Accommodations Nova Scotia
Your Guide To Accommodations In Nova Scotia
Fortress of Louisbourg, Nova Scotia
The French came to Louisbourg in 1713, after ceding Acadia and
Newfoundland to the British by the terms of the Treaty of Utrecht,
which ended the War of the Spanish Succession. France's only
remaining possessions in what is now Atlantic Canada were the
islands of Cape Breton and Prince Edward, which were then called
Isle Royale and Isle Saint-Jean. The French used these islands as a
base to continue the lucrative cod fishery off the Grand Banks. In
1719 they began to construct at Louisbourg a fortified town which
was only completed on the eve of the first siege in 1745. The town
and settlement along the harbour shore soon became a thriving
community.
The cod fishery accounted for most of Isle Royale's prosperity.
Dried before export, the fish was salted and laid on stages which
lined the beaches of Louisbourg and its outports. Louisbourg became
a hub of commerce, trading in manufactured goods and various
materials imported from France, Quebec, the West Indies and New
England.
One might think that the fortress would be prepared for any
onslaught. Yet, while the harbour was well defended, the main
landward defences were commanded by a series of low hills, some
dangerously close to the fortifications. All provided excellent
locations for siege batteries.
The first attack came in 1745 following a declaration of war between
Britain and France. Charged with the fervour of a religious crusade,
and informed that the fortress was in disrepair with its poorly
supplied troops on the verge of mutiny, the New Englanders mounted
an assault on Louisbourg. Within 46 days of the invasion the
fortress was captured. To the chagrin of the New Englanders, only
three years later the town was restored to the French by the Treaty
of Aix-la-Chapelle.
In 1758 Louisbourg was besieged a second time.
Without a strong navy to patrol the sea beyond its walls, Louisbourg
was impossible to defend. Attacking with 13,100 troops supported by
a 14,000 crew on board 150 ships, a British army captured the
fortress in seven weeks. Determined that Louisbourg would never
again become a fortified French base, the British demolished the
fortress walls.
In 1961 the Government of Canada began a $25million project aimed at
reconstructing approximately one-quarter of the original town and
fortifications. Within this area the buildings, yards, gardens and
streets are being recreated as they were during the 1740s,
immediately preceding Louisbourg's first siege.
The work at Louisbourg has required an inter-disciplinary research
effort. Archaeological excavation has yielded millions of artifacts
as well as the ruins of fortifications and buildings. Some 750,000
pages of documents and 500 maps and plans have been copied from
archives in France, England, Scotland, the United States and Canada.
The historical evidence reveals much about life at Louisbourg and
provides an excellent base for the study of the French in North
America.
