Paul De Chomedey, Sieur De Maisonneuve
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Paul de Chomedey, sieur de Maisonneuve (15 February 1612 9 September 1676) was a French military officer and the founder of
Fort Ville-Marie Fort Ville-Marie was a French fortress and settlement established in May 1642 by a company of French settlers, led by Paul de Chomedey de Maisonneuve, on the Island of Montreal in the Saint Lawrence River at the confluence of the Ottawa River, i ...
(modern day
Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...
) in
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 ...
(
Province of Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirteen p ...
,
Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...
).


Early life

Maisonneuve was born into the
aristocracy Aristocracy (, ) is a form of government that places strength in the hands of a small, privileged ruling class, the aristocracy (class), aristocrats. The term derives from the el, αριστοκρατία (), meaning 'rule of the best'. At t ...
in Neuville-sur-Vannes in
Champagne Champagne (, ) is a sparkling wine originated and produced in the Champagne wine region of France under the rules of the appellation, that demand specific vineyard practices, sourcing of grapes exclusively from designated places within it, spe ...
,
France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
. He was the son of Louis de Chomedey, seigneur of Chavane, Germenoy-en-Brie, and his second wife Marie de Thomelin, the daughter of Jean de Thomelin, a king's counsellor and a treasurer of France in the generality of Champagne, and of Ambroise d’Aulquoy. Paul de Chomedey grew up in the manor-house at Neuville-sur-Vanne, not far from the Maisonneuve fief, which his father acquired in 1614. He had two sisters and one brother. He began his military career at 13 in Holland, where he also learned to play the lute. He had a successful career in which he was noted for his ability and his honesty. At 30, he was hired by Jérome le Royer de la Dauversiere, who was head of the
Société Notre-Dame de Montréal The Société Notre-Dame de Montréal, otherwise known as the ''Société de Notre-Dame de Montréal pour la conversion des Sauvages de la Nouvelle-France'', was a religious organisation responsible for founding Ville-Marie, the original name for ...
. The latter had a vision that inspired him to build a society mission on
Montreal Island The Island of Montreal (french: Île de Montréal) is a large island in southwestern Quebec, Canada, that is the site of a number of municipalities including most of the city of Montreal and is the most populous island in Canada. It is the main ...
in New France. Maisonneuve was hired to lead the colonists and ensure their safety in the new land.


