Not unlike its German neighbours to the north, Switzerland at the turn of the Seventeenth century was undergoing a religious transformation that threatened the social makeup of the nation state. On one side of the Reformation stood the emerging Bourgeois class, artisans and officials alike who tired of religious dogma and the dominance of the church in civil affairs. Found predominately in the cities – Bern, Geneva and Zurich saw the most activity – and some of the Western Cantons, the influences of Protestant leaders John Calvin and John Smith helped mould a whole generation of Swiss citizens.3
This transition from a predominately Catholic society to one of Protestant worship was not easy. Switzerland was able to avoid, however, much of the religious conflict that categorized the century previous by adopting an attitude of neutrality. Already faced with differences in language and culture, neutrality represented the only means by which the nation could maintain the independence of their confederation and overcome its many differences. Almost unique amongst the several monarchical nations surrounding them, the Swiss oligarchy permitted, even encouraged, free thought and popular decision making.
During this period, the Canton of Fribourg, located on the eastern shore of Lake Neuchâtel, remained predominately Catholic. No doubt influenced by its proximity to Burgundy, across the lush pastures of the Jura, Fribourg was Swiss when it needed to be, but reflected even more of the cultural and linguistic influences of its French neigbour to the West. Sitting atop the Swiss plateau, the Canton proper was known for its agricultural diversity. The town of Fribourg, which bisects the Sarine River, played an equally important role as the artistic and industrial center of the Canton.
It was here around 1602 that Pierre Miville was born and would have found a practical outlet amongst the local guilds for his emerging talent as a joiner. While some of his family had been associated with the nobility of Bale and Fribourg, this branch of the Mivilles lived, at best, at the upper end of the city’s middle class. By most standards, the Miville family lived a comfortable existence: each member would have been able to read and write, if only at a rudimentary level; held in high civil regard, the men would have engaged in and influenced the political tone of their city; most importantly, they possessed portable skills that perpetuated their social and economic status.
Having spent the better part of his youth in Fribourg, Miville, like many of his compatriots, was engaged to the Swiss army and sent to France in the service of Cardinal Richelieu at La Rochelle. The use of foreign troops for military service was a common practice between these allied nations, with these "capitulations", or treaties, representing a lucrative source of revenue for individual Cantons. Whether he volunteered to serve in France or was conscripted like so many were during that period is open to debate. In any case, he would have been witness to one of the greatest acts of destruction to occur in that century.
La Rochelle, the last great refuge of Protestantism in France, had effectively withstood Catholic influence since the Treaty of Nantes permitted them limited practice of their own religion. Cardinal Richelieu, in part to strengthen the French crown under Louis XIII and to punish the Huguenots for supporting England in its invasion of Île de Ré, laid siege to this ancient city in 1627. Over a fourteen-month period, France succeeded in blockading its own chief commercial port from English supply ships and crushing Protestant resistance in that region. In the process, however, almost three-quarters of La Rochelle's population were killed or starved to death.
Appointed Governor of nearby Brouage in early 1627, Richelieu undertook a decade of construction there from 1630 to 1640. Until then primarily a fishing port, Brouage, with the construction of its great Citadel there, was transformed into a strategic training area for the elite of France’s military. The addition of walls that surrounded the city over sixteen feet high and twenty feet wide would have required the assistance of hundreds, if not thousands of skilled tradesmen such as Pierre Miville. By the end of the century, the garrison at Brouage would swell to over 10,000 troops of the Compagnies Franches de la Marine.
It was shortly after the fall of La Rochelle that Miville married Charlotte Maugis, a local woman who was born near Saint-Germain around 1607. Over the course of the next eleven years, she bore him at least seven children: Gabriel, the first born, arrived in 1630 in her hometown of Saintes, but did not live to maturity; the remainder – Marie, François, Aimée, Madeleine, Jacques and Suzanne – were all born in Brouage, and raised in that city. A closer examination of their baptismal certificates illustrates the esteem to which Pierre Miville was held by the nobility of Brouage: Aimée's godfather was François Guibourg, Sieur de Val and Secretary to Richelieu himself; René Yvon, sommelier to the Governor, acted as godfather to Miville's daughter Suzanne; finally, the certificate for François reveals his godfather to be Sargeant-Major François Saboureux, Sieur de St. Thomas and Quarter-Master of the city garrison.
