All posts by Jacques Gagné

England, France, Genealogy, Huguenot, New France, Quebec, Research tips

How to Find Protestant Abjurations in Quebec

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Over the past several years, I have posted several articles about the Huguenots, or French Protestants, who came to New France. Once here, many of them signed abjurations, or declarations in which they renounced their faith, and they became Catholic.

The act of ‘’abjuration’’ was the first step to be taken by a Protestant individual. The second step was an act of ‘’confirmation,’’ conducted by a Catholic priest at a local or regional parish or at a regional convent. Guy Perron in his superb blog refers to this subject as Confirmations.

Recently, the Bibliothèque et Archives nationales du Québec (BAnQ) has replaced its online research tool Pistard with a much better search engine, Advitam, https://advitam.banq.qc.ca/ and this has made the task of finding these abjurations and confirmations much easier. The first six entries in the attached research guide were obtained by using Advitam.  See https://genealogyensemble.com/2020/04/19/banq-advitam/

Through BAnQ Advitam, BAnQ Numérique or BAnQ Ask a Question/BAnQ Poser une question, you can obtain an online download for free within days simply by searching for the ‘’cote #’’ (Shelf # at BAnQ) and an approximate date of an event.

The nine-page research guide attached here   Abjurations in New France   includes links to registers of abjuration, to the bulletin of the historical society of French-speaking Protestants of Quebec, to Guy Perron’s excellent blog, and to a list of books and articles on the subject.

Over the last few years, Genealogy Ensemble has posted three listings of Huguenot Family Names of New France and Quebec. The links to these lists are at the end of the PDF.

  • Huguenot family names listed by the Huguenot Trails periodical of the Huguenot Society of Canada prior to 2002.
  • Huguenot family names issued by Michel Barbeau, a retired genealogist. (Michel Barbeau’s work is highly precise but is a short list in comparison to other sources.)
  • Huguenot family names compiled by myself from books, essays, papers issued over four centuries by leading historians, academics, archivists, authors, librarians in Canada and in France.

This last list was compiled from books stored at the Collection nationale within the Grande Bibliothèque de Montréal, books and dossiers at BAnQ Vieux-Montréal and books which can be researched online at BAnQ Numérique and through various online sociétés savantes (literary societies) and finally from the online pages of Fichier Origine (www.fichierorigine.com.)

Over the past few years, I have posted a series of research guides to finding Protestants in France. Here are links to my articles about the Protestants who came to Quebec:

Huguenot Refugees, April 2, 2014, https://genealogyensemble.com/2014/04/02/huguenot-refugees/

The Trail of the Huguenots in Europe, the U.S.A. and Canada, April 4, 2014, https://genealogyensemble.com/2014/04/04/the-trail-of-the-huguenots-in-europe-the-u-s-a-and-canada/

Register of Abjurations, Feb, 3, 2015, https://genealogyensemble.com/2015/02/03/register-of-abjurations/

Huguenots – Index of Names, March 6, 2015, https://genealogyensemble.com/2015/03/06/848/

The Protestant Churches of Quebec City, 1629-1759, Feb. 3, 2019,   https://genealogyensemble.com/2019/02/03/the-protestant-churches-of-quebec-city-1629-1759/

The merchants and Fur Traders of New France, part 2, H-Z, May 10, 2019, https://genealogyensemble.com/2019/05/10/the-merchants-and-fur-traders-of-new-france-part-2-h-to-z/

Protestants in Quebec, Dec. 22, 2019, https://genealogyensemble.com/2019/12/22/protestants-in-quebec/

Also of interest: Marian Bulford’s articles about the Huguenots who immigrated to England. After the British Conquest of 1759 at the Plains of Abraham, British Governors James Murray, Guy Carleton, Frederick Haldimand, Lord Dorchester (Carlton) appointed chief justices, judges and a few lieutenant-governors and senior military officers who were at ease in the French language and all of the above were descendants of Huguenot families who had settled in the London region and also in Northern Ireland. These Huguenot administrators and military officers under Murray, Carleton, Haldimand, Dorchester attended the same churches mentioned by Marian.

Marian Bulford, Huguenot of England, Part 1, April 25, 2018, https://genealogyensemble.com/2018/04/25/the-huguenot-of-england-part-1/

Marian Bulford, Huguenot of England, Part 2, June 15, 2018, https://genealogyensemble.com/2018/06/15/the-huguenot-of-england-part-2/

For help finding Protestant families s in France in the 16th and 17th centuries, see my series of regional research guides, posted on Genealogy Ensemble in 2019-2020, as well as:

How to Search for Huguenot Ancestors in France, May 20, 2018, https://genealogyensemble.com/2018/05/20/how-to-search-for-huguenot-ancestors-in-france/

Huguenot Family Lineage Searches, June 3, 2018, https://genealogyensemble.com/2018/06/03/huguenot-family-lineage-searches/

Researching Your French Ancestors Online, May 13, 2018, (the attached updated PDF describes how to research in the Archives départementales de France, the country’s 95 regional archives)  https://genealogyensemble.com/2018/05/13/researching-your-french-ancestors-online/

 

 

 

France, Genealogy, Huguenot

The Protestants of Auvergne, Limousin, Lyonnais and Marche of the 16th and 17th centuries

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Auvergne

Auvergne is a former region of south-central France. Prior to the French Revolution (1789 to 1799,) Clermont-Ferrand was its capital. After the revolution, Auvergne was sliced up into four modern-day départements: Allier with eight Protestant communes (villages, towns, townships, cities); Cantal with 17 Protestant communes; Haute-Loire with 13 Protestant communes and Puy-de-Dôme with 11 Protestant communes. – Sources: Wikipedia & Archives des consistoires 1317-1446 – 1520-1740 at the Archives nationales de France, Pierrefitte-sur-Seine (Paris)

