally those in his own collection.[238]
No. 1. 1611. Carte figurative du Saut Saint Louis et d'une partie de la rive sud de l'ile de Montréal. Dressée par Champlain. Morin, Vieux Montréal, pl. 1, 6×9.
No. 2. 1645. Montréal vu à vol d'oiseau de 1645 à 1650. Morin, Vieux Montréal, pl. 2, 20-1/2×14.
No. 3. 1650. Montréal de 1650 à 1672. Morin, Vieux Montréal, pl. 3, 11×12.
No. 4. 1658. Carte historique de l'ile de Montréal indiquant la position des forts, redoutes et chapelles de mission avec la date de leur construction de 1658 à 1758. Morin, Vieux Montreal, pl. 7, 6-1/2×13.
No. 5. 1665. Plan de Villemarie. "Jésuit Relations," Cleveland, T 50. Frontispiece, 6×4. Dionne, IV, No. 65.
No. 6. 1665. Plan of the district of Montreal or Villemarie. "Jésuit Relations," etc. T 67, p. 52. Dionne IV, No. 66.
No. 7. 1672. Plan de Villemarie et des rues projetées pour l'embellissement de la haute ville. Gravé par Martin, 8-1/2×12-1/2. Dans Faillon, III, 375. Dionne, IV, No. 57, gives to this plan a date which accords neither with the context nor with the procès verbal of the bounds of the streets, which was made in 1672. See, also, Morin, Vieux Montréal.
No. 8. 1672. Plan de Villemarie en 1672. Abbé Rousseau, Vie de Maisonneuve, p. 225, 5-1/2×4.
No. 9. 1672. Plan of Villemarie showing first streets laid out and projected new streets and churches, also the old château and fort, 6-1/2×3-1/2. Sandham, Fortifications, etc. Dionne, IV, No. 103.
No. 10. 1673. Plan de Montréal de 1673 à 1687. Morin, Vieux Montréal, pl. 4, 9-1/4×12-1/2.
No. 11. 1680. The first map of Montreal, from a photograph in the possession of Wm. McLennan, Esq. Semi Centennial.
No. 12. 1680. Plan de Villemarie dans l'Isle de Montréal. Copy from the archives of the Parliament at Quebec. Dionne, IV, No. 115.
No. 13. 1685. Villemarie dans l'Isle de Montréal envoyé par M. Denonville, le 13 Novembre, 1685, 13×9-1/2. Manuscript chart in colour. Dionne, IV, No. 145a.
No. 14. 1685. Plan de Villemarie, Faillon, Vie de Mll. LeBer, p. 102. 8-1/2×4-1/2.
No. 15. 1686. Deshaies' Map of the Island of Montreal and Vicinity. Copy of A. L. Pinard, deposited in the Parliament Library, Ottawa, Girouard. Supplement to Lake St. Louis, p. 376. This must be an extract of No. 17, below.
No. 16. 1687. Plan de Montréal de 1687 à 1773, Morin Vieux Montréal, pl. 5. 13×18-1/2.
No. 17. 1687. Côtes du Canada. Cartes des côtes habitées du Canada par paroisses et par seigneuries. Signé: Deshaies, 45-1/2×12. Dionne, IV, 149.
No. 18. 1703. Carte du gouvernement de Montréal, 2-3/4×5. B. de la Potherie, Hist. de l'Amérique Sept. Dionne, IV, No. 234.
No. 19. 1704. Plan de Villemarie dressé en 1704 par Levasseur de Néré. Dépôt des fortifications des colonies à Paris, No. 468. Cité par Faillon 11, 25.
No. 20. 1717. Plan de la ville de Montréal en la Nouvelle France dans l'Amérique Septentrionale. Fait à Montréal, ce 10 août 1717, par Chaussegros deLery, Ingénieur du Roy, 5×8-3/4. Dionne, IV, 260. Copy by P. L. Morin made in Paris in January, 1858, Sulte, H. des C. F. 11, 18.
