"Nicolas Perrot"
Nicolas Perrot and Madeleine Raclos - The Perrault family originated in France, probably in the Bourgogne or Burgundy region. The family name was originally spelled "Perrot," and the earliest known Perrot was François, who was born about 1590. François Perrot was married to Étiennette Chamereau and among their five children was a son, also named François, who was a Lieutenant of Justice in the Barony of Darcey in Bourgogne. The younger François was born in 1616 in Darcey, and married Marie Sivot in 1640. Marie was born about 1623, also in Darcey. François and Marie had six children, the eldest of whom was Nicolas. Nicolas Perrot, 6th great-grandfather of Robert Perrault, was born in 1644 in Darcey, Autun, Bourgogne, France and came to New France in 1660 at the age of 16 or 17 as a young donné, or lay servant, of the Jesuits. He was listed in the 1666 census of Montréal as being 22 years old. The Jesuits gave him the opportunity to visit Indians and learn their languages, and, after leaving the Jesuits, he traveled among the Fox and Potawatomis. In 1667, he became a partner in a trading company and began a career that would make him an important mediator between Indians and French in the region.
In 1671, Nicolas married Madeleine Raclos who was born in 1654 in Paris, France, the second child of Godebon Raclos and Marie Viennot. Madeleine had recently immigrated to New France from Paris with her two sisters as Filles du Roi or "King's Daughters" --a program sponsored by King Louis XIV to promote the settlement and population of the colony. The girls were accompanied by their father who provided each of his daughters with a dowry of 1,000 livres and then returned to France after seeing them well married.
Although Nicolas Perrot and Madeleine Raclos had eleven children between 1672 and 1690, Madeleine apparently raised them by herself since her husband spent most of his time in the Great Lakes region until 1698. Perrot played a particularly important role in the 1680s, gaining influence through his dealings with the Indian peoples. He was one of the chosen emissaries to bring New France's western allies into the war against the Iroquois in 1684. He traveled the Great Lakes to Green Bay, then up the Fox and down the Wisconsin rivers to reach the Mississippi where he established three small forts. The site of one of these forts is at Trempealeau, Wisconsin in Perrot State Park.
In the fall of 1687, Nicolas met with cartographer Jean-Baptiste Franquelin in Québec City to give him an account of the area of the Mississippi that he had visited; Franquelin's map of 1688 is based in large part on Nicolas' information. In 1689, at Fort St. Antoine on Lake Pepin of the Mississippi River, he represented the King of France in a ceremony claiming possession of all the upper Mississippi region and the country of the Sioux. With renewed war against the Iroqouis in the 1690s, Perrot played a critical role in the West, maintaining peace among the various peoples of the Great Lakes and securing their aid against the Iroquois. His last important official act was to serve as one of the interpreters in the great peace conference of 1701, which ended the wars between the French and their western allies on one side and the Iroquois on the other.
He wrote about his experiences with the Indians in an effort to convey knowledge to the French government and influence French-Indian policy that he believed had begun to go astray. The English translation of his memoirs, THE INDIAN TRIBES OF THE UPPER MISSISSIPPI VALLEY AND REGION OF THE GREAT LAKES, was published in the early 1900s.
Nicloas Perrot died on August 13, 1717 in Bécancour, Québec, Canada. After his death, Madeleine became depressed and required care and financial support from her children. She died on July 8, 1724 in Trois-Rivières, Québec.
In 1671, Nicolas married Madeleine Raclos who was born in 1654 in Paris, France, the second child of Godebon Raclos and Marie Viennot. Madeleine had recently immigrated to New France from Paris with her two sisters as Filles du Roi or "King's Daughters" --a program sponsored by King Louis XIV to promote the settlement and population of the colony. The girls were accompanied by their father who provided each of his daughters with a dowry of 1,000 livres and then returned to France after seeing them well married.
Although Nicolas Perrot and Madeleine Raclos had eleven children between 1672 and 1690, Madeleine apparently raised them by herself since her husband spent most of his time in the Great Lakes region until 1698. Perrot played a particularly important role in the 1680s, gaining influence through his dealings with the Indian peoples. He was one of the chosen emissaries to bring New France's western allies into the war against the Iroquois in 1684. He traveled the Great Lakes to Green Bay, then up the Fox and down the Wisconsin rivers to reach the Mississippi where he established three small forts. The site of one of these forts is at Trempealeau, Wisconsin in Perrot State Park.
In the fall of 1687, Nicolas met with cartographer Jean-Baptiste Franquelin in Québec City to give him an account of the area of the Mississippi that he had visited; Franquelin's map of 1688 is based in large part on Nicolas' information. In 1689, at Fort St. Antoine on Lake Pepin of the Mississippi River, he represented the King of France in a ceremony claiming possession of all the upper Mississippi region and the country of the Sioux. With renewed war against the Iroqouis in the 1690s, Perrot played a critical role in the West, maintaining peace among the various peoples of the Great Lakes and securing their aid against the Iroquois. His last important official act was to serve as one of the interpreters in the great peace conference of 1701, which ended the wars between the French and their western allies on one side and the Iroquois on the other.
He wrote about his experiences with the Indians in an effort to convey knowledge to the French government and influence French-Indian policy that he believed had begun to go astray. The English translation of his memoirs, THE INDIAN TRIBES OF THE UPPER MISSISSIPPI VALLEY AND REGION OF THE GREAT LAKES, was published in the early 1900s.
Nicloas Perrot died on August 13, 1717 in Bécancour, Québec, Canada. After his death, Madeleine became depressed and required care and financial support from her children. She died on July 8, 1724 in Trois-Rivières, Québec.
Nicolas Perrot - Burial Record
