From Coureur des bois to Voyageur

The beginnings of New France

Champlain at Québec

New France owed its existence largely to the fur trade. Its founder Samuel de Champlain settled at Quebec because it was close to areas abundant in furs and Native suppliers. From 1608 to 1663, French trading companies controlled a major part of the colony's government. In exchange for exclusive territorial rights, these companies promised to populate and develop the colony. The authorities forbade settlers to trade directly with Natives. Until 1652, the Natives brought their furs to trade them at the merchants' posts. Conflict was already stirring between Native groups in the region.

Indian wars

Ojibwa fight the Fox and the Sauk, Ontario

The Iroquois had been at war with Algonquin nations since the founding of Quebec. After 1640, the Iroquois conquered and dispersed the Huron population, the main suppliers of furs to the French. While this war was disastrous for Native hunters, it also gave rise to the trade of coureur des bois. From 1652, the colony's people were allowed to trade for furs. The business was no longer limited to the trading posts at Quebec, Trois-Rivières and Montreal. The coureur des bois could now go directly to the Natives to acquire furs.

Guerrier iroquois

Highs and lows of the coureur des bois

The popularity of the trade of coureur des bois among youth alarmed the colony's governor. On April 28, 1654, he forbade anyone to go trade with Natives without getting permission beforehand. He wanted to keep the men close to home in case the colony had to defend itself against Iroquois attack.

Coureurs des bois au coucher du soleil,
en hiver - Cornelius Krieghoff (1815-1872)

During a period of peace with the Iroquois, two young Frenchmen obtained permission to leave. Médard Chouart Des Groseilliers, co-founder of the Hudson's Bay Company, and Nicolas Forget dit Despatis set out for the Pays-d'en-Haut. They returned two years later with about 50 canoes loaded with furs. The colony welcomed them as heroes. Buoyed by this success, the number of aspiring coureurs des bois multiplied. However, new threats from the Iroquois worried the authorities. They reinstated the "congé" system of permissions, along with severe punishment for disobeying.

Did you know?

Coureurs des bois who traded without a permit and against the orders of Louis XIV could expect harsh sentences:

First offence: lashing
Second offence: branding with a fleur-de-lis
Third offence: rowing for the rest of their lives aboard a royal galley.

From hero to outlaw

The congé system of permissions enabled the authorities to control the fur trade. It created two groups of individuals: those with a permit, who would soon be dubbed "Voyageurs", and the Coureurs des bois, seen as criminals. In 1681, Louis XIV offered amnesty to all Coureurs des bois to encourage them to return to the colony. From that point, only 25 congés per year were approved. Life in the woods continued to attract many men, causing problems for the colony. Governors and stewards claimed this life led to moral corruption, debauchery and an independent spirit!

At the end of the 17th century, a surplus of furs led King Louis XIV to put an end to the congé system. In 1696, he outlawed the trade of coureur des bois. The king restricted fur trading to posts along the Saint-Lawrence River. The first generation of Coureur des bois was over.

The first working class

In 1716, the congé system was revived, and inland trading re-established. With trading once again legal, a second generation of coureurs des bois emerged. Some of them stayed in the woods, while others went to work for licensed merchants, becoming engagés, hired men who signed their contracts in the presence of a notary. The profession of voyageur was born.

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