Landscape of Grand Pré - Grand Pré, NS - Philatelic Photographs on Waymarking.com

View waymark gallery

Landscape of Grand Pré - Grand Pré, NS

in Philatelic Photographs

Posted by:  T0SHEA

20T E 396844 N 4995256

Canada's newest World Heritage Site, officially created on June 30, 2012, The Landscape of Grand Pré encompasses the Grand Pré marshland and archaeological sites in the southern Minas Basin of Nova Scotia.

The marshlands of Grand Pré were first settled by the Acadians in the late 17th century. Recognizing the area as potentially excellent farmland, they diked the low lying area to hold back the waters of the Bay of Fundy. This was not an inconsiderable task, as the Bay of Fundy experiences the highest tides in the world, over fifty feet in certain areas. For over half a century the Acadians farmed the land, until 1755.

This was the year when the Grand Derangement began, with the British expelling the French citizens of Maritime Canada (then still a British Colony), forcibly moving them to France and many other ports of call from 1755 to 1764. As of July 11, 1764 the Acadians were allowed to return, provided that they take an unqualified oath of allegiance. Many did return, though many died during the expulsion and many chose to remain in France or emigrate to other areas.

Today the Grand Pré area has become the single most important lieu de mémoire of the Acadian people, symbolizing their strength, perseverance and triumphed over hardships.

A bronze plaque, emblematic of World Heritage Site status, is mounted in Landscape of Grand Pré View Park, a park managed by Parks Canada. It is situated along the north side of Old Post Road in Grand Pré overlooking the reclaimed farmland below, which stretches to the dykes at the shore of the Bay of Fundy.

The Landscape of Grand Pré tells a remarkable story about human interaction with the environment and about how the connection between people and place can define a collective identity.

Situated on Nova Scotia’s southern Minas Basin, an inlet of the Bay Fundy, the Landscape of Grand Pré is subjected to the most extreme tides in the world; the tidal range averages 11.6 metres. It was under these conditions three centuries ago that French (Acadian) settlers set about transforming the harsh coastal environment of salt marsh into fertile farmland. The agricultural landscape they claimed from the sea is considered an exceptional example of adaptation by European settlers to the conditions of the North American Atlantic coast.

Starting in the late 17th century – an era which predates the introduction of engineered drainage systems – the Acadian settlers applied an inventive and ingenious system of earthen dykes, ditches and aboiteaux, or wooden sluices, to hold back the formidable tides. They also began a tradition of collective management that was community-based. Today, the agricultural landscape is still protected and drained by the same system, still exhibits distinctive field patterns, and is still managed through the same community approach. Enduring as one of the most intact agricultural polders in the world, it is a testimony to the original Acadian settlers as well as to the New England Planters and the present day farmers who subsequently further developed and maintained the system.

As an important Acadian settlement from 1682 to 1755, Grand Pré is not only directly associated with the emergence of their new identity in their new land, but also with their tragic, forced removal from it. The Deportation of Acadians, known as the Grand Dérangement, started in 1755. As their single most important lieu de mémoire, the Landscape of Grand Pré is an evocative example of a homeland symbolically and peacefully reclaimed by a diaspora that has triumphed over hardships. Here, Acadians celebrate their common heritage and reaffirm their collective identity. They are proud to share the site with the world as a symbol of perseverance and hope.
From Parks Canada