Governor of Montreal

In 1642 Ville-Marie was founded on the southern shore of the Island of Montreal, where a chapel and a small settlement were built. A
hospital A hospital is a health care institution providing patient treatment with specialized health science and auxiliary healthcare staff and medical equipment. The best-known type of hospital is the general hospital, which typically has an emerge ...
, under the command of
Jeanne Mance Jeanne Mance (November 12, 1606 – June 18, 1673) was a French nurse and settler of New France. She arrived in New France two years after the Ursuline nuns came to Quebec. Among the founders of Montreal in 1642, she established its first hospit ...
, was also established. Maisonneuve was the first
governor of Montreal The governor of Montreal was the highest position in Montreal in the 17th century and the 18th century. Prior to the establishment of the 1663 Sovereign Council, the governor of Montreal was appointed by the Société Notre-Dame de Montréal. The ...
. The settlers maintained peaceful relations with the
Algonquin people The Algonquin people are an Indigenous people who now live in Eastern Canada. They speak the Algonquin language, which is part of the Algonquian language family. Culturally and linguistically, they are closely related to the Odawa, Potawato ...
, one of the indigenous tribes of the area. The first year of the colony's existence was peaceful. In 1643 a flood threatened the city. Maisonneuve prayed to the
Virgin Mary Mary; arc, ܡܪܝܡ, translit=Mariam; ar, مريم, translit=Maryam; grc, Μαρία, translit=María; la, Maria; cop, Ⲙⲁⲣⲓⲁ, translit=Maria was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Joseph and the mother o ...
to stop the inundation and when it abated, he erected a
cross A cross is a geometrical figure consisting of two intersecting lines or bars, usually perpendicular to each other. The lines usually run vertically and horizontally. A cross of oblique lines, in the shape of the Latin letter X, is termed a sa ...
atop
Mount Royal Mount Royal (french: link=no, Mont Royal, ) is a large intrusive rock hill or small mountain in the city of Montreal, immediately west of Downtown Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The best-known hypothesis for the origin of the name Montreal is the ...
. A cross has been maintained there to the current day. Of the local First Nations tribes with whom these French settlers had contact with, the
Mohawk Mohawk may refer to: Related to Native Americans * Mohawk people, an indigenous people of North America (Canada and New York) *Mohawk language, the language spoken by the Mohawk people * Mohawk hairstyle, from a hairstyle once thought to have been ...
, who were already trading with the
Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...
and
English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...
in
New Amsterdam New Amsterdam ( nl, Nieuw Amsterdam, or ) was a 17th-century Dutch settlement established at the southern tip of Manhattan Island that served as the seat of the colonial government in New Netherland. The initial trading ''factory'' gave rise ...
(modern
New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
), resented French efforts to interrupt the trade. The Mohawk were based in present-day
New York State New York, officially the State of New York, is a state in the Northeastern United States. It is often called New York State to distinguish it from its largest city, New York City. With a total area of , New York is the 27th-largest U.S. stat ...
, south of Montreal, and severely threatened the new colony. The Algonquin, in contrast, maintained peaceful relations with the newly arrived Europeans. Nevertheless, they were often at war with the Haudenosaunee (
Iroquois The Iroquois ( or ), officially the Haudenosaunee ( meaning "people of the longhouse"), are an Iroquoian-speaking confederacy of First Nations peoples in northeast North America/ Turtle Island. They were known during the colonial years to ...
