Introduction
Les Filles du Roi were orphaned or poor women around the age of 16 who came from France in Europe to New France to find a better lifestyle. King Louis XVI paid for their journey to New France, also giving them a dowry. A dowry was a gift given by the king. It consisted of 1 chest, 1 kerchief, 1 ribbon for shoes, 100 needles, 1 comb, 1 spool of white thread, 1 pair of stockings, 1 pair of gloves, 1 pair of scissors, 2 knives, about 1,000 pins, 1 bonnet, 4 laces and 2 silver French coins or livres. A few also received animals such as chickens, pigs and other livestock. The women were given this as soon as they found a husband. The king gave the women these items, and called them 'The King's Daughters' or 'Les Filles du Roi'.
Arrival
New France was a new economy and needed growth. It was small and there were 719 unmarried men and yet only 45 unmarried women living there, meaning that New France needed more women. Not many women wanted to go there, yet men did because they could hunt, sign up for military work and more. The king, King Louis XIV decided to do something. He promised to pay for any women who would come to New France. He offered to pay for their voyage and also to give them a new start, giving them dowries as listed in the last paragraph. There were many replies. The young women around the age of 16, mostly who were poor and/or orphaned were boarded onto a ship that would bring them to New France. Now, though this sounded too good to be true; a nice new place to live, paid voyage and new items, the women did not think so as they were on the ship. The reason was that they were crowded onto unsanitary ships with little food or water. Many women died on the ship. The voyage took approximately 3 months, and they didn't have as much freedom as they expected. They were bribed onto the ships that were crammed and unsanitary.
Upon arrival, the women would be taken care of by a nun until a man came along and wished to marry a woman. They had the choice of the mate that they wanted because there were still fewer women than men. Usually the stronger country women were chosen, leaving the poor ones. Since more women just kept coming, the decision was made to only have the strong country women come to New France.
Lifestyle
Once the women were married, they still had very little freedom, along with many tasks. Yet, there were much more job opportunities in New France than in France. The women could work in factories, mills, run shops and taverns and manage their farms. If the women were religious, they could provide health care or education.
The women also had the task of having as many children as possible, so that the colony grew and prospered. Les Filles du Roi usually had 10+ children, making the colony grow dramatically.
Settlement
Les Filles du Roi, along with their husbands, settled mainly in Quebec City after marriage. Some traveled further up the river. After they married, they spread out all across New France.
Religion
Most of Les Filles du Roi believed in Roman Catholic. They also believed that they should have many children and that they ought to give the oldest daughter a dowry, for a better chance of marriage.
Challenges
The people of New France faced many challenges. They had no freedom. Les Filles du Roi were basically property before they were married. Their husbands would often beat them. Although, if a man beat a woman with a stick larger than his wrist, she could leave and have freedom. Otherwise, she was stuck with an abusive husband. Life was still tough for these women, but what made it even harder was that many women died from childbirth, little medical help, the cold climate and their house in bad condition, diseases, food shortage since they couldn't always farm because of the weather and time of year, and also Indian attacks.
Climate
The weather was cold and usually caused deaths because of how cold it was. It also wasn't helpful. The houses were often flimsy, and the climate didn't help the houses at all. Often, the climate would ruin the houses.
Housing
The houses that Les Filles du Roi and their new family lived in were rough huts. The houses were very flimsy, and therefore, they were too flimsy to withstand the weather. Although, some of them lived in log cabins, which were a little better than the rough huts, although they were more expensive to build.
Food
The food was a problem. Often in the winter, there was never enough, causing deaths. Whatever the family farmed was their food. Therefore, there was a lot of food shortage. They couldn't always farm, which was the biggest cause of food shortage. They farmed things such as corn, wheat, barley, oats and tobacco. The women had to do her share of the work of farming as well, meaning both men and women farmed the food.
FAQ
About how many Les Filles du Roi came to New France?
Approximately 1,000 young women traveled to New France in between 1663 and 1673.
