Essay About La Salle And North America

Lasalle
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La Salle
La Salle, Renй-Robert Cavelier, Sieur de (1643-1687), French explorer in
North America, who navigated the length of the Mississippi River and claimed
the Louisiana region for France.
La Salle was born on November 22, 1643, in Rouen, France, and educated
by the Jesuits. In 1666 he immigrated to Canada, was granted land on the
St. Lawrence River, and became a trader. From 1669 to 1670 he explored
the region south of Lakes Ontario and Erie, and he later claimed to have
discovered the Ohio River in 1671. In the course of his explorations in the
wilderness, La Salle became familiar with indigenous languages and
traditions. Because of his capabilities, French colonial governor Louis de
Buade, comte de Palluau et de Frontenac, appointed him commander of
Fort Frontenac, then being built as a trading station. In 1674 La Salle was
sent to France as Frontenacs representative to justify the building of the
fort. His mission was successful, and he received a patent of nobility.
La Salle subsequently conceived a plan for exploring and trading farther
west, and in 1677 he again visited France to secure royal approval of his
scheme. He returned with Italian explorer Henri de Tonty, who became his
associate. In 1679 he set out on a preliminary expedition, and after
establishing forts at the mouth of the Saint Joseph River and along the
Illinois River, in February 1680, he sent a group to explore the upper
Mississippi River. La Salle then returned to Fort Frontenac to procure new
supplies and funds. By spring he was able to travel west again, and he and
Tonty proceeded with their party of French and indigenous peoples to the
Mississippi, which they descended to the Gulf of Mexico in 1682, claiming all
the land drained by the river for Louis