Just as Richelieu was engaging the Protestants at La Rochelle for the glory of strengthening Louis XIV’s sovereignty at home, so too was he involved in securing the King’s claim to New France. With the founding of Québec by Samuel de Champlain in 1608, a new age of French settlement in North America had dawned. Granted an exclusive trade monopoly in the colony, the Compagnie de la Nouvelle France agreed to import 200 Catholic settlers per year. While the company did not bring over as many settlers as was stipulated in its charter, the quality of migrants was far superior than those engaged by government officials after the crown took over immigration in 1663. Invariably, those who arrived before Royal Government were married with children, and possessed both the skills and capital that would be needed to survive the harsh conditions that would be faced in Canada. Not coincidentally, Intendants frequently complained of the quality of immigrants after 1663, and suggested that the Swiss be sent over instead.
Were they speaking of the likes of Pierre Miville and his brother Isaac? The latter, eleven years younger than Pierre and godfather to his youngest son Jacques, was the first to engage for New France.4 Departing La Rochelle on 15 Apr 1643 aboard the St.-Clément, their month long voyage to Fort (Charles de) La Tour at the mouth of the Saint John River was blockaded by three ships belonging to Charles de Menou d’Aulnay of Port Royal, across the Bay of Fundy.5 Caught in the crossfire of these long time rivals for control of Acadie, their ship diverted to Boston for three months while the Captain of the St.-Clément purchased additional arms for the beleaguered colony. This ten-year struggle ended in 1645 with the surrender of Fort La Tour and its 45 inhabitants to the superior forces of d’Aulnay. Unfortunately, very little is known of Isaac Miville after this time, although he may be the same of that name who engaged in the slave trade for the Swedish-African Company, and is known to have constructed the infamous Cabo Corso "Cape Coast" Castle in present day Ghana in 1652.6
Acoording to Historian Benjamin Sulte, Miville was known to have been in Canada as early as 1639 or 1640.7 More likely, however, Miville arrived around 1649, when the eldest of his surviving children had just turned 17 years of age, Miville and his family sailed for New France, and the shores of the St. Lawrence River where they would eventually settle.8 The enormity of this decision can not be overstated. Representing only the four hundredth or so permanent settler in New France, the idea of crossing the Atlantic ocean with a family must have been as difficult to absorb as it was to actually execute. Considering that Miville was one of only a handful that were not contracted by the Compagnie de la Nouvelle France, but came of his own free will, one must question his motivation in the first place.
Did he share his brother’s sense of adventure, and wish to expand his own knowledge of the known world? Did he see New France as a land of opportunity where he could apply his trade and make his fortune? Perhaps Miville fancied himself a noble, and saw in Quebec a place where he could acquire land and title. Certainly, all of these factors would have their own influence in drawing Miville to North America, however, it was more likely that he was pushed away from France than pulled to Quebec. The death of Cardinal Richelieu in 1642 precipitated the War of the Fronds, an attempt by the nobles of France to regain control of the Crown. One such insurgent, Louis Foucault du Daugnon, seized the newly fortified Brouage in 1646 after the death of it's Governor, and withstood all attempts by Royal Troops to regain the city. It is not inconceivable that Miville, a loyal servent to Richelieu and his king, had been purged from his position in Brouage leaving him no alternative but to flee to the new world.
Whatever the reason, it is here that Governor D’Ailleboust granted to Miville a tract of land within the seigneurie of Lauzon, on a cliff directly facing the Plains of Abraham at Quebec on its opposite shore.9 With his son François on one side and Jacques Coquerel on the other, this lot, measuring an unusually wide three arpents by forty deep, was augmented three years later by an additional grant.10
Granted before the influx of large numbers of settlers only a decade later, seigneurs – nobles who acted as landholders of the Compagnie de la Nouvelle France -- could afford to be generous in their proportions. As the amount of arable land diminished along the coastline, however, and the number of wanting settlers increased, seigneurs gradually narrowed their grants and expanded their length so that the whole of the population stretched out as a line along the river. Censitaires, peasant farmers who made up the majority of these habitations, did not own the land but merely worked it in the European tradition. Although modeled on the feudal system, the life of even the most ordinary habitant was much better than that of his French counterpart. For, in spite of the rent he paid to the Seigneur and the tithe that went to the church, his overall income from farming, fishing and the beaver trade was greater than anything he could have earned in the old country.