Limousin

A former region of southwest-central France, Limoges was the regional capital prior to the French Revolution. Then, Limousin was divided into three modern-day départements: Corrèze with four Protestant communes; Creuse with six Protestant communes (a portion) and Haute-Vienne with 22 Protestant communes. – Sources: Wikipedia & Archives des consistoires 1317-1446 – 1520-1740 at the Archives nationales de France, Pierrefitte-sur-Seine (Paris)

Lyonnais

A former province of France in the south-east of France, this territory includes most of the greater region of the city of Lyon. Following the French Revolution, Lyonnais became the modern-day département of Rhône with six Protestant communes.  – Sources: Wikipedia & Archives des consistoires 1317-1446 – 1520-1740 at the Archives nationales de France, Pierrefitte-sur-Seine (Paris)

Marche

This former province in south-central France had Guéret as its capital prior to 1789. Post revolution, Marche became the modern-day département of Creuse with six Protestant communes. Sources: Wikipedia & Archives des consistoires 1317-1446 – 1520-1740 at the -Archives nationales de France, Pierrefitte-sur-Seine (Paris)

Here is the link to a 39-page research guide to the Protestants of this area: Protestants of Auvergne, Lyonnais, Marche

This is the last of a series of research guides to the Protestants of France of the 16th and 17th centuries. These regional guides were posted by Jacques Gagné between January and June, 2020. Most of the people who immigrated to New France were from the country’s north-west region, including Normandy. The majority of those who came to New France were Catholic, but some were Protestant. The research guide to this area can be accessed here : https://genealogyensemble.com/2020/03/02/the-protestants-of-anjou-beauce-bretagne-maine-normandie-perche-poitou-touraine-of-the-16th-and-17th-centuries/

Here are some resources to help you research Protestant ancestors in France:

How to Search for Huguenot Ancestors in France, May 20, 2018, https://genealogyensemble.com/2018/05/20/how-to-search-for-huguenot-ancestors-in-france/

Huguenot Family Lineage Searches, June 3, 2018, https://genealogyensemble.com/2018/06/03/huguenot-family-lineage-searches/

Researching Your French Ancestors Online, May 13, 2018, (the attached updated PDF describes how to research in the Archives départementales de France, the country’s 95 regional archives)  https://genealogyensemble.com/2018/05/13/researching-your-french-ancestors-online/

The National Archives of France, Jan. 27, 2019, https://genealogyensemble.com/2019/01/27/the-national-archives-of-france/

BNF Gallica (Bibliothèque nationale de France), Dec. 16, 2018, https://genealogyensemble.com/2018/12/16/bnf-gallica/

Finding Ancestors in French Municipal Archives, Sept. 23, 2018, https://genealogyensemble.com/2018/09/23/finding-ancestors-in-french-municipal-archives/

 

France, Genealogy, Huguenot, Research tips

The Protestants of Agenais – Angoumois – Aquitaine – Béarn – Gascogne – Guyenne – Limousin

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This area of Southern France has a long and complex history which makes things difficult for genealogists.

Its regions, Aquitaine, Gascogne, Guyenne and Basse-Guyenne, go back to the 13th century and, even before the era of knights and noblemen, the territory was in constant flux, and borders and place names often changed.

For this reason, North American family lineage researchers, not schooled in the fine points of French history, may have a hard time looking up ancestors, Protestant or Catholic, who lived in this region prior to 1790.  Here is some information that might help.

Here is the link to the 50-page PDF research guide to Protestants in this area: Protestants of Agenais-1  Almost all of these resources are in French. For translation help, try Google Translate or www.deepL.com.

Agenais

Agenais is an ancient region of the provinces of Gascogne and Guyenne. Its capital was the city of Agen and consists today of the département of Lot-et-Garonne and a portion of the départements of Tarn-et-Garonne and Gironde. From 1530, Protestant temples were built in 78 cities, towns, townships and villages of Lot-et-Garonne. The exact location of these temples from 1565 to 1721 is listed on the first four pages of the Genealogy Ensemble research guide https://genealogyensemble.files.wordpress.com/2018/05/huguenot-families-in-france-1565-1721.pdf  See also Gironde – Listings of Protestant communes (villages, towns, townships, cities) obtained from the files of Archives des Consistoires 1317-1446 & 1520-1740 #TT-230-276B stored at the Archives nationales de France at Pierrefitte-sur-Seine,  a suburb of Paris.

Angoumois

Today ancient Angoumois consists of the département de la Charente and a small portion of the Haute-Vienne. Its capital city is Angoulême. Protestantism in Angoumois took root in 1533 in Angoulême, La Roche-Foucault-en-Angoulême, Royan. Sources; Wikipedia and Musée protestant

Aquitaine

Ancient Aquitaine, with Bordeaux as the capital, is comprised today of Dordogne, Gironde, Landes, Lot-et-Garonne, Pyrénées-Atlantiques.  Protestantism was present in all or part of 262 communes (villages, towns, townships, cities) from about 1530. Information obtained from the files of the Archives des consistoires 1317-1446 – 1520-1740 #TT-230-276B stored at the Archives nationales de France – Pierrefitte-sur-Seine (Paris.)

