THE JESUIT MISSIONS IN NEW FRANCE
The Jesuits, who had only been in the country about four years, had not
as yet a true idea of the magnitude of the task they had undertaken.
Father Charles Lalemant had abandoned the theatre of his first apostolic
labours on our Canadian soil, at the same time that some workmen whom
Father Noyrot had brought from France during the preceding year, left
the place. He was the last representative, together with Fathers Massé,
de Noüe and de Brébeuf of the primitive church of Canada. Mention has
been made of the temporary residence in the convent of the Récollets,
and of a building which was erected for themselves at about two hundred
feet from the shore, near the junction of the river Lairet and the river
St. Charles. The Jesuits received a concession of this land which was
bounded on the west by a stream called St. Michel, and the river St.
Mary or Beauport on the east. This was named the Seigniory of Notre Dame
des Anges.
The Jesuits' convent was finished on April 6th, 1626. It was a poor
residence of about forty feet in length and thirty feet in width. The
building contained a small chapel dedicated to Notre Dame des Anges, on
account of a picture which decorated a wall representing the Blessed
Virgin receiving the homage of angels. This name extended beyond the
chapel, and was given to the seigniory, and after a lapse of three
centuries, it remains unchanged.
The different mission-stations of the Jesuits in Canada and around the
gulf of the St. Lawrence were maintained at the expense of the Hundred
Associates from the year 1632, with the exception of their college at
Quebec which was founded through the liberality of the Marquis de
Gamache, who gave them a sum of sixteen thousand écus d'or for that
purpose, in 1626, on the occasion of his son taking religious vows. The
offer was accepted by Father Vitelleschi, general of the order, and the
college was founded in 1635, and opened a few years later. "This,"
writes Parkman, "was the cradle of the great missions of Canada!"
As soon as the Jesuits arrived they commenced to repair their residence,
and in the year 1632 it was in a fit state for a banquet which was given
to Emery de Caën, who had been appointed governor _ad interim_ of the
French colony.
Champlain returned from France to Quebec in the month of June of the
following year, and again took over the government of New France. He
brought with him Fathers Massé and Jean de Brébeuf, and their arrival
was the dawn of a brighter era for the Canadian missions. The Jesuits
founded, during the same year, a mission at Three Rivers, and another at
Ihonatiria in the Huron country. The mission-stations at Miscou and at
Cape Breton were also opened at about the same time, but they were all,
practically speaking, dependent upon the liberality of the Hundred
Associates.
The Jesuits in their Relations of 1635 regarded the establishment of the
mission of Notre Dame des Anges as destined to fulfil three designs
which they had in view for the honour and glory of God. These were: (1.)
To erect a college for the education of young Frenchmen who were
becoming more and more numerous. (2.) To found a seminary for young
Indians for the purpose of civilizing or improving their moral
condition. (3.) To extend the missions of the Jesuits among the Hurons
and other savage tribes. These three designs were in a measure
accomplished by this means. From the year 1626 Quebec was the principal
centre of Canadian missions, which extended from Tadousac to the Great
Lakes. Seeing that the French were all gathering in the vicinity of Fort
St. Louis, and that their convent was exposed to attacks of the Indians,
the Jesuits decided to build their new college upon the promontory of
Cape Diamond. In the year 1637 the Hundred Associates conceded twelve
acres of land to the Jesuits near Fort St. Louis, upon which they built
their college and a church, some years after. The seminary for young
Indians was opened in the year 1627, and Father Charles Lalemant
conducted a class for them as long as there were pupils to attend.
The seminary of Notre Dame des Anges has an interesting though brief
history. It was Father Le Jeune's intention to have removed it near to
the fort. The question of transferring it to the Huron country, in order
to obtain a greater number of pupils had been discussed, but there were
many reasons against the change, the principal being that the proximity
to the Huron families would have caused the fathers annoyance. The
seminary was, therefore, continued at Notre Dame des Anges, where it
remained until it was closed. Father Le Jeune wrote to the Provincial in
France on August 28th, 1636:--
"I consider it very probable that, if we had a good building in Kébec we
would get more children through the very same means by which we
despaired of getting them. We have always thought that the excessive
love the savages bear their children would prevent our obtaining them.
It will be through this very means that they will become our pupils;
for, by having a few settled ones, who will attract and retain the
others, the parents, who do not know what it is to refuse their
children, will let them come without opposition. And, as they will be
permitted during the first few years to have a great deal of liberty,
they will become so accustomed to our food and our clothes that they
will have a horror of the savages and their filth. We have seen this
exemplified in all the children brought up among our French. They get so
well acquainted with each other in their childish plays that they do
not look at the savages, except to flee from them or make sport of them.
