Cartier, Jacques (1534) (Explorer). Premiere Relation de Jacques Cartier de la Terre Neufve, dite la Nouve/le France, Trouvée en l'an 7534. [First published in Italian in 1565. Re-published 1924 (based on a manuscript copy of the original French text) as The Voyages of Jacques Cartier, with introduction and translation by H. P. Biggar, Publication No. 11, Public Archives of Canada; and 1986 by M. Bideaux, Jacques Cartier. Relations. Edition critique. Université de Montréal.]

Jacques Cartier (b. 749 7, d. 7 55 7/ is generally credited to have been the first European to have visited what is now Prince Edward Island. At least he is the first to have left a written record of his visit — though it seems likely that the account of his voyages was written up by someone else. During his first voyage to the New World in 1534 he caught sight of the north coast of the island on the evening of 29 June. On the next day he reached the coast, and continuing westward along the north shore, he landed at several places. There has been much speculation as to the location of the spots at which Cartier landed — the sites most favoured by historians are between Cascumpec Bay and North Cape (which is clearly identified in his report) — the problem however is insoluble due to the vagueness of the details given in his account. On 7 July he rounded North Cape, and continuing south ward along the west coast, he landed at four different places where, he says, he took note of those trees to which he was able to put a name — though it is possible that his list may also include species that he saw the previous day. That his landings included areas west of Ma/peque Bay is supported by the present distribution of cedar, one of the trees he recorded. His tree list, as he himself says, is only a partial list — there were other species that he could not name. Thus the absence from his list of maple, beech and yellow birch (the three dominants in the island ’3 hardwood forests) may not be due to his not having come across them, but rather because the New World species are somewhat different from their equivalents in Europe. We must also remember that his landings were on the coast and that it is very unlikely, given the shortness of time and the sightings of native peoples, that he would have gone any great distance in from the shoreline. For he sailed off on the evening of 7 July never to see the island again.

REFERENCES:

Bideaux, M. (1986) Jacques Cartier. Relations. Edition critique. Université de Montréal. pp. 107-08, 326-28. Biggar, H. P. (1924) The Voyages of Jacques Cartier. pp. 39-43 (footnotes).

Clark, A. H. (1959) Three Centuries and the Island. University of Toronto Press. pp. 15, 225-26.

Harvey, D. C. (1926) The French Regime in Prince Edward island. Yale University Press. pp. 2—6.

Trudel, M. (1966) Cartier, Jacques. Dictionary of Canadian Biography, I: 165-72.

Toute ycelle terre [the northern coast] est basse et unye la plus belle qui soict possible de voir et plaine de beaulx arbres et prairies [Bideaux, p. 107]

Nous y dessandimes celuy jour en quatre lielx [on the western coast], pour voir les arbres, queulx sont merveilleusement beaulx, et de grande odeur. Et trouvames, que Tree Spec/'68. c’estoint cedres, iffz, pins, ormes blans, frainnes, sauldres et aultres pluseurs a nous incongneuz, touz arbres sans fruictz. Les terres 00 ii n'y a bouays, sont fort belles, et toutez plaines de poys grouaiseliers blans et rouges frasses franboysses et blé sauvaige, comme seille quel il semble y abvoir esté semé et labouré. et y a

plusieurs teurtres et ramyers et aultres ouaiseaulx. (Bideaux, p. 108]

All this coast [the northern coast] is low and flat [or: even] but the finest land one can see, and full of beautiful trees and meadows [Biggar, p. 40]

We landed that day in four places [on the western coast] to see the trees which are wonderfully beautiful and very fragrant. We discovered that there were cedars, yew- trees, pines, white elms, ash trees, willows and others, many [rather: several] of them unknown to us and all trees without fruit. The soil where there are no trees is also very rich and is covered with peas, white and red gooseberry bushes [or: currants], strawberries, raspberries and wild oats [or: wheat] like rye, which one would say had been sown there and tilled. there are many turtle-doves, wood—pigeons and other birds. [Biggar, p. 43]

Tree species.

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