Population under the French Regime

1608CE - 1760CE

Vocabulary

Seigneurial system - A type of social organization in which the seigneur distributes land to peasants in exchange for payments.

Tithe - A tax paid to support the parish priest and church, which consisted of a small portion of harvested crops

Occupation of the Territory

The French made claims to land all over NA, but the only secure claim was in the Saint Lawrence Valley.

In 1608 Samuel Champlain founds a new colony at Quebec City that is the first successful permanently populated colony.

Following would be Trois Rivieres (1634) and Ville-Marie (1642)

Occupation (cont)

French Population of New France in 1608 was less than 100 people. By 1760, there was nearly 70000 Europeans living in New France.

Distribution of territory - Seigneurial System The land surrounding these three main

settlements was divided up according to French seigneurial system.

Land was parceled off in long rectangular blocks with one end having access to a river.

These pieces of land were given to nobles, military officers, rich merchants, and religious communities.

Seigneurial System (cont)

These land owners would allocate a smaller strip of their land to colonists for them to farm.

Colonists would make annual payments to the seigneur in the form of cens (rent).

Cens could be paid in giving a percentage of their crops to seigneur or in money.

Explorations, missions and treaties

Not everyone wanted to be farmers, young men in particular.

These men became voyageurs. Young men who would explore the interior of North America and develop trade relations with the Aboriginals. They also brought missionaries on expeditions.

Cities By the end of the 17th century, Montreal and

Quebec had grown from small settlements into a small cities

Population of Quebec City 7000 people, Montreal 5000 people.

These cities were now the economic, administrative, military centers of New France. They had ports, churches, markets, schools, and stores.

Villages

In the countryside, the population was much more spread out. There was less opportunity for people to come together.

Villages start to appear in the 18th century when more mills and churches are built

The Catholic Church Parishes The Catholic Church divided up the areas of

New France into parishes. A new parish was created when there was

enough people living in an area to support the construction of a church and provide for the needs of a priest

The people pay a tithe to the Church, normally a share of their crops, to provide for the priest.