Pierre Francois Xavier de Charlevoix

Pierre François Xavier de Charlevoix was a French Jesuit priest, traveller, and historian, often considered the first historian of New France. He was born in Saint-Quentin, France, on October 29, 1682, to a noble family. He entered the Jesuit novitiate in Paris at the age of 16 and studied philosophy and theology at the College Louis-le-Grand. He was ordained as a priest in 1713. In 1715, he published his first work, on the history of the Catholic Church in Japan, based on the letters of Jesuit missionaries. He also wrote a biography of Saint Francis Xavier, the patron saint of his order. In 1720, he was sent by the French government to Canada to survey the boundaries of Acadia, a French colony that had been ceded to Britain by the Treaty of Utrecht in 1713. He also had instructions to find a route to the Pacific Ocean through North America. He sailed from La Rochelle in June 1720 and reached Quebec by the end of September. He then travelled up the St. Lawrence River and the Great Lakes to Michilimackinac, where he made an excursion to Green Bay. He continued along the eastern shore of Lake Michigan and reached the Illinois River via the St. Joseph and Kankakee rivers. He descended the Illinois and Mississippi rivers to New Orleans, where he arrived in January 1722. He then sailed to Santo Domingo and Cuba before returning to France in June 1723. During his journey, he collected information on the geography, natural history, and culture of North America. He interviewed French officials, missionaries, traders, and settlers, as well as Native Americans from various tribes. He also observed the flora and fauna of the regions he visited and made notes on their economic potential. He wrote a journal of his travels that was later published as Journal d'un voyage fait par ordre du roi dans l'Amérique septentrionale (1744). He also wrote a more comprehensive work on the history and description of New France, based on his own observations and other sources. This work was published as Histoire et description générale de la Nouvelle France avec le journal historique d'un voyage fait par ordre du roi dans l'Amérique septentrionale (1744). It is considered one of the most important and influential works on North America in the 18th century. It covers topics such as the discovery and exploration of North America by Europeans, the establishment and development of French colonies and missions, the wars and treaties with Britain and Native Americans, the customs and beliefs of various Native American tribes, and the natural resources and products of North America. Charlevoix also wrote other works on history, geography, and religion, such as Histoire de Saint-Domingue (1730), Histoire du Paraguay (1756), Histoire du christianisme au Japon (1715), and Éloge historique de la très-sainte Vierge Marie (1756). He was also one of the editors of Mémoires de Trévoux, a monthly journal published by the Jesuits from 1701 to 1762. Charlevoix died at La Flèche, France, on February 1, 1761. He was buried on the grounds of College Royale, where he had spent his last years. His writings have been translated into several languages and have been widely used by historians, geographers, ethnographers, and travellers. He is regarded as one of the most prominent figures in the history of French exploration and colonization in North America.