No. 21. 1720. Plan de Villemarie ou Montréal, au Canada. Deux feuilles de 19-1/4×29-1/2 chacune. Dans Pinart, "Recueil de cartes, plans et vues relatifs aux Etats-Unis et au Canada." Paris, 1896. Nos 5 et 6. Dionne, No. 272.
No. 22. 1721. Carte de l'Ile de Montréal indiquant la position de chaque fort, manoir, moulin, fortification, cours d'eau, etc. M. Dionne IV, No. 281.
No. 23. 1723. Plan de la ville de Montréal en Canada, à 46 d., 55 m. de latitude septentrionale. Paris, 1723. Par Moullard Sanson, G. O. D. R. avec Priv. Dédié à M. de Catalogne. 22×10. Dionne IV, No. 287. Also in L'Opinion Publique.
No. 24. 1724. Plan de Montréal de 1724 à 1760. Morin, Vieux Montréal, pl. 6. 12-1/4×19-1/2.
No. 25. 1725. Plan de la ville de Montréal, en Canada. Par Moullard Sanson, dédié à Catalogne, Nouvelle édition. Dionne IV, No. 291. Also in Morin, Vieux Montréal pl. 12, 8×17-3/4.
No. 26. 1729. Plan de la ville de Montréal dans la Nouvelle-France fait à Montréal ce 21 août 1729. Chaussegros deLery Avec "Renvoy." 27×19-3/4. Coloured copy. Ottawa, Holmden, No. 620.
No. 27. 1733. Carte d'une partie de l'Ile de Montréal, depuis la pointe à Cardinal jusqu'au Courant Ste-Marie avec la ville de Montréal et le canal commencé par MM. du Séminaire. Dionne IV, No. 310.
No. 28. 1744. Carte de l'Isle de Montréal et de ses Environs Dressée sur les manuscrits du Depost des Cartes Plans et Journaux de la Marine par N. Bellin Ingénieur et Hidrographe. 1744. 12×9-1/2. Civic Library at Montreal. Dionne IV, No. 342, says that it is taken from Charlevoix II, p. 227.
No. 29. 1750. General map of the Parishes of the Island of Montreal and of the Neighbourhood. About 1750, Girouard, Supplmt. to the Lake St. Louis, p. 455.
No. 30. 1752. Plan de l'enceinte de la ville de Montréal et du profil de ses différentes fortifications. Dionne IV, No. 377.
No. 31. 1755. Plan de Ville Marie et de Cayenne, 7×3-1/2. Dionne IV, No. 421.
No. 32. 1758. Plan of the town and fortifications of Montreal or Ville Marie in Canada by Jeffreys, London. 13×19-1/2. Jeffreys, General Topography, 1758, No. 20. Dionne IV, No. 464.
No. 33. 1758. Same plan. In Jeffreys, Natural and Civil History of the French Domination, etc., London, 1760, p. 12. Dionne IV, 465.
No. 34. 1758. Plan of the town and fortifications of Montreal or Villemarie in Canada, Montreal. Published by W. Greig and Engraved by P. Christie from a plan published by Thos. Jeffreys, Geographer to His Royal Highness, the Prince of Wales, January, 1758. In Bosworth, Hochelaga Depicta, p. 90.
No. 35. 1759. An accurate wholesheet plan of the town and fortifications of Montreal or Ville Marie, in Canada; with an exact description of the same, the manner of the trading therein with the Indian natives and a general idea of the commerce carried on between France and Canada. 14-1/2×9-1/2. Taken from "The Universal Magazine" of November and December, 1759, accompanied by 14 pp. in 8 of descriptive text. Gagnon, Essai de biblio. Can. No. 4469 et Dionne, Inv. IV, No. 478.
No. 36. 1759. Tabula Cornea being a projection of a map engraved on a powder horn in the possession of Fred W. Lucas, a fac-simile reproduction from a plan on which are seen Montréal, Three Rivers, Fort Chambly, Forts George, Niagara. Dionne IV, No. 475.