Conditions would have been even better for someone like Miville. As a joiner, he would most certainly have built his own home and furnishings, and assisted in the construction of many of his neighbours’ dwellings and the raising of the local church. A man of capital, he would have possessed extensive tools for the job, perhaps more so after his return to France between 1655 and 1656.11 Having obtained the necessary skills there to upgrade his qualifications to a master-joiner, he would have been free thereafter to employ an apprentice, including his son Francois.12 Miville must have considered such action necessary to maintain the comfortable existence the Miville family had already come to enjoy.
One must assume that Miville, like other tradesmen, began his apprenticeship at an early age. The first of a three-stage process in traditional craftsmanship, the apprenticeship was a formal arrangement under which a young man, perhaps no older than ten to twelve years of age, would be bonded to a master tradesman. After three years of learning the basics of the trade, the apprentice would become a journeyman, and apply his trade under the continued supervision of the master. Unlike the apprenticeship stage, however, the journeyman would be paid for his labour. The completion of a further six years training, and the passing of a comprehensive examination usually marked the transition to master-tradesman and admission to the all-important guilds that regulated their commerce. A master also earned considerably more than his journeyman wages, and earned the right to bond his own apprentices.
Of course, this begs the question as to why it took Miville until age 55 to earn that distinction. The fact that the guild tradition did not transplant well to Canada might explain the delay, as there would have been no requirement to master a trade. On the one hand, not all journeymen possessed the skills to move up to that desirable level. On the other hand, military service or other ambitions may have interrupted Miville’s career.
In spite of skills, survival itself was dependant upon a number of factors which were completely outside of Miville’s ability to control. The resumption of Iroquois raids in 1649, for instance, truly tested the ability of all French Canadians to maintain their colonial existence. Having defeated the Huron nation -- who were French allies and the chief supplier of furs to Quebec traders -- the threat to fledgling communities along the lower St. Lawrence River was never greater. For a number of years, they ravaged the area around Trois Rivieres, killing cattle as a means of intimidating the population there and advancing their own causes. Finally a counsel between Onontaeronon and the Governor at the Jesuit mission at Quebec was held 07 May 1657. No one was immune from the ongoing threat, including Miville. As one source claims,
The indian parliament distributed many necklaces by which to pay for the cows killed by the young (those who had accompanied him). He would by his action repair the tort caused the eve by one of his servents. Recall that the indian delegation penetrated into the fort at Sillery the 6th in the morning. At noon the same day one of the visitors killed a cow apparently belonging to Pierre Miville. The slaughter occured on the seashore, just on the face of the dwelling place of the colony.13
Perhaps it was this very threat which prompted Miville to take a home closer to the fortifications across the river, in Quebec’s lower town. The first, "located in Quebec continuous on one side to the enclosure of Sieur Guillaume Vignal, preiest and chaplain" measured 24 by 12 fathoms, and was granted by Governor Lauzon in 1654.14 The second, granted two years later upon Miville's return from France, measured a mere 20 by 22 feet, but would have towered four stories above St. Pierre street.15 Completed in stone, it would have stood well protected against the backdrop of the Citadel above.
By 1663, it had become clear to French authorities that the Compagnie de la Nouvelle France could no longer handle the responsibilities of administering to it’s North American colony. Reneging on its promise to bring in settlers, and political infighting within New France itself forced King Louis XVII, through his minister Jean-Baptiste Colbert, to institute Royal Government. A key proponent of Mercantilism, Colbert believed that, with proper administration, New France could become an integral member of France’s expanding market. Similar to its Caribbean possessions, the colony would supply its mother country with raw materials, in turn consuming the many finished goods that France had to offer.
And what effect would this radical change in policy have on the elder Miville? Certainly he must have had some disagreement with the outgoing administration. What else would explain his actions of 01 Jul 1664, when "he tried to take some contracted men from a ship in the anchorage of Québec and was arrested and banished from Québec for his offence"?16
By decree of the Superior Counsel of Québec, rendered the 17th of July 1664, Mr. Miville was condemned to not put his feet outside of the seigneurie of Lauzon, and to pay 300 livres to amend for having seen the removal of passengers sent by the King in prejudice of the distribution which had been ordered.17
The arrival of the Marquis de Tracy in June, 1665 was greeted with unbridled enthusiasm by a population compelled to believe that they had been forgotten by France. Sensing this change in attitude, Miville took the unusual step of requesting from the Governor the formation of "le Canton des Suisses Fribourgeois", a new colony of Swiss patriots at Grande Anse, now called La Pocatiêre. While the venture itself may be considered a failure, having failed to attract even one colonist, the area itself became a virtual breeding ground for the Miville family, and his son Jacques who did settle there some years later.
