Michel-Alain Chartier de Lotbinière, 1st Marquis de Lotbinière (; 1723–1798),
Seigneur
A seigneur () or lord is an originally feudal title in France before the Revolution, in New France and British North America until 1854, and in the Channel Islands to this day. The seigneur owned a seigneurie, seigneury, or lordship—a form of ...
of
Vaudreuil,
Lotbinière and
Rigaud, Quebec
Rigaud () is a city in southwestern Quebec, Canada, in the Vaudreuil-Soulanges Regional County Municipality in Vallée-du-Haut-Saint-Laurent region. It is located at the junction of the Ottawa River and the Rigaud River, about west of downtown ...
etc. In 1757, on his advice at the
Siege of Fort William Henry, the
Marquis de Montcalm successfully attacked
Fort William Henry
Fort William Henry was a British fort at the southern end of Lake George, in the province of New York. The fort's construction was ordered by Sir William Johnson in September 1755, during the French and Indian War, as a staging ground for a ...
. In 1758, Lotbinière again advised Montcalm to await rather than attack the
British Army
The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...
, at
Fort Carillon, the fort that Lotbinière had built, which led to the French victory at the
Battle of Carillon. In 1784,
Louis XVI of France
Louis XVI (Louis-Auguste; ; 23 August 1754 – 21 January 1793) was the last king of France before the fall of the monarchy during the French Revolution. The son of Louis, Dauphin of France (1729–1765), Louis, Dauphin of France (son and heir- ...
created Lotbinière a
Marquis
A marquess (; ) is a nobleman of high hereditary rank in various European peerages and in those of some of their former colonies. The German-language equivalent is Markgraf (margrave). A woman with the rank of a marquess or the wife (or wido ...
, the only
Canadian
Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...
by family and birth to have attained that rank, and the last such creation made by Louis XVI. He was the last private owner of
Château Vaudreuil in
Montreal
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 ...
.
Early life
Michel-Alain Chartier de Lotbinière was born in 1723 at
Quebec
Quebec is Canada's List of Canadian provinces and territories by area, largest province by area. Located in Central Canada, the province shares borders with the provinces of Ontario to the west, Newfoundland and Labrador to the northeast, ...
, the youngest son of
Eustache Chartier de Lotbinière.
His mother, Marie-Francoise (1695–1723), was the daughter of Captain
François-Marie Renaud d'Avène des Meloizes and Françoise-Thérèse (1670-1698), daughter of Nicholas Dupont de
Neuville (1632–1716).
His career was greatly aided by two of his close relations, both of whom were
Governors General of New France -
Roland-Michel Barrin de La Galissonière and
Pierre de Rigaud, Marquis de Vaudreuil-Cavagnial. He was the brother of
François-Louis Chartier de Lotbinière and their first cousins included
Louis-Philippe Mariauchau d'Esgly, ''La Belle'' Angelique-Genevieve d'Avene des Meloizes (
mistress
Mistress is the feminine form of the English word "master" (''master'' + ''-ess'') and may refer to:
Romance and relationships
* Mistress (lover), a female lover of a married man
** Royal mistress
* Maîtresse-en-titre, official mistress of a ...
of
François Bigot) and Nicolas Renaud d'Avene des Meloizes,
Marquis de Fresnoy. He was the uncle of The Hon.
Antoine Juchereau Duchesnay.
