Father Simon Le Moyne, S.J. (22 October 1604 – 24 November 1665) was a

Jesuit , image = Ihs-logo.svg , image_size = 175px , caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits , abbreviation = SJ , nickname = Jesuits , formation = , founders ...

priest who became involved with the mission to the Hurons in the

New World The term ''New World'' is often used to mean the majority of Earth's Western Hemisphere, specifically the Americas."America." ''The Oxford Companion to the English Language'' (). McArthur, Tom, ed., 1992. New York: Oxford University Press, p. ...

. Le Moyne had 16 years of education and experience in the priesthood in

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before his arrival in

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 thirte ...

in 1638. During that same year, he headed out to his mission in

Huron Huron may refer to: People * Wyandot people (or Wendat), indigenous to North America * Wyandot language, spoken by them * Huron-Wendat Nation, a Huron-Wendat First Nation with a community in Wendake, Quebec * Nottawaseppi Huron Band of Potawato ...

country. The destruction of the Huron nation by the

Iroquois The Iroquois ( or ), officially the Haudenosaunee ( meaning "people of the longhouse"), are an Iroquoian Peoples, Iroquoian-speaking Confederation#Indigenous confederations in North America, confederacy of First Nations in Canada, First Natio ...

brought him back to

in 1650. He undertook numerous missions to the

at great risk to his personal safety. He is most notable in Canadian history for his work as an ambassador of peace to the Iroquois.

Biography

Simon Le Moyne was born at Beauvais, France in 1604. He entered the Jesuit novitiate at

Rouen Rouen (, ; or ) is a city on the River Seine in northern France. It is the prefecture of the region of Normandy and the department of Seine-Maritime. Formerly one of the largest and most prosperous cities of medieval Europe, the population ...

on 10 December 1622 and studied philosophy at the

Collège de Clermont In France, secondary education is in two stages: * ''Collèges'' () cater for the first four years of secondary education from the ages of 11 to 15. * ''Lycées'' () provide a three-year course of further secondary education for children betwee ...

in Paris (1624–27). He taught at Rouen from 1627 to 1632. Le Moyne was sent to Canada in 1638. He worked on the Huron mission with Pierre-Joseph-Marie Chaumonot and Francesco Giuseppe Bressani. Second only to Chaumonot in his mastery of the Huron-Iroquois language, he was unequaled in the knowledge of the character of the Indigenous people, their customs, and traditions. This made him well-suited to serve as ambassador in difficult matters.Lindsay, Lionel. "Simon Le Moyne." The Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 9. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1910. 11 Jun. 2014
/ref> Around 1653, Le Moyne set out on an

Mission, at great risk, that would take him through the St. Lawrence valley and into

Lake Ontario Lake Ontario is one of the five Great Lakes of North America. It is bounded on the north, west, and southwest by the Canadian province of Ontario, and on the south and east by the U.S. state of New York. The Canada–United States border sp ...

, where he would reach a fishing village at the mouth of the Oswego River in present-day

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. From there, he traveled south to Onondaga Lake, home of the Onondaga, keepers of the council fire of the Iroquois Nation. After converting a large number of the

, including some chiefs, Le Moyne returned to

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with a favorable report. He was assigned to several more missions, including work with the

Mohawks The Mohawk people ( moh, Kanienʼkehá꞉ka) are the most easterly section of the Haudenosaunee, or Iroquois Confederacy. They are an Iroquoian-speaking Indigenous people of North America, with communities in southeastern Canada and northern Ne ...

.Corrigan, Michael. "Register of the Clergy Laboring in the Archdiocese of New York", ''Historical Records and Studies'', Vol. 1, United States Catholic Historical Society, 1899 p. 22
/ref> Le Moyne was the first from Europe to discover the Salt Springs of Onondaga, near what is today

Syracuse, New York Syracuse ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Onondaga County, New York, United States. It is the fifth-most populous city in the state of New York following New York City, Buffalo, Yonkers, and Rochester. At the 2020 census, the city' ...

. Le Moyne made a number of journeys into Mohawk territory in an effort to further peace negotiations. During 1657-1658 he journeyed from

Ossernenon Auriesville is a hamlet in the northeastern part of the Town of Glen in Montgomery County, New York, United States, along the south bank of the Mohawk River and west of Fort Hunter. It lies about forty miles west of Albany, the state capital. A ...

(Auriesville, N.Y.) to New Amsterdam (New York) to attend to the few Catholics residing there as well as some French sailors who had recently arrived in port with a prize. He paid a call on the Dutch Reformed minister Johannes Megapolensis, who had shown kindness to Father

Isaac Jogues Isaac Jogues, S.J. (10 January 1607 – 18 October 1646) was a French missionary and martyr who traveled and worked among the Iroquois, Huron, and other Native populations in North America. He was the first European to name Lake George, c ...

after Jogues had been ransomed from the Mohawks by Dutch traders from Fort Orange (Albany, N.Y.). Le Moyne was cordially received by Pastor Megapolensis, and arrived back in Quebec on 21 May 1658.Pouliot, Léon. “Le Moyne, Simon", ''Dictionary of Canadian Biography'', vol. 1, University of Toronto/Université Laval, 2003, accessed June 11, 2014
/ref> On 21 July 1661, Father Le Moyne went again to Iroquois territory to seek the release of French captives. He returned to Montreal on 31 Aug. 1662 with nineteen. His last journey appears to have been in 1662, when he returned to

with a number of French who had been held captive by the Iroquois. He died of fever in 1665 at Cap de la Madeleine, near Three Rivers.

Legacy

Le Moyne College is a Jesuit college located in

and named after Simon Le Moyne. The Le Moyne College seal includes downturned arrowheads which symbolize his work on behalf of diplomacy and peace. It also depicts flowing waters, to symbolize both the ritual of baptism and Father Le Moyne's discovery of the value of the Onondaga salt springs. Since 1968 Le Moyne College has honored local and national figures with the "Simon Le Moyne Award" for outstanding leadership to the benefit of society.Le Moyne College
/ref>

References

External links

Biography at ''the Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online''
* ''The Documentary History of the State of New York'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Lemoyne, Simon 1604 births 1665 deaths Roman Catholic missionaries in Canada 17th-century French Jesuits Jesuit missionaries in New France French Roman Catholic missionaries Le Moyne College People from Beauvais