Samuel De Champlain

When I chose to read my biography about Samuel de Champlain I was not too enthused. I didn’t have high expectations and thought it would be dull, but little did I know that I would thoroughly enjoy reading this book. I learned so much more about not only Champlain but also about the founding and history of New England and Canada that I had previously known. I am very satisfied with my choice of biography. Samuel de Champlain was born on August 13, 1574 in the small port town of Brouage, France. His father was a fishing captain though he never taught his son the craft of seamanship. Samuel had to teach himself this skill and became very good at it. Determined to succeed Champlain pushed for France to colonize in North America. He was granted
He taught me to persevere and stick with it even when the going gets tough. Many times he was told that the expedition to North America should be cancelled because not enough people were supporting it. Refusing to give up, even though he was told that he should, he stuck with it and it turned out to be a huge success. Another thing that I learned is friendship is a very powerful thing. Samuel friended so many Native Americans and he helped them during their famines and times of war. When he needed help with making it through the winter fighting scurvy they returned the favor and gave him fresh meat and berries to cure it. Lastly, I learned that I am third. Samuel always put God first in his life and was constantly setting up missions and churches. In fact, on his death bed when asked what he wanted his worth and money to go to he said, “ I nominate the Virgin Mary my heir.” He also said that his wealth would go to the Church that he built, Our Lady of Recovery, in Canada. Being the great leader that he was Samuel always put other people before him too. When all the settlers fell sick with scurvy he was scrambling around finding food and supplies to give them to help and didn’t even worry about his own health. Another time three Indian girls appeared at his door during winter and appeared to be orphans. Food was at a low at the time but right away he gave them a lot of food and his cabin to live in. He
Do you think you dealt with the Iroquois in the best way, what would you do differently? I’d ask this because the Iroquois were taking over and raiding other tribes. He went to war with the Iroquois, regretfully, and lost big time. Even Samuel was badly wounded in the battle. I’d also ask, which expedition was the most productive? I’d ask him this because he had many successful journeys, but I’d like to know which one was the most important to him. Lastly I’d ask, looking back do you regret any of the decisions you made about New France, why? I’d ask this because I’d think it’d be really interesting to hear it firsthand from Champlain about what the expedition was like and what he did right or wrong. I would definitely recommend this book to a friend even though I, myself, was hesitant to read it at first. It taught me a lot more about New France and the struggles they endured. I really never encountered a boring part during the book either. It taught me how important Samuel was in not only France’s history but also in the history and founding of Canada and America. I am very satisfied with my decision on reading the