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From: Mona Andrée Rainville <>
Subject: Re: [Q-R] Link to Samuel de Champlain's Last Will
Date: Thu, 08 Apr 2010 23:46:32 -0400
References: <7ef83.683c89bc.38efee23@aol.com>
In-Reply-To: <7ef83.683c89bc.38efee23@aol.com>


You are most welcome, Bob.

The 6 pages document is Champlain's will. The 4 pages document is
Frontenac's.

As for help transcribing the document, here is the transcription of the
first page. It will give you a key to help you decipher the writing on
the following pages. I suggest you all give it a try, and even post your
efforts so that you gain some experience at this sort of thing by making
this a communal undertaking. We can worry about the translation after
the transcription has been made. This is not a particularly difficult
example of writing and with a bit of patience, you can all succeed at it.

I'll tell you this about this Will, though. A large part of it relates
to his faith in God and is commitment to the Catholic religion. His
largest bequests, involving most of the assets he posses in New France,
are to the Church.
He makes an exception to this general bequest to the Church, by granting
pieces of clothing to Marin Maçon, to Poisson his valet, and to
Bonaventure his god child; to Hélène the wife of Mr. Hébert; to
Marguerite, the godchild of the wife of ... to be share with her cousin
Hélène;
Madame Giffard and Father Charles Lalemant each receive a pious
painting, the later also receiving his navigation instruments.
He requests that Father Lalemant takes possession of all his papers and
sends them along to his wife, along with a couple of pelts and a diamond
ring he owns.
In another section of the Will, he explains that he is not free to
dispose of the assets he still possesses in France unless his wife has
predeceased him, because of a clause of their marriage contract provides
a survival clause, where the the last spouse left standing gets it all.
He does nonetheless provide for how these assets ought to be distributed
and to whom, should his wife have died before him. Most of the legacies
to persons living inNew France are provided for in this contingent way.
So it can be safely said that, Hélène Boulé having survived Champlain,
none of the persons so named in the will ever received anything more
than his touching attention.

Champlain, of course, did not write this will in his own hand. By the
year 1635, he could scarsely manage to hold a pen and his signature had
become shaky. The writing belongs to Nicolas de la Ville, which is why
seven persons were called to witness the drawing of it and sign the will.

Well, there you have it. Now get cracking!

Cheers,

Mona

PS: You will find here:
http://www.archive.org/stream/rapporta20archuoft/rapporta20archuoft_djvu.txt
the text of the arguments filed in court during the opposition of
Champlain's last will. Although it has sccessfully been homologated by
the Court, in Paris, on July 11th, 1637, it was later contested by a
distant relative, a cousin named Marie Camarel, who convinced the court
to annul the will. This jugement was rendered on the 15th of March
1639. Note that the article in question was writen before the actual
will was found, and is based solely on the record of the courts.

=========================
Samuel de CHAMPLAIN
Last Will and Testament
page 1

«Au nom du Père et du Fils et du Saint-Esprit.

Moy Samuel de Champlin sain d'esprit et d'entendement
considérant qu'il n'y a rien de si incertain que l'heure de
la mort, ne désirant pas estre surpris sans déclarer
mes dernières volontés, je laisse ce présent escrit afin
qu'elles soient manifestes et notoires à tout le monde.

Donc mon dieu constitué en nostre présence et de
toute vostre cour céleste, je proteste que je veux vivre
et mourir en la foy et religion Catholique, Apostolique
et Romaine et recevoir tous les sacremens dont je
puis estre capable qu'elle ne refuse point à ses enfants.
Je suis prest de signer de mon sang et de ma mort toutes
les vérités qu'elle propose à croire comme aussy l'obé-
issance à vos Saints commandements.
Je pardonne de bon coeur à tous ceux qui m'ont
offencé, et ce pour l'amour de tous à mon dieu qui le
voulez et désirez ainsi. Et supplie bien humblement
tous ceux que j'ay offencé me faire ce bien que de me
pardonner.
Vous Mavez donné une âme raisonnable ô mon dieu
je la remets entre vos mains vous suppliant d'en disposer
pour vostre gloire. Pour mon corps je le laisse icy
en depost jusqu'à la Ressurection dernière qu'en vous
le réunirez à mon âme pour participer à sa béatitude.
Sçachant en outre que je ne suis que le despensier
de ce que vous m'avez mis en main,voicy comme je
dispose des biens temporels que vous m'avez donné.
Je désire donc ô mon dieu que la très saincte Vierge
vostre mère soit héritière de ce que j'ay icy de meuble.//


wrote:
> Formidable! Merci infiniement.
>
> What is the difference between the 6-page document and the 4-page
> document.
>
> Is anyone going to do us the favor of rendering these into English, or
> maybe into readable French?
>
> --bob in monterey
>
>
> In a message dated 4/7/2010 4:52:17 A.M. Pacific Daylight Time,
> writes:
>
> Good morning,
>
> For all of you who might be interested by this Last Will, it can be
> viewed - all six pages of it - here:
>
> http://www.champlain2004.org/html/10/16_f.html
>
> The reference gives its present location as "FR CHAN LXII 138 Rés
> 282"
> at the French Archives Nationales in Paris. The CHAN is an
> acronym for
> the "Centre historique des Archives nationales à Paris".
>
> Cheers,
>
> Mona
> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~For the list web page, goto:
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