Our great difficulty is to get a building, and to find the means with
which to support these children. It is true we are able to maintain them
at Notre Dame des Anges; but as this place is isolated, so that there
are no French children there, we have changed the plan that we formerly
had to locate the seminary there. Experience shows us that it must be
established where the bulk of the French population is, to attract the
little savages by the French children. And, since a worthy and virtuous
person has commenced by giving something for a seminary we are going to
give up our attempts to clear some land, and shall make an effort to
build at Kébec. I say an effort, for it is with incredible expense and
labour that we build in these beginnings. What a blessing from God if we
can write next year that instruction is being given in New France in
three or four languages. I hope, if we succeed in getting a lodging, to
see three classes at Kébec--the first, of little French children, of
whom there will be perhaps twenty or thirty pupils; the second, of
Hurons; the third, of Montagnés."
Father Daniel was the chief of the seminary, although he was generally
assisted by other fathers, who instructed the children of the families
residing near the convent. The chapel was used as a classroom, and both
the boys and girls made good progress. They were soon taught to observe
the customs of the French, such as joining their hands in prayers,
kneeling or standing during the recitation of their lessons. They were
also taught to answer with modesty, and to be respectful in their
behaviour. The girls were especially apt at learning, and they
endeavoured to imitate the French girls, for whom they appeared to have
great love. At certain intervals a public meeting was held, at which the
governor and the citizens of Quebec were present, and the pupils were
questioned on religious subjects. The most successful received a reward
at the hands of the governor, consisting of either a knife or an awl.
They were called upon to kiss the governor's hand, and to make a bow _à
la française_.
The pupils of the seminary were chiefly Hurons, and the names of some of
the more prominent are known. These were Satouta, Tsiko, Teouatirhon,
Andehoua, Aïandacé. The three first died during their residence in
Quebec, on account of the change of air and of diet. Father Le Jeune has
written that these young Indians were the columns of the seminary. They
were, in fact, endued with many good qualities, and had given great
hopes for the future. Satouta was the son of a Huron admiral, who was
the most popular and best known Indian in the country. His authority was
considered supreme, and in nautical matters his word was law. He had
promised that at his death Satouta should inherit his name.
Tsiko was the son of Ouanda Koka, one of the best speakers of his
tribe, and he had won the esteem and admiration of his people through
his talents. Tsiko had inherited his father's gifts, and spoke so well
that he astonished all who heard him, especially the fathers.
Andehoua was a model of virtue. He was baptized under the name of Armand
Jean, in honour of Cardinal Richelieu. The governor stood as his
godfather. Andehoua made such good progress in his studies that he
became a sort of missionary, and he did everything in his power to
convert his countrymen. He died at the Hôtel Dieu, Quebec, in 1654, at
the early age of thirty-six.
From the year 1639 the number of seminarists began to decrease, until
there was only one. However, in the year 1643 four young Hurons went
down to Quebec to receive instruction, and were baptized. Their
godfathers were LeSueur de St. Sauveur, a priest, Martial Piraube, M. de
Repentigny and M. de la Vallée. In the Relations of the Jesuits the
names of three are preserved: Ateiachias, Atarohiat, and Atokouchioüani.
The seminary was then finally closed. The Jesuits opened another at
Three Rivers, and at the commencement there were six pupils, but at the
end of a year there were none. After eight years' experience, the
Jesuits realized that it was impossible successfully to make an Indian
boy adopt the manners and habits of the French, and the same result was
afterwards found by others who tried the experiment.
In the year 1635, the Jesuits' missions in New France included those at
Cape Breton, Richibucto and Miscou Island. The mission of Miscou was the
best organized and the most populous; the Catholics of Gaspé, Miramichi
and Nipisiguit (Bathurst) went there. The island of Miscou is situated
at the northern extremity of the coast of New Brunswick, near the
entrance of the Baie des Chaleurs. It was the common residence of the
Jesuits and of the two first who came here, Father Charles Turgis and
Father Charles du Marché. On their arrival they found twenty-three
Frenchmen there, who were endeavouring to form a settlement.
Unfortunately, most of them were taken ill with scurvy, from which they
died, including the captain, the surgeon, a clerk and nine or ten
officers. Father du Marché was forced to leave the island, and finally
Father Turgis succumbed to the disease, and left behind him a single
man, who was in a dying condition.
