Louisiana (French: Louisiane) or French Louisiana (Louisiane française) was an administrative district of New France. In 1682 the French explorer René-Robert Cavelier, Sieur de la Salle erected a cross near the mouth of the See more

Exploration of Louisiana
17th-century explorers
In 1660, France started a policy of expansion into the interior of North America from what is … See more

The French possessions of North America were under the authority of a single Catholic diocese, whose seat was in Quebec. The archbishop, named and paid by the king, was spiritual head of all New France. With loose religious supervision, the fervor of the … See more

Ancien Régime France wished to make Native Americans subjects of the king and good Christians, but the distance from Metropolitan France and the sparseness of French settlement … See more

In the 18th century, Louisiana included most of the Mississippi River basin (see drawing alongside) from what is now the Midwestern United … See more

It was not easy for an absolute monarchy to administer Louisiana, a territory several times larger than European France. Louis XIV and his successors tried to impose their absolutist ambitions on the colony, often without giving the colonial administration … See more

It is difficult to estimate the total population of France's colonies in North America. While historians have relatively precise sources regarding the colonists and enslaved Africans, … See more