French Fur Trade

French Fur Trade

LQ: How did the fur trade give the French claims to the New World?
Made by: Alanis Castro Pacheco

Table of Contents:
● Page 2
○ The time period & Early explorers who claimed land for France
● Page 3
○ Map of the Location claimed & Goals of early exploration for France
● Page 4
○ Relations with the Native Americans & Missionaries role
● Page 5
○ Trade items - both the French and Native Americans & Why furs?
● Page 6
○ Who were the French trappers and traders & The establishment of
French cities, trading posts, and colonies
● Page 7
○ Answering the Lesson Question & Review

1

The Time of the Fur Trade

● Fur Trade
○ The French fur trade began early in the 17th century. French traders
began to trade with the Natives living in the Great Lakes region.

Early Explorers who claimed land for France

● Giovanni de Verrazano
○ Italian; was commissioned in 1524 by the French government.

● Jacques Cartier
○ Sailed to the New World in 1534. First european of French descendant
to map area of exploration. Established France’s claim to the area that
is now Canada.

● Samuel de Champlain
○ “Father of New France.” Established France main empire in 1608 in
what is now Quebec.

Samuel de Champlain⬆

2

Map of the location Claimed

Goals of Early exploration for France

● Relations
○ Establish good relations with the native american tribes and create a
trade system.

● Colonization
○ Wanted a well-working, organized colony.

● Trade
○ The French knew beavers were a common species in this area so they
wanted to establish a trade for the furs of this creature. Later on the
French will rely heavily on the trade with Native Americans.

3

Relations with the Native Americans

● New France established friendly relations with the following tribes
○ Huron Tribe
○ Algonquin Tribe

● War
○ The French helped the Huron tribe to battle the Iroquoian which later
led to a war.

Missionaries Role

● Converting
○ The Catholic Jesuits missionaries tried to convert indigenous people
Christianity.

● Jacques Marquette
○ Jesuit missionary; went about the native americans camps and tired to
convert them to Christianity.

4

Trade Items - both the French and the
Native Americans

● Native Americans to French
○ Fur

● French to Native Americans
○ The french traded these items with the native americans: gunpowder,
guns / weapons, metal tools, alcohol.

Why furs?

● Abundance
○ There is a large population of beaver furs in the canadian region.

● Benefits
○ Benefits of beaver fur are that it’s water resistant, it lasts a long time,
and can be turned into hats, coats, and shoe linings.

5

Who were the french trappers and traders

● Trappers
○ Coureurs de bois = “runners of the woods.” The French trappers were
the ones who hunted the beaver for fur and went into the woods to
pursuit them.

● Traders
○ The french traders established forts and created good relations with
the Native Americans

The establishment of French cities, trading
posts, and colonies

● Growth in population
○ France grew at a very slow pace. By 1700, 250k Europeans lived in
English colonies. 15k in French North America. 4,500 in Spanish North
America.

● Differences between New France and other European settlements
○ New France had no cash crop and very cold weather. Because France
was so cold and didn't have any cash crops, they created a settlement
in the Caribbean that they profited off of.

● Government
○ Almost completely autocratic, no elected representatives assemblies,
and no trial by jury

6

Answering the Lesson Question & Review

The Fur Trade gave the French claims to the New World. The French Fur Trade
began in the 17th century. France sent explorers out to the New World to claim
land. One of many explorers was Samuel de Champlain. He was known as the
“Father of New France.” To be successful as a colony, you need to have goals to
reach. New France’s goals were to establish good relations with the Native
Americans, to create a successful colony, and to trade. Some tribes they traded with
are the Huron Tribe and the Algonquin Tribe. The most common trade items were
fur, weapons, and alcohol. As for the growth and development, the government
was completely autocratic and had no representative assemblies. In conclusion, as
you can see the French Fur Trade gave France claims to the New World.

7