In the year 1637, two other Jesuits came to this inhospitable island,
Father Jacques de la Place and Father Nicholas Gondoin. They found only
nine persons there, who were in charge of the storehouse. A year later,
Father Claude Quentin, superior of the Canadian missions, came to assist
his confrère, who had undertaken to erect a chapel, but after three
years of constant labour, they both returned to Quebec in an exhausted
condition.
Father Dollebeau and Father André Richard then took charge of the
mission on the island of Miscou, but the former was taken ill and was
obliged to return to France. During the voyage the vessel was captured
by three English frigates, and while pillaging the ship a soldier set
fire to the powder magazine, and as a result Father Dollebeau and the
whole crew perished.
In the course of years, however, the Miscou mission increased, and the
chapel proving insufficient to accommodate the congregation, the Jesuits
built another at the entrance of the river Nipisiguit.
Father de Lyonne was the real founder of this new mission. Nipisiguit
was a good trading and fishing-station, and a general rendezvous for the
French as well as the Indians; it was also a safe harbour. Between the
years 1650 and 1657, Father de Lyonne crossed the ocean three times in
the interest of his mission, and in the year 1657 he founded another
mission at Chedabucto, where he ended his career.
The field of the missionaries was divided after the year 1650. Father de
Lyonne took charge of the mission at Chedabucto, while the stations at
Miscou and Nipisiguit were under the control of Father Richard, and
Father Frémin was given charge of the Richibucto mission. In the year
1661, Father Richard replaced Father de Lyonne at Chedabucto, but he
only remained there one year.
The missions of the Jesuits in Acadia and Baie des Chaleurs closed with
the departure of Father Richard. Some historians of Acadia mention the
labours of Father Joseph Aubéri, whom Chateaubriand has immortalized in
his "Atala." Father Aubéri prepared a map of Acadia, and also a
memorandum of the boundaries of New France and New England in the year
1720.
The mission-station at Cape Breton was commenced in 1634, and Father
Julian Perrault, a Jesuit, took up his residence there and gave
religious instruction to the Micmacs, whom he found very attentive. The
Micmacs were a hardy race, of great stature. Some of the men who were
upwards of eighty years of age had not a single white hair.
Champlain gave to Cape Breton the name of St. Lawrence Island. The name
was originally given to the cape but it was afterwards applied to the
island. Bras d'Or was called Bibeaudock by the Indians, and Louisburg
was commonly known as Port aux Anglais. The Portuguese had formerly
occupied the island, but they were forced to leave it on account of the
temperature and other causes. Nicholas Denys, who had been obliged to
abandon Chedabucto, in Acadia, came to the island and founded Fort St.
Pierre, which was taken from him in the year 1654 by Emmanuel le Borgne
de Belle Isle, and by one Guilbault, a merchant of La Rochelle. Denys
then took up his residence, sometimes at Miscou, sometimes at Gaspé or
at Nipisiguit. His son Charles Denys, Sieur de Fronsac, had settled on
the shores of the river Miramichi.
The first Jesuits who were invited to take charge of the Cape Breton
mission were Fathers Vimont and de Vieux-Pont, who had been brought out
by Captain Daniel, who, it will be remembered, lost a great deal of time
in attacking the fort which had been built on the river du Grand Cibou
by Stuart. The two Jesuits and forty men were left here. The Jesuits,
however, returned to France in 1630. Fathers Davost and Daniel were
missionaries at Cape Breton in 1633, and when Champlain visited the
place on May 5th of that year, he met the two Jesuits, who soon
afterwards returned with him to Quebec.
Father Perrault resided at Cape Breton during the years 1634 and 1635,
and Fathers Richard and d'Endemare came in the following year and took
up their residence at Fort Ste. Anne in Grand Cibou Bay. This place had
many advantages, as it was naturally fortified, and three thousand small
vessels could anchor safely in the bay. The Jesuits remained at Cape
Breton until the arrival of Bishop de Laval in 1659. These various
missions which we have recorded, constitute the religious history of the
islands and coasts of the gulf of St. Lawrence during the greater part
of the seventeenth century, and they were all founded by Champlain or
under his administration, and he certainly took an active part in the
civilization of the Micmacs.
In a memorandum addressed to the king, Champlain had set forth his
intention to erect a church at Quebec, to be dedicated to the Redeemer.
He was, however, unable to accomplish his design. He had also made a
solemn promise to the Blessed Virgin, between the years 1629 and 1632,
to erect a church in honour of Notre Dame de la Recouvrance, and on his
return to Quebec he set out to fulfil his obligation. The occasion was
favourable, as the chapel near the habitation in Lower Town had been
completely ruined.
