What happened on Robert De La Salle's last voyage?
On his last voyage, his attempt to set up a French colony at the mouth of the Mississippi River met with disaster. Robert Cavelier de la Salle was on November 22, 1643, in Rouen, Normandy, France, into a wealthy merchant family. His father was Jean Cavelier, and his mother was Catherine Geeset.
Where did Robert De La Salle explore?
Updated March 06, 2017. Robert Cavelier de la Salle was a French explorer credited with claiming Louisiana and the Mississippi River Basin for France. In addition, he explored much of the United States' Midwest region, portions of Eastern Canada, and the Great Lakes.
How was La Salle influenced by other French expeditions?
La Salle was no doubt influenced by previous French expeditions by Jacques Cartier and Samuel de Champlain who forged what was known as New France. Their expeditions and discoveries set the stage for La Salle to explore the Great Lakes and Mississippi River.
How many Native Americans were on La Salle's expedition?
After reassembling a new crew consisting of 18 Native Americans and reuniting with Tonti, La Salle began the expedition he is most known for. In 1682, he and his crew set sail down the Mississippi River.
How long did Robert La Salle voyage last?
35 daysHaving travelled up the St. Lawrence and across Lake Ontario for 35 days, they arrived at what is called today Irondequoit Bay on the southern shore of Lake Ontario at the mouth of Irondequoit Creek, a place now commemorated as La Salle's Landing.
When was La Salle first voyage?
1682In 1682 La Salle's first expedition traveled down the Mississippi River and reached its mouth. His second expedition, begun in 1684, was a disaster, ultimately resulting in the deaths of La Salle and most of the settlers.
How long was La Salle exploration?
René-Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle, was among the foremost architects of French colonial expansion in North America. Between 1669 and 1687, he traversed the interior of the continent, from the Saint Lawrence River to the Great Lakes to the Gulf of Mexico, and claimed nearly all the territory in between for France.
Who sailed the Mississippi river?
Rene Robert Cavelier, Sieur de la Salle Inspired by Jolliet and Marquette's travels, La Salle explored the Mississippi with a team of 22 men. He reached the Gulf of Mexico on April 17, 1682, claiming the entire Mississippi River basin for the King of France.
What is Louisiana named after?
Louisiana was named after King Louis XIV when the land was claimed for France in 1862. Louisiana is called the Pelican State because of its state bird.
When did Robert de La Salle explore?
Having sold his land, La Salle set out in 1669 to explore the Ohio region. His discovery of the Ohio River, however, is not accepted by modern historians. La Salle found a kindred spirit in the Count de Frontenac, the “Fighting Governor” of New France (the French possessions in Canada) from 1672 to 1682.
What are 3 facts about La Salle?
Robert de La Salle Facts: Early Life He showed an interest in exploration and navigation. While he was exploring New France he left the Jesuit religion. La Salle never married and he did not have any children.
What was Robert de La Salle's most famous expedition?
Robert de La Salle Facts, Biography, and Expeditions. Robert de La Salle was one of the most successful explorers in the New World. Most of his expeditions took place in the Great Lakes region, Mississippi River, and the Gulf of Mexico. He was the first European to make contact with many native tribes and due to his work ...
What did Robert de La Salle learn about the Mississippi River?
Through this relationship he learned of the Mississippi River and its tributaries. The Mississippi River connected North America with the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean. Learning how to navigate the great river would allow La Salle to set up many trading posts that he could navigate quickly and create a network that would enhance the wealth of France and himself.
What river did La Salle sail down?
In 1682 he departed Fort Crevecoeur with a group of Frenchmen and Indians and canoed down the Mississippi River. He named the Mississippi basin La Louisiane in honor of Louis XIV and claimed it for France.
How many ships did the French have on the Mississippi River?
They had four ships and 300 colonists. The expedition was plagued by pirates, hostile Indians, and poor navigation.
Where did La Salle build Fort Conti?
La Salle built Fort Conti at the mouth of the Niagara River. This allowed him to move his furs from Frontenac through shallow water with canoes or other small vessels to speed up their distribution. This also allowed him to bypass the rapids in the Niagara river that led to Niagara Falls.
Where did La Salle bury his cross?
On April 9, 1682, at the mouth of the Mississippi River near modern Venice, Louisiana, he buried an engraved plate and a cross, claiming the territory for France. In 1683, on his return voyage, La Salle established Fort Saint Louis of Illinois, at Starved Rock on the Illinois River, to replace Fort Crevecoeur.
