Grade by Grade
A. New France and British North America, 1713–1800 · New France and British North America, 1713 to 1800

Le Grand Dérangement: The Expulsion of the Acadians

A1 A2 A3About 50 minutes
Learning goals
  • I can explain the causes of the Acadian Expulsion, beginning in 1755.
  • I can describe the consequences of the Expulsion for Acadian families and communities.
  • I can explain the event from different perspectives: Acadian, British, and Mi'kmaq.
  • I can explain how the Expulsion is remembered today.

Words to know

Acadians
Descendants of French settlers who lived in Acadia (today's Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island) from the early 1600s.
expulsion
Forcing people to leave a place.
deportation
Officially sending people out of a place, often by force.
oath of allegiance
A promise to be loyal to a ruler or country, including fighting for them if asked.
neutral
Not taking sides in a conflict.
aboiteau
A dyke with a gate that let fresh water drain out to sea but kept salt water from flooding the marshland. Acadians used them to farm salt marshes.
Le Grand Dérangement
"The Great Upheaval": what Acadians call the Expulsion.

A day in 1755

On 5 September 1755, in the Acadian village of Grand-Pré, the men and boys were ordered to gather in their church. The doors closed. A British officer read an order: their lands, houses and animals were taken, and they and their families would be sent away.

How could this happen to farm families who had lived there for over a hundred years? This lesson investigates the causes and consequences.

Who were the Acadians?

In Grade 4 French you met Acadians today, with their flag and the noisy Tintamarre on 15 August. Their history begins in the early 1600s, when French settlers came to Acadia.

  • They farmed the rich salt marshes around the Bay of Fundy, using dykes with gates called aboiteaux to keep the sea out.
  • They lived close to and traded with the Mi'kmaq, and some families intermarried.
  • They were Catholic and spoke French.

After the Treaty of Utrecht (1713), Acadia became the British colony of Nova Scotia. The Acadians stayed on their farms, now under British rule.

high tideSea water pushes the gate shut:the sea stays out.dykefarmlandlow tideFresh water from the fieldspushes the gate open and drains.dykefarmlandseasea
How an aboiteau works (simplified). A wooden pipe runs through the dyke with a flap gate on the sea side: the tide closes it, and fresh water from the fields opens it to drain.

Causes: the oath and the war

  1. The oath. The British wanted the Acadians to swear an oath of allegiance to the British king. The Acadians did not want to promise to fight against France, or against the Mi'kmaq. In 1730 many took an oath on the understanding that they would stay neutral (not fight for either side). Acadians began to be called the "neutral French."
  2. Growing tension. In 1749, the British founded Halifax and brought in Protestant settlers. Mi'kmaq warriors fought the British, who were taking their land. France built forts nearby and encouraged Acadians to resist.
  3. War again. By 1755 Britain and France were at war in North America again. In June 1755 the British captured the French Fort Beauséjour, and found some Acadians among its defenders.
  4. Lawrence's decision. Charles Lawrence, the British lieutenant governor of Nova Scotia, did not trust the Acadians. He demanded an unconditional oath. When Acadian leaders refused, he jailed them. On 28 July 1755 Lawrence and his council decided to deport the Acadians. They also wanted the Acadians' good farmland for British settlers.

Consequences: the Great Upheaval

  • From 1755 to 1763, about 10 000 Acadians were forced out. Homes and barns were burned so they could not return.
  • People were put on ships and sent to the Thirteen Colonies, to England and France, and to the Caribbean. Families were separated, sometimes forever.
  • Many died of disease, cold and hunger on crowded ships and in strange places.
  • Some escaped into the woods and survived with help from the Mi'kmaq, or fled to Quebec and other French areas.
  • One large group later went to Louisiana. Their descendants are called Cajuns (from "Acadiens").
  • New England settlers (called Planters) were given the Acadian farms.
  • From the 1760s, Acadians were allowed to return, but not to their old farms. Many settled in what is now New Brunswick, Cape Breton, Prince Edward Island and other parts of Nova Scotia.
CAUSESEVENTCONSEQUENCESRefused anunconditional oathHalifax founded(1749)War: FortBeauséjour (1755)Lawrence’sdecision (1755)FamiliesseparatedCajuns inLouisianaPlanters giventhe farmsReturn, but not tothe old farmsThe Expulsion1755 to 1763about 10 000Acadiansforced out
Several causes came together to produce the Expulsion, and it had many consequences that lasted long after 1763.
PerspectiveHow they saw it (a summary)
Acadian familiesWe were peaceful farmers who promised to stay neutral. We lost our homes, our land and often our families. It was a terrible injustice.
British officials (like Lawrence)In wartime, a large French Catholic population that would not swear full loyalty was a danger. Removing them made the colony safe for Britain (and freed land for British settlers).
Mi'kmaqThe British were taking our land and attacking our allies. Our relatives and friends were sent away. We had never given up this land.
New England settlers (Planters)Good, cleared farmland was offered to us. (Many did not think about the people who had been forced off it.)
One event, many perspectives. Historians try to understand each one, while still judging that forcing families from their homes was wrong.
Worked example

Let's find causes and consequences

Sort these into causes and consequences of the Expulsion: Acadians refused an unconditional oath; families separated; war between Britain and France; Cajun communities in Louisiana; British wanted the Acadians' farmland; Planters settled on Acadian farms.