Béarn

Béarn had Orthez as its capital from 1242 to 1464 and Pau from 1464 on. Today’s département of Pyrénées-Atlantiques covers the same territory.  Protestants were present in the city of Lescar in 1549 and in 52 other cities, towns, townships and villages (communes.) Source: Archives des consistoires 1317-1446 – 1520-1740 #TT-230-276B stored at the Archives nationales de France – Pierrefitte-sur-Seine (Paris)

Gascogne

The ancient province of Gascogne had two capitals, Auch and Saint-Sever. Today it is covered by the départements of Gers, Landes, Hautes-Pyrénées and a part of Ariège, Gironde, Haute-Garonne, Lot-et-Garonne, Pyrénées-Atlantiques, Tarn-et-Garonne. Protestantism took root in the Gascogne in 1559. There were 61 Protestant communes (villages, towns, townships, cities) existing within two modern-day départements, Gironde and Landes. Source: Archives des consistoires 1317-1446 – 1520-1740 #TT-230-276B stored at the Archives nationales de France – Pierrefitte-sur-Seine (Paris)

Basse-Guyenne

Around 1660, the Protestant population of the Basse-Guyenne stood at 97,000 réformés (members of the Reform Church of France,) with 72 temples within the cities of Bordeaux, Sainte-Foy, Bergerac, Clairac, Nérac. Source: Musée protestant

Guyenne

Bordeaux was the capital of this ancient region prior to 1790. Today’s départements of Aveyron, Dordogne, Gironde, and Lot cover the same territory. Protestantism was established in the Vallée de la Dordogne in 1626. The cities where Protestantism had an impact were Bordeaux, Coutras, Nérac, Saint-Affrique, Saint-Antonin-Noble-Val. Sources: Musée protestant, Wikipedia, Archives des consistoires 1317-1446 – 1520-1740 #TT230-276B – Archives nationales de France – Pierrefitte-sur-Seine (Paris)

Limousin

The city of Limoges was once the capital of the ancient territory of Limousin. Today Limousin is comprised of the départements of Corrèze, Creuse, and Haute-Vienne. Protestantism first appeared here around 1520 in the cities of Limoges, Villefavard, Madranges, La Souteraine, Confolens, Uzerches, Beaulieu-sur-Dordogne, Argentat, Turenne. Sources: Musée protestant and Archives des consistoires 1317-1446 – 1520-1740 #TT 230-276B – Archives nationales de France – Pierrefitte-sur-Seine (Paris.)

Périgord

Périgord is an ancient county with Périgueux as its former capital, while Bergerac and Sarlat-la-Canéda are its principal cities.

The centre of Protestantism in Périgord was Bergerac. Modern-day Périgord is Dordogne. This area was home to 79 Protestant communes (villages, towns, townships, cities.) Source: Archives des consistoires 1317-1446 – 1520-1740 #TT230-276B – Archives nationales de France – Pierrefitte-sur-Seine (Paris.)

France, Genealogy, Huguenot

The Protestants of Alpes – Dauphiné – Languedoc – Midi-Pyrénées – Provence of the 16th and 17th centuries

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 In the 17th century, southern France harboured more Protestant families than any other part of the country. In 1660, the six provinces of the Midi (Southern France) accounted for close to 50% of the total Protestant population of France: 369,000 individuals and 298 temples (churches.)

This region included: Haut-Languedoc (Haute-Guyenne) – 80,000 individuals and 64 temples; Bas-Languedoc – 81,000 individuals and 63 temples;  Cévennes – 74,000 individuals and 59 temples; Vivarais – 48,000 individuals and 29 temples; Provence – 8,000 individuals and 12 temples; Dauphiné – 78,000 individuals and 71 temples. (Source : Les seize provinces synodales (1660) https://www.museeprotestant.org/)

The Region (updated May 15)

This is the oldest region of France, although some will argue that the city of Paris is even older. The city of Marseille was a Roman Empire outpost.

The ancient provinces and regions of this south eastern region of France were assigned various names over the centuries, so I listed all of them. In the 1790s, following the French Revolution, the old provinces of France were carved-out into départements. The boundaries of the territories of ancient  France were not respected when France was reorganized into départements. Some of the départements were formed in the 1790s and onward from portions of two distinct ancient provinces.

Alpes-de-Haute-Provence

Alpes de Haute-Provence formerly part of the province of Provence. Its main cities are Digne-les-Bains, Manosque, Sisteron, Barcelonnette, Castellane and Forcalquier. After 1790, this alpine region became Alpes-de-Haute-Provence. Between about 1565 to 1791, Protestant Temples were erected in 14 communes (villages, towns, townships, cities.) Sources: Archives des Consistoires 1317-1446 – 1520-1740 at the Archives nationales de France – Pierrefitte-sur-Seine (Paris) & Wikipedia

Dauphiné

Dauphiné is an ancient province in southeast France which was also referred to as Viennois. Its capital was Vienne. The Dauphiné de Viennois from the eleventh century to 1343 was part of the Holy Roman Empire. In 1349 under Philippe VI de Valois it became a province of France. Following the French Revolution this region became the départements of Drôme, with 76 Protestant communes (villages, towns, townships, cities), Hautes-Alpes with 35 Protestant communes and Isère with 39 Protestant communes. Sources: Archives des Consistoires 1317-1446 – 1520-1740 at the Archives nationales de France – Pierrefitte-sur-Seine (Paris) & Wikipedia

Languedoc- Roussillon

The ancient province of Languedoc began in the XIII century. In 2020 it is known as région française d’Occitanie. The two largest cities are Toulouse and Montpellier. After the French Revolution, Languedoc was divided into 11 regional départements; Ardèche with 140 Protestant communes, a portion of Ariège with 20 Protestant communes, Aude with 32 Protestant communes, Gard with 274 Protestant communes, a portion of Haute-Garonne with 23 Protestant communes, Hérault with 46 Protestant communes, a portion of Haute-Loire with 14 Protestant communes, Lozère with 44 Protestant communes, a portion of Tarn-et-Garonne with 40 Protestant communes, Tarn with 18 Protestant communes, a portion of Pyrénées-Orientales with 3 Protestant communes. Sources: Wikipedia & Archives des consistoires 1317-1446 – 1520-1740 at the Archives nationales de France – Pierrefitte-sur-Seine (Paris)

