Île-Royale was a French colony in North America that existed from 1713 to 1763. It consisted of two islands, Île Royale (present day Cape Breton Island,

Nova Scotia Nova Scotia ( ; ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. Nova Scotia is Latin for "New Scotland". Most of the population are native Eng ...

) and Île Saint-Jean (present day

Prince Edward Island Prince Edward Island (PEI; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is the smallest province in terms of land area and population, but the most densely populated. The island has several nicknames: "Garden of the Gulf", ...

). It was ceded to the

British Empire The British Empire was composed of the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates, and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom and its predecessor states. It began with the overseas possessions and trading posts e ...

after the

Seven Years' War The Seven Years' War (1756–1763) was a global conflict that involved most of the European Great Powers, and was fought primarily in Europe, the Americas, and Asia-Pacific. Other concurrent conflicts include the French and Indian War (175 ...

, and is today part of

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

History

The

Treaty of Utrecht The Peace of Utrecht was a series of peace treaties signed by the belligerents in the War of the Spanish Succession, in the Dutch city of Utrecht between April 1713 and February 1715. The war involved three contenders for the vacant throne ...

, which brought an end to the

War of the Spanish Succession The War of the Spanish Succession was a European great power conflict that took place from 1701 to 1714. The death of childless Charles II of Spain in November 1700 led to a struggle for control of the Spanish Empire between his heirs, Phil ...

, broke the equilibrium that existed in North America between

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world. It i ...

and

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

. This treaty marked the start of the reduction of French royal authority in this region of the world.

recognized the rights of

on the Hudson Bay region and also ceded continental

Acadia Acadia (french: link=no, Acadie) was a colony of New France in northeastern North America which included parts of what are now the The Maritimes, Maritime provinces, the Gaspé Peninsula and Maine to the Kennebec River. During much of the 17t ...

, Newfoundland and

Saint Pierre and Miquelon Saint Pierre and Miquelon (), officially the Territorial Collectivity of Saint-Pierre and Miquelon (french: link=no, Collectivité territoriale de Saint-Pierre et Miquelon ), is a self-governing territorial overseas collectivity of France in t ...

. The territory of modern

New Brunswick New Brunswick (french: Nouveau-Brunswick, , locally ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. It is the only province with both English and ...

was a source of contention between Great Britain and France for 50 years, which was only to be resolved by the

Treaty of Paris Treaty of Paris may refer to one of many treaties signed in Paris, France: Treaties 1200s and 1300s * Treaty of Paris (1229), which ended the Albigensian Crusade * Treaty of Paris (1259), between Henry III of England and Louis IX of France * Trea ...

in 1763 with the abject surrender of the French. Article 13 of the Treaty of Utrecht reads: "The Island called

Cape Breton Cape Breton Island (french: link=no, île du Cap-Breton, formerly '; gd, Ceap Breatainn or '; mic, Unamaꞌki) is an island on the Atlantic coast of North America and part of the province of Nova Scotia, Canada. The island accounts for 18. ...

and all the others located in the

Gulf of Saint Lawrence , image = Baie de la Tour.jpg , alt = , caption = Gulf of St. Lawrence from Anticosti National Park, Quebec , image_bathymetry = Golfe Saint-Laurent Depths fr.svg , alt_bathymetry = Bathymetry ...

, will as of this date belong to France...". In Newfoundland, the French kept their rights of fishing and the use of part of the land along the coast to work.

Philippe de Pastour de Costebelle, the French governor of Newfoundland since 1706, became the first governor of Île-Royale and served until 1707. He persuaded the inhabitants of Plaisance in 1714 and those of Saint Pierre and Miquelon to come live on the island. The

Acadians The Acadians (french: Acadiens , ) are an ethnic group descended from the French who settled in the New France colony of Acadia during the 17th and 18th centuries. Most Acadians live in the region of Acadia, as it is the region where the de ...

refused to swear allegiance to the British crown, and some fled to Île-Royale instead. In 1714, they came to inspect the land and certain families, such as the Costes and the Tillards, decided to establish themselves while others only passed through before settling on Île Saint-Jean. The majority established themselves at St. Peters (renamed Port Toulouse) and situated on the eastern coast of Île-Royale, recreating the Acadian colony. French ships came regularly to fish cod. Acadia 1754

Louisbourg was founded in 1713. It was used as a fishing port for cod and a readily defensible harbour, after the

had evicted the French from what is now Nova Scotia and New Brunswick. Louisbourg served peacefully for three decades as seaport for the French colony. A fortress was constructed starting in 1719 to protect French interests in the New World and to serve the seasonal fishing industry. Its geographic position permitted Louisbourg to serve, not only as capital of Île-Royale, but as first line of defence in the 18th century during the wars with Great Britain for the supremacy of North America.

New England New England is a region comprising six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York (state), New York to the west and by the Can ...

colonial troops Colonial troops or colonial army refers to various military units recruited from, or used as garrison troops in, colonial territories. Colonial background Such colonies may lie overseas or in areas dominated by neighbouring land powers such ...

aided by the British Royal Marines captured the city in 1745 after six weeks of siege. After three years of British governance, Louisbourg was returned to France in the Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle. The Minister of Marine appointed Charles des Herbiers de La Ralière as governor in 1748, and Jean-Louis de Raymond in 1751, who was replaced in 1754 by Augustin de Boschenry de Drucour. Peace was short lived, and on 26 July 1758, after the second Siege of Louisbourg, the French Governor Augustin de Drucourt gave the keys of the city to the British and

Edward Boscawen Admiral of the Blue Edward Boscawen, PC (19 August 171110 January 1761) was a British admiral in the Royal Navy and Member of Parliament for the borough of Truro, Cornwall, England. He is known principally for his various naval commands during ...

after

James Wolfe James Wolfe (2 January 1727 – 13 September 1759) was a British Army officer known for his training reforms and, as a major general, remembered chiefly for his victory in 1759 over the French at the Battle of the Plains of Abraham in Quebec. ...

led one of the greatest assaults in the history of colonial Canada. After that, 4,000 Acadian inhabitants were

deported Deportation is the expulsion of a person or group of people from a place or country. The term ''expulsion'' is often used as a synonym for deportation, though expulsion is more often used in the context of international law, while deportation ...

. However, a group of ten families from Port Toulouse fled to

Isle Madame Isle Madame is an island off southeastern Cape Breton Island in Nova Scotia. It is part of the Municipality of the County of Richmond. Once part of the French colony of Île-Royale (New France), Île-Royale, it may have been named for Franço ...

where their descendants still live today. Commodore Charles Knowles RN-1

Governors

Philippe Pastour de Costebelle Philippe Pastour de Costebelle (ca. 1661 – October 1717) was a French naval officer and Governor of Newfoundland and then Louisbourg. He was born in Languedoc, France and died in Louisbourg, New France. Costebelle served in the French Navy as ...

(1714-1717) * Joseph de Monbeton de Brouillan, dit Saint-Ovide (1717-1739) * Isaac-Louis de Forant (1739-1740) * Jean-Baptiste Prévost du Quesnel (1740-1744) * Louis Du Pont Duchambon de Vergor (1744-1745) * Antoine Le Moyne de Châteauguay (1745) *British occupation: ** Charles Knowles (1745-1747) ** Peregrine Thomas Hopson (1747-1748) * Charles des Herbiers de La Ralière (1748-1751) * Jean-Louis de Raymond (1751-1753) * Augustin de Boschenry de Drucour (1754-1758)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ile-Royale (New France) Acadian history New France Acadia 1713 establishments in New France 1763 disestablishments in New France