Whatever offence Miville may have committed against government, he was still held in high regard. Upon the King’s 1669 order that all male inhabitants of the colony between 16 and 60 years of age enroll into local militia companies, Miville was chosen by his newly found parish of St.-David-de-l'Auberivière to act as Capitaine de la Côtes. In times of war, his function would have been to organize and lead his fellow parishioners in defence of the colony. During peacetime, he merely acted as an intermediary between the people and the Intendant, or colonial administrators. In many cases, Miville would have been called upon to dispense justice, or supervise the corvée -- work parties assembled for the specific purpose constructing roads and bridges. In this capacity, he often outranked the Seigneur himself, who was under the same obligations as his habitant to assist in the development of the colony.
Unfortunately, whatever accolates he might have received for this service to the Crown would have been shortlived. His death 14 Oct 1669 brought to an abrupt end what had been an interesting life and career. Join by his wife only seven years later, she is buried in a cemetery at Pointe de Levy.18
Jacques Miville, the youngest son of Pierre Miville and Charlotte Maugis, was born at Hiers-Brouage, in the old Province of Saintonges sometime in April, 1639. Only ten years of age when he accompanied his family to New France, it must have been an exciting time for this young adventurer. In stark contrast to the cosmopolitan France of his youth, New France must have seemed almost backward upon first inspection. Compared to the garrison at Brouage, Quebec was but a minor outpost. The dangers of this exotic new place were not to be taken lightly, however. From the time of his arrival until 1665, one had to be constantly alert to the possibility of attack by Iroquois forces.
It would seem, however, that Miville was well prepared for frontier life. There is a good deal of evidence to suggest, for instance, that he was a coureur des bois who made his living off of the lucrative fur trade. During the 1670's, for instance, he is known to have promised payments for debts in the form of beaver pelts. In another example, in Jan 1684 he purchased a number of goods from Québec merchant Jean Maheux, promising to pay him back in the spring "when he gets back from his trip."
Miville was witness to many events during his years in Lauzon, the most dramatic being the arrival of the Carignan-Salieres Regiment from France in 1665. Then having turned 26 years of age, he must have been reasonably impressed with these first vestiges of French authority in North America. Whereas the French were equipped with that which they needed to defend themselves against attack, the arrival of 1000 troops of the line represented a very different change in tactics. If peace negotiations failed, the Carignan-Salieres would hunt down the Five Nations Iroquois and eliminate them as a threat to French settlement.
It would not be surprising if Jacques Miville did not play some small role in their campaign of 1666. A mason by trade, his skills would have proven invaluable in the construction of fortifications along the Mohawk valley. With Fort Henri at the top, and Fort Ste.-Anne at the bottom of Lake Champlain, the garrison of troops there would have provided the northern colony ample protection against the Iroquois and their English allies to the south.
Unlike the Compagnie de la Nouvelle France before them, the quality of immigrants imported by Royal Government after 1663 was found to be terribly wanting. Largely unskilled, and predominately male, the King took the unusual step of shipping over large numbers of impoverished women. Comprised mainly of the poor, sick and orphaned from the Hôpital Général in Paris, these filles du Roi or ‘Daughters of the King’ – so named because their travel expenses and dowry were paid from the Royal Treasury -- were welcomed in a province where the ratio of bachelor men to eligible women remained six to one. Over a ten-year period, from 1663 to 1673, over 900 such women were united in marriage to men of the colony.
Marie-Catherine de Baillon was just such one filles du Roi. The daughter of Alphonse de Baillon, Sieur de Valence and Mascotterie and Louise de Marle, however, was anything but common. Raised amongst the noblesse of old France, it is hard to imagine why this descendant of Charlemagne would have made the perilous voyage to New France when she could have stayed in the relative comforts of her estate outside Paris. It is possible she could have been sick, or feeble of mind, and removal to North America represented an opportunity to escape institutionalization in France. More likely, she possessed the same longing for adventure that enticed many a man to the new colony. In any case, Royal favour would have all but assured her passage, if that was what she wanted.