Midi-Pyrénées

This part of southern France was known in ancient times as Haut-Languedoc. Its largest city being Toulouse, the region regroups eight modern-day départements. Ariège with 20 Protestant communes (villages, towns, townships, cities), Aveyron with 26 Protestant communes, Haute-Garonne with 23 Protestant communes, Gers with 18 Protestant communes, Lot with 11 Protestant communes, Hautes-Pyrénées with 11 Protestant communes, Tarn with 54 Protestant communes, Tarn-et-Garonne with 40 Protestant communes. Sources: Wikipedia & Archives des consistoires 1317-1446 – 1520-1740 at the Archives nationales de France, Pierrefitte-sur-Seine (Paris)

Provence-Alpes-Côte-d’Azur

This is an ancient region of the south of France and its oldest city, Marseille, dates back to the Roman Empire. Following the French Revolution (1789-1799), modern-day Provence-Alpes-Côte-d’Azur became six regional départements of France; Alpes-de-Haute-Provence with 10 Protestant communes (villages, towns, townships, cities), Hautes-Alpes with 35 Protestant communes, Alpes-Maritimes with nine Protestant communes, Bouches-du-Rhône with 15 Protestant communes, Var with 11 Protestant communes. Sources: Wikipedia & Archives des consistoires 1317-1446 – 1520-1740 at the Archives nationales de France, Pierrefitte-sur-Seine (Paris)

Rhône-Alpes

This is another ancient region of south-eastern France. The cities of Lyon and Grenoble are the largest. Following the French Revolution of the 1790s, Rhône-Alpes was divided into eight regional départements; Ain with 48 Protestant communes (villages, towns, townships, cities), Ardèche with 148 Protestant communes, Drôme with 76 Protestant communes, Isère with 40 Protestant communes, Loire with four Protestant communes, Rhône with six Protestants communes, Savoie with 21 Protestant communes, Haute-Savoie with five Protestants communes. Sources: Wikipedia & Archives des consistoires 1317-1446 – 1520-1740 at the Archives nationales de France, Pierrefitte-sur-Seine (Paris)

                                             The Research Guide

The attached 100-page research guide to Protestant records from this area  includes a variety of resources, including a long list of books by various authors and academics, online resources, and links to archives and historical, genealogical and Protestant societies in France.

In this guide, you will find an alphabetical list of the villages, towns, cities, townships and counties of this region of France where Protestant families once established a temple or a house of worship. The guide includes the largest listing of place-names addressing the Protestants of France of the 16th and 17th centuries available up to this point. These dossiers can be obtained from the Archives nationales de France in Pierrefitte-sur-Seine near Paris or requested by email or text-message as part of the Archives des consistoires TT-230-276B (1317-1446 & 1520-1740). A consistoire in France is a Protestant diocese. To this day, consistoires still exist in most regions of France.

Within the Collectif portion I have reproduced the texts in the old French language of the 14th, 15th, 16th and 17th centuries, precisely as they appear within the collection at the Archives in Paris within the Archives des consistoires (1317-1446 & 1520-1740.)

Another listing , the Trésor des Chartes (1204-1407) on page 10 contains, most likely, the oldest dossiers in France addressing the bourgeoisie de France (elite families) from 1204 to 1407.

I have also included a new feature: Theses.fr (academic theses), from page 95 to page 97, theses by regions of France addressing Protestants (Huguenots).

Most of these books, websites and other resources are in French. For help understanding these resources, you can use online translation tools such as Google Translate or DeepL.

You can access this research guide here: Protestants of Alpes, Dauphiné, Languedoc, Midi-Pyrénées, Provence

There are two more research guides to come in this series on French Protestants. I hope you find them helpful. We will eventually post a similar series on Catholic records in France.

You can find more background information on Protestant records in France in the introductions to the other guides in this series. Here are links to the previous research guides on Protestant records, plus guides to researching French archival records in general:

Protestants of Bourbonnais, Bourgogne and area, April 26, 2020, https://genealogyensemble.com/2020/04/26/protestants-of-bourbonnais-bourgogne-and-area/

The Protestants of Champagne-Ardenne of the 16th and 17th Centuries, April 12, 2020, https://genealogyensemble.com/2020/04/12/the-protestants-of-champagne-ardenne-of-the-16th-and-17th-centuries/

The Protestants of Centre – Val-de-Loire of the 16th and 17th Centuries, March 29, 2020, https://genealogyensemble.com/2020/03/29/the-protestants-of-centre-val-de-loire-of-the-16th-and-17th-centuries/

Hauts-de-France – The Protestants of Artois, Calaisis, Flandre, Picardie of the 16th and 17th centuries, March 12, 2020 https://genealogyensemble.com/2020/03/15/hauts-de-france-the-protestants-of-artois-calaisis-flandre-picardie-of-the-16th-and-17th-centuries/

Protestants of  Anjou, Beauce, Bretagne, Perche, Poitou, Touraine of the 16th and 17th Centuries, March 2, 2020,  https://genealogyensemble.com/2020/03/02/the-protestants-of-anjou-beauce-bretagne-maine-normandie-perche-poitou-touraine-of-the-16th-and-17th-centuries/

Protestants of  Alsace-Lorraine of the 16th and 17th Centuries, Feb. 16, 2020, https://genealogyensemble.com/2020/02/16/the-protestants-of-alsace-lorraine-of-the-16th-and-17th-centuries/

Protestants of Paris in the 16th and 17th Centuries,  Jan. 19, 2020, https://genealogyensemble.com/2020/01/19/the-protestants-of-paris-in-the-16th-and-17th-centuries/

See also

How to Search for Huguenot Ancestors in France, May 20, 2018, https://genealogyensemble.com/2018/05/20/how-to-search-for-huguenot-ancestors-in-france/

Huguenot Family Lineage Searches, June 3, 2018, https://genealogyensemble.com/2018/06/03/huguenot-family-lineage-searches/

Researching Your French Ancestors Online, May 13, 2018, (the attached updated PDF describes how to research in the Archives départementales de France, the country’s 95 regional archives)  https://genealogyensemble.com/2018/05/13/researching-your-french-ancestors-online/

