PIERRE MARGANE DES FORETS AND DE LAVALTRIE

He was born at Lavaltrie in 1679. He was admitted at the âge of fifteen or sixteen years as petty ofificer in the troops of the detachment of the Marine.

Nov. 17, 1704, M. de Vaudreuil and Beauharnois wrote to the minister : "A Sr. de Batilly, ensign, who distinguished himself greatly in the party which Sr. de Vaudreuil sent this winter against the English having been killed there we propose to you Sr. de Forets, who has been a petty officer for a long time, to fin the position of his brother, who is the second of the family killed in the service of the king. He is a very good subject who deserves the honor of your protection. Both of them are chiidren of an ancient captain in the troops of this country after having been in Carignan's régiment."

We must believe that the minister had many others to advance in rank before M. de Forets, since ît was not until eight years later that he was promoted ensign. His commission is dated June 21, 1712. He is still designated under the name of M. des Forets.

In 1721 M. des Forets, or rather M. de Lavaltrie, for he had taken the name of his father in the interval, rose in rank. He was made Lieutenant. The delay had this time been nine years, M. de Lavaltrie, certainly took part in some of the campaigns of the troops of the Marine during the period between 1712 and 1721, but we can fînd no mention of it.

May 12, 1739, M. de Lavaltrie received the command of a Company.^

1 Rapport sur les archives Cauadieunes for 1904, p. 261.

Sieur de Vincennes Identified 123

Aug. 12, 1746, M. de Lavaltrie assisted, at the Château St. Louis at Québec, at an important convention of the principle officers of the colony, military as well as civil, and of the résidents of Québec. It was necessary to make a décision concerning the importance of continuing or not the fortifications of Québec. Minister Maurepas was of the opinion that thèse Works were not necessary and that if they were undertaken it should be at the expense of the résidents of Québec. Opinion difïered much. Most of the civil ofïicers and of the merchants pronounced themselves in favor of the destruction of the work already begun. Some of them were in favor of suspending the work until a new order from His Majesty. Finally the majority was in favor of continuing the work. M. de Lavaltrie was among this number.

In the month of Aug., 1746, M. de Rigaud received from Gov, Beauharnois the command of a party of Canadians and Indians, who were to make a sally into New England covering Fort St. Frédéric. He had under his orders 600 Canadians and 300 savages. Among his officers were Captain de Lavaltrie. An account of this expédition may be found in the Archives of Canada, Correspondance Générale.

M. de Lavaltrie was among the number of the officers of this expédition recommended as the most worthy of promotion and of the cross of St. Louis, which he received May 23, 1749.

In 1751, M. de Lavaltrie was at Fort Frontenac with M. de Vercheres.*

By a letter from M. de Longueuil to M. de Rouillé, April 21, 1752, we discover that M. de Lavaltrie was then commandant at Fort Niagara. M. de Celeron, commander at Détroit, had sent M. de Lavaltrie important dispatches begging him to hâve a soldier carry thcm to Fort Rouille (Toronto) whence they would be sent on to Montréal. This soldier disappeared.

*L'abbe Auguste Go-sselin, Le Fondateur De la Présentation : L'abbe Picquet, p, 21.

124 Sieur de Vincennes Identified

He had probabiy been killed by the Indians. Ivl. de Lavaltrie took much trouble to find the dispatches of M. de Celleron fearing that they had fallen into the hands of the EngHsh.

On Oct. 1, 1755, M. de Vaudreuil, govemor of New France, held a conférence at Montréal with twenty ambassadors from the Tsonnontouans. M. de Lavaltrie was among the officers who assisted at this conférence. The principle orator was the chief Gaiachoton who presented several wampum belts to the governor. M. de Joncaire who had been adopted by the tribe was their interpréter. The savage étiquette demanded a certain delay between the présentation of the wampum belts and the reply of the governor. On Oct. 3 the Indian ambassadors received again M. de Vaudreuil and the officers who had assisted at the former conférence.*

Dec. 13, 1756, there was held a new conférence again at Montréal between M. de Vaudreuil and 100 ambassadors froni varions Indian tribes.

M. de Vaudreuil in order to dazzle thèse important personages surrounded himself with a brilliant stafif. M. de Lavaltrie assisted at this conférence also. The chiefs of the Iroquois of Sault Saint-Louis and of the Lake of the Two Mountains were also présent. The speeches were numerous and long. M. Perthuis, who spoke Iroquois, as if it were his own longue, was the orator on this occasion.

