1
Edga do Medei os da Sil a
School o Social and Poli ical Sciences, Uni e si y o Lisbon
Uni e si y o Lisbon Cen e o English S udies
Theme and Subjec Ma e in F ancis Pa kman’s The Old Régime in Canada
Abs ac
‘The e a e no poli ical panaceas, excep in he imagina ion o poli ical quacks.’ These
a e he wo ds used by he Ame ican his o ian F ancis Pa kman (1823-1893) o sugges
ha he English and F ench se lemen s on he No h Ame ican con inen had been qui e
di e en om hei onse and we e qui e possibly bound o emain as such in yea s o
come. This pape examines he ailu e o F ance o es ablish he basis o a well-
egula ed poli ical communi y in No h Ame ica in he con ex o he Anglo-F ench
i al y o he con ol o ha con inen as con eyed by F ancis Pa kman in Pa Fou o
his His o y o F ance and England in No h Ame ica (1874), en i led The Old Régime in
Canada. Though ac -based, Pa kman’s na a i e e idences a deep-sea ed poli ical and
cul u al bias agains he F ench which sheds some ligh on he colonial beginnings o
New England as well, o e ing us a s o y ha is no elis ic in s yle and all-encompassing
in heme and subjec ma e .
KEYWORDS
Ame ican His o iog aphy / Anglo-Saxonism / New England / New F ance / Roman ic
His o y
2
Edga do Medei os da Sil a
École des sciences sociales e poli iques, Uni e si é de Lisbonne
Cen e de l'Uni e si é de Lisbonne pou les é udes anglophones
Thème e obje dans L'ancien égime au Canada de F ancis Pa kman
Résumé
«Il n'y a de panacées poli iques que dans l'imagina ion des cha la ans poli iques.» Ce
son les mo s employés pa l'his o ien amé icain F ancis Pa kman (1823-1893) pou
suggé e que les colonies anglaises e ançaises su le con inen no d-amé icain é aien
ès di é en es de leu s débu s e le es e aien p obablemen dans les années à eni .
Ce a icle analyse l'échec de la F ance à é abli la base d'une communau é poli ique
bien églemen ée en Amé ique du No d dans le con ex e de la i ali é anglo- ançaise
pou le con ôle de ce con inen el que éhiculé pa F ancis Pa kman dans la qua ième
pa ie de son His oi e de la F ance e de l’Angle e e en Amé ique du No d (1874),
in i ulée L'ancien égime au Canada. Bien que ondé su des ai s, son éci his o ique
su la Nou elle-F ance me en é idence les p éjugés poli iques e cul u els p o onds
con e les F ançais, en je an aussi une ce aine lumiè e su les débu s coloniaux de la
Nou elle-Angle e e. Pa kman nous o e une his oi e omanesque dans le s yle e as e
en ma iè e de hème e d’obje .
MOTS-CLÉS
His o iog aphie amé icaine / anglo-saxonisme / Nou elle-Angle e e / Nou elle-F ance
/ His oi e oman ique
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Theme and Subjec Ma e in F ancis Pa kman’s The Old Régime in Canada
In oduc ion
This pape examines he ailu e o F ance o es ablish he basis o a well- egula ed
poli ical communi y in No h Ame ica as con eyed by he Ame ican his o ian F ancis
Pa kman in Pa Fou o his His o y o F ance and England in No h Ame ica, en i led
The Old Régime in Canada (1874). Pa kman’s choice o heme and subjec ma e o
his His o y poin s o di e ences be ween he English and F ench se lemen s which
po ay, as has been sugges ed, ‘ he s uggle be ween F ance and England as a he oic
con es be ween i al ci iliza ions wi h wilde ness as a modi ying o ce’ (Jacobs 582).
