A good resource for the Elementary level

1. Jacques Cartier
Rumana Fariha

2. Jacques Cartier was a French explorer
who discovered the area that is Canada
today. Learn about his travels, his
successes, and his disappointments on his
journeys.
You probably have heard of the country
of Canada, just north of the United States.
But do you know how it got its name?
We have Jacques Cartier and the
Iroquois people to thank. Cartier was an
explorer from France who made several
trips to North America in the 1500s.

3. o Jacques Cartier was a French
explorer who was born in
1491 in St. Malo, France.
o He was well educated of
cartography, navigation,
astronomy, mathematics and
seamanship.
o He studied in Dieppe, a major
center for navigators.
Early life

4. His voyages
He became a highly
respected sailor to go on
three voyages.
His first voyage is to
search for the Northwest
passage but failed.
His second voyage is to
go back to Canada.
His last voyage was to
find a colony in Canada.

5. First voyage , 1534
• In 1534, he set sail, hoping to discover
some western passage to the wealthy
markets of Asia. He explored parts
of Newfoundland starting on May 10 of
that year, and what are now the other
Canadian Maritimes. He bartered for
furs with the Micmac Indians, and
learned of a river further west (the St.
Lawrence), that he hoped might be the
long-sought passage to Asia.
• Yet, he did not sail the St. Lawrence
river during his first voyage. Instead, he
entered in the Bay of Gaspé, and landed
for the first time at present day Gaspé,

7. Second voyage,
1535-1536
Cartier set sail for a second voyage
on May 19 of the following year with 3
ships and 110 men. Reaching the St.
Lawrence, he sailed up-river for the
first time, and reached the Huron
village of Stadacona (site of present-
day Québec City).
Cartier used his smallest ship to
continue up-river and visit Hochelaga
(now Montreal) where he
arrived October 2, 1535. The site of
their arrival has been identified as the
beginning of the Sainte-Marie Sault --
where the Jacques Cartier Bridge now
stands.

8. Before leaving for France,
Cartier captured two
Iroquoians in exchange for
bringing back European
goods on his new voyage.
The two Iroquoians were the
sons of the Iroquoian chief
named Donnacona.

9. On the second trip, Cartier had more men and a
third ship. He brought the Iroquois back with him,
and they helped Cartier find his way around. He
sailed along the St. Lawrence River in Canada and
reached the area around Quebec and Montreal.
The Iroquois he met told him that if he continued
west along the rivers, he would find riches like
gold, silver, and spices.
Timing can make all the difference, and this was
definitely the case with Cartier. His first trip was
during the spring and summer months. But the
second was in the fall. Cartier had no way of
knowing what winters in Canada are like. What a
cold surprise!! They were freezing. Many of
Cartier's crew died from disease, and by this time
the French and Iroquois were not getting along.
When the weather warmed up, Cartier captured
more Iroquois and went back to France.

11. Third Voyage 1541-1542
On May 23, 1541 Cartier departed
Saint-Malo on his third voyage with
five ships. This time, any thought of
finding a passage to the Orient was
forgotten. The goals were now to find
the "Kingdom of Saguenay" and its
riches, and to establish a permanent
settlement along the St. Lawrence.
Sailing to a spot he had previously
observed, he decided to settle on the
site of present-day Cap-Rouge,
Quebec. The convicts and other
colonists were landed, the cattle that
had survived three months aboard
ship were turned loose, earth was
broken for a kitchen garden, and
seeds of cabbage, turnip and lettuce
were planted. A fortified settlement
was thus created and was named
Charlesbourg-Royal. Another fort was
also built overlooking the settlement,
for added protection.

13. Death
In early June 1542 everyone
boarded the ships, and arrived
back in Europe in October
1542. This was his last
voyage. Cartier spent the rest
of his life in Saint-Malo , and
died aged 66 on September 1,
1557 from an epidemic. He
died before any permanent
European settlements were
made in Canada; that had to
wait for Samuel de
Champlain in 1608.

15. Cartier's professional abilities can be easily ascertained. Considering that
Cartier made three voyages of exploration in dangerous and unknown
waters without losing a ship, and that he entered and departed some 50
undiscovered harbors without serious mishap, he may be considered
one of the most conscientious explorers of the period.
Cartier was also one of the first to formally acknowledge that the New
World was a separate land mass from Europe/Asia.
He was the first person to document the name “Canada”.

16. Jacques Cartier and his men were stuck at Stadacona
(the Iroquois capital) for the winter of 1535/36. The
majority of Cartier's men developed scurvy, but most
survived with the help of a Native remedy that used
boiled white spruce tree bark.
Jacques Cartier returned to Canada again in 1540 with
plans to build a colony. His crew searched the St.
Lawrence for the mythical Kingdom of Saguenay, but
settled at Charlesbourg-Royal (today Cap-rouge).
Cartier's men believed they had found the mythical
city of riches, but they hadn't. Instead they began to
starve as they were not prepared for the Canadian
winters.
Jacques Cartier was the first person
to document the name 'Canada'
while referring to the shores along
the St. Lawrence River, after it was
interpreted incorrectly. It was
derived from the Huron/Iroquois
word for village - 'kanata'. Cartier
used the word to reference the new
land he had discovered.
His goal was to search for
riches and a passage to
Asia, but he landed on the
west coast of
Newfoundland. He also
discovered Prince Edward
Island and the Gulf of St.
Lawrence.