THE EXPULSION OF THE ACADIANS (1755)



The Expulsion of the Acadians (1755)

In 1713, the French and British signed a peace treaty (Treaty of Utrecht). In it, Great Britain was awarded territory in Acadia, Newfoundland, and around Hudson’s Bay, but the boundaries were not clearly identified. One of the results of this treaty was that thousands of French citizens/colonists in Acadia were suddenly living in British territory, and were now British subjects!

Normally, new subjects were made to swear an oath of allegiance – a guarantee of their loyalty – to their new monarch. In Acadia, the British tried five times to have the residents of Acadia swear an oath to the British monarch, Queen Anne. Each time, the Acadians refused. They were willing to swear an oath of neutrality, meaning if the British and French went to war again, the British would not have to worry about the Acadians helping the French. In 1730, the British accepted the Acadians oath of neutrality, but were not sure they trusted the Acadians.

By the 1750s, tensions were rising again between England and France. On 16 June 1755, the British captured Fort Beauséjour, which was on the Acadian/French border. In the fort, the British found 200 Acadians helping defend the fort. Charles Lawrence, the governor of Acadia, was very upset. He insisted that all Acadians swear an oath of allegiance.

To Be Continued…

Should the Acadians Be Expelled?

| |Facts |Opinions |

|Acadians | | |

|British | | |

|French | | |

Which group do you agree with? What should be done with the Acadians now? Why?

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Acadian Expulsion

Part 2

Charles Lawrence, the Governor of Acadia, was very upset. He insisted that all Acadians swear an oath of allegiance, and many Acadians reluctantly swore the oath.

Not satisfied, Lawrence calls his council to meet. On 28 July 1755, they decide it would be safer to expel the Acadians from Nova Scotia.

On 5 September 1755, 418 Acadian men were brought together in the church at Grand Pré. John Winslow, general of the British forces in Nova Scotia, read them an announcement. The announcement told the Acadians that “your lands and tenements [homes], cattle and livestock of all kinds are forfeited [to be given up] to the Crown, together with all of your other effects, except money and household goods, and that you yourselves are to be removed from” Nova Scotia.

The Acadians were not allowed to take more than they could carry. Everything else was now owned by the British Crown. The government’s plan was to sell everything to pay for the cost of shipping the Acadians away. This meant that Acadians, at the beginning of the North American winter were being shipped off to a place where nothing was prepared for them, and with nothing but the clothes on their backs and what they could carry.

That year, over 6 000 Acadians were forced to leave. Families were put on ships and sent to other British colonies. Their homes and farms were often burned down. In 6 years, approximately 10 000 Acadians were expelled. The British hoped that sending the Acadians to English-speaking colonies would make them more like British colonists. Some were sent to British colonies in North America, like New Orleans, and some were taken to England.

After the Seven Years’ War ended (in 1763), France gave up its claims to Canada. The British Crown decided that Acadians would no longer present a threat and gave them permission to return to Acadia if they wished.

The Expulsion of the Acadians (1755)

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Model of Fort Beausejour

Aitken, Bob, et al. Their Stories, Our History. Thomson-Duval, 2006. p. 90

Aitken, Bob, et al. Their Stories, Our History. Thomson-Duval, 2006. p. 85

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