Iroquois Wars
Encyclopedia
First Invasion
In January 1666, the French invaded the Iroquois homeland in present-day New YorkNew York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
. The first invasion force was led by Daniel de Rémy de Courcelle
Daniel de Rémy de Courcelle
Daniel de Rémy de Courcelle, Sieur de Montigny, de La Fresnaye et de Courcelle was the governor general of New France from 1665 to 1672....
. His men were greatly outnumbered by the Iroquois and were forced to withdraw before any significant action could take place. Although the invasion was abortive, they took Chief Canaqueese prisoner.
Second Invasion
The second invasion force was led by the aristocrat Alexandre de ProuvilleAlexandre de Prouville
Marquis Alexandre de Prouville de Tracy was a French aristocrat, statesman, and military leader. He was the seigneur of Tracy-le-Val and Tracy-le-Mont...
the "Marquis de Tracy" and viceroy of New France
New France
New France was the area colonized by France in North America during a period beginning with the exploration of the Saint Lawrence River by Jacques Cartier in 1534 and ending with the cession of New France to Spain and Great Britain in 1763...
. From his base in Quebec City, as Lieutenant General of the Carignan-Salières Regiment, he initiated a brutal war against the Iroquois peoples. After defeating them and destroying their crops and villages, he launched an attack against the Mohawk nation and causing destruction to their territory. Marquis Alexandre de Prouville de Tracy seized all the Mohawk lands in the name of the king of France, and forced the Mohawks to accept the Roman Catholic faith and to adopt the French language as taught by the Jesuit missionaries. With their immediate European support cut off, the Iroquois sued for peace, to which France agreed.