Battle of Long Sault

In the spring of 1660, Adam Dollard des Ormeaux received support from the governor of Montreal, Paul Chomedey de Maisonneuve, to organize an expedition with the intention of ambushing Iroquois warriors who were reportedly approaching from the west to attack Ville Marie and French colonists.

Dollard leads his men to Long Sault

Against the advice of seasoned Indian fighters, Dollard and a band of 17 young, inexperienced Frenchmen set out from the fort at Ville Marie (modern day Montreal) crossing what is known today as Lac des Deux Montagnes, and moved up to the mouth of the Ottawa river. Dollard and his party were accompanied by 44 Huron and Algonquin allies, including Annaotaha who some describe as an exceptional warrior. [Francis "et al.", page 71.] After a 10 day canoe trek up the Saint Lawrence and Ottawa Rivers, they set up camp in an abandoned stockade not far from the Long Sault rapids, near the current day Carillon Generating Station.

The Iroquois attack

Shortly after arriving at Long Sault, Dollard's party was set upon by an Iroquois forward attack party numbering about 300 strong with a 400 warriors waiting in reserve as reinforcements. The French took refuge in the derelict stockade and succeeded in holding off the Iroquois for one week until water and gunpowder ran low. The Iroquois warriors called forth reinforcements, and with certain death upon them, some of the Huron who had been previously been adopted by the Iroquois (through other encounters and who had been fighting with the Iroquois this time) began to persuade their brethren to join the Iroquois and avoid a certain death with the French. This ploy succeeded and many of the Huron warriors who had been fighting with the French defected to join the ranks of the Iroquois. With the loss of their Native allies, the fate of Dollard des Ormeaux was sealed. The Iroquois waited for their reinforcements before leading a final assault on the French. [Francis "et al.", page 71-72.] The French party's demise was guaranteed when a gunpowder keg exploded within the palisade, ripping open their defenses and allowing the Iroquois to overrun the defenses. All but nine of Dollard's party were killed in the siege and ensuing breach of the defenses. The surviving nine were taken prisoner and killed later.Fact|date=November 2007 For reasons unknown, the Iroquois did not continue east to capture Montreal following their conflict with Dollard's party.

Alternate accounts

The deaths of Dollard des Ormeaux and his men were recounted by Catholic nuns and entered into official Church history. For over a century Dollard des Ormeaux became a heroic figure in New France, and then in Quebec, who exemplified selfless personal sacrifice, who had been martyrs for the church, and for the colony. Nineteenth-century historians converted the battle into a religious and nationalistic epic in which zealous Roman Catholics deliberately sacrificed themselves to fend off an attack on New France. Revenge, trophies and captives were the traditional goals of Iroquoian warfare and the Iroquois probably returned home well satisfied.

However, there were other versions of the story, even then, that raised questions about his intentions and actions. For one, many historians now believe that Dollard and his men went down the Ottawa River for other reasons and did not even know of the approaching Iroquois. Nevertheless, Dollard did indeed divert the Iroquois army temporarily from its objective in 1660, thereby allowing the settlers to harvest their crop and escape famine.

Some historians have claimed that all Frenchmen including Dollard were killed in the last valiant explosion of the famous grenade that had not made it over the wall of the fort and landed in the midst of the remaining French. Others claim that some were captured and tortured to death (Francis, Jones and Smith, 2004.), and in some extreme cases even cannibalized by the Iroquois.cite web |author=Moogk, Peter |title=Dollard Des Ormeaux, Adam |date= |work=The Canadian Encyclopedia |url=http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.com/index.cfm?PgNm=TCE&Params=A1ARTA0002338 |accessdate=2007-11-17 ] Also there are variations as to who relayed the fate of Dollard des Ormeaux; some versions claim it was Huron survivors who delivered the grim news to the French at Ville-Marie, others claim that Catholic nuns recounted the story.

Modern historians have looked beyond the politically charged elements surrounding Dollard des Ormeaux and come up with theories that differ from the traditionally told stories of his life and demise.Fact|date=November 2007 For instance, some have hypothesized that Dollard's motivation for heading east from Ville Marie may not have been to head off the Iroquois war party. Instead, it was well known at the time that the Iroquois finished their hunting expeditions for furs in the spring, and an enterprising Frenchmen with military experience, such as Dollard, may have been tempted to test his mettle by risking the voyage up the Ottawa River.Fact|date=November 2007

Some historians have also posited that the Iroquois did not continue to Montreal it was not representative of Iroquois warfare tactics. Iroquois war parties sought the trophies of battle and taking prisoners. If Dollard des Ormeaux and his party did indeed stave off the Iroquois attack for seven days, their defeat would have satisfied that goal and aspect of Iroquoian warfare.

Notes

References

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