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On August
3rd, 1751, Jean-Louis de Raymond arrived at Louisbourg
to take over his post as its new Governor and continued
on in that position until 1753. Raymond, though not
surprising for a French officer of the age, was "vain
and domineering," apparently, however, excessively so.
As the Dictionary of Canadian Biography described, he
was "pathologically obsessed with his self-importance."
His principal instruction was to "manage" the Indians;
viz., turn them loose on the settlers at Halifax and
threaten, albeit indirectly, the mainland Acadians that
they too should fear the Indians and that in the
circumstances all they might do is to relocate to French
territory. Raymond, like all French governors, was
therefore to use the Indians as an effective ally in the
war against the British.
To Raymond's credit he did much to help along the French
settlement of Cape Breton. As we can see he "encouraged"
the Acadians on peninsular Nova Scotia to move. Further,
he supported any soldier who married to move to the
outlying areas in Cape Breton. In 1751, Raymond built a
road, 18 leagues in length, which connected Port
Toulouse (St. Peters) to Louisbourg. The building of
this road, incidently, was to contribute to Raymond's
downfall; he was removed from his position at Louisbourg
in 1753; one of the reasons being, the unauthorized
expense in the building of this road, and, the fact that
it could be used by the English in an attack against the
French at Louisbourg.
Raymond made no friends; he "frequently clashed" with
his chief officers. And while it may be that Raymond was
not to be much appreciated by his brother officers and
ultimately by his superiors back in France; he is,
today, much appreciated by historians and genealogists
alike for his efforts in making a thorough and detailed
account of the population at both Île Royale (Cape
Breton) and Île Saint-Jean (Prince Edward Island). On
February 5th, 1752, one of his officers, Sieur de la
Roque, under Raymond's direction, was to travel
throughout Île Royal and Île St. Jean -- "through all
the ports, harbours, creeks, rivers and to all places
... generally, where there are settlers ..."
In October of 1753, having been relieved of his post,
Raymond returned to France. (Charles-Joseph d'Ailleboust
(1688-1761), his chief officer at Louisbourg, took over
as acting governor until the arrival of his replacement,
Chevalier de Drucor, in 1754.)
Raymond had, as one contemporary explained, such an
intense zeal for matters of interest to him, that he
would not listen to anyone who would give him advise.
His character was such that those around him became as
intense as their master; either intensely loyal, or
intensely in opposition.
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Note:
Written by Peter Landry, Attorney, Dartmouth, Nova
Scotia and used with his permission. You can find more
information about Mr. Landry’s extensive history project
on his website.
Click here. Photograph of Mr. Landry appears at
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Copyright © June 2004, All Rights Reserved |
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