Fort Royal (Plaisance)
Encyclopedia
Fort Royal is a French fort built in 1687 on the island of Newfoundland during the time of New France
.
In 1662, the French established a commercial counter on a well protected hill overlooking Placentia Bay
which separates the Avalon
form the rest of Newfoundland island and situated near Grand Banks where fish are abundant.
In order to protect the bay, several forts were erected around the hill, Fort Plaisance (1662), Fort Royal (1687) and Fort Saint-Louis (1690).
Fort Royal was constructed on the top of the hill which dominated the bay and the port village of Plaisance
.
Fort Royal served as bastion and home for the gouvernor.
In 1713, the Treaty of Utrecht
forced the French to abandon their establishments in Newfoundland. Fort Royal was renamed "Castle Hill" by the English, and "Plaisance" became "Placentia". The French inhabitants were displaced to Isle Royale (Cape Breton
), where they will begin the construction of Louisbourg.
New France
New France was the area colonized by France in North America during a period beginning with the exploration of the Saint Lawrence River by Jacques Cartier in 1534 and ending with the cession of New France to Spain and Great Britain in 1763...
.
In 1662, the French established a commercial counter on a well protected hill overlooking Placentia Bay
Placentia Bay
Placentia Bay is a body of water on the southeast coast of Newfoundland, Canada. It is formed by Burin Peninsula on the west and Avalon Peninsula on the east. Fishing grounds in the bay were used by native people long before the first European fishermen arrived in the 16th century. For a time, the...
which separates the Avalon
Avalon
Avalon is a legendary island featured in the Arthurian legend. It first appears in Geoffrey of Monmouth's 1136 pseudohistorical account Historia Regum Britanniae as the place where King Arthur's sword Excalibur was forged and later where Arthur was...
form the rest of Newfoundland island and situated near Grand Banks where fish are abundant.
In order to protect the bay, several forts were erected around the hill, Fort Plaisance (1662), Fort Royal (1687) and Fort Saint-Louis (1690).
Fort Royal was constructed on the top of the hill which dominated the bay and the port village of Plaisance
Placentia, Newfoundland and Labrador
Placentia is a town on the Avalon Peninsula, Newfoundland and Labrador, consisting of the amalgamated communities of Jerseyside, Townside, Freshwater, Dunville and Argentia...
.
Fort Royal served as bastion and home for the gouvernor.
In 1713, the Treaty of Utrecht
Treaty of Utrecht
The Treaty of Utrecht, which established the Peace of Utrecht, comprises a series of individual peace treaties, rather than a single document, signed by the belligerents in the War of Spanish Succession, in the Dutch city of Utrecht in March and April 1713...
forced the French to abandon their establishments in Newfoundland. Fort Royal was renamed "Castle Hill" by the English, and "Plaisance" became "Placentia". The French inhabitants were displaced to Isle Royale (Cape Breton
Cape Breton Island
Cape Breton Island is an island on the Atlantic coast of North America. It likely corresponds to the word Breton, the French demonym for Brittany....
), where they will begin the construction of Louisbourg.