Where was Robert de La Salle born?
Robert de La Salle Facts: Early Life. La Salle was born on November 22, 1643 to a wealthy family in Rouen, France. He grew to like science and nature and spent much time studying them and later became involved with the Jesuit religion. He showed an interest in exploration and navigation.
What did the La Salle expeditions provide the French government with?
Despite setbacks, the La Salle expeditions provided the French government with information about the geography and native population of the Mississippi Valley and Gulf Coast that would prove essential to the future settlement of lower Louisiana in 1699.
What happened to La Salle and his companions?
Most of his companions either died or deserted during the first two trips. In 1687, on the third attempt, several men murdered La Salle and continued moving east until they reached the Arkansas River and then traveled onward to Canada and France.
Why did the second La Salle expedition continue west?
Due to a latitudinal miscalculation and severe dissension among the crew, the second La Salle expedition continued west until reaching the entrance of Matagorda Bay in present-day Texas. La Salle sent one ship back to France with news of the colony’s uncertain future.
Where did La Salle leave Tonti?
On their return trip to Canada, La Salle left Tonti in charge of a fur-trading post on the Illinois River. While waiting for La Salle to return from a fundraising trip in France, Tonti established another trading post on the Arkansas River.
What was La Salle's plan for the colonization of Louisiana?
The plan was to reach the Mississippi by sea and secure a permanent settlement upriver that would provide the French with a strategic advantage over Spanish interests throughout the Gulf of Mexico.
Where did La Salle find the falls of the Ohio River?
Though the trading scheme produced little profit, La Salle managed to identify the falls of the Ohio River near present-day Louisville, navigate Lake Michigan, and expand upon the knowledge of the land and peoples in the vicinity of the Illinois River during the late 1660s and early 1670s.
Who did Tonti provide the French and Canadian travelers with a midway station between the Illinois Country and the anticipated
There Tonti developed a relationship with the Quapaw Indians and provided French and Canadian travelers with a midway station between the Illinois Country and the anticipated colony to be founded by La Salle’s second expedition.
Early Life
Exploration Begins
- La Salle issued land grants of Lachine, set up a village, and set out to learn the languages of the Indigenous people living in the area. He quickly acquired the language of the Iroquois, who told him of the Ohio River, which they said flowed into the Mississippi. La Salle believed that the Mississippi flowed into the Gulf of California and from there, he thought, he would be able to fin…
Second Expedition
- On Aug. 7, 1679, La Salle and Italian explorer Henri de Tonti set sail on Le Griffon, a ship he had built that became the first full-size sailing ship to travel the Great Lakes. The expedition was to begin at Fort Conti at the mouth of the Niagara River and Lake Ontario. Before the voyage, La Salle's crew brought in supplies from Fort Frontenac, avoiding Niagara Falls by using a portage a…
Louisiana Expedition
- After assembling a new crew including 18 Indigenous peoples and reuniting with Tonti, La Salle began the expedition he is most known for. In 1682, he and his crew sailed down the Mississippi River. He named the Mississippi Basin La Louisiane in honor of King Louis XIV. On April 9, 1682, La Salle placed an engraved plate and a cross at the mouth of the Mississippi River, officially cla…
Death
- They established a settlement near what became Victoria, Texas, and La Salle began searching overland for the Mississippi River. In the meantime, the last remaining ship, La Belle, ran aground and sank in the bay. On his fourth attempt to locate the Mississippi, 36 of his crew mutinied and on March 19, 1687, he was killed. After his death, the settlement lasted only until 1688, when loc…
Legacy
- In 1995, La Salle's last ship, La Belle, was found at the bottom of Matagorda Bay on the Texas coast. Archaeologists began a decades-long process of excavating, recovering, and conserving the ship's hull and more than 1.6 million well-preserved artifacts, including crates and barrels of items intended to support a new colony and supply a military expedition into Mexico: tools, co…
Sources
- "René-Robert Cavelier, sieur de La Salle: French Explorer." Encyclopaedia Britannica.
- "Rene-Robert Cavelier, sieur de La Salle." 64parishes.org.
- "René-Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle Biography." Biography.com.
- "La Belle: The Ship That Changed History." ThehistoryofTexas.com.