Why were there so many more men than women in New France?
Men found better jobs than in France. If they were intent on farming or fur trapping, or even serving in the military, as many were, it was a good place for them to do. Therefore, there were more men than women there. Also, the women were happy in France, but the poor and orphaned had a chance to start over in New France.
What was the population before Les Filles du Roi came?
The population was approximately 3,000 before they arrived. There were 719 unmarried males and only 45 unmarried females in the colony. this did not bode well for the future of New France.
About how many women died while in New France or on their way?
It was recorded that sixty of the 300 people who came on La Rochelle, the ship the previous year had died at sea before reaching New France. That was about 20% of the thought-to-be healthy women who didn't survive the voyage across the Atlantic.
How many different places in France did they send over Les Filles du Roi?
Jean-Baptiste Colbert wrote down that 84 young girls were sent from Dieppe and 25 from La Rochelle. There were 15 or 20 from quite good families; several who were really young and well brought up.
How long did it take for the girls to get married?
The girls who arrived safely usually found husbands within a few weeks. Some even married within days of arrival. Therefore, it didn't take long to find a husband and get married, then start a family.
What were the advantages of moving to New France?
The advantages of moving to New France were mostly job opportunities. In the 'Job' section of this website, it explains all the jobs the women could have. There were a lot more job opportunities in New France than back in France.
Ending
Les Filles du Roi were brave young women. They did their jobs well, and got rewarded. Sort of. We should follow after them, being brave, and not complaining about what we have to do. We have life better than they had theirs and we should be proud of it. Les Filles du Roi are an interesting part of history, and surprisingly, most of them are related to us. They are our ancestors. They had so many kids, who had kids, who had kids, who had kids, who had kids and so on, until some of us were born.
Hopefully this site was both informative and also interesting to read. Hopefully you learned some new things about Les Filles du Roi. And hopefully you will use this information for anything you either need to do in the future or present, or apply it as new learning right now!
Les Filles du Roi were orphaned or poor women around the age of 16 who came from France in Europe to New France to find a better lifestyle. King Louis XVI paid for their journey to New France, also giving them a dowry. A dowry was a gift given by the king. It consisted of 1 chest, 1 kerchief, 1 ribbon for shoes, 100 needles, 1 comb, 1 spool of white thread, 1 pair of stockings, 1 pair of gloves, 1 pair of scissors, 2 knives, about 1,000 pins, 1 bonnet, 4 laces and 2 silver French coins or livres. A few also received animals such as chickens, pigs and other livestock. The women were given this as soon as they found a husband. The king gave the women these items, and called them 'The King's Daughters' or 'Les Filles du Roi'.
Arrival
New France was a new economy and needed growth. It was small and there were 719 unmarried men and yet only 45 unmarried women living there, meaning that New France needed more women. Not many women wanted to go there, yet men did because they could hunt, sign up for military work and more. The king, King Louis XIV decided to do something. He promised to pay for any women who would come to New France. He offered to pay for their voyage and also to give them a new start, giving them dowries as listed in the last paragraph. There were many replies. The young women around the age of 16, mostly who were poor and/or orphaned were boarded onto a ship that would bring them to New France. Now, though this sounded too good to be true; a nice new place to live, paid voyage and new items, the women did not think so as they were on the ship. The reason was that they were crowded onto unsanitary ships with little food or water. Many women died on the ship. The voyage took approximately 3 months, and they didn't have as much freedom as they expected. They were bribed onto the ships that were crammed and unsanitary.
Upon arrival, the women would be taken care of by a nun until a man came along and wished to marry a woman. They had the choice of the mate that they wanted because there were still fewer women than men. Usually the stronger country women were chosen, leaving the poor ones. Since more women just kept coming, the decision was made to only have the strong country women come to New France.
Lifestyle
Once the women were married, they still had very little freedom, along with many tasks. Yet, there were much more job opportunities in New France than in France. The women could work in factories, mills, run shops and taverns and manage their farms. If the women were religious, they could provide health care or education.
