Charles-Michel Mésaiger
| Charles-Michel Mésaiger | |
|---|---|
| Born | c. 1689 Paris, France |
| Died | 1766-08-07 Rouen, France |
| Occupation | Jesuit priest; missionary; procurator of New France missions |
Charles-Michel Mésaiger (c. 1689 – 7 August 1766) was a Jesuit priest and missionary who served in New France during the early eighteenth century. He is notable for accompanying Pierre de Varennes et de La Vérendrye on his westward expedition in 1731, during which the party passed through Grand Portage on the north shore of Lake Superior.
Early life and formation
Mésaiger was born in Paris, France around 1689. He entered the Jesuit noviciate in Paris on 9 (or 19) September 1706. Between 1710 and 1715 he taught at the Collège Louis-le-Grand, then studied theology until 1720, followed by a year teaching rhetoric at the Jesuit college in Eu. He sailed for Canada in 1722, arriving that summer.[1]
Mission work in the pays d'en haut
In 1723, Mésaiger was assigned to the Ottawa mission at Michilimackinac and given charge of the Saint-Joseph mission, situated probably near present-day Niles, Michigan. There he worked to reconcile the Fox with the Illinois and other western nations. He took his final Jesuit vows on 25 July 1723.[1]
The La Vérendrye expedition and Grand Portage
In 1731, Mésaiger joined Pierre de Varennes et de La Vérendrye as chaplain and missionary on the expedition to reach the western interior and make contact with the Mandan nation. The party travelled westward along the north shore of Lake Superior, arriving at Grand Portage in August 1731. At Grand Portage the expedition faltered: the voyageurs and engagés mutinied, refusing to go further. Mésaiger used his influence among the men to persuade a group of scouts to press on, and a party was dispatched to Rainy Lake, where Fort Saint-Pierre was subsequently built.[1]
The expedition resumed on 8 June 1732 and reached the Lake of the Woods, where La Vérendrye established Fort Saint-Charles. Mésaiger's health, however, had deteriorated during the journey. He departed for Montreal in 1733, travelling with Christophe Dufrost de La Jemerais. On 9 August of that year, at Michilimackinac, he drafted an agreement between La Jemerais and La Vérendrye's commercial partners.[1]
Later career in Quebec and France
By 1735 Mésaiger was ill and residing in Quebec. He resumed duties in 1736, teaching hydrography at the Quebec college, and by 1740 served as minister and bursar. From 1741 to 1749 he held the office of procurator of the Quebec college and the Canadian Jesuit mission. He subsequently travelled to Paris as procurator for the Jesuit missions in Canada, where he also managed affairs on behalf of the Ursulines of Quebec.[1]
Around 1754 his health failed again, and he was succeeded as procurator by Alain de Launay in 1755. Following the suppression of the Society of Jesus in France in 1762, Mésaiger retired to Rouen, where he died on 7 August 1766.[1]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 Lucien Campeau."Lucien Campeau, "Mésaiger, Charles-Michel," Dictionary of Canadian Biography, vol. 3."[website].Dictionary of Canadian Biography, vol. 3 (University of Toronto/Université Laval).1974.University of Toronto/Université Laval.Link.(Rights: copyrighted | Access: open)
Sources consulted by Lucien Campeau in the original DCB article:[1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6]
External links
- ↑ "Lettres du père Charles-Michel Mésaiger."[record].AMUQ (Archives des missionnaires oblats de Marie-Immaculée, Québec), Fonds des pères jésuites.(Rights: unknown | Access: open)
- ↑ "ASJCF fonds, items 580; 581; 635; 855; Cahier des voeux, 33v; Fonds Rochemonteix, 4018, 67, 74, 159, 489."[record].ASJCF (Archives de la Compagnie de Jésus, province du Canada français).(Rights: unknown | Access: open)
- ↑ Pierre Margry."Découvertes et établissements des Français dans l'ouest et dans le sud de l'Amérique septentrionale, VI."[book].vol. VI, pp. 586–87.(Rights: unknown | Access: open)
- ↑ Antoine Champagne."Les La Vérendrye et le poste de l'Ouest."[book].pp. 119–35.(Rights: unknown | Access: open)
- ↑ Antoine Champagne."Nouvelles études sur les La Vérendrye et le poste de l'Ouest."[book].pp. 113–17.(Rights: unknown | Access: open)
- ↑ Camille de Rochemonteix."Les Jésuites et la Nouvelle-France au XVIIIe siècle."[book].vol. I, pp. 205, 211.(Rights: unknown | Access: open)