Madeleine de Roybon d'Allonne (1646,

Montargis Montargis () is a commune in the Loiret department, Centre-Val de Loire, France. Montargis is the seventh most populous commune in the Centre-Val de Loire ''région'', and the second in the Loiret ''département'' after Orléans. It is near ...

– 17 January 1718,

Montréal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

) was an early settler of

New France New France (, ) was the territory colonized by Kingdom of France, 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 Kingdom of Great Br ...

. She was the first

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

an woman to own land in

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

. There is a memorial plaque in her honour located in

Lennox and Addington County Lennox and Addington County is a county and census division of the Canadian province of Ontario. The county seat is Greater Napanee. It is located in the subregion of Southern Ontario named Eastern Ontario. Around the middle of the 19th century, ...

. D'Allonne was born in the commune of

in the

Loiret Loiret (; ) is a department in the Centre-Val de Loire region of north-central France. It takes its name from the river Loiret, which is contained wholly within the department. In 2019, Loiret had a population of 680,434.

department to Jacques de Roybon d’Allonne a soldier and minor French

nobleman Nobility is a social class found in many societies that have an aristocracy. It is normally appointed by and ranked immediately below royalty. Nobility has often been an estate of the realm with many exclusive functions and characteristics. T ...

. She likely landed in New France in search of a husband but never married. She has been researched by historians because of her relationship with

René-Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle René-Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle (; November 22, 1643 – March 19, 1687), was a 17th-century French explorer and North American fur trade, fur trader in North America. He explored the Great Lakes region of the United States and Canada ...

, a French

explorer Exploration is the process of exploring, an activity which has some Expectation (epistemic), expectation of Discovery (observation), discovery. Organised exploration is largely a human activity, but exploratory activity is common to most organis ...

. Archival records first mention d'Allone and LaSalle's relationship on August 24, 1681 when she donated 2141 ''livres'' to him for a voyage after living in LaSalle's settlement for two years. La Salle was later charged with seducing d'Allone and reports claimed that they were to marry. Madeleine protested against the claim until it was clear that it was false. In 1683 La Salle granted d'Allone a seigneury in Fort Frontenac ( Collins Bay, Ontario). On her lands at Tonequinion, at Cataraqui she built a house, outbuildings and a trading post, grew crops and raised cattle.

Iroquois The Iroquois ( ), also known as the Five Nations, and later as the Six Nations from 1722 onwards; alternatively referred to by the Endonym and exonym, endonym Haudenosaunee ( ; ) are an Iroquoian languages, Iroquoian-speaking Confederation#Ind ...

, angry at the French for their campaign against the

Seneca people The Seneca ( ; ) are a group of Indigenous Iroquoian-speaking people who historically lived south of Lake Ontario, one of the five Great Lakes in North America. Their nation was the farthest to the west within the Six Nations or Iroquois Leag ...

in 1686, destroyed the d'Allone's establishment in August 1687, and took her prisoner. Released the following year, she settled permanently in Rue Saint-Vincent,

where she lived until her death in 1718 at the age of 72.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Roybon d'Allone, Madeleine de 1646 births 1718 deaths People of New France