Fort Charlesbourg Royal National Historic Site of Canada, Cap Rouge, Quebec
Posted by: 
colincan
N 46° 44.869 W 071° 20.533
19T E 321098 N 5179804
Fort Charlesbourg Royal at Cap Rouge, a suburb of Quebec City, was France's first (ultimately unsuccessful) attempt to permanently colonize North America. It predates the founding of St Augustine, Florida, by twenty four years.
Waymark Code: WMDXMD
Location: Québec, Canada
Date Posted: 03/07/2012
Views: 46
Jacques Cartier solidified the French claim to Canada with his first maritime expedition to the Americas in 1534. He returned to France that same season but the next year set out from St Malo, Brittany, on a second transatlantic voyage of discovery which saw him record visits to Stadacona (Quebec City) and Hochelaga (Montreal). France was becoming increasingly envious of the riches Spain was extracting from territories further south on the continent. New France held the promise of becoming the equivalent French "Eldorado." A third Cartier expedition to pursue this dream was launched in 1541. This time several hundred colonists supplemented the crews of the expeditionary ships. Cartier checked-in at the now familiar First Nations settlement of Stadacona but opted to sail a short distance upstream on the St Lawrence River to Cap Rouge to found his own settlement. This was at the confluence with the tributary Cap Rouge River. The habitation he named Fort Charlesbourg Royal in honour of the French King Francois Premier’s third son Charles. It has the distinction of being the first European “permanent” settlement established in North America, predating St Augustine in Florida by 24 years. It has to be said, though, this attempt was short lived, the inhospitable nature of the place forcing the colony to decamp after only one winter. In 1542 Roberval attempted a second settlement at the same location but fared no better. He renamed the fortifications France-Roy but here again the settlers remained only a matter of months, not years. Today the vestiges of an upper and lower fort have been discovered by archaeologists, one on a high promontory and the second on the banks of the Cap Rouge. Fort Charlesbourg Royal was designated a national historic site in 1923 and a federal plaque was installed in 1925.
Credit: 1. Derek Hayes, Historical Atlas of Canada; Canada's History Illustrated With Original Maps, University of Washington Press, 2002. 2. Directory of Federal Designations, Parks Canada.
Classification: National Historic Site
Province or Territory: Quebec
Location - City name/Town name: Quebec City
Link to Parks Canada entry (must be on www.pc.gc.ca): [Web Link]
Link to HistoricPlaces.ca: [Web Link]
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