The National Archives of France, Jan. 27, 2019, https://genealogyensemble.com/2019/01/27/the-national-archives-of-france/

BNF Gallica (Bibliothèque nationale de France), Dec. 16, 2018, https://genealogyensemble.com/2018/12/16/bnf-gallica/

Finding Ancestors in French Municipal Archives, Sept. 23, 2018, https://genealogyensemble.com/2018/09/23/finding-ancestors-in-french-municipal-archives/

 

France, Genealogy, Genealogy societies, Huguenot, Research tips

Protestants of Bourbonnais, Bourgogne and area

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Researching the Protestants of Bourbonnais, Bourgogne, Franche-Comté, Nivernais and Pays de Montbéliard of the 16th and 17th centuries

Researching your ancestors from this central region of France can be conducted online through the regional archives (Archives départementales). Online searches for the 16th, 1 7th and 18th centuries must be carried out by the commune (village, town, township, city) where your ancestor resided. Once you have determined the commune you seek, click on its name.

A list will come up of all the Catholic parishes of that département as well as the Protestant temples (churches) if the acts of baptisms and marriages survived. There were very few records of deaths among Protestant families for this period.

For each Catholic parish and/or Protestant temple, you can select the time period, listed by years, months and days. These church registers are available online for free by simply clicking on the dossier of your choice. Downloads of documents are also free.

Two notes of caution: the penmanship of ancient Church Registers, both Protestant and Catholic, can be best described as scribbling, and these resources are only available in French. You can apply online translation tools such as Google Translate or DeepL.

 Côte d’or – Archives départementales  http://archives.cotedor.fr/v2/site/ad21/

 Doubs – Archives départementales  http://recherche-archives.doubs.fr/?id=recherche_guidee_etat_civil_numerisee

Haute-Saône – Archives départementales  http://archives.haute-saone.fr/

Jura – Archives départementales  https://www.archives-departementales.com/index.php?article41/archives-en-ligne-du-jura-numerisees

 Niévre – Archives départementales  http://archives.cg58.fr/

 Saône-et-Loire – Archives départementales  http://www.archives71.fr/

Territoire de Belfort – Archives départementales http://www.archives.territoiredebelfort.fr/

Yonne – Archives départementales  https://archives.yonne.fr/Archives-en-ligne

If you do not know the name of the commune in France of your ancestor lived, see:

Journal des femmes – Noms de familles. A listing of family names in France that tells you in which commune or département a family name is most common. http://www.journaldesfemmes.com/nom-de-famille/

If you are a North American family lineage researcher, you may have been researching online using FamilySearch.org or/and Ancestry.com. In my opinion, the best commercial research tool in France is Filae.com  https://www.filae.com/recherche  This research tool is NOT free of charge.

The attached 28-page research guide to finding the Protestants who lived in this area of France in the 16th and 17th centuries can be accessed here:  Protestants of Bourbonnais, Bourgogne, etc.

Genealogy, Quebec, Research tips

BAnQ Advitam

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The Bibliothèque et Archives nationales du Québec (Library & National Archives of Québec, or BAnQ,) recently introduced a powerful new online search engine.  Known as Advitam, it replaces the previous search engine, Pistard. It points to documents, files, photos and other holdings in the BAnQ’s archives, some digitized, others only available in the BAnQ’s 10 branches across Quebec.

You can access this online search tool at https://advitam.banq.qc.ca/

Advitam (ad vitam means to life in Latin) offers online researchers two search options: Reherche simple (Regular online searches) and Recherche avancée (Advanced online searches.) Unless you are familiar with the French language and the way archives are organized, the regular search is probably easier to use.

Type in the name of the person, place or topic you are searching for. The results will come up in two parts: on the right are the photos, maps, documents, collections, etc. stored at the BAnQ, while on the left is a list to help you filter your results. The filter choices are written in French, but they are not difficult to figure out. If you have difficulty, try using an online translation tool such as Google Translate or DeepL.

You can also use the bar at the top left to focus on the time period you are interested in. New France existed 1604-1759, the British period was 1760-1790, and Quebec was known as Lower Canada 1791-1841.

You can also filter your searches to look for Quebec civil registers, judicial registers or notarial records. You can search for the names of cities, towns, townships, seigneuries, villages, counties and even modern-day MRCs (regional municipal regions or districts.) You can look for events (baptisms, marriages, deaths, divorces, legal proceedings, judicial inquiries and judgments, etc.) and find out about institutions such as religious orders, military regiments, government appointees, etc.

Here’s an example of how this search tool can help you find the record of an ancestor who lived in Pointe-Claire, Quebec, and who was baptized in the Catholic church there. An online search on Advitam for Pointe-Claire, (a suburban municipality on the Island of Montreal) brings 823 results addressing the city or village of Pointe-Claire from about 1713 to 2002.

The fourth result from the top refers to the Catholic Parish of Saint-Joachim-de-la-Pointe-Claire – Content 1713-1918 – CE601-S37 – Fonds Cour supérieure. District judiciaire de Montréal – État civil. BAnQ Vieux-Montréal Id 477622. This dossier addresses Parish Registers of this Catholic parish from 1713 to 1918, kept on five microfilms at BAnQ – Vieux-Montréal.

These church registers can also be found online through BAnQ Numérique – Registres de l’état civil, or on Ancestry.com, on FamilySearch.org and on Généalogie Québec, however these sources may not contain all of the church registers from 1713 to 1918. If you haven’t found your ancestor’s name elsewhere, try Advitam.

The BAnQ’s repositories are: BAnQ Vieux-Montréal, BAnQ Québec, BAnQ Gaspé,BAnQ Gatineau, BAnQ Rimouski, BAnQ Rouyn-Noranda, BAnQ Saguenay, BAnQ Sept-Îles,BAnQ Sherbrooke and BAnQ Trois-Rivières. If you do not reside in Montréal or near another BAnQ branch, try contacting the BAnQ to ask a question.