Military engineer
Michel was brought up at the Jesuit College in Quebec before becoming a cadet with the colonial
troupes de la marine, breaking family tradition by being the first not to preside over the
Sovereign Council of New France. As second
ensign
Ensign most often refers to:
* Ensign (flag), a flag flown on a vessel to indicate nationality
* Ensign (rank), a navy (and former army) officer rank
Ensign or The Ensign may also refer to:
Places
* Ensign, Alberta, Alberta, Canada
* Ensign, Ka ...
he served in the
Defence of the Acadians of 1746-47 gaining a reputation as "a capable and courageous officer". In 1747, Lotbinière married
Louise-Madeleine Chaussegros de Léry the daughter of
Gaspard-Joseph Chaussegros de Léry (1682-1756), chief engineer of New France, and his wif
Marie-Renée Legardeur de Beauvais In 1749, his relation, the Commandant General of New France,
Roland-Michel Barrin de La Galissonière, promoted him to ensign and entrusted him to lead a reconnaissance mission into the region between
Montreal
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 ...
and
Michilimackinac
Michilimackinac ( ) is derived from an Ottawa Ojibwe name for present-day Mackinac Island and the region around the Straits of Mackinac between Lake Huron and Lake Michigan.. Early settlers of North America applied the term to the entire region ...
.
Completing his mission successfully, in 1750 Galissonière (who was now back in
France
France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
), sent for the young Lotbinière to join him so he could train as an engineer and artillery officer. Three years later he returned to New France as a
Lieutenant
A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a Junior officer, junior commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations, as well as fire services, emergency medical services, Security agency, security services ...
and with the title of King's Engineer in the Colonial Regular Army, working under his father-in-law on the construction of the
Ramparts of Quebec City.
In 1755, his cousin,
Pierre Francois de Rigaud, Marquis de Vaudreuil-Cavagnal, put him in charge of building a fortress at the southern end of
Lake Champlain
Lake Champlain ( ; , ) is a natural freshwater lake in North America. It mostly lies between the U.S. states of New York (state), New York and Vermont, but also extends north into the Canadian province of Quebec.
The cities of Burlington, Ve ...
. He spent several years there overseeing the construction of Fort Carillon (as it was called until the British captured it in the
Battle of Ticonderoga in 1759 and renamed it
Fort Ticonderoga
Fort Ticonderoga (), formerly Fort Carillon, is a large 18th-century star fort built by the French at a narrows near the south end of Lake Champlain in northern New York. It was constructed between October 1755 and 1757 by French-Canadian ...
). Although promoted to captain in 1757, he was refused the position of chief engineer (which he is often referred to as having been) of New France, a position which he had asked for after his father-in-law's death. The court instead appointed Nicolas Sarrebouce, an engineer in the
French Army
The French Army, officially known as the Land Army (, , ), is the principal Army, land warfare force of France, and the largest component of the French Armed Forces; it is responsible to the Government of France, alongside the French Navy, Fren ...
, who wasted no time in hindering Lotbinière's career, sending reports to Paris accusing him of incompetence and malfeasance, ruining his credibility with the Ministry of Marine. As some form of compensation his cousin,
Governor-General Vaudreuil, gave him the seigneury of Alainville.
In the run up to the
Battle of Quebec his cousin,
Vaudreuil, employed him to build defences about the city, and during the battle he served as his
aide-de-camp. In 1760 he was put in charge of fortifying
Ile aux Noix to impede the British advance from the south, but was forced to fall back to
Montreal
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 ...
, Quebec. Another of his first cousins, Nicolas Renaud d'Avene des Meloizes-Fresnoy (1729-1803), Marquis de Fresnoy, served as major-general in the French victory at the
Battle of Sainte-Foy, for which he was rewarded the Grand Cross
Order of Saint Louis
The Royal and Military Order of Saint Louis () is a dynastic order of chivalry founded 5 April 1693 by King Louis XIV, named after Saint Louis (King Louis IX of France). It was intended as a reward for exceptional officers, notable as the fi ...
. After the capitulation, Lotbiniere left his wife and newly born daughter in Canada and returned to France with his 12-year-old son, cadet
Michel-Eustache-Gaspard-Alain Chartier de Lotbinière.
