Louis-Pierre Thury (; c. 1644, Notre Dame de Breuil en Auge ( Department of Calvados),

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

-June 3, 1699, Halifax,

Nova Scotia Nova Scotia is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada, located on its east coast. It is one of the three Maritime Canada, Maritime provinces and Population of Canada by province and territory, most populous province in Atlan ...

) was a French missionary (secular priest) who was sent to

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere, Northern and Western Hemisphere, Western hemispheres. North America is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South Ameri ...

during the time of

King William's War King William's War (also known as the Second Indian War, Father Baudoin's War, Castin's War, or the First Intercolonial War in French) was the North American theater of the Nine Years' War (1688–1697), also known as the War of the Grand Allian ...

. He was a liaison between the French and their Native American allies during the course of the conflict, and died soon after it ended.

Biography

Thury was born around 1644 in

Normandy Normandy (; or ) is a geographical and cultural region in northwestern Europe, roughly coextensive with the historical Duchy of Normandy. Normandy comprises Normandy (administrative region), mainland Normandy (a part of France) and insular N ...

, and had probably begun his theological studies in France. He arrived in

New France New France (, ) was the territory colonized by Kingdom of France, France in North America, beginning with the exploration of the Gulf of Saint Lawrence by Jacques Cartier in 1534 and ending with the cession of New France to Kingdom of Great Br ...

in 1675 as a missionary. In 1684, when the institution wanted to found a missionary in the French colony of

Acadia Acadia (; ) 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. The population of Acadia included the various ...

, Father François de Laval sent him on an observation tour from Percé to Port Royal, and chose to settle at Miramichi. Later, he settled Castine,

Maine Maine ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the United States, and the northeasternmost state in the Contiguous United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Provinces and ...

, and remained there for a time. In 1688 Fr. Louis-Pierre Thury, of the Foreign Missions, established the first regular mission at Panawambskek (Penobscot).Mooney, James. "Penobscot Indians." The Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 11. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1911. 13 Jul. 2014
/ref> In 1689, he took part in the destruction of Pemaquid, after gaining great influence over the

Abenaki people The Abenaki (Abenaki language, Abenaki: ''Wαpánahki'') are Indigenous peoples of the Northeastern Woodlands, Indigenous people of the Northeastern Woodlands of Canada and the United States. They are an Algonquian languages, Algonquian-speaki ...

. In 1692, he took part in the attacks on the English colony of York (Maine) along with Abenaki and French war parties. He later took part in the attack against Pescadouet ( Oyster River), and was present with Joseph Robineau de Villebon and a party of Abenakis at the capture of Pemaquid by

Pierre Le Moyne d'Iberville Pierre Le Moyne d'Iberville (16 July 1661 – 9 July 1706) or Sieur d'Iberville was a French soldier, explorer, colonial administrator, and trader. He is noted for founding the colony of Louisiana in New France. He was born in Montreal to French ...

in 1696. In 1698, he was assigned to found a mission between Shubenacadie and Chibouctou to group the Micmac people, but died before this project could be undertaken. According to author Thomas Raddall, Thury was at Halifax preaching to the Mi'kmaq. He is the first recorded missionary in this area. He celebrated Easter with the Mi'kmaq to coincide with their ancient spring festival. French botanist Diereville arrived in 1699 to obtain plants for the royal gardens. At his arrival at Chebucto on the ship La Royale Paix, three Mi'kmaq chiefs greeted him in canoes, declared themselves Christians and showed him Father Thury's grave.

References

Endnotes Texts
Acadia at the end of the 17th Century, p. 198Acadia at the end of the 17th Century, p. 56
{{DEFAULTSORT:Thury, Louis-Pierre 1644 births 1699 deaths French Roman Catholic missionaries Roman Catholic missionaries in New France People of King William's War