In August, 1757, M. de Lavaltrie took part in the siège of Fort William Henry situated at the lower end of Lake Saint- Sacrament (today Lake George). The French and Canadian troops were commanded by MM. de Montcalm and de Levis. They accomplished prodigies of valor. The Indians also fought valiantly. Colonel Alonroe, commander of Fort William Henry, capitulated Aug. 9, 1757, after having put up an intrepid défense for nine days.

*E-B O'Callagban, Documents relative to ihe liistory of the 8tate r)f New York, vol. X. p. 345.

Sieur de Vincennes Identified 125

This glorious victory was, however, sullied by the massacre which the allied savages inflicted upon the EngHsh prisoners of war. There was, it would seem, imprudence on both sides. On the French side not enough précaution was taken to protect the EngHsh from the attacks of the savages. On the EngUsb side the inconceivable imprudence was committed of giving rum in abundance to the savages.

The following year on July 8, M. de Lavaltrie took part in the glorious battle of Carillon, which was the fruit of the military genius of Montcalm and of the valor of his troops.

Jan. 26, 1759, the king granted a pension of 400 livres to M. de Lavaltrie.

From a letter from M. de Vaudreuil to Minister Berryer of March 30, 1759, we see that M. de Lavaltrie passed the winter of 1758 and 1759 near Fort Duquesne, watching the movements of the EngHsh, with a certain number of Canadians and of Indians.

In a gênerai table of the officers of the Marine serving in Canada, prepared in 1759 or in 1760 one reads :

"Lavaltrie Desforets infantry ensign in 1712, lieutenant in 1721 Captain in 1739."

In a postscript list of the officers of the troops of the detachment of the Marine prepared in 1761 or 1762 one reads concerning M. de Lavaltrie : "Rich, an honest man, a widower, out of condition to serve. Has remained in Canada."

M. de Lavaltrie did not survive long the change of régime. He died at Montréal Jan. 1, 1766.

He had married at Montréal Oct. 14, 1732, Louise-Charlotte d'Ailleboust d'Argenteuil. Of their marriage were boni four children.

1. Louise- Jeanne M. de L. Born at Montréal, Aug. 8, 1733. Died Dec. 27, 1822, and was buried at Lavaltrie the 30 of the same month.

126 Sieur de Vincennes Identified

2. Marguerite-Charlotte M. de L. Born at Montréal Feb. 28, 1735. Died in the same place June 7, 1735.

3. Marguerite-Charlotte-Stanislas M. de L. Born at Montréal Nov. 13, 1739. Died at St Laurent April 29, 1749.

4. Pierre-Paul M. de L. Born at Montréal Aug. 14, 1743. The continuer of the line.

Pierre-Paul Margane de Lavaltrie.

He entered in the troops of the detachment of the Marine when he vvas thirteen years old. In 1759 when he was hardly sixteen years old, he fought bravely against the English. After the fall of Québec and the capitulation of Montréal he went to France in order to continue to serve in the French army. In 1765 he returned to this country, at the request of his father, who was then eighty-seven years old and whose only son he was, to whom he wished to leave his seigniory.

In 1775 faithful to the new masters of the country M. de Lavaltrie took up arms to fight against the American troops who had invaded the Canadian territory, and was on the list of ofïicers named in order of merit because they had shown themselves to be good subjects.

In 1791 England granted us a new constitution. The ancient province of Québec was divided into two provinces, Upper Canada and Lower Canada. Each one having a législative council and a charhber of the Assembly. The province of Lower Canada was divided into twenty-one counties.

At the élection of deputies to the new chamber in the summer of 1792, M. de Lavaltrie v/as chosen deputy of the county of Warwick in which his seigniory was located. He kept his seat to the end of the first parliament, until May, 1796.

M. de Lavaltrie died at his seigniory at Lavaltrie, Sept. 10, 1810. He was buried two days later in the church of Lavaltrie under the seigniorial pew at the right hand side of the altar.

Sieur de Vincennes Identified 127

M. de Lavaltrie married at Terre Bonne, March 31, 1766, Marie-Angélique de La Corne de Chapt. Shc died at Lavaltrie Feb. 26, 1815, and was buried the next day in the parish church. Only one child was born of their marriage. Suzanne Antoinette, who married Charles Gaspard Tarieu de Lanaudière. Madame Tarieu de Lanaudière died at Lavaltrie, April 22, 1822, and was buried in the parish church under the chapel of the Holy Virgin. With her death disappeared the last member of the family of Lavaltrie, who had played so wonderful a rôle in our country for a century and a half.

BIBLIOGRAPHY of the works which hâve spoken of the

BISSOTS de VINCENNES, particularly of FRANCOLS-