), who discovered the existence of the new French settlement of Montreal, whose defence Maisonneuve commanded using his military training, only in 1643. Already familiar with the terrain, the Haudenosaunee would often observe and engage the French settlers from the safety of the woods. That devastating strategy was the beginning of a long conflict between the groups as they were competing with each other for game and other resources. On 30 March 1644, the situation came to a head. Warned by their guard dogs as to the nearby presence of their enemies, a band of 30 settlers went into the forest to face their foes. Once in the woods, the French encountered 250 Haudenosaunee people in ambush, waiting for them. Retreating in the face of such uneven odds, Maisonneuve remained last so that the others could make it safely back to the fort, resulting in him being set upon by a Haudenosaunee chief. In this decisive moment, Maisonneuve fired twice on the chief, thus "killing him with his bare hands," as is sometimes quoted about the event, before returning to the safety of the fort amid much fanfare. In 1645, Maisonneuve received news that his father had died, and he returned to France. There, he was offered the position of
governor of New France The governor of New France was the viceroy of the King of France in North America. A French nobleman, he was appointed to govern the colonies of New France, which included Canada, Acadia and Louisiana. The residence of the Governor was at the Chate ...
but turned it down, wanting to continue his leadership of Ville-Marie. Maisonneuve returned to Montreal in 1647, and the wars with the Iroquois continued. In 1649, Maisonneuve stood as godfather for the first white child baptized in the colony. She was Pauline Hébert, the daughter of the fur-trader Augustin Hébert and his wife Adrienne Du Vivier, who had come to
Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...
in 1648 with Maisonneuve and their elder daughter Jeanne. In the spring of 1651, the Haudenosaunee attacks became so frequent and so violent that Ville-Marie thought that its end had come. Maisonneuve made all the settlers take refuge in the fort. By 1652, the colony at Montreal had been so reduced that he was forced to return to France to raise 100 volunteers to go with him to the colony the following year. If the effort had failed, Montreal would have been abandoned and the survivors relocated downriver to
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 ...
. When the 100 arrived in the fall of 1653, the population of Montreal was barely 50 people. They included
Jacques Archambault Jacques Archambault (c. 1604 – February 15, 1688) was a French colonist in Montreal. He was born in Dompierre-sur-Mer, where he was baptized. Archambault married (around 1629) Françoise Tourault, with whom he had many children. All Archambau ...
, who dug the first water well of the island in 1657, at the request of Maisonneuve. Over time, the colony grew in size and eventually was large enough to be secure from the Haudenosaunee threat. Control of the colony was taken from the missionary society and taken up by the
crown A crown is a traditional form of head adornment, or hat, worn by monarchs as a symbol of their power and dignity. A crown is often, by extension, a symbol of the monarch's government or items endorsed by it. The word itself is used, partic ...
in 1663. Maisonneuve had not enjoyed the favour of the new governor-general,
Augustin de Saffray de Mésy Augustin de Saffray de Mésy (1598–1665) was the first Governor General of New France in 1663 after Louis XIV took over the administration of New France from the Compagnie des Cent-Associés. Very little is known of de Mésy, but he serve ...
. In September 1665,
Alexandre de Prouville Marquis Alexandre de Prouville de Tracy (c. 1596 or 1603 – 1670) was a French aristocrat, statesman, and military leader. He was the seigneur of Tracy-le-Val and Tracy-le-Mont ( Picardy). Life The Marquis de Tracy first made his name as a re ...
, the lieutenant-general of Montreal, ordered Maisonneuve to return to France on indefinite leave. After 24 years as head of the colony, he left Montreal for good.