Having attracted the attention of Jacques Miville, their marriage 12 Nov 1669 would have thrust Miville-Deschenes even higher within French Canadian society.19 Coming just one month after his father's death, was such a position, however, befitting a humble mason? Granted, his status within the upper middle-class was already established by virtue of his trade, but was he proper material for the likes of de Baillon and her obvious fortune? One might argue that the class system in New France was never as distinct as that exhibited in the old country. The difference between noble and commoner, rich and poor was much less obvious in the face of such common threats as Indian attack and the lack of an adequate source of food or shelter. A greater need to co-operate literally drove the classes in New France together. Naturally, this kind of class-leveling resulted in fewer social divisions, and greater numbers of marriages between the two groups than would have been permitted in France. Perhaps this was but one of those examples.
There is another possibility. If Miville had played as significant a role in the Carignan-Salieres campaign only three years earlier as suspected, he would undoubtedly have come to the attention of the Governor. Perhaps it was he, then, who granted Miville the title "Sieur desChesnes" and introduced him to the newly arrived de Baillon. It is known that the few single noblewomen who did undertake the voyage to New France were reserved in marriage for officers and the social elite. Could Miville be, then, the source of that intriguing letter from a Major Miville de Chene to historian Rev. J.B.A. Ferland? Reprinted in its entirety below, it makes obvious exaggerated claims. While Ferland was quick to dismiss Miville’s evidence, however, there is a good deal worth investigating, especially so if Jacques Miville is the object of this claim rather than his father.
With little doubt, de Baillon’s fortune, valued at 1000 livres at the time of their marriage, far exceeded the usual 50 to 100 livres dowry provided these filles du Roi. Furthermore, with her father’s death in 1673, she would inherit another 600 livres, making the Mivilles one of the wealther families in the colony and affirming their position within the French Canadian upper class.
The failure of his father to attract some of their Swiss compatriots upriver did not deter his sons from following in his footsteps. Jacques and Catherine were the first to settle in the new expanses above Quebec. Grande Anse stood approximately half way between Quebec and Riviere du Loup on the South side of the St. Lawrence River. But for the occasional drumlin that dotted the landscape, the region was fertile ground for farming and represented a chief source of fish for the colony.
The Mivilles first settled on the Riviere St.-Jean, bordering the seigneuries of La Pocatiere to the west and La Bouteillerie to the east, and not far from the original site of the Canton des Suisses Fribourgeous. Granted six arpents of frontage on either side of the river by the Seigneur of La Bouteillerie in 1674, the lot in question quickly became the source of friction between these neighbouring seigneurs.20 Generally held to represent the border between the two seigneuries, La Bouteillerie’s concession of acreage on La Pocatiere’s side of the river was viewed as an infringement upon the latter’s seigneural rights. The two seigneurs settled the matter by the following summer, and the grant was confirmed by La Pocatiere in May, 1676.21
By this time, the Miville’s had already vacated the disputed area.22 Moving upon the Riviere-Ouelle, within the heart of La Boutellerie.23 Numbering only 11 families during the census of 1681, they were, in fact, a rather intimate group. Several families intermarried, while all appear to have acted as godparents to each other’s children. Although they would only spend eight years within the community, Jacques Miville had always considered himself a resident of Riviêre-Ouelle, supporting their attempt to create a new church in the village in 1685.24
The Mivilles returned to their old property at La Pocatiêre in 1684, since sold by their former neighbour Nicolas Huot dit St.-Laurent to Quebec Merchant Charles Aubert de la Chenaye. La Chenaye did not sell the property to Miville as one might have expected, but rented it as leasehold for a period of nine years.25 An unusually long time, one must question whether the fact that they did not repurchase this property is evidence that the Miville’s had fallen upon difficult times. It did not stop him, however, from building a new barn.
The disagreement that had resulted in their earlier departure had again flared up upon their return. Caught once again between these neighbouring seigneurs, it took a petition to the Governor in the summer of 1688 to finally settle the border issue. By this time, however, an outbreak of influenza, which had taken its toll throughout the colony during the winter of 1687-1688, claimed the lives of both Jacques and Catherine Miville. Perishing within days of each other in late January, 1688, one source indicates what might have been a mitigating factor: "Jacques Miville was worn out by the harsh work of colonization, and did not live very long at Riviêre-Ouelle. He was the first of that place to be buried in the church."26 At the time of his death, he would have been only 48 years of age.
