Synopsis:
In 1636, the Saint-Jehan leaves France carrying the first families to Acadia (modern day
Nova Scotia), including 12 women and 12 children. In the wake of the Martins, Bourgeois and Landrys, will follow
the Broussards, LeBlancs, Arsenaults and others, some 60 families, which will form the nucleus of the Acadian people.
In 1702, Joseph Broussard (a.k.a. Beausoleil) is born in French controlled Acadia. By the time
he reaches young adulthood, the English control his homeland. At 13, he witnesses a dramatic event that will forever
change his life and greatly influence what he will become.
After first being asked to leave the territory, the Acadians are allowed to remain and keep their properties
provided they sign an Oath of Allegiance to the British Crown, which recognizes in principle their freedom of worship and
neutrality in the event of war. During four decades they will successfully negotiate these specific rights. It
is this period that historians call Acadias golden age when, after more than a century, these settlers of French origin define
themselves as a distinct people.
The mid 18th century sees new conflicts arise between the French and the English. In 1755, Governor
Charles Lawrence of Nova Scotia gives the order to deport approximately 8,000 Acadians from their homeland. The
governors of the Thirteen colonies, especially William Shirley of Massachusetts, will be seen as accomplices.
Not all Acadians take their lot passively. Beausoleil becomes the heroic leader of a group of
Acadians who will form the core of the underground resistance against English expansion. For years, Broussard and
his comrades elude the English authorities with the help of the natives who are teachers of guerilla warfare of the time.
Beausoleil is finally incarcerated at Halifax in July 1763, at the end of the Seven Years War. Beausoleil
will eventually find his new Acadia. By the spring of 1765, he is in Louisiana where he will live out the rest
of his life with his family and friends.
**********************************************************