The chapel of Notre Dame de la Recouvrance was erected during the summer
of 1633, and in the autumn of the same year the Jesuits said mass for
the inhabitants within the building. The increase of the population and
of their religious zeal within the two following years, induced
Champlain to raise this humble chapel into a small church. The building
was therefore enlarged, and from that date the services assumed a
character of solemnity which had been unknown before. Grand mass was
celebrated every Sunday by a Jesuit, and the inhabitants each in turn
offered consecrated loaves. In the afternoon, after vespers, the
catechism was explained by the fathers. The French were very regular in
their attendance at these ceremonies, and also at the religious
instructions.
Father Charles Lalemant was the first Jesuit who lived at the presbytery
as a parish priest. His successor was Father Jean de Quen. Father Le
Jeune wrote at that time:--"As soon as we had been lodged near the
church (Notre Dame de la Recouvrance) Father Lalemant who had just begun
to live at the residence, at the same time initiated its solemnities;
Father de Quen has succeeded him with the same inclination for ceremony.
I frankly confess that my heart melted the first time I assisted in this
divine service, at the sight of our Frenchmen so greatly rejoicing to
hear sung aloud and publicly the praises of the great God in the midst
of a barbarous people, at the sight of little children speaking the
Christian language in another world.... Monsieur Gand's zeal in
exercising all his energies to cause our French to love these solemn and
public devotions, seems to me very praiseworthy. But the regulations of
Monsieur our governor, his very remarkable example, and the piety of the
more prominent people, hold all in the line of duty."
When Champlain was on his deathbed he was aware that his promise had
been fulfilled. Notre Dame de la Recouvrance was then a nice church, and
it was due to his labours. By his last will he bequeathed to this church
all his personal chattels, and three thousand livres in stock of the
Company of New France, and nine hundred livres which he had invested in
a private company founded by some associates, together with a sum of
four hundred livres from his private purse. It was the whole fortune of
the first governor of New France. This will was afterwards contested
and annulled, and the church was only allowed to receive the sum of nine
hundred livres, which had been realized from the sale of his personal
property. This sum was devoted to the purchase of a pyx, a silver gilt
chalice, and a basin and cruets.
Several gifts were made for the decoration of the church of Notre Dame
de la Recouvrance. Duplessis-Bochart presented two pictures, one
representing the Blessed Virgin, and the other the Holy Family. De
Castillon, seignior of the Island of Orleans, offered four small
pictures, one of St. Ignace de Loyola, of St. François Xavier, of St.
Stanislas de Kostka, and of St. Louis de Gonzagne, and also a large
engraving of Notre Dame. Champlain had also placed on one of the walls a
painting which had been rescued from the shipwreck during Father
Noyrot's voyage.
During the year after Champlain's death, the Jesuits consecrated the
church of Notre Dame de la Recouvrance under the name of the Immaculate
Conception, which from that date was the special patron of the parochial
church of Quebec.
The inauguration of this patronage afforded an opportunity for public
rejoicing. On December 7th, 1636, a flag was hoisted on the fort and the
cannon were fired many times. On the 8th, the day observed by the church
in honour of the Immaculate Conception, the citizens fired a salute from
the muskets at dawn, and they all assisted at mass, and received the
Holy Communion. Devotion to the Mother of God soon became general among
the people, who were characterized as moral and honest.
Notre Dame de la Recouvrance was burnt on June 14th, 1640. In a few
hours the residence of the Jesuits, the parochial church, and the chapel
of Champlain, where his bones had been placed, were destroyed. The
Relation of 1640 gives a short description of the catastrophe: "A rather
violent wind, the extreme drouth, the oily wood of the fir of which
these buildings were constructed, kindled a fire so quick and violent
that hardly anything could be done. All the vessels and the bells and
chalices were melted; the stuffs some virtuous persons had sent to us to
clothe a few seminarists, or poor savages, were consumed in this same
sacrifice. Those truly royal garments that His Majesty had sent to our
savages to be used in public functions, to honour the liberality of so
great a king, were engulfed in this fiery wreck, which reduced us to the
hospital, for we had to go and take lodgings in the hall of the poor,
until monsieur, our governor, loaned us a house, and after being lodged
therein, the hall of the sick had to be changed into a church." This
conflagration was a great loss. The registers were burnt, and the
Jesuits had to reproduce them from memory. The chief buildings of Quebec
had disappeared, and it was seventeen years before a new church was
built.