Why was the coureurs de bois important?
The independent coureurs des bois played an important role in the European exploration of the continent. They were also vital in establishing trading contacts with Indigenous peoples. Coureurs des bois were itinerant, unlicenced fur traders from New France.
Who were the coureurs de bois and how did they contribute to the economic success of New France?
How did the coureurs de bois contribute to the economic success of New France? They helped expands the population of New France by marrying Indian women and starting families. What were the consequences of the Dutch alliance with the Iroquois for the Hurons? The Hurons and the Iroquois were enemies.
Who were the coureurs des bois What was their role in the fur trade?
The coureurs des bois (or coureurs de bois), translated as wood runners or runners in the woods, were travelling, unlicensed fur traders in New France between 1650 and 1700. They primarily sought fur from beavers, but also foxes, otters, ermines, muskrats, deer and moose.
Why is the fur trade important to Canadian history?
The intensely competitive trade opened the continent to exploration and settlement. It financed missionary work, established social, economic and colonial relationships between Europeans and Indigenous people, and played a formative role in the creation and development of Canada.
What did the coureurs de bois learn?
A coureur des bois , runner of the woods; was an independent entrepreneurial French-Canadian woodsman who traveled in New France and the interior of North America. They ventured into the woods usually to trade various European items for furs, and along the way they learned the trades and practices of the Native people.
What was life like for the coureurs de bois?
The coureurs de bois were relatively young men, usually between 20 and 30 years of age, and who were not afraid of danger or physical exertion. They usually set off in the spring, travelling in bark canoes filled with goods to the “Upper Country” of the Great Lakes region. They did not return until the fall.
What did the coureurs de bois wear?
Their fashion choices separate overtime namely because the coureurs des bois were no longer around and the trading companies took over. During the colder months, they would wear a large coat made of deer, moose, or caribou skin with a large belt around the middle. Belts could be made of leather or colorful wool.
What impact did the fur trade have on the First Nations?
The fur trade resulted in many long term effects that negatively impacted Native people throughout North America, such as starvation due to severely depleted food resources, dependence on European and Anglo-American goods, and negative impacts from the introduction of alcohol-which was often exchanged for furs.
What challenges did the coureurs de bois face?
The coureurs des bois faced deadly rapids, canyons, blizzards, bears, wolves, and marauding Iroquois. They must have really wanted those hats. A route carved out by a river through a valley was the main highway between Québec City and the north for the coureurs des bois.
What did the coureur de Bois trade?
Coureur de bois, (French: “wood runner”) French Canadian fur trader of the late 17th and early 18th centuries. Most of the coureur de bois traded illicitly (i.e., without the license required by the Quebec government). They sold brandy to First Nation people (Native Americans), which created difficulties for the tribes with whom they traded.
What role did the independent coureurs des Bois play in European exploration?
The independent coureurs des bois played an important role in the European exploration of the continent. They were also vital in establishing trading contacts with Indigenous peoples .
How many hours a day did the coureurs des Bois travel?
Such trading journeys often lasted for months and covered thousands of kilometers, with the coureurs des bois sometimes paddling twelve hours a day.
What is the difference between the coureur des bois and the Voyageur?
The congé system, therefore, created the voyageur, the legal and respectable counterpart to the coureur des bois. Under the voyageurs, the fur trade began to favor a more organized business model of the times, including monopolistic ownership and hired labor.