Later life

Settling in Paris Maisonneuve lived in relative obscurity. In 1671, he welcomed
Marguerite Bourgeoys Marguerite Bourgeoys (17 April 162012 January 1700), was a French nun and founder of the Congregation of Notre Dame of Montreal in the colony of New France, now part of Québec, Canada. Born in Troyes, she became part of a sodality, ministering ...
at his home in Paris. With his encouragement, in 1657 she had established the
Congregation of Notre Dame of Montreal The Congrégation de Notre Dame (CND) is a religious community for women founded in 1658 in Ville Marie (Montreal), in the colony of New France, now part of Canada. It was established by Marguerite Bourgeoys, who was recruited in France to creat ...
, an order of teaching nuns that educated French and indigenous children. Maisonneuve died in 1676; at his bedside were his young friend, Philippe de Turmenys, and his devoted servant, Louis Fin. On September 10, his funeral took place at the church of the Fathers of the Christian Doctrine, near the abbey of Saint-Étienne-du-Mont; he was also buried there.


Honours

After his death, Saint-Paul Street in Montreal was named after Maisonneuve, who had built his home in 1650 on the early street.
Nuns' Island Nuns' Island (officially Île des Sœurs; ) is an island located in the Saint Lawrence River that forms a part of the city of Montreal, Quebec. It is part of the borough of Verdun. History Originally called Île Saint-Paul in honour of the f ...
was once called ''Île Saint-Paul'' in honour of the founder of Montreal. The current name of the island appears starting from the 19th century and was exclusively used from the 1950s on. The
Maisonneuve Monument The Maisonneuve Monument (french: Monument à Paul de Chomedey, sieur de Maisonneuve) is a monument by sculptor Louis-Philippe Hébert built in 1895 in Place d'Armes in Montreal. History This monument in memory of Paul Chomedey de Maisonneu ...
was erected in 1895 on
Place d'Armes Place may refer to: Geography * Place (United States Census Bureau), defined as any concentration of population ** Census-designated place, a populated area lacking its own municipal government * "Place", a type of street or road name ** Often ...
in
Old Montreal Old Montreal (French: ''Vieux-Montréal'') is a historic neighbourhood within the municipality of Montreal in the province of Quebec, Canada. Home to the Old Port of Montreal, the neighbourhood is bordered on the west by McGill Street, on th ...
, to his memory. It is the work of
Louis-Philippe Hébert Louis-Philippe Hébert (1850–1917) was a Canadian sculptor. He is considered one of the best sculptors of his generation. Career Hébert was the son of Théophile Hébert, a farmer, and Julie Bourgeois of Ste-Sophie de Mégantic, Quebec. At ag ...
(1850–1917). An imaginary model was used to represent Maisonneuve, as no authentic portrait exists of the first governor of Montreal.
De Maisonneuve Boulevard De Maisonneuve Boulevard (officially in french: boulevard De Maisonneuve) is a major westbound boulevard located in Downtown Montreal, downtown Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is named after the founder of Montreal, Paul Chomedey de Maisonneuve. It ...
and Rue Chomedey in
Downtown Montreal Downtown Montreal ( French: ''Centre-Ville de Montréal'') is the central business district of Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The district is situated on the southernmost slope of Mount Royal, and occupies the western portion of the borough of Vil ...
are named for him, as are
Maisonneuve Park Maisonneuve Park (french: Parc Maisonneuve) is an urban park in the Rosemont–La Petite-Patrie borough of Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is considered to be one of Montreal's large parks. Established in 1910, it is in size, in three sections. T ...
, the Collège de Maisonneuve, the neighbourhood of Chomedey in Laval, and the Maisonneuve pavilion, a
dormitory A dormitory (originated from the Latin word ''dormitorium'', often abbreviated to dorm) is a building primarily providing sleeping and residential quarters for large numbers of people such as boarding school, high school, college or university s ...
at the
Royal Military College Saint-Jean , mottoeng = Truth, Duty, Valour , established = 1952 , type = Military college , chancellor = Anita Anand (''ex officio'' as Defence Minister) , principal = Command ...
.


Gallery

Image:Mount-royal-cross.jpg,
Mount Royal Cross The Mount Royal Cross is a monument on top of Mount Royal in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It stands at the northeastern peak of the mountain and overlooks the eastern part of the Island of Montreal. History Paul Chomedey de Maisonneuve, founder of ...
. The first was erected by Paul de Chomdey de Maisonneuve on January 6, 1643 Image:Montreal 1647.jpg,
Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...
in 1647 Image:Projet Monument Maisonneuve Montreal.jpg, Projet
Maisonneuve Monument The Maisonneuve Monument (french: Monument à Paul de Chomedey, sieur de Maisonneuve) is a monument by sculptor Louis-Philippe Hébert built in 1895 in Place d'Armes in Montreal. History This monument in memory of Paul Chomedey de Maisonneu ...
, '' Canadian Illustrated News'', 12 April 1879 Image:Monument à Maisonneuve.JPG, Maisonneuve Monument at the
Place d'Armes Place may refer to: Geography * Place (United States Census Bureau), defined as any concentration of population ** Census-designated place, a populated area lacking its own municipal government * "Place", a type of street or road name ** Often ...
Image:Monument Maisonneuve.jpg, Maisonneuve Monument


See also

*
French colonization of the Americas France began colonizing the Americas in the 16th century and continued into the following centuries as it established a colonial empire in the Western Hemisphere. France established colonies in much of eastern North America, on several Caribbe ...
*
Timeline of Montreal history The timeline of the history of Montreal is a chronology of significant events in the history of Montreal, Canada's second-most populated city, with about 3.5 million residents in 2018, and the fourth-largest French-speaking city in the world. ...


External links


''La pratique du luth en Nouvelle-France par Paul Chomedey de Maisonneuve (1612-1676) premier gouverneur de Montréal...'', Web Robert DEROME, professeur honoraire d'histoire de l'art, Université du Québec à Montréal.


Novels

* Lise Baucher-Morency / Gaëtane Breton, ''La périlleuse fondation de Ville-Marie'', (book with musical CD) Éditions Planète rebelle (lin

2017


References

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Maisonneuve, Paul Chomedey, Sieur De 1612 births 1676 deaths Colonists of Fort Ville-Marie People from Aube People of New France French Army soldiers French nobility History of Montreal Governors of Montreal Société Notre-Dame de Montréal Persons of National Historic Significance (Canada) 17th-century Canadian politicians