Guillaume Couture (or
Cousture) (January 14, 1617/8 – April 4, 1701) was a citizen of
New FranceNew France was the area colonized by France in North America during a period extending from the exploration of the Saint Lawrence River, by Jacques Cartier in 1534, to the cession of New France to Spain and Britain in 1763...
. During his life he was a lay missonary with the Jesuits, a survivor of torture, a member of a
MohawkMohawk" are an indigenous people of North America originally from the Mohawk Valley in upstate New York to southern Quebec and eastern Ontario. Their current settlements include areas around Lake Ontario and the St Lawrence River in Canada...
council, a translator, a diplomat, a militia captain, and a lay leader among the colonists of the Pointe-Levy (actually named (
Lévis-Places:*Canada:**Lévis, Quebec, a separated city**Lévis , a Canadian federal riding**Lévis , a Quebec riding*Austria:**Levis, Australia*France:**Levis, Yawn a commune in Burgundy...
) City) in the Seigneury of Lauzon. A district of New France located on the South Side of
Quebec CityQuébec , is the capital of the Canadian province of Quebec and is located within the Capitale-Nationale region. It is the second most populous city in the province – after Montreal, about to the southwest...
.
Couture was born in
RouenRouen is the historical capital city of Normandy, in northern France on the River Seine, and currently the capital of the Haute-Normandie region. Once one of the largest and most prosperous cities of medieval Europe, Rouen was the seat of the Exchequer of Normandy in the Middle Ages...
in 1618, Rouen was the political center
NormandyNormandy is a geographical region corresponding to the former Duchy of Normandy. It is situated along the English Channel coast of Northern France between Brittany and Picardy and comprises territory in northern France and the Channel Islands.Normandy is divided between French and British...
, a province in Northern France, the son of Guillaume Couture sr and Madeleine Mallet (at this time in France married women kept their birth names).
Guillaume Couture (or
Cousture) (January 14, 1617/8 – April 4, 1701) was a citizen of
New FranceNew France was the area colonized by France in North America during a period extending from the exploration of the Saint Lawrence River, by Jacques Cartier in 1534, to the cession of New France to Spain and Britain in 1763...
. During his life he was a lay missonary with the Jesuits, a survivor of torture, a member of a
MohawkMohawk" are an indigenous people of North America originally from the Mohawk Valley in upstate New York to southern Quebec and eastern Ontario. Their current settlements include areas around Lake Ontario and the St Lawrence River in Canada...
council, a translator, a diplomat, a militia captain, and a lay leader among the colonists of the Pointe-Levy (actually named (
Lévis-Places:*Canada:**Lévis, Quebec, a separated city**Lévis , a Canadian federal riding**Lévis , a Quebec riding*Austria:**Levis, Australia*France:**Levis, Yawn a commune in Burgundy...
) City) in the Seigneury of Lauzon. A district of New France located on the South Side of
Quebec CityQuébec , is the capital of the Canadian province of Quebec and is located within the Capitale-Nationale region. It is the second most populous city in the province – after Montreal, about to the southwest...
.
Early life and recruitment by the Jesuits
Couture was born in
RouenRouen is the historical capital city of Normandy, in northern France on the River Seine, and currently the capital of the Haute-Normandie region. Once one of the largest and most prosperous cities of medieval Europe, Rouen was the seat of the Exchequer of Normandy in the Middle Ages...
in 1618, Rouen was the political center
NormandyNormandy is a geographical region corresponding to the former Duchy of Normandy. It is situated along the English Channel coast of Northern France between Brittany and Picardy and comprises territory in northern France and the Channel Islands.Normandy is divided between French and British...
, a province in Northern France, the son of Guillaume Couture sr and Madeleine Mallet (at this time in France married women kept their birth names). Guillaume Sr. was a respectable carpenter in the St Goddard district, young Guillaume was brought up to follow in his father's footsteps. However, by 1640 Guillaume Couture was recruited by Jesuits to be a donne in
New FranceNew France was the area colonized by France in North America during a period extending from the exploration of the Saint Lawrence River, by Jacques Cartier in 1534, to the cession of New France to Spain and Britain in 1763...
. A donne was a lay missionary who would assist the Jesuits in converting the natives of New France to Roman Catholicism. Couture had to take a vow of celibacy and give up his inheritance, transferring it to his relatives in Rouen.