BAnQ Ask a Question  https://www.banq.qc.ca/formulaires/formulaire_reference/index.html?language_id=1

or

BAnQ Poser une question https://banq.qc.ca/formulaires/formulaire_reference/

 You can use these links to make a request for digitized material. A BAnQ clerk or librarian will help you download the material for free, but you need to facilitate the research process for the archivist. You should indicate the approximate year of an event (baptism, marriage, death) and be sure to specify the ‘’cote #’’ (dossier # or shelf #) as in the above example, 1713-1918 – CE601-S37 – ID-477622. Each file at BAnQ is identified by a similar description which can be found through your initial online search on BAnQ Advitam

 Email requests can be written in French or English, and your reply will be in the same language.

In most cases, if the above basic conditions to your request are respected, you should receive a reply within days by email. If your request is more complicated, contact the regional specialist librarian at the appropriate branch of the BAnQ.

 Please note: Due to Covid-19, all branches of the BAnQ are closed at this time. (2020-04-19)

BAnQ Vieux-Montréal 514 873-1100 – 1 800 363-9028, option 4 plus option 1 514 873-1101 # 6260 archives.montreal@banq.qc.ca

BAnQ Québec  418 643-8904 – 1 800 363-9028, option 4 plus option 2 archives.quebec@banq.qc.ca

BAnQ Gaspé  418 727-3500 plus option 6573 – 1 800 363-9028 plus option 6573  archives.gaspe@banq.qc.ca

 BAnQ Gatineau  819 568-8798 – 1 800 363-9028, option 4 plus option 7 archives.gatineau@banq.qc.ca

BAnQ Rimouski  418 727-3500 – 1 800 363-9028, option 4 plus option 3 archives.rimouski@banq.qc.ca

 BAnQ Rouyn-Noranda  819 763-3484 – 1 800 363-9028, option 4 plus option 8
archives.rouyn@banq.qc.ca

BAnQ Saguenay  418 698-3516 – 1 800 363-9028, option 4 plus option 4
archives.saguenay@banq.qc.ca

BAnQ Sept-Îles  418 964-8434 – 1 800 363-9028, option 4 plus option 9
archives.sept-iles@banq.qc.ca

BAnQ Sherbrooke  819 820-3010 – 1 800 363-9028, option 4 plus option 6
archives.sherbrooke@banq.qc.ca

BAnQ Trois-Rivières  819 371-6015 – 1 800 363-9028, option 4 plus option 5  archives.trois-rivieres@banq.qc.ca

Researched and compiled by Jacques Gagné  gagne.jacques@sympatico.ca

2020-04-16

 

France, Huguenot

The Protestants of Champagne-Ardenne of the 16th and 17th Centuries

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Modern-day Ardennes – Aube – Marne – Haute-Marne

 Champagne-Ardenne, with its capital Troyes, was located within the northeast region of France near the borders with Belgium and Germany. This large province was first established as a territory in the 11th century. In 1284, Champagne was unified with France under the leadership of King Philippe IV.

This research guide is a comprehensive tool for researching French Protestant ancestors from this region.

Caveat: much of it is in French.

Champagne – The ancient, or pre-French Revolution, province of Champagne was subdivided into many territories; Champagne (Troyes) – Rhemois (Reims) – Rethelois (Rethel including Porcien) – Perthois (Vitry-le-François) – Vallage (Joinville) – Bassigny (Val-de-Meuse) – Senonais (Sens) – Sedan (Sedan) – Tonnerrois (Tonnerre) – Chalonnais (Châlons-en-Champagne) – Barrois (Barrois-sur-Aube) – Brie Champenoise (Meaux) – Arcy (Arcy-sur-Cure) – Dieulet (Vaux-en-Dieulet) – Pays de Der (Montier-en-Der)  – Clermontois (Argonne)

Following the French Revolution, the province was divided into four départements: Ardennes – Marne – Aube – Haute-Marne.

Please note the ancient province of Ardenne (without an ‘’s’) and modern-day Ardennes (département) are basically the same region. Ardenne was located primarily in Belgium and Luxembourg, but stretched well into Germany and France (lending its name to the Département of Ardennes and the former Champagne-Ardenne.) The primary towns or cities of the Ardenne of France were La Roche-en-Ardenne, Libramont, Neufchâteau, Bouillon, Bastogne, Spa, Saint-Hubert, Chimay, Sedan, Charleville-Mézières, Givet, Revin.

(Source: Wikipedia)

Musée Protestant (France), a leading historical society in France, places modern-day Aisne within the ancient Champagne-Ardenne region. The Government of France in past centuries had placed modern-day département of Aisne within the region of Hauts-de-France – See https://genealogyensemble.com/2020/03/15/hauts-de-france-the-protestants-of-artois-calaisis-flandre-picardie-of-the-16th-and-17th-centuries/   I also added the département of Aisne to this dossier. See page 7

On pages 3, 4 and 9, I have added additional texts in regard to Protestantism in France. These resources can be accessed at various Archives départementales de France.

This region of Champagne-Ardenne was home to exceptional individuals during the 16th and 17th centuries including:

  • Françoise de Bourbon – Vendôme
  • Henri-Robert de la Marck
  • Many professors at the Académie de Sedan, a Protestant college in the city of Sedan from 1559 to 1681. There are articles on the Academy of Sedan and some of its professors on the English and French-language versions of Wikipedia, and at BnF (Bibliothèque nationale de France.