This s uggle and hese di e ences e lec a deep-sea ed cul u al and poli ical bias
agains colonial F ance on he pa o New England his o ians ha s e ch as a back as
Joseph Dennie’s Po olio and Edmund Bu ke’s Re lec ions on he Re olu ion in F ance
(1790). I is my con en ion ha Pa Fou o Pa kman’s His o y, in o med by he
‘Teu onic ge m’ commonly associa ed wi h he his o iog aphy o New England’s
nine een h-cen u y Roman ic o li e a y his o ians, p o ides us wi h an accoun o he
coloniza ion o New F ance which sheds some ligh on he colonial beginnings o New
England as well. No in equen ly, in ac , Pa kman’s his o ical na a i e on New
F ance is jux aposed on ha o New England, one p o iding a so o backd op o he
cul u al and poli ical make-up o he o he .
The son o a Uni a ian minis e , F ancis Pa kman (1823-1893) was bo n in
Bos on, Massachuse s. A g adua e o Ha a d, he comple ed he equi emen s o a law
deg ee in 1845, bu ne e p ac iced i . In 1846, he wen on an expedi ion o he Wes
along he O egon T ail as a as Fo La amie, Wyoming, which was o be hugely
impo an o him in e ms o his w i ing. I allowed him an insigh in o he se en een h-
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cen u y I oquois which he was able o use in he cons uc ion o his na a i e, O egon
T ail: Ske ches o P ai ie and Rocky Moun ain Li e (1849) and His o y o he
Conspi acy o Pon iac (1851). In His o y o F ance and England in No h Ame ica un il
1763 (7 ols., 1865-1892), ega ded as Pa kman’s majo his o ical wo k, he de ails he
coloniza ion and adminis a ion o New F ance by he F ench om he la e i een h o
mid-eigh een h cen u y. Pa Fou , he ocus o my pape , is s uc u ed a ound h ee
majo sec ions: ‘The Feudal Chie s o A cadia’, ‘Canada, A Mission’, and ‘The Colony
and he King’, espec i ely, each one subdi ided in o a o al o wen y- ou chap e s.
These numbe ed chap e s co espond o a pa icula pe iod o ime and a gene al i le,
ollowed in u n by he s anda d subheadings ound in wo ks o his na u e, de ailing
each o he majo opics discussed in he chap e in ques ion.
1
The ime ame co e ed
by Pa kman’s The Old Régime s e ches om 1497, wi h he a i al o he i s F ench
explo e s in Acadia, o 1763, he yea he English o mally ook o e he con ol o he
e i o y, a pe iod o p ecisely wo hund ed and six y-six yea s.
O e he pas hi y yea s, c i icism on F ancis Pa kman has been a ied and
wide- anging, mos i da ing o he 1980s. Wilbu R. Jacobs, who augh a he
Uni e si y o Cali o nia a San a Ba ba a, and Da id Le in, who augh a he
Uni e si y o Vi ginia un il his e i emen in 1992, a e cen al igu es in he body o
c i ical wo ks de o ed o Pa kman. Jacobs, who published egula ly on Pa kman un il
his dea h in 1998, edi ed Pa kman’s co espondence, The Le e s o F ancis Pa kman (2
ols., 1960), and de eloped a body o c i ical wo k on his his o ian ha includes a
signi ican numbe o essays and monog aphs on such ma e s as he li e a y de ices
used by Pa kman and he la e ’s in e es in he na u al wo ld. In 1991, he b ough ou
F ancis Pa kman, His o ian as He o: The Fo ma i e Yea s, whe e he a gues ha
Pa kman p ojec ed himsel on he his o ical igu es he desc ibes in his ex s. Le in’s
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seminal wo k His o y as Roman ic A – Banc o , P esco , Mo ley, and Pa kman
(1959, ep in ed in 1995) is s ill a highly use ul monog aph on he o e all hemes which
“gen leman-his o ians” such as Pa kman deal wi h in hei na a i es. Howa d
Dough y’s F ancis Pa kman (1962, ep in ed, 1983) is a somewha eulogis ic biog aphy
o Pa kman w i en by a non-his o ian, bu i emains a comp ehensi e s udy o
Pa kman's w i ings and ideas, co e ing he whole o his li e a y p oduc ion, om his
his o ical wo ks o his essays and a icles o pe iodical publica ions, such as he No h
Ame ican Re iew and Bos on's Ad e ise . A ho ough analysis o he hemes and
me hods used by he Roman ic his o ians, and pa icula ly insigh ul on accoun o he
s ylis ic con as s i d aws be ween hem, can be ound in Richa d Vi zhum’s The
Ame ican Comp omise (1974). The publica ion o Pa kman’s comple e wo ks in he
Lib a y o Ame ica Se ies, F ance and England in No h Ame ica (2 ols., 1983),
edi ed by Da id Le in, and The O egon T ail and The Conspi acy o Pon iac (1991),
edi ed by William R. Taylo , ha e been highly ins umen al in keeping Pa kman ali e
among schola s and he gene al eading public o his day.