Seigneuries
Having lost his land in America, that had amounted to 150,000
acre
The acre ( ) is a Unit of measurement, unit of land area used in the Imperial units, British imperial and the United States customary units#Area, United States customary systems. It is traditionally defined as the area of one Chain (unit), ch ...
s, he unsuccessfully tried to resume his military career in France. His thoughts turned again to his native land, and he decided to return as a large landowner. From his cousin, former Governor
Marquis de Vaudreuil The Marquis de Vaudreuil may refer to:
* Philippe de Rigaud de Vaudreuil (1643–1702), governor of Montréal then of New France
* Pierre de Rigaud de Vaudreuil (1698–1778), last governor-general of New France
* Louis-Philippe de Rigaud, Marquis o ...
who had retired to his ancestral estate near
Rouen
Rouen (, ; or ) is a city on the River Seine, in northwestern France. It is in the prefecture of Regions of France, region of Normandy (administrative region), Normandy and the Departments of France, department of Seine-Maritime. Formerly one ...
, he bought in 1763
[P 22, from n French"Notes sur la paroisse de St-François de la Beauce", Author: Demers, Benj. (1848-1919), Published by: Imprimerie C. Darveau, Québec, 189,
http://collections.banq.qc.ca/bitstream/52327/2022175/1/116989.pdf] the seigneuries of
Vaudreuil,
Rigaud and
Saint-François-de-Nouvelle-Beauce, also adding Villechauve (known today as
Beauharnois) and
Hocquart to his existing seigneuries at Lotbinière (granted to his grandfather in 1672) and Alainville. Before returning to Canada he spent a year in
London
London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
to try to make sure that Alainville and
Hocquart (which since the
Royal Proclamation of 1763
The Royal Proclamation of 1763 was issued by British King George III on 7 October 1763. It followed the Treaty of Paris (1763), which formally ended the Seven Years' War and transferred French territory in North America to Great Britain. The ...
fell within the boundaries of the
Province of New York
The Province of New York was a British proprietary colony and later a royal colony on the northeast coast of North America from 1664 to 1783. It extended from Long Island on the Atlantic, up the Hudson River and Mohawk River valleys to ...
) would be recognized as his by the British
Board of Trade
The Board of Trade is a British government body concerned with commerce and industry, currently within the Department for Business and Trade. Its full title is The Lords of the Committee of the Privy Council appointed for the consideration of ...
. This resulted in a vague promise, which Lotbinière took as a guarantee.
On his return to Canada in 1760, Lotbinière immediately set about developing his seigneury at
Vaudreuil. He built a manor house there for his family, a mill, and th
Church of Saint-Michel de Vaudreuil which still stands today, and where many members of his family are buried with memorials. Vaudreuil is closely associated with his many descendants, notably the de Lotbiniere-Harwood family, who inherited the seigneury of Vaudreuil.
In 1767, he purchased the
Château Vaudreuil at
Montreal
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 ...
, Quebec. Short of funds he was forced to sell the seigneury of Lotbinière to his son in 1770. By 1771 his son had bought all his father's Canadian seigneuries except
Villechauve, which was mortgaged. In addition to this, he was unable to recover his two properties in New York (Alainville and Hocquart), and so returned to London to again plead his cause. In 1773, he sold the Château. In 1776, the British Board of Trade rejected his claims to Alainville and offered him a grant of an equal size of land in Quebec in compensation for his loss of Hocquart. He refused the compromise and left Britain, deciding to be a British subject no longer.
Agitating in Boston and France
Taking the advice of his former superior officer,
François de Gaston, Chevalier de Levis, he went to France and offered his services to the
Minister of Foreign Affairs
In many countries, the ministry of foreign affairs (abbreviated as MFA or MOFA) is the highest government department exclusively or primarily responsible for the state's foreign policy and foreign relations, relations, diplomacy, bilateralism, ...
,
Charles Gravier, Comte de Vergennes who entrusted him with an unofficial mission as an observer. In 1776 he arrived in
Massachusetts
Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...
, but ignoring Vergenne's words immediately introduced himself to
John Hancock
John Hancock ( – October 8, 1793) was an American Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father, merchant, statesman, and prominent Patriot (American Revolution), Patriot of the American Revolution. He was the longest-serving Presi ...
as the unofficial envoy of the minister. He spent six months in
Boston
Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...