No. 37. 1759. A new and correct map of Canada with a perspective view of the town of Montreal on the river St. Lawrence. R. Bennett sculp. 8×9-1/2. In the Grand Magazine, London. Dionne IV, No. 476.
No. 38. 1759. Plan of the town and fortifications of Montreal or Villemarie, in Canada. Engraved for the London Magazine. About 1759. In folio. Gagnon, Essai de biblio. No. 4470.
No. 39. 1759. Plan of the town and fortification of Montreal or Villemarie, in Canada. Engraved for the London Magazine. Sandham, Villemarie, 1870, p. 49. Dionne IV, No. 477.
No. 40. Ibid. 6-1/2×4. Sandham, Fortif. Dionne IV, No. 1040.
No. 41. Fortifications de Montréal, 1860. D. Pomarede Sculp., 6×8-1/2. Sulte. Hist. C. F. III. Dionne IV, No. 521.
No. 42. 1760. Montreal from an old print, 4×2-1/2. Sandham, Fortif. Dionne IV, No. 1029.
No. 43. 1760. A perspective view of Montreal in 1760. 9×5-3/4. Hart, Fall of New France, p. 147. Dionne IV, No. 1129.
No. 44. 1760. Plan of the town of Montreal at the date of the British occupation. N. M. Hinshelwood, Montreal and vicinity, 1902. p. 20, 7×4-3/4.
No. 45. 1760. Plan of the town and fortifications of Montreal, or Villemarie in Canada. Inset. View of Montreal. Engraved for the London Magazine, 1760. Uncoloured print from Atlas F, 10×7-1/4. Holmden, No. 623 and 4090.
No. 46. 1760. A perspective view of the town and fortifications of Montreal, in Canada, Eng. for the Royal Magazine, 1760. B. Cole, Sculp. 9×6. Gagnon, Essai de biblio. No. 4545.
FOOTNOTE:
[238] Cf. also Bulletin des Recherches historiques. Beauceville, Quebec, February, 1914.
When the source of the map is of a French origin, the description is left in French for more convenient reference by the student.
TRANSCRIBER'S NOTE
Punctuation and accented words have been standardised. Additional changes have been made as follows:
Page(s) Original -----> Correction
viii, 173 PICOTE DE BELESTIE -----> PICOTE DE BELESTRE
3 "... he made preparations for return home...." -----> "... he made preparations for the return home...."
8 Agohama's -----> Agohanna's
12, 265 JOILETTE -----> JOLIET
14 Iroquios -----> Iroquois
17 "... and in manner they go...." -----> "... and in summer they go...."
21 "... the romantic story of Montreal in a sealed book...." -----> "... the romantic story of Montreal is a sealed book...."
30 "... au voyait, qu' il y a fait...." -----> "... au voyage, qu' il y a fait...."
33 Thémimes -----> Thémines
34 Bréboeuf -----> Brébeuf
37 "... within the the River...." -----> "... within the River...."
51 Hennipin -----> Hennepin
126 Druilletes -----> Druillettes
137 Thubière -----> Thubières
141 harrassed -----> harassed
143 "... foundation of parish of Montreal." -----> "... foundation of the parish of Montreal."
145 d'Avagour -----> d'Avaugour
153 Sabastian Dupuis -----> Sébastien Dupuis
167 "... at Three Rivers he had Mitiwemeg...." -----> "... at Three Rivers he had met Mitiwemeg...."
