The Life and Times of Samuel de Champlain
Des Sauvages and other Documents Related to the Period before 1604
Edited by Conrad E. Heidenreich and K. Janet Ritch
During his life, Champlain wrote four substantial books about his activities, comprising some 1,300 printed pages, five folding maps, 22 small scale maps and plans, and 14 illustrations. In addition there are well over 200 more pages of documents that concern his life, including the codicil from a will of an uncle leaving him an extensive gift (1601), a journal of his last voyage to Canada (1633), and his Testament (1635). The last edition of Champlain’s Works in French and English was produced under the editorship of Henry Percival Biggar and printed by The Champlain Society (1922-36). It was limited to 500 sets of six volumes with a portfolio of maps.
In view of the importance of Champlain to Canada we are presenting here the first volume of a new English edition with original documents in French and Spanish. Following an introduction to this project is an interpretive essay on Champlain’s early life; his relationship to King Henri IV and service in the monarch’s Brittany army (1595-97); his departure for the West Indies and return to Spain; the gift from his uncle Guillaume Allene, then resident in Cádiz; and his participation in the French expedition to Canada in 1603. A second essay is concerned with Champlain’s French; the publishing history of his first book Des Sauvages; the problems in establishing an authoritative French text; and the editorial principles and procedures used in this volume. All the original documentation has been meticulously transcribed and newly translated. The documents which introduce new ground-breaking material include:
- the collated text of Des Sauvages (1603, 1604).
- Champlain’s pay record in the Brittany army (1595-97).
- the generous gift from his uncle before Champlain came to Canada (1601).
- a lengthy summary of Des Sauvages published by Victor Cayet (1605).
- King Henri’s commissions for the voyage of 1603.
- early biographical statements about Champlain.
The earliest French versions of Des Sauvages are also compared with its first English translation by Richard Hakluyt (1625). All essays and documents are extensively annotated. There are six appendices, ten illustrations, four maps, and a list of some 350 references. Approx. 340 pages.
To be published in 2010.
