Those of us who trace our ancestry to French Canada take pride in finding Québec’s 17th century "filles du roi" (or "roy," the old spelling) nestled in our family trees. These so-called "daughters of the king" were not literally children of Louis XIV, but single French women of marriageable age who sailed to New France at the king’s expense, and with a royal dowry, to boost the small colony's birth rate.
"The women -- orphans with very little money -- were recruited from the regions of La Rochelle, Rouen and Paris," according to The Canadian Encyclopedia. "Most were from urban areas. They were approximately 16 to 40 years old when they arrived, with the average age of 24." Many were ill-prepared for "the arduous life" that awaited them in rural Canada. "However, they rose to the challenge," and generally lived longer than peers who had stayed in France.
"The women -- orphans with very little money -- were recruited from the regions of La Rochelle, Rouen and Paris," according to The Canadian Encyclopedia. "Most were from urban areas. They were approximately 16 to 40 years old when they arrived, with the average age of 24." Many were ill-prepared for "the arduous life" that awaited them in rural Canada. "However, they rose to the challenge," and generally lived longer than peers who had stayed in France.
I have quite a few "filles du roi" among my ancestors, including Marie Arcular, Catherine Clérice, Jacqueline Labbé, Marie Madeleine Niel and Madeleine Olivier, among others. How can one person be descended from so many of these women? Well, think about it for a minute. As we go back in time, our ancestors double from one generation to the next: 4 grandparents, 8 great-grandparents, 16 great-great-grandparents, etc. Travel back eight or nine generations to the mid 1600s and that’s an awful lot of grand-mères and grand-pères. So there's a very strong likelihood of multiple links to filles du roi for anyone whose genealogy is almost entirely French-Canadian, as mine is.
As the French government had hoped, these women did much to populate the colony once they got married. But often, their lot was not an easy one.
Marie Arcular and Claude Léfèbvre dit Boulanger had 10 children; Catherine Clérice and Jacques Lussier, 12; Jacqueline Labbé and Mathurin Colin dit Laliberté, 13. Marie Louise Bardou and Anne Perrault, among others, died in childbirth. Anne Brandon disappeared from the provincial records after her husband, Pierre Dagenais dit Lépine, was killed by the Iroquois in 1698. Jacqueline Labbé and her husband lost five of their 13 children in childhood. Six of Gillette Savard's children died in infancy and a seventh at 19; several other children survived.
As the French government had hoped, these women did much to populate the colony once they got married. But often, their lot was not an easy one.
Marie Arcular and Claude Léfèbvre dit Boulanger had 10 children; Catherine Clérice and Jacques Lussier, 12; Jacqueline Labbé and Mathurin Colin dit Laliberté, 13. Marie Louise Bardou and Anne Perrault, among others, died in childbirth. Anne Brandon disappeared from the provincial records after her husband, Pierre Dagenais dit Lépine, was killed by the Iroquois in 1698. Jacqueline Labbé and her husband lost five of their 13 children in childhood. Six of Gillette Savard's children died in infancy and a seventh at 19; several other children survived.
With my family ties, I was pleased to come across the photo above, while doing research online. It shows a plaque in Québec City honoring these intrepid women. Here’s a translation of the inscription.
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THE DAUGHTERS OF THE KING
Between 1663 and 1673, more than 770 daughters of the king, having come from France, disembarked at Québec.
Marguerite Bourgeoys, founder of the Congrégation de Notre-Dame, used this name for the young girls, beneficiaries of a royal dowry, who came to New France to “take a husband” and contribute to the populating of the colony.
They had been expected.
In 1663, there are more than 700 single men for 65 marriageable girls. In a few years, the population of the colony will triple, growing from 3,000 habitants to close to 10,000 habitants.
This plaque was unveiled on the occasion of the reunion of the descendants of the daughters of the king on June 19, 1999.
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| Officials and settlers welcome filles du roi to New France in a painting by Eleanor Fortescue-Brickdale |
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