Francine Legaré - Samuel de Champlain

Francine Legar

Francine Legar lives in Quebec City, where she works as a freelance researcher and writer. She studied journalism at Laval University and at Louvain-la-Neuve, in Belgium. When she returned, she wrote several research books for the Quebec government on health, justice, youth resources, the condition of women, the environment, and Quebec history. She has also written numerous articles in various magazines including the Gazette des femmes, to which she has contributed since 1996.

The translator: Jonathan Kaplansky

Jonathan Kaplansky works as a freelance literary translator in Ottawa; he completed Master's degrees in Translation at the University of Ottawa and in French Language and Literature at McGill. He has translated work by Hlne Rioux, Robert Dickson, Sylvie Massicotte, and Herv Dumont and is currently translating biographies of two Canadian Premiers: Ren Lvesque and Louis Robichaud.

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Samuel de Champlain

Samuel de CHAMPLAIN

FATHER OF NEW FRANCE

Copyright 2003 Francine Legar and XYZ diteur

English translation copyright 2004 Jonathan Kaplansky and XYZ Publishing.

All rights reserved. The use of any part of this publication reproduced, transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, or stored in a retrieval system without the prior written consent of the publisher or, in the case of photocopying or other reprographic copying, a licence from the Canadian Copyright Licensing Agency is an infringement of the copyright law.

National Library of Canada Cataloguing in Publication

Legar, Francine, 1956

Samuel de Champlain: Father of New France
(The Quest library; 22).

Translation of: Samuel de Champlain, pre de la NouvelleFrance.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN 1-894852-10-9

1. Champlain, Samuel de, 1567-1635. 2. Explorers Canada Biography.

3. Explorers France Biography. 4. Canada History To 1663 (New France).

I. Title. II. Series: Quest library; 22.

FC332.L4313 2004 971.01'13'092 C2004-940521-7

Legal Deposit: Second quarter 2004

National Library of Canada

Bibliothque nationale du Qubec

XYZ Publishing acknowledges the support of The Quest Library project by the Canadian Studies Program and the Book Publishing Industry Development Program (BPIDP) of the Department of Canadian Heritage. The opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect the views of the Government of Canada.

The publishers further acknowledge the financial support our publishing program receives from The Canada Council for the Arts, the ministre de la Culture et des Communications du Qubec, and the Socit de dveloppement des entreprises culturelles.

Chronology: Michle Vanasse

Index: Darcy Dunton

Layout: discript enr.

Cover design: Zirval Design

Cover illustration: Francine Auger

Photo research: Michle Vanasse

Printed and bound in Canada

International Rights: Andr Vanasse, tel. (514) 525-2170 # 25

E-mail: andre.vanasse@xyzedit.qc.ca

For Dominique, who left Europe by ship
to come live in Quebec City,
like Champlain.

Contents

Chronology of
Samuel de Champlain
(15701635)

Prologue
Mystery

T o describe Samuel de Champlain physically as fair or dark, or short or tall, would be simply a matter of conjecture. The few paintings of him that have been conserved were done by painters who made use of their imaginations rather than authentic sources. Counterfeit portraits. Certain people even claim that the portrait most often found in history textbooks depicts one Michel Particelli, a thief who passed himself off as a financial inspector under Louis XIV! Therefore, despite the important role in history played by the father of New France, we know nothing of his features or his stature. At most we may assume that to lead the life of tireless explorer as he did, he must have had both a hardy constitution and formidable energy.

But the enigmatic nature of this personality does not end there.

From the start, his time of birth is known only approximately as the records of the town where he was born disappeared in a fire.

We know very little about his childhood, and reconstruct it by deduction rather than by means of precise references.