188, 242 Chomédy -----> Chomedey
199 Barthélmy -----> Barthélemy
204 Carrignan-Sellières -----> Carignan-Sallières
249 May 17, 1764 -----> May 17, 1674
249 Germaine-en-Laye -----> Germain-en-Laye
252 Madelene -----> Madeleine
253 Ojibeways -----> Ojibways
257 Gorgondière -----> Gorgendière
260 Lotbinière -----> Lothbinière
269 Kamanistiquia -----> Kaministiquia
278 De La Croix Chevriere -----> De La Croix de Chevrières
285, 426 Vandreuil -----> Vaudreuil
297 Perrade -----> Pérade
309 Chuchlière -----> Chauchetière
317 Nicholas Perrott -----> Nicolas Perrot
321 "The following seven missions were founded by Mother Bourgeoys: (1) The Mission of the Mountain--Notre Dames des Neiges. (2) L'enfant Jésus at Pointe aux Trembles. Ile d'Orléans near Quebec. (6) Notre Dame de la Visitation at Château Richer. (7) Notre (3) Les Saint Anges at Lachine. (4) La Visitation at Champlain. (5) Ste. Famille at the Dame des Victoires at Quebec (Lower Town)." -----> "The following seven missions were founded by Mother Bourgeoys: (1) The Mission of the Mountain--Notre Dames des Neiges. (2) L'enfant Jésus at Pointe aux Trembles, Ile d'Orléans near Quebec. (3) Les Saint Anges at Lachine. (4) La Visitation at Champlain. (5) Ste. Famille at the Notre Dame des Victoires at Quebec (Lower Town). (6) Notre Dame de la Visitation at Château Richer."
352 Hoquart -----> Hocquart
357, 431 Deschambeault -----> Deschambault
378 Tadousac -----> Tadoussac
385 Longueil -----> Longueuil
389, 442 Lagalissonière, le Galissoniere -----> La Galissonière
431 Bourgainville -----> Bougainville
436 Bourlemaque -----> Bourlamaque
442 M. de la Jonquière, detained a prisoner in English -----> M. de la Jonquière, detained a prisoner in England
442 D'Alleboust -----> D'Ailleboust
448 Moullart Sanson -----> Moullard Sanson
Abenaquis, Abenrakis -----> Abenakis
Deschesnaux, Duchesnau -----> Duchesnaux
Dupéron, Duperron -----> Duperon
Galinee, Gallinée, Galinèe -----> Galinée
Groseillers -----> Groseilliers
Lauzon -----> Lauson
Le Ber -----> Leber
Ragenau, Rageneau -----> Ragueneau
Tegakwita, Tegakwitha -----> Tekakwitha
The following variants were retained: Recollect and Récollet Lamothe-Cardillac, Lamotte-Cardillac and La Motte-Cadillac Duchesnaux and Duchesneau Agné and Agnée Arontal and Aronthal Bardillère and Bardillière Chauminot and Chaumonot Chouart and Chouard des Groseillers Cornibotz and Cornibots Courtemanche and Courtmanche Duchesnaux and Duchesneau Garagontié and Garacontié Gannensagonas and Gannensagouas Gogogouen and Gogogouin Irocois and Iroquois La Chine and Lachine Maillet and Maillé Maricour and Maricourt Nougère and Nouguère Onneiouts, Onneyouts, Onneyuts and Onneyutus Pottawatomies, Pottawattomies and Poutéouatamies Rousillière and Roussillière Sidzac du Gué and Sidrac de Gué La Valterie and La Valtrie Varenne and Varennes
Other notes:
Page 29: "... assassination in August, 1659." Henry III was assassinated on August 2, 1589.
Page 43: "... if I would make a settlement a Frenchman at the Rapids of St. Louis...." Meaning uncertain. Could it be "... settlement as a Frenchman?..."
Page 174: Oi8guere are the Cayugas. See this text: "At the gloomiest moment, in July, 1661, 'there appeared above Montreal two canoes of Iroquois, who, bearing a white flag,.... They were sent by the Onondagas and Cayugas, and brought back four French captives....'" William Martin Beauchamp, Past and Present of Syracuse and Onondaga county, New York: From Prehistoric Times to the Beginning of 1908. Vol. 1. New York: S.J. Clarke, 1908, p. 92.