Edge of Empire: Documents of Michilimackinac, 1671 1716 - Couverture rigide

Couverture rigide

ISBN 10 : 0870138200 ISBN 13 : 9780870138201

Editeur : Michigan State University Press, 2008

Synopsis

Few places were as important in the seventeenth-century European colonial New World as the pays d’en haut. This term means "upper country" and refers to the western Great Lakes (Huron, Michigan, and Superior) and the areas immediately north, south, and west of them. The region was significant because of its large Native American population, because it had an extensive riverine system needed for beaver populations—essential to the fur trade—and because it held the transportation key to westward expansion. It was vital to the French, who controlled the region, to be on good terms with its peoples. To maintain good relations through trade and diplomacy with the nations in the pays d’en haut, the French built a number of posts, including one at Michilimackinac and one on the St. Joseph River (near Niles, Michigan). These posts were garrisoned by French troops and run by French commanders who contracted with merchants to manage business matters. Edge of Empire provides both an overview and an intensely detailed look at Michilimackinac at a very specific period of history. While the introduction offers an overview of the French fur trade, of the place of Michilimackinac in that network, and of what Michilimackinac was like in the years up to 1716, the body of the book is comprised of over sixty French-language documents, now translated into English. Collected from archives in France, Canada, and the United States, the documents identify many of the people involved in the trade and reveal a great deal about the personal and professional relations among people who traded. They also reveal clearly the process by which trade was carried out, including the roles of both Native Americans and women. At the same time, the documents open a window into French colonial society in New France.

A propos du livre

À propos de l'auteur

The late Joseph L. Payser was Professor Emeritus of French at Indiana University South Bend and co-director of the French Michilimackinac Research Project.

Détails de l'édition

• Éditeur: Michigan State University Press
• Date d'édition: 2008
• Langue: anglais
• ISBN 10: 0870138200
• ISBN 13: 9780870138201
• Reliure: Relié
• Nombre de pages: 238
• Éditeur: Peyser Joseph L., Brandao José António
• Coordonnées du fabricant: non disponible
• Personne responsable: non disponible