At only seventeen years of age, the untimely death of both parents during the winter of 1688 thrust the burden of manhood squarely upon the shoulders of Charles Miville. The effects upon his surviving siblings were varied, and ultimately devastating, but as the eldest male, Miville would have been responsible for keeping the family intact and maintaining the small family fortune. This would not have been an easy task, even under the best of circumstances. Under French common law, each would have inherited an equal share of their parents’ estate. What little remained, however, had been invested in the farm. That the farm itself was held in simple leasehold meant that the children would have been equally obligated to fulfill their parents’ agreement with Aubert de la Chenaye, or risk forfeiting their improvements and only inheritance.
How they coped that first season alone is impossible to determine. The arrival of their uncle late in the year, however, probably saved these young orphans from financial ruin. Similarly grief stricken, Francois Miville had lost his own wife and youngest child only the year before. With young children of his own, this master-joiner moved to his brothers home from Lauzon and assumed the existing lease until its expiration in 1693.27 What sacrifices the elder Miville was required to make are unknown. Not all, however, was a complete loss; Miville married there the widow Jeanne Savonet in 1692, who gave him yet another child, his 15th, a daughter whom they called Marie-Francoise.28
There is little doubt that Charles Miville was born at a pivitol moment in the history of New France.29 The domination of the fur trade in the colonial economy meant that territorial interests would continue to expand westward and to the south along the Mississippi River in order to maintain the supply of pelts. While the French had always maintained a small number of adventurers and missionaries west of Montreal, their role had always been one of intermediary between the native population and French interests along the St. Lawrence. The beaver trade was made all the more lucrative by the fact that the natives had few qualms about transporting their furs to Montreal. Increasing competition, led by the establishment of a trading post on Ile Perot just west of the town, gave rise to a new bread of young men with the determination and skills to transport these furs to Montreal themselves.
While their is nothing to indicate that Miville had been directly involved in the fur trade, he would have exerted a strong influence upon his younger cousin, Jacques Miville, who resided a number of years at Riviere-Ouelle before seeking his fortune in the unexplored regions west of Montreal. He was, for instance, one of the first settlers contracted to bring cattle to Detroit in 1706, and was one of a select few to explore the Mississippi with Cadillac between 1710 and 1713. Unfortunately, fortune eluded the younger Miville, he ahving perished in present day Alabama before 1717, leaving a wife and two children.
This thinning of manpower and military resources over a 5,000-kilometer route exposed New France to renewed attack by its Iroquois and English enemies. The Iroquois were particularly agitated by French expansion, for it effectively boxed the Five Nations in on all four sides. An attack by 1500 braves against Lachine in 1688 devastated the village, and illustrated the colony’s vulnerability to la petite-guerre. Coinciding with the start of the War of the League of Augsburg, the use of stealth and overwhelming force against minor targets had proven highly successful in the dense wilderness of North America. The English were not the only one’s to employ these tactics. French-Canadian militia, in support of several hundred native allies, completely destroyed the town of Schenectady in 1689.
More conventional warfare was evidenced with the arrival of William Phips armada at Quebec in October of 1690. The site of 35 warships off the coast of Quebec was an intimidating sight, and must have concerned a few of even the bravest settlers. This English expedition, however, was plagued with problems from the start. Delayed in their arrival, and suffering heavy casualties to both cold and disease, Phips’ forces could only muster half of their 2000 men in an attempted landing at Quebec. Repelling a clearly superior force with fire ships and only a few cannon, several myths were born.
Chief amongst these tales are the actions of residents of Grande-Anse. One legend holds that Phips’ army disembarked 6 boats with 150 men in the vicinity of Riviere-Ouelle, perhaps to raid for supplies or harass the local population after their resounding defeat upriver. Aided by a small garrison of troops, and led by the local Curé, l'abbé de Francheville, a small band of residents succeeded in holding off their landing.30 Local historian Paul-Henri Hudon casts doubt, however, on the adventures of these habitants. If the Seigneurie could manage only the local priest to lead the local militia, where was the Seigneur La Boutellerie himself at such a critical time? More importantly, other sources indicate that the militia could at best muster only 39 armed men, including Miville and his younger brother Jean. Where they that well trained that they could repel a force almost four times their size? In spite of the odds, there must be some truth to their exploits, given the publicity that ensued and the degree to which it has now become local folklore.
While successive raids by the French colonists on the English, and the English on Quebec might have made moving drama and cause for uncertainty on the North American continent, the fate of the colony lay with France’s success on the European battlefield. The construction and reinforcement of a series of forts along the frontier nearly bankrupt the French treasury before their abandonment by Louis de Pontchartrain, Minister of the Marine, in 1696. All posts were raised, with the exception of Frontenac, Michilimackinac, St. Joseph des Miamis and St. Louis des Illinois, which were retained out of military necessity.
