What ever the reason, the result was the collapse of the French colony in Georgia. One can see the correct course of action but actual actions may well have been in response to royal orders. This led to complete failure.
In terms of what ifs, it is certain that a success then would have allowed French to secure the entire Eastern Sea board with sustainable colonies, much as the English did a century later.
In terms of what ifs, it is certain that a success then would have allowed French to secure the entire Eastern Sea board with sustainable colonies, much as the English did a century later.
The climate was potentially suitable for serious colonization although we do not know how disease issues would have hampered French efforts during the early going.
GUESS WHERE THE FRENCH ORIGINALLY PLANNED TO BUILD THE CAPITAL OF NEW FRANCE?
Posted by Richard Thornton | Aug 18, 2016 |
https://peopleofonefire.com/postscript-humor-guess-where-the-french-originally-planned-to-build-the-capital-of-new-france.html
ATHENS, GEORGIA
. . . to be precise, the natural terrace, which was selected in 1785 to be the location of the University of Georgia.
Now that does not make a whole lot of sense, does it, if Fort Caroline was in Florida.
This
location was where the Great White Path (of Creek Migration Legend
fame) intersected with the most northerly point of canoe navigability on
the Oconee River. About 20 miles to the west was a huge population of
Apalache and their capital. The Oconee River is a major tributary of the
Altamaha River . . . the real location of Fort Caroline. The Great
White Path interconnected a chain of Itza Maya towns in the high
mountains with the dense cluster of Apalache towns, which are now in the
Atlanta Metro Area. It originally passed through Track Rock Gap. It was
two days march between the planned capital of New France and the
massive gold deposits around present day Dahlonega and the Nacoochee
Valley. The Great White Path is now known as the US 129 highway.
As
soon as the additional 6-900 colonists arrived in a massive fleet from
France, René de Laudonnière planned to lead most of them up the Altamaha
River to the Oconee River, where they would begin building Paris
Nouveau (New Paris). He had already struck a deal with Apalache High
King to go into business together. Both the Apalache and the French
Huguenots would have grown exceedingly rich from their monopoly on trade
with Europe. The Apalache were also promised French firearms and
cannons, which would have quickly enabled them to conquer most of North
America, since they already had a standing army of 10,000 soldiers.
However, six months passed and the French fleet had not shown up.
Because the colonists were now starving, De Laudonnière decided that
they should return to France and get re-provisioned.
How Jean Ribault royally screwed up
When
Jean Ribault’s large fleet, containing almost 1,000 sailors, soldiers
and colonists arrived at Fort Caroline, the colonists were already in
the process of embarking for France, due to the lack of food. They had
dismantled the western wall of the fort so the Spanish couldn’t reoccupy
the fort in their absence.
Ribault
immediately relieved René de Laudonnière of his command. He then
ordered the soldiers at Fort Caroline to move almost all of the fort’s
cannons, munitions and food provisions into his ships, leaving the
remaining men and women helpless against a Spanish attack. Brilliant
Ribault then charged off into the mouth of a hurricane in search of a
glorious fight with the hated Spanish. However, the Spanish ducked into
the next sound south of present day Brunswick, GA and began building St.
Augustine. Meanwhile most of the French colonists for New Paris were
drowned when their ships sank in the hurricane or were blown against the
shallow waters of the Georgia coastal islands.
The
Spanish attacked Fort Caroline at night just as the hurricane rains
were arriving. Almost all the adult males were killed – either in combat
or by being hung from nearby trees. A small party of French colonists
were able to escape under the leadership of De Laudonnière. Almost all
of the people on board Ribault’s ships were killed by drowning or by
Spanish daggers.
Had
all the French colonists stayed at Fort Caroline, they would have
greatly outnumbered the Spaniards, who had no cannons and little
gunpowder. The Spaniards would have undoubtedly been decimated. Instead,
the dreams of a France Nouveau for French Protestants were drowned by a
hurricane.
How different things might have been
The
French Protestants were on excellent terms with newly crowned Queen
Elizabeth I of England, the Scots, the Dutch, the Swedish Empire and
most importantly, the thousands of Sephardic Jews, who had been evicted
from Spain. An alliance of Protestants and Sephardic Jews would have
quickly populated the Atlantic Coast of North America, with a majority
of colonists probably being Jewish. The dream of New Jerusalem would
have become a reality. Most likely, its capital would have been where
Macon, GA is today, since Macon and Jerusalem are at about the same
latitude.
Frenchmen
thought Muskogean women were hot. French women thought Creek men were
hunks because they were super tall and bathed every day. The French were
very inclined to produce Métis babies. France Nouveau would eventually
become a Métis nation in the Southern Piedmont and Appalachians. French
Huguenot and Sephardic Jewish corsairs, based on the Florida Peninsula
would have quickly strangled the Spanish Empire, since few treasure
fleets could have survived the hatred of the Sephardim toward the
Spanish. Even as it was, we now know that most of the pirates of the
Caribbean were Sephardic Jews or French Huguenots. Within a few
generations, the indigenous and mestizo peoples of the Americas would
have thrown out the Spaniards. The Americas would indeed have been a
different world today.
On
the local home front, the Mayas in France Nouveau Thang would have
transpired very differently. Instead of the public hearing “This Maya
thing is a bunch of crap” from some fossilized Georgia archaeologist,
the Director of the Anthropology Department at the École Polytechnique
Fédérale de Paris Nouveau would have announced . . .
MAIS OUI! MON ARRIÈRE-ARRIÈRE-GRAND-MÈRE WAS A MAYA PRINCESS!
