How did La Salle die during his expedition? F inally, a gross miscalculation brought the ships to Matagorda Bay in Texas, 500 miles west of their intended landfall. After several fruitless journeys in search of his lost Mississippi, La Salle met his death at the hands of mutineers near the Brazos River
Brazos River
The Brazos River, called the Río de los Brazos de Dios by early Spanish explorers, is the 11th-longest river in the United States at 1,280 miles from its headwater source at the head of Blackwater Draw, Curry County, New Mexico to its mouth at the Gulf of Mexico with a 45,000-square-mile drainage ba…
How did La Salle die?
As la Salle passed by, Duhault raised his musket, took aim, and shot la Salle in the head. Mortally wounded, la Salle stayed alive long enough to be humiliated by his 'friends'. He was stripped of all his clothing and jewelry and left to die where he fell, somewhere in Texas.
Where did Robert De La Salle explore?
Updated March 06, 2017. Robert Cavelier de la Salle was a French explorer credited with claiming Louisiana and the Mississippi River Basin for France. In addition, he explored much of the United States' Midwest region, portions of Eastern Canada, and the Great Lakes.
What happened on Robert De La Salle's last voyage?
On his last voyage, his attempt to set up a French colony at the mouth of the Mississippi River met with disaster. Robert Cavelier de la Salle was on November 22, 1643, in Rouen, Normandy, France, into a wealthy merchant family. His father was Jean Cavelier, and his mother was Catherine Geeset.
How did La Salle get to the Mississippi River?
La Salle set off on foot for Fort Frontenac for supplies. While he was gone, the soldiers at Ft. Crevecoeur, led by Martin Chartier, mutinied, destroyed the fort, and exiled Tonti, whom he had left in charge. The group later travelled along the Illinois River and arrived at the Mississippi River in February 1682; they built canoes here.
What happened to La Salle's expedition?
In 1682 La Salle's first expedition traveled down the Mississippi River and reached its mouth. His second expedition, begun in 1684, was a disaster, ultimately resulting in the deaths of La Salle and most of the settlers.
Where did La Salle die?
Navasota, TXRené-Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle / Place of deathNavasota is a city in Grimes County, Texas, United States. The population was 7,643 at the 2020 census. In 2005, the Texas Legislature designated Navasota as the "Blues Capital of Texas", in honor of the late Mance Lipscomb, a Navasota native and blues musician. Wikipedia
How old was Robert de La Salle when he died?
43 years (1643–1687)René-Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle / Age at death
Who was La Salle and what happened on La Salle's expedition?
With Spain and France at war, La Salle planned to establish a colony sixty leagues up the river as a base for striking Mexico, afflicting Spanish shipping, and blocking English expansion, while providing a warmwater port for the Mississippi valley fur trade.
What did Robert La Salle actually find?
René-Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle was an explorer best known for leading an expedition down the Illinois and Mississippi rivers. He claimed the region watered by the Mississippi and its tributaries for France and named it Louisiana after King Louis XIV.
What are 3 facts about La Salle?
La Salle built a fort on Lake Ontario in 1673. He started a fur trade that made him a lot of money. Then he built a ship. La Salle sailed across Lakes Erie, Huron and Michigan.
When did La Salle end his expedition?
On the first of November, 1669, La Salle announced that he was returning to Ville Marie because, so he said, of ill health. He disappeared into the bush and resurfaced in the colony only at the end of the summer of 1670.
Who explored the Mississippi River?
On May 8, 1541, south of present-day Memphis, Tennessee, Spanish conquistador Hernando de Soto reaches the Mississippi River, one of the first European explorers to ever do so.
Who discovered the Mississippi River?
explorer Hernando De SotoIt shows Spanish conquistador and explorer Hernando De Soto (1500–1542), riding a white horse and dressed in Renaissance finery, arriving at the Mississippi River at a point below Natchez on May 8, 1541. De Soto was the first European documented to have seen the river.
Was La Salle successful?
Robert de La Salle was one of the most successful explorers in the New World. Most of his expeditions took place in the Great Lakes region, Mississippi River, and the Gulf of Mexico.
What was La Salle known for?
René-Robert Cavelier, sieur de La Salle, (born November 22, 1643, Rouen, France—died March 19, 1687, near Brazos River [now in Texas, U.S.]), French explorer in North America who led an expedition down the Illinois and Mississippi rivers and claimed all the region watered by the Mississippi and its tributaries for ...
How many years did Robert La Salle explore?