, and though a personal friend of
Benjamin Franklin
Benjamin Franklin (April 17, 1790) was an American polymath: a writer, scientist, inventor, statesman, diplomat, printer, publisher and Political philosophy, political philosopher.#britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Wood, 2021 Among the m ...
, he won few friends through his agitations. Lotbinière, for purely selfish reasons, was desperate for France to recover her lost colonies, and did all he could to force the issue. He returned to France with his report in 1777, but Vergennes didn't see it as wise to send him on any further missions. Up until 1782 he still hoped France would recover her lost territories in North America, but after the
Treaty of Paris in 1783 any last hopes he had had of returning to Canada were finished.
Lotbinière spent the next ten years in France. With de Lévis' support he re-established his military engineering reputation and clearly held favour at the court of
King Louis XVI. He was awarded the Grand Cross of the
Order of Saint Louis
The Royal and Military Order of Saint Louis () is a dynastic order of chivalry founded 5 April 1693 by King Louis XIV, named after Saint Louis (King Louis IX of France). It was intended as a reward for exceptional officers, notable as the fi ...
, and became a
Chevalier with a pension of 600
livre
Livre may refer to:
Currency
* French livre, one of a number of obsolete units of currency of France
* Livre tournois, one particular obsolete unit of currency of France
* Livre parisis, another particular obsolete unit of currency of France
* Fre ...
s, which was doubled in 1781. In 1784 King Louis created him the
Marquis
A marquess (; ) is a nobleman of high hereditary rank in various European peerages and in those of some of their former colonies. The German-language equivalent is Markgraf (margrave). A woman with the rank of a marquess or the wife (or wido ...
de Lotbinière in recognition of the sacrifices he had made by allying himself to the French cause in 1776, the only Canadian to receive this honour. His son, Michel-Eustache-Gaspard-Alain Chartier de Lotbinière, inherited the title but being politically astute did not use it in order to maintain favour with the new British regime in Canada.
Later life
Indefatigable as ever, Lotbinière returned to America in 1787 to once again try to recover his seigneuries at Alainville and Hocquart, but two years of effort proved to be futile. On arriving at
New York
New York most commonly refers to:
* New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States
* New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York
New York may also refer to:
Places United Kingdom
* ...
he had asked permission to return to his home country but
Quebec
Quebec is Canada's List of Canadian provinces and territories by area, largest province by area. Located in Central Canada, the province shares borders with the provinces of Ontario to the west, Newfoundland and Labrador to the northeast, ...
Governor Guy Carleton (Lord Dorchester) categorically refused him re-entry. However in 1790, in the company of his son (then serving as Lord Dorchester's confidential agent) he crossed the border unhindered, revisiting his family and his seigneury at
Villechauve. His happiness was short lived. He was forced into exile again after selling
Villechauve in 1795 for £9,000 to Alexander Ellice, father of
Edward Ellice. To receive her share from the sale, his wife asked for, and obtained, a property separation in 1796.
He was the father of two children: a son,
Michel-Eustache-Gaspard-Alain Chartier de Lotbinière, and a daughter, Marie-Louise, who married
Pierre-Amable de Bonne.
See also
*
Canadian Hereditary Peers''Michel, Marquis de Lotbiniere''
Notes
References
* Gerard Parizeau (1984). ''La Seigneurie de Vaudreuil et ses notables au début du XIXe siècle : essai sur le milieu'', Montreal: Fides, 240 p.
External links
*Hector Besner,
" ''Histoire Québec'' 7, no. 2 (November 2001).
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lotbiniere, Michel
1723 births
1798 deaths
French military personnel of the War of the Austrian Succession
French Canadian people of the French and Indian War
French Canadians in the American Revolution
French military engineers
Grand Crosses of the Order of Saint Louis
People of New France