Work with Isaac Jogues
Arriving in New France in 1640, Couture went to work among the Hurons. By 1642 Couture was working with the Jesuit leader
Isaac JoguesSaint Isaac Jogues was a Jesuit priest, missionary, and martyr who traveled and worked among the native populations in North America. He gave the original European name to Lake George, calling it Lac du Saint Sacrement, Lake of the Blessed Sacrament. In 1646, Jogues was martyred by the Mohawks...
. During this period, Couture learned several major native languages, which increased his stature, for he could now work as a translator for the Jesuits. Couture also learned much about native culture and ways during this period.
Tortured by the Mohawks
In 1642, Couture set out with Father Jogues, another lay missionary,
Rene GoupilRené Goupil was a French missionary and one of the first North American martyrs of the Roman Catholic Church....
, and several Huron converts for Quebec. On their way back to the Huron missions, a Mohawk war party ambushed the group. Right before the attack, Couture saw the Hurons, who realized what was about to happen, take off into the woods; Couture followed them as Jogues and Goupil were captured. However, according to
Relations des Jésuites de la Nouvelle-FranceThe Relations des Jésuites de la Nouvelle-France, commonly abbreviated as the Jesuit Relations, are the annual reports which were issued by the superior of the Jesuit missions in New France to the Jesuit overseer in France beginning in the year 1610, and appearing annually between the years of 1632...
(the official reports sent by the Jesuits to their leaders in France) reported that Couture soon began to regret what he did. The
Relations reported that:
- This young man was able to escape; but the thought of it having come to him -"no" he says, "I wish to die with the Father; I cannot forsake him; I will gladly suffer the fire and the rage of these tigers for the love of Jesus Christ, in the company of the good Father" That is speaking like a truly faithful man.
On his way to surrender himself to the Mohawks, Couture was ambushed by five Mohawks. One of them fired a gun at Couture, but he missed. Couture shot back, this time killing him instantly. The other four Mohawks, fell upon Couture and with heavy clubs beat him up. They also took a javelin and forced it through one of his hands. Later on, Couture, Jogues, and Goupil were subjected to even more torture. The Mohawks tore out Couture's fingernails, and bit the ends to cause maximum pain. Then the three men were stripped and forced to walk through a party of two hundred Mohawks; as they did, the Mohawks beat the three with sticks of thorns. After arriving at a Mohawk village, a Mohawk leader took out a dull knife and began to cut off Couture's right middle finger. When it failed to work, the chief simply pulled the finger out of its socket. At this point, Couture was sent deep into Mohawk Country (present day upstate New York in Auriesville) where he was given to a family to be their slave.
Diplomacy and release
For the next three years, Couture impressed his captors greatly. No doubt they were impressed with the fact that he withstood his torture (which would had killed most people) and performed the tasks assigned to him with dignity. So impressed were the Mohawks that they invited Couture to sit on their councils. No other European would ever get this honor.
In 1645, de Montmagny, the governor of New France, decided it was time to end the war with the Mohawks. He released several Mohawk prisoners and sent them into Mohawk Country to negotiate a peace settlement. The Mohawks in turn released Couture, and asked him to act on their behalf, which Couture agreed to do. Couture arrived at
Trois-RivièresTrois-Rivières is a city in the Mauricie region of Quebec, Canada, located along the densely populated Quebec City – Windsor Corridor at the confluence of the Saint-Maurice and Saint Lawrence Rivers. It was founded in 1634, the second permanent settlement in New France...
and, along with two Mohawk leaders, was able to put an end (for the time) the war between the Five Nations (better known as the Iroquois) and the French.
Instead of settling down after such an ordeal, Couture decided to go straight back to Huron Country. In 1646 he was reported as working in the Huron missions with Father Pijart. He only did this for only two years between 1645 and 1647.
First settler of Pointe-Levy in the Seignory of Lauzon (actually named City of Lévis since 1861)
On May 15, 1647, he became the first settler of the Seignory of Lauzon at Pointe-Levy (located in front of Quebec City) which will become the city of Lévis in 1861. However, he was not a seignor because the Seignory of Lauzon was the property of Jean de Lauzon (Governor of New France between 1651 and 1657.). In 1649, he had decided to finally settle down. The Jesuit leaders in New France voted unanimously to release Couture from his vows and to allow him to get married. The woman who Couture chose to be his bride was Anne Aymard, who was from St Andre de Niort, in Poitou region of France. The couple would have ten children during their years of marriage.