  1. Ask: did it happen before and help make the Expulsion happen? Then it is a cause.
  2. Ask: did it happen because of the Expulsion? Then it is a consequence.
  3. Causes: refusing the unconditional oath, the war, the British wanting the farmland.
  4. Consequences: families separated, Cajun communities in Louisiana, Planters on Acadian farms.

Causes: the oath, the war, the desire for farmland. Consequences: separated families, Cajuns in Louisiana, Planters on the farms.

Remembering today

  • In 2003, a Royal Proclamation signed in the name of the Queen acknowledged the wrongs and suffering caused by the deportation. It named 28 July as a yearly Day of Commemoration of the Great Upheaval, starting in 2005.
  • The Landscape of Grand-Pré in Nova Scotia is a UNESCO World Heritage Site (since 2012), honouring both the Acadians' dyked farmland and their memory of the Expulsion.
  • Acadians today live across the Maritimes, Quebec, Louisiana and beyond. Their language and culture survived, which is a story of resilience.

Continuity and change

The Expulsion changed where Acadians lived and who farmed the Fundy marshes. But Acadian identity showed continuity: the language, faith, music and family ties survived and are celebrated today, for example on 15 August, National Acadian Day.

Hands-on activity

Letters across the sea

You need: paper and a pen.

Imagine two Acadian cousins separated in 1755: one sent to Massachusetts, the other who escaped into the woods with Mi'kmaq help.

  1. Write a short letter (6 to 8 sentences) from one cousin to the other, in 1756.
  2. Include at least two real facts from this lesson (the church gathering at Grand-Pré, burned homes, the ships, the oath, the Mi'kmaq, etc.).
  3. Show the writer's feelings and hopes.
  4. Then, in 2 sentences, explain how a British official might have described the same events.

Look for: accurate facts, a clear Acadian perspective, and a fair contrast with the British perspective. This is historical fiction, not a real primary source.

Your turn

1

Who were the Acadians?

2

Why did many Acadians refuse an unconditional oath of allegiance?

3

Who decided to deport the Acadians in 1755?

4

About how many Acadians were deported between 1755 and 1763?

5

Name two consequences of the Expulsion.

6

What happens every 28 July?

More practice: warm-up

1

What is an aboiteau?

2

What do Acadians call the Expulsion?

3

In which village were the men gathered in the church on 5 September 1755?

4

What are the descendants of Acadians in Louisiana called?

5

What city did the British found in Nova Scotia in 1749?

More practice: on your own

1

Why did the British burn Acadian homes and barns?

2

How did the Mi'kmaq help some Acadians?

3

Explain how the war between Britain and France was a cause of the Expulsion.

4

Why couldn't returning Acadians go back to their old farms?

5

How does the 2003 Royal Proclamation show that how we view the past can change?

Challenge

1

Was land a cause of the Expulsion, or only security? Explain using evidence.

2

Historical perspective asks us to understand people in their own time. Does that mean the Expulsion was acceptable? Explain.

3

Compare the Expulsion with the Treaty of Utrecht: how did a decision made far away in 1713 lead to events in 1755?

Check your understanding

Quiz

1.

What did Acadians want instead of an unconditional oath of allegiance?

2.

Who ordered the deportation of the Acadians in 1755?

3.

About how many Acadians were deported from 1755 to 1763?

4.

Which was a consequence of the Expulsion?

5.

What is 28 July in Canada?

6.

Who helped some Acadians survive in the woods?

For parents and teachers

Big idea: The Expulsion of the Acadians (1755 to 1763) had several causes (the oath question, the war, British desire for land) and devastating consequences; it looks very different from Acadian, British and Mi'kmaq perspectives (A1, A2, A3).

How to help at home:

  • Look at photos of Grand-Pré (Parks Canada and UNESCO websites) and the statue of Evangeline there; explain that Evangeline is a famous 1847 poem, a work of fiction inspired by the Expulsion.
  • Listen to Acadian music together and talk about how culture survived.
  • If your family has been forced to leave a home (war, disaster), your child may make personal connections; let them lead.

Common difficulties:

  • Mixing up causes and consequences: ask "Did it happen before and help cause it, or after because of it?"
  • Thinking perspective means agreeing: understanding why something happened does not make it right.
  • Forgetting the Mi'kmaq: they were allies of the Acadians and the original people of the land.
  • Mixing up 28 July (remembering the Expulsion) and 15 August (National Acadian Day, a celebration).