Bernard Allaire, Nicolas Landry, Brad Loewen

La pêche basque dans le golfe du Saint-Laurent : une analyse de contenu des actes notariés de Jacques Cousseau, notaire à La Rochelle, 1602-1653

Introduction

La pêche basque dans le golfe du saint-laurent : une analyse de contenu des actes notariés de jacques cousseau, notaire à la rochelle, 1602-1653. Pêche basque du XVIIe siècle au Golfe du Saint-Laurent : analyse d'actes notariés de Jacques Cousseau (La Rochelle) révèle l'activité maritime transatlantique.

Abstract

This paper draws its data from the notarial records of Jacques Cousseau who was active in La Rochelle from 1602 to 1653 and whose records are preserved in the Archives départementales de la Charente-Maritime, also in La Rochelle. An initial overview showed the exceptional value of these records for understanding the specific place of the Basques within French fishing and trading in North America. Of the 17th-century La Rochelle notaries, Cousseau had the most extensive Basque clientele. His records fill 21 registers and 11 bundles, covering about half a century of Rochelais maritime activity. In going through these records, we identified and photographed 814 acts that shed light on the transatlantic fisheries. The Jacques Cousseau collection is exceptionally rich and its consultation is fundamental for understanding the Basque fisheries around the Gulf of St. Lawrence and on the Atlantic coasts of Newfoundland and Acadia.

Review

This paper proposes a fascinating and evidently rigorous investigation into the role of Basque fishermen and traders in 17th-century North America, specifically within the context of French transatlantic maritime activity. The study's primary strength, and indeed its central focus, lies in its reliance on an exceptionally rich and underutilized primary source: the notarial records of Jacques Cousseau, a prominent notary in La Rochelle from 1602 to 1653. By centering on Cousseau's extensive Basque clientele, the authors promise to illuminate a critical but often diffuse aspect of early modern colonial history, offering a granular perspective on the economic and social structures underpinning these distant fisheries. The methodology described involves a detailed content analysis of a substantial body of these records. The authors state that they have identified and photographed 814 acts directly relevant to transatlantic fisheries, drawn from Cousseau's voluminous collection spanning 21 registers and 11 bundles. This significant scale of data collection underscores a commitment to thoroughness and provides a robust evidentiary base for the study's conclusions. The paper thus positions itself to make a substantial contribution to our understanding of the specific operational details, financial arrangements, and human networks that characterized Basque involvement in the lucrative fisheries of the Gulf of St. Lawrence, Newfoundland, and Acadia. Overall, this paper presents a highly promising and potentially landmark contribution to the historiography of early modern maritime activity and colonial expansion. The unique insight offered by Cousseau's records, particularly given his unparalleled connections with the Basque community, promises to refine existing narratives and perhaps uncover new dimensions of their economic and cultural impact. By meticulously analyzing these notarial acts, the authors are poised to provide not just a quantitative overview but also qualitative insights into the daily realities of this pivotal industry. This work will undoubtedly be of great interest to scholars of French and Basque history, economic history, and the history of North American colonization.

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