La Salle made many exploring trips during the years 1671 to 1673. La Salle returned to France in 1677, getting permission form the King to explore the area between Florida, Mexico and New France (Canada).
What happened to La Salle's ship?
They established a settlement near what became Victoria, Texas, and La Salle began searching overland for the Mississippi River. In the meantime, the last remaining ship, La Belle, ran aground and sank in the bay. On his fourth attempt to locate the Mississippi, 36 of his crew mutinied and on March 19, 1687, he was killed. After his death, the settlement lasted only until 1688, when local Indigenous peoples killed the remaining adults and took the children captive.
Where did La Salle go on his expedition?
La Salle's expedition continued from there and eventually reached the Ohio River, which he followed as far as Louisville, Kentucky before he had to return to Montreal after several of his men deserted.
What was the first ship to sail the Great Lakes?
On Aug. 7, 1679, La Salle and Italian explorer Henri de Tonti set sail on Le Griffon, a ship he had built that became the first full-size sailing ship to travel the Great Lakes. The expedition was to begin at Fort Conti at the mouth of the Niagara River and Lake Ontario. Before the voyage, La Salle's crew brought in supplies from Fort Frontenac, avoiding Niagara Falls by using a portage around the falls established by Indigenous peoples and carrying their supplies into Fort Conti.
What did La Salle do as a child?
He attended Jesuit schools as a child and adolescent and decided to give up his inheritance and take the vows of the Jesuit Order in 1660 to start the process of becoming a Roman Catholic priest. By age 22, however, La Salle found himself attracted to adventure.
Where did La Salle leave Tonti?
La Salle left Tonti in charge of the fort and returned to Fort Frontenac for supplies.
Where did La Salle and Tonti sail?
La Salle and Tonti then sailed Le Griffon up Lake Erie and into Lake Huron to Michilimackinac, near the present-day Straits of Mackinac in Michigan, before reaching the site of today's Green Bay, Wisconsin. La Salle then continued down the shore of Lake Michigan.
Why was Fort Frontenac named after La Salle?
In 1674, La Salle returned to France to gain royal support for his land claims at Fort Frontenac. He was granted support and a fur trade allowance, permission to establish additional forts in the frontier, and a title of nobility.
Where did La Salle sail?
After exploring the Mississippi River to its mouth in the Gulf of Mexico, and having claimed the entire Mississippi Basin for France in 1682, La Salle returned to New France and then set sail for France where he wished to finalize his personal affairs in order to leave France behind forever and to devote himself to exploring the New World.
Who shot La Salle?
On March 19, 1687, Pierre Duhault and a companion lay in hiding in the long grass. As la Salle passed by, Duhault raised his musket, took aim, and shot la Salle in the head. Mortally wounded, la Salle stayed alive long enough to be humiliated by his 'friends'.
What did Cavelier de la Salle do?
Considered mad by many, hated by most who knew him, the tempermental, haughty, reckless, self-serving René-Robert Cavelier de la Salle had, nonetheless, expanded the boundaries of New France from the Great Lakes to the Gulf of Mexico. His chain of forts linking the interior to the St. Lawrence River served as trading posts for almost 100 years. Yet his value as an explorer remains underrated even today.
How many miles did La Salle travel to the Mississippi River?
He redrew all of his maps, placing the mouth of the Mississippi River 1,200 kilometres (745 miles) to the west near the Rio Grande and the wealthy Spanish Empire. With these maps, la Salle was able to convince King Louis XIV of the importance of securing ...
What was La Salle's incompetence?
He was to reach the Mississippi River via the Atlantic Ocean, the Caribbean Sea, and the Gulf of Mexico, but la Salle had no idea how to get there. Undaunted, he enforced his authority, but refused any advice offered to him .
How many people did La Salle carry?
In July, la Salle set sail from France with a convoy of 4 ships carrying at least 320 people. Included in the group were 100 soldiers, 8 officers, merchants, servants, valets, women and children, and 6 missionaries, including la Salle's brother, Suplician Jean Cavelier.
Why was La Salle important to King Louis XIV?
With these maps, la Salle was able to convince King Louis XIV of the importance of securing the area for France in order to prevent Spanish incursion to the North. In 1684, la Salle received a commission to sail to the Mississippi River and to take command of all the land from the Gulf of Mexico to Fort St. Louis in Illinois.