The women also had the task of having as many children as possible, so that the colony grew and prospered. Les Filles du Roi usually had 10+ children, making the colony grow dramatically.
Settlement
Les Filles du Roi, along with their husbands, settled mainly in Quebec City after marriage. Some traveled further up the river. After they married, they spread out all across New France.
Religion
Most of Les Filles du Roi believed in Roman Catholic. They also believed that they should have many children and that they ought to give the oldest daughter a dowry, for a better chance of marriage.
Challenges
The people of New France faced many challenges. They had no freedom. Les Filles du Roi were basically property before they were married. Their husbands would often beat them. Although, if a man beat a woman with a stick larger than his wrist, she could leave and have freedom. Otherwise, she was stuck with an abusive husband. Life was still tough for these women, but what made it even harder was that many women died from childbirth, little medical help, the cold climate and their house in bad condition, diseases, food shortage since they couldn't always farm because of the weather and time of year, and also Indian attacks.
Climate
The weather was cold and usually caused deaths because of how cold it was. It also wasn't helpful. The houses were often flimsy, and the climate didn't help the houses at all. Often, the climate would ruin the houses.
Housing
The houses that Les Filles du Roi and their new family lived in were rough huts. The houses were very flimsy, and therefore, they were too flimsy to withstand the weather. Although, some of them lived in log cabins, which were a little better than the rough huts, although they were more expensive to build.
Food
The food was a problem. Often in the winter, there was never enough, causing deaths. Whatever the family farmed was their food. Therefore, there was a lot of food shortage. They couldn't always farm, which was the biggest cause of food shortage. They farmed things such as corn, wheat, barley, oats and tobacco. The women had to do her share of the work of farming as well, meaning both men and women farmed the food.
FAQ
About how many Les Filles du Roi came to New France?
Approximately 1,000 young women traveled to New France in between 1663 and 1673.
Why were there so many more men than women in New France?
Men found better jobs than in France. If they were intent on farming or fur trapping, or even serving in the military, as many were, it was a good place for them to do. Therefore, there were more men than women there. Also, the women were happy in France, but the poor and orphaned had a chance to start over in New France.
What was the population before Les Filles du Roi came?
The population was approximately 3,000 before they arrived. There were 719 unmarried males and only 45 unmarried females in the colony. this did not bode well for the future of New France.
About how many women died while in New France or on their way?
It was recorded that sixty of the 300 people who came on La Rochelle, the ship the previous year had died at sea before reaching New France. That was about 20% of the thought-to-be healthy women who didn't survive the voyage across the Atlantic.
How many different places in France did they send over Les Filles du Roi?
Jean-Baptiste Colbert wrote down that 84 young girls were sent from Dieppe and 25 from La Rochelle. There were 15 or 20 from quite good families; several who were really young and well brought up.
How long did it take for the girls to get married?
The girls who arrived safely usually found husbands within a few weeks. Some even married within days of arrival. Therefore, it didn't take long to find a husband and get married, then start a family.
What were the advantages of moving to New France?
The advantages of moving to New France were mostly job opportunities. In the 'Job' section of this website, it explains all the jobs the women could have. There were a lot more job opportunities in New France than back in France.
Ending
Les Filles du Roi were brave young women. They did their jobs well, and got rewarded. Sort of. We should follow after them, being brave, and not complaining about what we have to do. We have life better than they had theirs and we should be proud of it. Les Filles du Roi are an interesting part of history, and surprisingly, most of them are related to us. They are our ancestors. They had so many kids, who had kids, who had kids, who had kids, who had kids and so on, until some of us were born.
Hopefully this site was both informative and also interesting to read. Hopefully you learned some new things about Les Filles du Roi. And hopefully you will use this information for anything you either need to do in the future or present, or apply it as new learning right now!
Les Filles du Roi arriving in New France Something like the ship they arrived
on
on
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