Father Jean-Louis Le Loutre (1709-1772)

French missionary priest Jean-Louis Le Loutre arrived in Acadie in 1738 and was sent to the Shubenacadie mission (close to today's Truro, Nova Scotia). He wanted to help France regain possession of the territory it had given up to the British after the Treaty of Utrecht in 1713, so he encouraged the Mi'kmaqs, who he was supposed to evangelise, to rise up against the British. Le Loutre settled at Pointe-à-Beauséjour (close to today's Sackville, New Brunswick), on territory claimed by France to which he wished to attract Acadians settled on British-owned lands by enticing them with parcels of land and material compensation. He threatened Acadians who wanted to swear an unconditional oath of allegiance to the British Crown with excommunication and frightened them with the possibility of Mi'kmaq reprisals. Imprisoned by the British in 1755 and released in 1763, he continued his mission among Acadians that were deported to France.
Thematic search