Frontenac

Little is known of Frontenac’s youth. There are little to no official papers stating facts about his youth. Though there are some things that are still known. Louis de Buade Comte de Frontenac et Palluau was born in 1620. Frontenac’s father, Henri de Buade, was the colonel of in the regiment of Navarre. Frontenac was born in a noble family. His mother, Anne de Phelippeaux, was from a family of high officials. This gave Frontenac’s family close ties with the King of France. He was given a very good education and when he was a teenager he joined the French army at the age of fifteen. Louis de Frontenac would become one of France’s most influential persons.

In 1635 Frontenac served under the command of the prince of Orange in Holland. Frontenac became noticed as he fought in the Low Countries (an area including Belgium) and Italy. In 1643 Louis de Buade was promoted to the rank of colonel in the regiment of Normandy. Three years later separated himself from everyone else at the siege of Orbitello were he had a broken arm. Frontenac continued with his military services until 1648 when he moved back to is father’s house in Paris. Shortly after he moved back to Paris, Frontenac married Anne de La Grange-Trianon without her parents consent. After the birth of their son Frontenac and Anne separated.

In 1695 Acadia’s governor was Daniel de Remy de Courcelle. He got into a fight with another big figure Jean Talon. In the end Frontenac was appointed to succeed Daniel de Remy as governor of Acadia. Frontenac arrived in Quebec on September twelfth, 1672. It was soon realized that Frontenac had big plans for Acadia. Frontenac set up a new kind of government that France disapproved of. In the beginning Frontenac focused mainly on expanding Acadia’s boundaries in order to increase New France’s fur trading industry. As he was expanding Acadia, Frontenac set up Fort Frontenac a trading post on the shore of Lake Ontario where the Canadian town of Kingston is today. In 1682 Paris had requested Frontenac’s return.

Frontenac was renamed governor in 1689 when he returned to Acadia. This time Frontenac focused even more on the colonies’ defenses. In 1690 the British attacked Quebec. They attacked from the water and were under the command of Admiral William Phipps. When Admiral William Phipps requested Frontenac’s surrender he promptly replied, “I have no reply to make other than from the mouths of my cannons and muskets.” Then in 1696 Frontenac started a campaign to rid New France of the Iroquois who severely endangered New France. He finally rid New France of the Iroquois, but never got to admire his handy work because he died the same year in 1698.

Frontenac has been considered the “Savior of New France”. In his time there was no one who could best his military skill. Louis de Buade Comte de Frontenac was a big part in the shaping of Canada, and his marks upon the land will always be remembered.