Fort Toronto, also known as Fort Portneuf, was a French
trading post
A trading post, trading station, or trading house, also known as a factory, is an establishment or settlement where goods and services could be traded.
Typically the location of the trading post would allow people from one geographic area to tr ...
that was located near the mouth of the
Humber River in what is now
Toronto
Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...
,
Ontario
Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...
, Canada.
[ It was constructed in 1750 by French military officer ]Pierre Robineau de Portneuf
Pierre Robineau de Portneuf, was an officer in the colonial regular troops. He was born on August 9, 1708 in Montreal, Quebec, second son of René Robineau de Portneuf and Marguerite Daneau de Muy, He married Marie-Louise Dandonneau Du Sablé on ...
, who had been instructed to build it in order to facilitate trade with First Nations
First Nations or first peoples may refer to:
* Indigenous peoples, for ethnic groups who are the earliest known inhabitants of an area.
Indigenous groups
*First Nations is commonly used to describe some Indigenous groups including:
**First Natio ...
in the ''Pays d'en Haut
The ''Pays d'en Haut'' (; ''Upper Country'') was a territory of New France covering the regions of North America located west of Montreal. The vast territory included most of the Great Lakes region, expanding west and south over time into the ...
'' region of New France
New France (french: Nouvelle-France) was the area colonized by 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 Great Britain and Spai ...
.Magasin Royal
Magasin royal () was the generic name given to a trading post under the purview of the King of France. The name also applied specifically to two trading posts that were built during the 18th century for French fur trading near the Humber River in ...
or Fort Douville) had been built in 1720 by order of the Governor General of New France
Governor General of New France was the vice-regal post in New France from 1663 until 1760, and it was the last French vice-regal post. It was replaced by the British post of Governor of the Province of Quebec following the fall of New France. ...
at that time (Philippe de Rigaud, Marquis de Vaudreuil
Philippe de Rigaud, Marquis de Vaudreuil (; c. 1643 – 10 October 1725) was a French military officer who served as Governor General of New France (now Canada and U.S. states of the Mississippi Valley) from 1703 to 1725, throughout Queen ...
) near today's Baby Point, about north of the mouth of the Humber River (then known as the Tanaovate River). The French abandoned Magasin Royal by the end of the 1720s, and they did not establish another trading post in the area until the construction of Fort Toronto.
Fort Toronto's immediate success in attracting First Nations traders led to the establishment of nearby Fort Rouillé
Fort Rouillé was a French trading post located in what is now Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Fort Rouillé was constructed by the French in 1751, building upon the success of a trading post they established in the area a year earlier, known as Fort T ...
in the following year. These forts existed mainly to facilitate trade between the French and the indigenous peoples.
During the Seven Years' War
The Seven Years' War (1756–1763) was a global conflict that involved most of the European Great Powers, and was fought primarily in Europe, the Americas, and Asia-Pacific. Other concurrent conflicts include the French and Indian War (1754†...
, both forts were abandoned by the French, with Fort Rouillé being razed to prevent its capture by the advancing British forces. Following the war, Fort Toronto was renovated and repurposed as a fur trading post by Jean-Bonaventure Rousseau, after Great Britain
Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world. It is ...
captured Quebec City
Quebec City ( or ; french: Ville de Québec), officially Québec (), is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Quebec. As of July 2021, the city had a population of 549,459, and the Communauté métrop ...
and the entire French colony of New France.[
]
See also
* History of Toronto
Toronto was founded as the Town of York and capital of Upper Canada in 1793 after the Mississaugas surrendered the land to the British in the Toronto Purchase. For over 12,000 years, Indigenous People have lived in the Toronto area. The ances ...
* List of French forts in North America
This is a list of forts in New France built by the French government or French chartered companies in what later became Canada, Saint Pierre and Miquelon, and the United States. They range from large European-type citadels like at Quebec City to ...
* List of lost buildings and structures in Toronto
This is a list of heritage, historic or simply notable older buildings that were demolished or lost due to fire or other causes in what is now Toronto, Ontario, Canada. In some cases, facades or portions of the original buildings have been retaine ...
* North American fur trade
The North American fur trade is the commercial trade in furs in North America. Various Indigenous peoples of the Americas traded furs with other tribes during the pre-Columbian era. Europeans started their participation in the North American fur ...
* Toronto Carrying-Place Trail
The Toronto Carrying-Place Trail, also known as the Humber Portage and the Toronto Passage, was a major portage route in Ontario, Canada, linking Lake Ontario with Lake Simcoe and the northern Great Lakes. The name comes from the Mohawk term '' ...
References
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Forts in Ontario
Geography of Toronto