Early Life
Exploration Begins
Second Expedition
- On Aug. 7, 1679, La Salle and Italian explorer Henri de Tonti set sail on Le Griffon, a ship he had built that became the first full-size sailing ship to travel the Great Lakes. The expedition was to begin at Fort Conti at the mouth of the Niagara River and Lake Ontario. Before the voyage, La Salle's crew brought in supplies from Fort Frontenac, avoiding Niagara Falls by using a portage a…
Louisiana Expedition
- After assembling a new crew including 18 Indigenous peoples and reuniting with Tonti, La Salle began the expedition he is most known for. In 1682, he and his crew sailed down the Mississippi River. He named the Mississippi Basin La Louisiane in honor of King Louis XIV. On April 9, 1682, La Salle placed an engraved plate and a cross at the mouth of the Mississippi River, officially cla…
Disaster
- The expedition started with four ships and 300 colonists, but in an extraordinary run of bad luck during the journey, three of the ships were lost to pirates and shipwreck. The remaining colonists and crew landed in Matagorda Bay, in present-day Texas. Due to navigational errors, La Salle had overshot his planned landing spot, Apalachee Bay near th...
Death
- They established a settlement near what became Victoria, Texas, and La Salle began searching overland for the Mississippi River. In the meantime, the last remaining ship, La Belle, ran aground and sank in the bay. On his fourth attempt to locate the Mississippi, 36 of his crew mutinied and on March 19, 1687, he was killed. After his death, the settlement lasted only until 1688, when loc…
Legacy
- In 1995, La Salle's last ship, La Belle, was found at the bottom of Matagorda Bay on the Texas coast. Archaeologists began a decades-long process of excavating, recovering, and conserving the ship's hull and more than 1.6 million well-preserved artifacts, including crates and barrels of items intended to support a new colony and supply a military expedition into Mexico: tools, co…
Sources
- "René-Robert Cavelier, sieur de La Salle: French Explorer." Encyclopaedia Britannica.
- "Rene-Robert Cavelier, sieur de La Salle." 64parishes.org.
- "René-Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle Biography." Biography.com.
- "La Belle: The Ship That Changed History." ThehistoryofTexas.com.
Overview
René-Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle , was a 17th-century French explorer and fur trader in North America. He explored the Great Lakes region of the United States and Canada, the Mississippi River, and the Gulf of Mexico. He is best known for an early 1682 expedition in which he canoed the lower Mississippi River from the mouth of the Illinois River to the Gulf of Mexico; there, on 9 April …
Early life
Robert Cavelier was born on November 22, 1643, into a comfortably well-off family in Rouen, France, in the parish Saint-Herbland. His parents were Jean Cavelier and Catherine Geest. His older brother, Jean Cavelier, became a Sulpician priest. When he was young, he enjoyed science and nature. In his teens, he studied with the Jesuit religious order and became a member after ta…
Expeditions
The Seneca told La Salle of a great river, called the Ohio, which flowed into the sea, the "Vermilion Sea". He began to plan for expeditions to find a western passage to China. He sought and received permission from Governor Daniel Courcelle and Intendant Jean Talon to embark on the enterprise. He sold his interests in Lachine to finance the venture.
Personal life
La Salle never married, but has been linked to Madeleine de Roybon d'Allonne, an early colonizer of New France.
Legacy
In addition to the forts, which also served as authorized agencies for the extensive fur trade, La Salle's visits to Illinois and other Natives cemented the French policy of alliance with Natives in the common causes of containing both Iroquois influence and Anglo-American colonization. He also gave the name Louisiana (La Louisiane) to the interior North American territory he claimed for …
Archaeology
In 1995, La Salle's primary ship La Belle was discovered in the muck of Matagorda Bay. It has been the subject of archeological research. A search of the wreck and surrounding area during 1996 to 1997 yielded numerous artifacts from the 17th century. Through an international treaty, the artifacts excavated from La Belle are owned by France and held in trust by the Texas Historical Commission. The collection is held by the Corpus Christi Museum of Science and History. Artifac…
Place names
Many places, streets, parks, buildings and other things were named in La Salle's honor:
Counties and towns
• LaSalle, in Essex County, Ontario, south of Windsor on the Detroit River
• LaSalle, Quebec is a borough of the city of Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
Notes
1. ^ "René-Robert Cavelier, sieur de La Salle". Britannica. March 30, 2021. Retrieved March 21, 2021.
2. ^ "René-Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle, 1643–1687". Biography.com. March 30, 2021. Retrieved March 21, 2021.
3. ^ Parkman, Francis (1869). "Chapter 1: Cavelier De La Salle". The Discovery of the Great West. France and England in North America. Vol. 3. Boston: Little, Brown and Company. p. 1.