Click here to view the 43-page PDF research guide:   The Protestants of Champagne-Ardenne

Included are links to records concerning Protestants in French archives;  collections on familysearch.org; Histoire des protestants en France by Patrick Cabanel; research guide to family history in France by Gildas Bernard; towns in this region where Protestants resided between 1565-1721; Protestant church and civil registers in France;, links to the Académy de Sedan; books about the history of Protestants in this region; historical societies; online resources; BnF; archives; archives départementales; archives municipales; old Protestant newspapers; genealogy in France, regional; publishers; links to Genealogy Ensemble articles.

 

France, Huguenot

The Protestants of Centre – Val-de-Loire of the 16th and 17th Centuries

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 Modern-day : Cher – Eure-et-Loir – Indre – Indre-et-Loir – Loiret – Loir-et-Cher

This region of central France has a rich history, especially among Catholic families. Protestantism was present here from about 1523.

On page 8 of this research guide, you will find links to four authors of special importance whose works address in part or in total the Protestant presence in Centre-Val-de-Loire during the 16th and 17th centuries. They are Patrick Cabanel, Gildas Bernard, Didier Boisson and Christian Lippold.

Other resources found in this guide include: National Library of France – guides to Huguenot family history searches in France – various archives in France – history of Protestants in France – list of books and studies of Protestantism in this region – list of historical societies – online resources including theses – libraries and archives – genealogical resources – Genealogy Ensemble links.

Click here to open this 40-page PDF research guide: The Protestants of Centre – Val de Loire of the 16th and 17th centuries

The following are French language expressions commonly found within these pages addressing an overview or content of books, essays, theses, dissertations, papers, studies, discourses in regard to the Protestants of Central France of the 16th and 17th centuries.

  • Archives des consistoires de France – Protestant archives at the Archives nationales (France) Pierrefitte-sur-Seine (Paris)
  • Assemblée de nouveaux convertis – A description of former protestant individuals who left the faith in order to join the Catholic Church – It does appear that in some rare cases, that the contrary to the above also addressed former Catholics who joined the protestant faith.
  • Assemblée protestante – Protestant church or temple
  • Assemblée de religionnaires – Protestant church or temple
  • Chapelle protestante – Protestant chapel
  • Communauté protestante – Protestant community
  • Communauté réformée – Protestant community
  • Culte protestant – Protestant faith
  • Culte réformé – Protestant faith
  • Demi-fief de Haubert – A person of the nobility (Bourgeoisie) who was the owner of a Seigniory which dates back to the Knights (Chevaliers) time period of ancient France.
  • Église réformée – Protestant Church of France
  • Exercice du culte – Liberty of action in regard to a place or places of worship
  • Familles protestantes – Protestant families
  • Familles réformées – Protestant families
  • Lieu de prière – Place of worship
  • Lieux de prière -Places of worship
  • Lieu d’exercice – Faith place name
  • Lieux d’exercice – Faith place names
  • Nouveau converti – New convert (Male)
  • Nouveaux convertis – New converts
  • Nouvelle convertie – New convert (Female)
  • Nouvelles converties – New converts
  • Placet au Roi (roi) – Written directives issued by various kings of France which reflects the will (power) of the Crown of France
  • Réformé – Protestant individual
  • Relaps – A person who no longer attend regular church services
  • Religion réformée – Protestant faith
  • Religionnaire – Protestant individual
  • Religionnaires – Protestant individuals
  • Synode – Synod
  • Synodes – Synods
  • Temple protestant – Protestant temple
  • Temple réformé – Protestant temple
  • Temples protestants – Protestant temples
  • Temples réformés – Protestant temples
New France, Quebec

Quebec Windmills and Seigneuries 

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Find an old windmill (moulin) in Quebec and you will find a trace of an old seigneury, or estate.

In 2005, a heritage society in the Montreal suburb of Pointe Claire was looking into restoring the local windmill, built in 1710, but realized no-one had the knowledge to repair it. So, the Société pour la Sauvegarde du Patrimoine de Pointe-Claire (SSPPC) formed a partnership with Quebec’s national archives, the BAnQ Vieux-Montréal, to do some research.  A team of archivists, librarians and clerks compiled hundreds of notarial acts dealing with windmills in Nouvelle France, and in Quebec after the British Conquest of 1759.

The old windmill in Pointe-Claire, overlooking Lac Saint-Louis. Claire Lindell photo.

The resulting document, “Actes notariés transcrits sur les moulins du Québec,” (see link below) reveals a great deal about the history of Quebec’s moulins-à-vent (windmills) and moulins-à-eau (watermills,) and about the seigneuries where they were located.

It includes transcriptions of acts made by notaries concerning windmills. These documents, such as leases, sales, inventories and various contracts involving millers, shine a light, not only on windmill construction, but many other aspects of their use. Some of these notarized agreements date back to the 1600s.

Until the 20th century, Quebec’s economy was based on agriculture, with corn and various grains being the most common products. Most windmills produced flour, although some powered sawmills or tanneries.

In New France, in Quebec under the British, and during the Lower Canada period, the majority of windmills were owned by the seigneurs, the owners of seigneuries, or large estates of farmland and forest. The seigneurial system of land ownership, tenancy and feudal-based obligations was officially abolished in 1854, but it took many years before it completely disappeared.

Here is the link to “Actes notariés transcrits sur les moulins du Québec” https://www.banq.qc.ca/documents/archives/genealogie/outils/moulins.pdf

Most of the transcriptions in this large PDF are in French, but you can copy and paste sections that are of interest to you and make use of online translation services such as Google Translate or DeepL.

Built around 1730, this former mill in Verchères is a museum. Joann Egar photo.

Some windmills were owned by censitaires (tenants), but these private windmill or water-powered mill operators had to pay annual fees to their seigneurs. The fees were based on the number of tonneaux (wooden barrels) of farine (flour) and grains they produced on a yearly basis.

Most windmills in New France measured their capacity of production of flour, grain and corn by the number of wooden barrels they could produce per day or week.

