Royal New France & Struggle for a Continent

30 vocabulary flashcards covering explorers, settlements, Indigenous alliances, economic systems, major laws, and key battles from the lecture notes on Royal New France and the subsequent British era.

Royal New France

Early French colonial territory in North America established from 1604, stretching from Hudson Bay to the Gulf of Mexico.

Pierre de Monts

French explorer who, with Samuel de Champlain, founded the first permanent European settlement north of Florida in 1604.

Samuel de Champlain

French explorer who co-founded New France, built a fortress at Québec City in 1608, and allied with several First Nations.

St. Croix Island

Site in present-day Maine where de Monts and Champlain established their first settlement in 1604.

Port-Royal

French settlement in Acadia (now Nova Scotia) founded after St. Croix Island by de Monts and Champlain.

Acadia

Region of present-day Nova Scotia that was part of early French colonial efforts.

Québec City (1608 fortress)

Stronghold built by Champlain that became the capital of New France.

Algonquin, Montagnais, and Huron

First Nations allies of Champlain and New France, historic enemies of the Iroquois.

Iroquois Confederacy

Alliance of five (later six) First Nations who fought French settlements until peace in 1701.

Fur trade

Economic system in New France driven by European demand for beaver pelts, relying on cooperation with Indigenous peoples.

Jean Talon

First Intendant of New France, instrumental in developing its economy and population.

Bishop Laval

First Roman Catholic bishop of New France, key religious leader in the colony.

Count Frontenac

Governor of New France noted for military leadership and expansion of French influence.

Hudson's Bay Company (1670)

Chartered by King Charles II, granted exclusive trading rights in the Hudson Bay watershed.

Voyageurs

Skilled French-Canadian canoe men who transported furs and goods for the fur trade.

Coureurs des bois

Independent French-Canadian fur traders who built strong alliances with First Nations.

Province of Quebec (1763)

Name given by Britain to former New France after the Seven Years’ War.

Habitants / Canadiens

French-speaking Catholic settlers of the Province of Quebec striving to preserve their culture under British rule.

Quebec Act (1774)

British law granting religious freedom to Catholics, restoring French civil law, and maintaining British criminal law in Quebec.

Tradition of accommodation

British practice of adapting institutions to French-Canadian realities, epitomized by the Quebec Act.

United Empire Loyalists

More than 40,000 people loyal to the British Crown who fled the American Revolution to settle in Nova Scotia and Quebec.

Joseph Brant

Mohawk leader who guided thousands of Loyalist Mohawk into Canada after 1776.

Black Loyalists

About 3,000 freed or enslaved Black people who moved to Nova Scotia seeking better lives after the American Revolution.

Freetown, Sierra Leone (1792)

West African colony founded by some Black Nova Scotians who left Canada due to poor land grants.

Battle of the Plains of Abraham (1759)

Decisive battle at Québec City where Britain defeated France, ending French empire in North America.

James Wolfe

British Brigadier who died leading troops to victory at the Plains of Abraham.

Marquis de Montcalm

French commander killed defending Québec City at the Plains of Abraham.

Struggle for a Continent

18th-century conflict between France and Britain for North American dominance, culminating in British victory in 1759.

Beaver pelts

Highly prized fur in Europe that fueled the New France economy and fur-trade alliances with Indigenous peoples.

British Empire (English-speaking, Protestant)

Colonial power that controlled Quebec after 1763, contrasting with the French-speaking Catholic majority.