Nicolas-Ignace de Beaubois (October 15, 1689 – January 13, 1770) was a French Jesuit priest and missionary who joined the Canadian mission in Quebec in 1719. In 1724, he became the superior of the Mississippi Valley colony and missions. In 1727, he settled in New Orleans. He returned to France in 1735, where he was an agent and fund-raiser for American missions, a minister, and an organizer of Jesuit spiritual retreats.

Early life and career

Nicolas-Ignace de Beaubois was born at

Orléans Orléans (;"Orleans"
(US) and Jesuits The Society of Jesus ( la, Societas Iesu; abbreviation: SJ), also known as the Jesuits (; la, Iesuitæ), is a religious order (Catholic), religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rom ...

), and he made his

noviciate The novitiate, also called the noviciate, is the period of training and preparation that a Christian ''novice'' (or ''prospective'') monastic, apostolic, or member of a religious order undergoes prior to taking vows in order to discern whether t ...

in Paris. For two years he continued philosophical studies. Beginning in the fall of 1710, he taught boys in

Rennes Rennes (; br, Roazhon ; Gallo: ''Resnn''; ) is a city in the east of Brittany in northwestern France at the confluence of the Ille and the Vilaine. Rennes is the prefecture of the region of Brittany, as well as the Ille-et-Vilaine department ...

for three years and then taught a year at

Alençon Alençon (, , ; nrf, Alençoun) is a commune in Normandy, France, capital of the Orne department. It is situated west of Paris. Alençon belongs to the intercommunality of Alençon (with 52,000 people). History The name of Alençon is firs ...

. Seeking to be ordained, he studied theology at

La Flèche La Flèche () is a town and commune in the French department of Sarthe, in the Pays de la Loire region in the Loire Valley. It is the sub-prefecture of the South-Sarthe, the chief district and the chief city of a canton, and the second most po ...

and continued his studies one more year after he was ordained in 1717. In 1719, Beaubois was assigned to the Canadian mission and spent some time in Quebec. He was then stationed among the Illinois Native Americans beginning in 1721. At that time the mission was under the jurisdiction of

French Louisiana The term French Louisiana refers to two distinct regions: * first, to Louisiana (New France), colonial French Louisiana, comprising the massive, middle section of North America claimed by Early Modern France, France during the 17th and 18th centu ...

, with its seat in New Orleans. Beaubois pronounced the four solemn vows of the professed Jesuit at

Kaskaskia The Kaskaskia were one of the indigenous peoples of the Northeastern Woodlands. They were one of about a dozen cognate tribes that made up the Illiniwek Confederation, also called the Illinois Confederation. Their longstanding homeland was in t ...

on February 2, 1723.

Mississippi Valley missions

The Jesuit order designated the missions within the Mississippi valley as a distinct mission district within the Quebec diocese. Beaubois became the superior of the mission district in 1724. Through his negotiations during a trip to France as well as with the Compagnie des Indes, he arranged for the establishment of the first girls' school in the Mississippi Valley, located in New Orleans and run by

Ursuline nuns The Ursulines, also known as the Order of Saint Ursula (post-nominals: OSU), is an enclosed religious order of consecrated women that branched off from the Angelines, also known as the Company of Saint Ursula, in 1572. Like the Angelines, they t ...

; funds for the Mississippi Valley missions' and a Jesuit house and a plantation near New Orleans. Beaubois arrived in New Orleans in March 1727 with Étienne de Périer, the new commander of the French Louisiana. Jesuits respected Beaubois's intelligence, but he lacked tact and was "too frank" according to Périer. He created friction with the Capachins, including its pastor Raphaël de Luxembourg, who had established themselves in New Orleans before the Jesuits. In 1727, Beaubois was named

vicar general A vicar general (previously, archdeacon) is the principal deputy of the bishop of a diocese for the exercise of administrative authority and possesses the title of local ordinary. As vicar of the bishop, the vicar general exercises the bishop's ...

Jean-Baptiste de La Croix de Chevrières de Saint-Vallier Jean-Baptiste de La Croix de Chevrières de St. Vallier (November 14, 1653 – December 26, 1727) is most known as Quebec's second bishop. Born in the southeastern French city of Grenoble in 1653, to a wealthy land owning family, Saint-Vallier swi ...

of Quebec, but due to controversies with Capuchins about his areas of responsibility and dominion, he returned to France, arriving in July 1728. He was reinstated in March 1732, but he was recalled by his Jesuit superiors in or after 1734.

France

In 1735, Beaubois sailed back to France and lived in

Bourges Bourges () is a commune in central France on the river Yèvre. It is the capital of the department of Cher, and also was the capital city of the former province of Berry. History The name of the commune derives either from the Bituriges, t ...

at the Jesuit college, where he was a fundraiser and agent for the American missions. He organized retreats based upon

Ignatius of Loyola Ignatius of Loyola, Society of Jesus, S.J. (born Íñigo López de Oñaz y Loyola; eu, Ignazio Loiolakoa; es, Ignacio de Loyola; la, Ignatius de Loyola; – 31 July 1556), venerated as Saint Ignatius of Loyola, was a Spain, Spanish Catholic ...

's spiritual exercises beginning in 1743 at the college of Amiens and then at the college at Vannes from 1751 until 1762, when Jesuits were suppressed in France. Beaubois died near

Avignon, France Avignon (, ; ; oc, Avinhon, label= Provençal or , ; la, Avenio) is the prefecture of the Vaucluse department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region of Southeastern France. Located on the left bank of the river Rhône, the commune had a p ...

on January 13, 1770.

Legacy

Although controversial, Beaubois improved management of Mississippi Valley colony and missions, he: * established the first permanent Jesuit residence in New Orleans as a way station for Jesuit missionaries * promoted developing relationships with Native Americans * promoted revenue-producing sugar cane and indigo plantations for missions * stressed the strategic importance of the

Ohio River The Ohio River is a long river in the United States. It is located at the boundary of the Midwestern and Southern United States, flowing southwesterly from western Pennsylvania to its mouth on the Mississippi River at the southern tip of Illino ...

as English settlers moved west * was instrumental in gaining royal approval for digging a canal from the edge of New Orleans to Rivière d'Orléans (

Bayou St. John Bayou St. John () is a bayou within the city of New Orleans, Louisiana. The Bayou as a natural feature drained the swampy land of a good portion of what was to become New Orleans, into Lake Pontchartrain. In its natural state, it extended much ...

), which was accomplished under the Spanish regime Beaubois Street in the Neufchâtel East–Lebourgneuf sections of Les Rivières, Quebec is named for him.

Early life and career

Mississippi Valley missions

France

Legacy

Notes

References

Further reading