Soldier
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Le Soldat | The Soldier
Soldier dressed for a winter campaign, between 1690 and 1700 (painting by Francis Back, Government of Canada’s Canadian Military History Gateway).
The soldat, or soldier, is the first military rank in the army, at the first level of military hierarchy.
Some of the first soldiers to set foot on Canadian soil were French or English men, hired by companies engaged in exploration or the fur trade. These companies were responsible for all costs associated with the soldiers: recruitment, overseas travel, equipment, maintenance and salary. The soldiers were responsible for protecting the expeditions and their interests. Often, they were veterans of royal armies who had previously participated in military campaigns.
In the middle of the 17th century, the Iroquois threat forced the authorities in New France to ask for military reinforcements. Some 40 soldiers arrived in 1642, followed by a company of 60 soldiers in 1644. However, these numbers were simply not enough to repel a much larger Iroquois force. French soldiers, their native allies and settlers all suffered heavy losses and buried many victims. In 1662, after several requests for help, France sent 100 more soldiers.
The Carignan-Salières Regiment (1665-1668)
In 1665, approximately 1,200 men from the Carignan-Salières regiment were sent to New France to neutralize the Iroquois threat. The soldiers remained until 1668, when a fragile peace returned to the colony. Learn more about the Regiment here.
The Canadian Militia (1669-1867)
The militiamen were members of a body of civilian soldiers recruited from the inhabitants of a seigneurie. This included any male inhabitant between the ages of 16 and 60 years old. Receiving no pay and resting on honour, the militia's mandate was to defend the seigneurie against foreign and native attacks. Its formation was obligatory in each parish for the protection of the colony starting in 1669. Learn more about the Militia here.
“Soldier of the Compagnies franches de la Marine in New France, between 1750 and 1755”, reconstitution by Eugène Lelièpvre, Canadian Military History Gateway.
The Compagnies Franches de la Marine (1683-1760)
The 1670s and early 1680s saw a resurgence of Iroquois hostilities and attacks on French settlers. The Governor General once again asked for reinforcements from France. In November 1683, the ship La Tempête arrived with 130 soldiers from three companies of the Compagnies franches de la Marine. Their main objectives were to defend the colony from the Iroquois and to protect its interests in the lucrative fur trade.
In New France, the Compagnies franches de la Marine were the only regular soldiers stationed by the Crown from 1685 to 1755. After the start of the Seven Years' War in 1756, the Compagnies were replaced by units of the regular army commanded by Louis-Joseph de Montcalm. In 1760, following the fall of New France to the British, most of the French recruits returned home, but at least 600 soldiers stayed, married and started families in North America, contributing to the settlement of Québec and Canada. Learn more about the Compagnies here.
Sources:
“The Compagnies Franches de la Marine of Canada”, Government of Canada, Canadian Military History Gateway, http://www.cmhg.gc.ca/cmh-pmc/page-64-eng.aspx.
Chartrand, René. Canadian Military Heritage: Volume 1, 1000-1754 (Montréal: Art Global, 1993).
Sévigny, André. 1989. “Le soldat des troupes de la marine (1683-1715) : premiers jalons sur la route d'une histoire inédite”. Les Cahiers des dix, (44), 39–74. Érudit, https://doi.org/10.7202/1015556ar.