If you look at biographies of settlers posted on Fichier Origine (www.fichierorigine.com) or P.R.D.H. (https://www.prdh-igd.com/en/accueil) or within the René Jetté books of pioneers, you will encounter the word tonnelier, a carpenter who specialized in making wooden barrels for operators of windmills, seigneurs and farmers. Most seigneuries in New France had their own tonnelier and/or windmill operator and/or operator of a water-powered mill.

Recruiters of families from France in the 17th and 18th centuries, especially within the northwest regions of France — Normandie, Poitou, Perche, Bretagne, Maine, Aunis, Anjou, Touraine, Beauce — would always recruit one or two tonneliers and one or two operators of windmills or operators of mills powered by water among the citizens who boarded sailing ships from La Rochelle and other seaports, destined for the French colonies of America.

The Fleming Mill in LaSalle is designed in Anglo-Saxon style. Janice Hamilton photo.

To learn more:

Most of the province’s many windmills have disappeared, however, several remain in the Montreal area, including in Pointe-Claire, LaSalle and on Île Perrot.

Liste des moulins à eau du Québec:  https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liste_des_moulins_%C3%A0_eau_du_Qu%C3%A9bec

This is a less extensive list of windmills in English:  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_windmills_in_Quebec

René Jetté, Dictionnaire généalogique des familles du Québec: des origines à 1730, Montréal: Gaetan Morin, 2003.  No longer in print but available at the BAnQ and at the Grande Bibliothèque de Montréal. Also available at many university libraries in Canada and at most French-language genealogical societies in Quebec, Ontario, and New England. Major libraries in Canada would also have a copy.

Gilles Deschênes, Quand le vent faisait tourner les moulins: Trois siècles de meunerie banale et marchande au Québec, Québec: Septentrion, 2009, https://www.septentrion.qc.ca/catalogue/quand-le-vent-faisait-tourner-les-moulins

Article on the seigneurial system in the Canadian Encyclopedia: https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/seigneurial-system

 

 

France, Huguenot

Hauts-de-France – The Protestants of Artois, Calaisis, Flandre, Picardie of the 16th and 17th centuries

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The authors selected for this research guide have researched and compiled books, theses, essays, papers and studies about the Protestant families of the 16th and 17th centuries within the Hauts-de-France region, in the country’s north.

In truth, very few French Canadians or Acadians originated from the Hauts-de-France.  The highly precise Fichier Origine (https://www.fichierorigine.com/) database of pioneers who immigrated to the French colony of Nouvelle-France lists 63 pioneers from modern-day département of the Somme,  53 from the Aisne, 35 from the Oise, 32 from the Pas-de-Calais and 21 from the département du Nord.

On the other hand, Alain Jobin, in an article published in Revue du Nord, indicates that in 1685, 2,700 Protestants left the region of Calaisis and the region of the Pays reconquis (reconquered regions from the British and the Spanish) destined for London, England and the Netherlands – see:

Alain Jobin, “Le protestantisme en Calaisis aux XVIe-XVIIe siècles,” Revue du Nord, volume LXXX, July-Dec. 1998, p. 599-618, on Persée, https://www.persee.fr/doc/rnord_0035-2624_1998_num_80_326_2875

People with Protestant ancestors from the region of Hauts-de-France who settled in London, England around 1685 should look into the records of the local Threadneedle Street Church, where most of the communities of the French and Walloon in England worshipped.  The region of Wallonie in present-day Belgium is located a few miles from the Hauts-de-France.

In 1685, present-day Belgium was part of the Netherlands. From about 1648 onwards, the southern region of the Netherlands was part of the Prince-Bishopric of Liège district.

Link to the 37-page research guide PDF:

The Protestants of Artois, Flandre, Picardie

Most of these resources are in French, but you can get help from an on-line translation tool such as Google Translate or DeepL.

To learn more about Protestant records in France, see the introductions to these recent research guides on Genealogy Ensemble:

Jacques Gagné,  March 2, 2020, “Protestants of  Anjou, Beauce, Bretagne, Perche, Poitou, Touraine of the 16th and 17th Centuries»  https://genealogyensemble.com/2020/03/02/the-protestants-of-anjou-beauce-bretagne-maine-normandie-perche-poitou-touraine-of-the-16th-and-17th-centuries/

Jacques Gagné, Feb. 16, 2020, “Protestants of  Alsace-Lorraine of the 16th and 17th Centuries»  https://genealogyensemble.com/2020/02/16/the-protestants-of-alsace-lorraine-of-the-16th-and-17th-centuries/

Jacques Gagné,  Jan. 19, 2020, “Protestants of Paris in the 16th and 17th Centuries»  https://genealogyensemble.com/2020/01/19/the-protestants-of-paris-in-the-16th-and-17th-centuries/

See also

Jacques Gagné, May 20, 2018, «How to Search for Huguenot Ancestors in France,» https://genealogyensemble.com/2018/05/20/how-to-search-for-huguenot-ancestors-in-france/

Jacques Gagné, June 3, 2018, «Huguenot Family Lineage Searches,»  https://genealogyensemble.com/2018/06/03/huguenot-family-lineage-searches/

Jacques Gagné, May 13, 2018, «Researching Your French Ancestors Online,» (the attached updated PDF describes how to research in the Archives départementales de France, the country’s 95 regional archives)  https://genealogyensemble.com/2018/05/13/researching-your-french-ancestors-online/

Jacques Gagné, Jan. 27, 2019, «The National Archives of France, » https://genealogyensemble.com/2019/01/27/the-national-archives-of-france/

Jacques Gagné, Dec. 16, 2018, «BNF Gallica» (Bibliothèque nationale de France) https://genealogyensemble.com/2018/12/16/bnf-gallica/

Jacques Gagné,  Sept. 23, 2018, «Finding Ancestors in French Municipal Archives» https://genealogyensemble.com/2018/09/23/finding-ancestors-in-french-municipal-archives/