Last Mission and Last Expedition in New France
During the 1650s and 1660s, Couture acted as a diplomat, going to New Netherlands to negotiate trade and to settle boundary disputes between the two colonies.
In 1663, Couture was recruited by French Governor Pierre du Bois d'Avaugour for a mission in the North of New France. The main mission was to find the
North SeaThe North Sea is a marginal, epeiric sea on the European continental shelf. The Dover Strait and the English Channel in the south and the Norwegian Sea in the north connect it to the Atlantic Ocean. It is more than long and wide, with an area of around...
. However, Couture found the Mistassini Lake and he goes to the
Rupert RiverThe Rupert River is one of the largest rivers in Quebec, Canada. From its headwaters in Lake Mistassini, the largest natural lake in Québec, it flows west into Rupert Bay on James Bay. The Rupert drains an area of . There is some extremely large whitewater on the river, but paddlers can avoid...
. He was accompanied by Pierre Duquet et Jean Langlois and many Amerindians. This shipment consisted of 44 boats. No doubt Couture's skills with native languages came into good use. The party worked among the Papinachois, who lived in present day northeastern Quebec.
The administrator and Captain of the Militia of Pointe-Levy
Sometime around 1666, with war with the Iroquois and the English looming, Couture, now living full time in Pointe-Lévy (
Lévis-Places:*Canada:**Lévis, Quebec, a separated city**Lévis , a Canadian federal riding**Lévis , a Quebec riding*Austria:**Levis, Australia*France:**Levis, Yawn a commune in Burgundy...
) since 1647. Couture was the main administrator and he has been named Captain of the Militia for the area he lived in. This was a major honor in New France, only going to those who had proved themselves, something Couture had done again and again. In 1690, when Admiral
William PhipsSir William Phips was a colonial governor of Massachusetts.-Military career:Phips was born at Woolwich, Maine, near the mouth of the Kennebec River, the twenty-sixth child in his family. He was a cousin of Sir Constantine Phipps, Lord Chancellor of Ireland, ancestor of the Marquess of Normanby...
invaded Quebec City Area, Couture was able to prevent the English from attacking Pointe-Levy at the age of 72 yrs old.
By this point, Couture was also the Chief Magistrate of the Pointe-Levy (actually named Lévis) district. Among his jobs were to run the censuses, enforce government edicts, and run the local assemblies that met from time to time. Couture was also in charge of local court cases, being both judge and jury. On some occasions, Couture was invited to sit on the Sovereign Council, which ran New France for Louis XIV. The fact that the status-obsessed French government offered Couture, who was low born, a part time seat on the council shows how highly the leaders of New France viewed him.
Marriage and Children
Guillaume married Anne Emard(or Aymard) on November 16, 1649 in Quebec City, Canada. Together they had the following children:
- Guillaume (11 Oct 1662-15 Dec 1738)
- Jean Baptiste (6 Nov 1650-22 Aug 1698)
- Anne (22 Jan 1652-26 Nov 1684)
- Louis (29 Aug 1654-?)
- Marguerite (29 Feb 1656-28 Mar 1690)
- Marie (18 Jun 1658-22 Jul 1702)
- Charles (29 Nov 1659-9 Sep 1709)
- Louise (19 Mar 1665-22 Dec 1751)
- Eustache Francois (24 Mar 1667-16 May 1733)
- Joseph Auger (27 Jul 1670-6 May 1733
Couture died in 1701
On November 18, 1700, Couture's wife Anne died. In the Springtime of 1701, Couture was 83 yrs old and he was sick (probably the
smallpoxSmallpox is an infectious disease unique to humans, caused by either of two virus variants, Variola major and Variola minor. The disease is also known by the Latin names Variola or Variola vera, which is a derivative of the Latin varius, meaning spotted, or varus, meaning "pimple"...
). He has been moved to the Hotel Dieu of
Quebec CityQuébec , is the capital of the Canadian province of Quebec and is located within the Capitale-Nationale region. It is the second most populous city in the province – after Montreal, about to the southwest...
, where he died on April 4, 1701. The location of his tomb is actually unknown, as Samuel de Champlain, founder of Quebec City.