King's Daughters and Founding Mothers: The Filles du Roi, 1663-1673

by Peter J. Gagne

A groundbreaking biographical dictionary of the nearly 800 women and girls sent from France to populate Quebec between 1663 and 1673. The introduction explains the need for the program, compares it to similar initiatives by the English and the Spanish, dispels misconceptions about Filles du Roi and gives a history of the program in Canada. After defining who can be considered a Filles du Roi this work presents comprehensive biographies of all the "King's Daughters" including a wealth of information never before available in English. This 2-volume set also inludes biographies of women falsely identified as Filles du Roi, a glossary, a thematic index and an index of husbands.

Genres: History, Nonfiction

662 pages, Large softcover, 2 volumes

First published January 1, 2001

About the author

Peter Gagne graduated from Boston College. He has a master's degree in French from Boston University and a master's degree in History from Université Laval, Québec.

Peter has been the reference archivist at the Musée de la Civilisation in Quebec City since 2007.

Reviews

[Pamela]

This book and its companion are necessary if you are searching Canadian French genealogy. No other book that I know of researched the lives of this pioneering women.

[Fred Provoncha]

More stories about our beginnings, vital to anyone with French Canadian ancestry..fvp

[Christine McCloud]

I didn’t read every biographical sketch, but did read the background info & my filles’ info. Definitely well-researched & some interesting statistics in there as well. It gave me a clearer picture of my ancestors’ lives back then.

[Annie Bryant]

As a descendant of some of the Filles du Roi, I have immensely enjoyed the books written by Peter J. Gagne. His book provides insight into the lives of these courageous women.