With the signing of the Treaty of Ryswick the following year, only the Indian question remained. The terrifying conflicts that had plagued his father and grandfather’s generation, however, were finally resolved with the signing of Treaty of Montreal in 1701. Having been out-maneuvered, the Iroquois accepted neutrality rather than face the combined might of all the bordering tribes who were ready to force their hand. The failure of New York to recognize the importance of this French exercise, and so assist the Iroquois in resisting this agreement, meant that the French had finally secured the Western frontier trade.
This must have come as a blessing to Miville and his new bride, Louise-Charlotte Grondin. The daughter of Jean Grondin and Sainte Migneault of Riviere-Ouelle, their marriage on 13 Feb 1697 was untypical of Quebec family life in many ways. The wedding was witnessed by his uncle François, and brothers Jean and Charles.31
The War of Spanish Succession, fought mostly in Europe between 1702 and 1713, quite literally cut off New France from the rest of the world. Although some private vessels managed to make the trans-Atlantic crossing, the diversion of the French fleet to the West Indies after 1707 meant that Quebec was forced to fend for itself. With supplies in short supply, and no hard currency in circulation, inflation spiraled out of control. The introduction of playing cards, ingeniously endorsed by the Governor as the first paper money in the colony, was but a limited success. By the end of the war, the crown could offer only 50% of the value of these bills, and then only as an annuity.
A corresponding decline in the fur trade meant that even Quebec’s traditional export could not be relied upon the insulate it’s treasury from bankruptcy. Attempts to diversify the colonial economy were limited at best. At one time discouraged by the Ministry from developing any industry that would compete with interests at home, such a policy only served to underscore their dependence during times of war. Some effort was made to export wheat, but overseas markets were generally not large enough to warrant mass shipments. Domestic overproduction, then, tended only to deflate prices further and encourage farmers to produce only what they needed to survive in comfortable existence.
Where one industry failed, another might prosper and expand. At Riviere-Ouelle, which represented the eastern most point of continuos settlement along the south shore of the river, Quebec merchants upstream encouraged the development of the porpoise fishery between 1701 and 1708. Providing oil for export, 14 fisheries were counted there in 1721, 17 in 1724, and 21 in 1725.
While confined mostly to the European theatre, North America was not without it’s share of battle and bloodshed. Raiding expeditions to New England in 1702 and 1704 resulted in the capture of numerous prisoners, and slaves for the allied natives. The British response consisted mostly of attacks by sea, the largest of which was another failed attempt to sack Quebec. Led by Sir Hovenden Walker, the British flotilla floundered without even sighting their intended target at Quebec. Lost in the fog, seven transport ships and one supply vessel grounded themselves upon the shallow shoals of the lower St. Lawrence with the loss of over 1,000 men.
The end of the war brought about a good deal of negotiation between the warring nations, with North America proving to be the biggest bargaining chip between them. Teetering on the edge of bankruptcy, France was in no position to dictate terms, and found itself losing many of it’s possessions in the new land. Under the accords of the Treaty of Utrecht, however, Quebec remained firmly in it’s hands.
The passing of his uncle François on 24 Nov 1711 counter-balanced his own increasing involvement in the Riviere-Ouelle community. If the beginning of the eastern most leg of the King’s highway in 1713 and the establishment of a new Parish at La Pocatiere in 1716 and 1717 serve to illustrate his involvement as a laborer, then the resolutions of 1721 clearly show his rising stature as an administrator.32 Maintains the property of absentee Sieur d’Auteuil, seigneur de la Pocatiere. By 1723, his own holdings include the largest of the siegneurie, a lot of 26 arpents or almost a sixth of the 147 arpents then granted. He died 1735 at age 64.
Joseph Miville, the youngest of ten children born to Charles Miville and Louise-Charlotte Grondin, was born 19 Mar 1719 during what many have described as the golden age of Quebec history. Free from war, this sprawling community along the St. Lawrence River experienced an unprecedented expansion of it’s population and economy – a colonial adolescence if one might call it that – to the point where it would rival the mother country in terms of standard of living.
This economic upsurge was created in part by the growth of the wheat market. Whereas overproduction was seen earlier in the century as a chief reason for a corresponding drop in prices, a stability in prices during the 1720’s and a demand for heartier Canadian wheat served to create a new export market.