Roman ic His o y
The name o F ancis Pa kman is usually g ouped oge he wi h a se o Ame ican
his o ians o en labeled as Roman ic his o ians, li e a y his o ians, o gen lemen-
ama eu his o ians, among which we ind William Hickling P esco ,
2
Geo ge Banc o
3
and William Lo h op Mo ley.
4
Ac i e h oughou mos o he nine een h cen u y, hey
a e labeled as such o ob ious easons, bu abo e all so as no o be con used wi h he
la e nine een h-cen u y, p o essional o ‘scien i ic his o ians’, indi iduals such as
He be Bax e Adams (1850-1901),
5
F ede ick Jackson Tu ne (1861-1932),
6
and J.
F anklin Jameson (1859-1937),
7
associa ed wi h he newe uni e si ies o Johns
Hopkins, Cla k, and Chicago. The wo ld iew we ind in he his o ical na a i es o he

6
Roman ic o li e a y his o ians is one in o med by hei social and economic
backg ounds: hey we e men o means who could a o d o acqui e o iginal
manusc ip s, hi e esea ch assis an s and copyis s o do he mo e labo ious pa o hei
wo k, and a el o capi al ci ies in o de o gain access o o icial documen s in
go e nmen al a chi es. They could w i e his o y independen ly, wi hou ha ing o ely
on i o hei own (and hei amilies’) sus enance.
The s eng h o New England’s in ellec ual adi ion, s emming om i s Pu i an
oo s, can be seen in he his o ical na a i es o hese gen leman-ama eu his o ians,
whe he in P esco ’s his o ies su ounding he uni ica ion o he kingdom o Spain by
Fe dinand o A agon and Isabella o Cas ile, in Banc o ’s depic ion o he poli ical
o igins o he Uni ed S a es, in Mo ley’s desc ip ion o he beginnings o he Du ch
Republic, o in Pa kman’s cha ac e iza ion o he F ench occupa ion o Canada, mo e
p ecisely he e i o y which is now Quebec. B ough up unde he s ic u es o
P o es an ism, in i s Cong ega ionalis o Uni a ian o m, he gen lemen-ama eu
his o ians belonged o he educa ed eli es o New England. They a ended Ha a d
College wi h hei minds se on a legal o eligious ca ee , hei his o ical na a i es,
ac -based (i is common o di e en ia e among di e en gen es o his o ical na a i es
– ic ional, ac -based, hyb id), e lec ing he alues and in e es s o he dominan
classes in he coun y a he ime wi h espec o wha cons i u ed good a , li e a u e o
his o y. Ideologically conse a i e, hey we e aised on a s able se o epublican
p inciples and ideals which can be aced back o he poli ical o igins o he coun y.
They we e ini ially suppo e s o he Fede alis Pa y, hen o i s successo , he Whig
Pa y, and inally, in pos -Ci il Ame ica, o Lincoln’s Republicans, he excep ion being
Geo ge Banc o , who always showed a p e e ence o he Jacksonian democ a s (i was
a commonly-held iew ha each page o his His o y o ed o he Democ a ic Pa y).
7
Fo hem, he w i ing o his o y was an a , o be pu side by side wi h li e a u e.
They el ha he w i ing o his o y equi ed c ea i i y and imagina ion, which mean
ha hey conside ed hemsel es o be a is s as well as judges o wha cons i u ed good
his o iog aphical wo k. Pe e No ick obse es in his book Tha Noble D eam – The
‘Objec i i y Ques ion’ and he Ame ican His o ical P o ession (1999) ha Roman ic
his o ians w o e because hey had some u gen message o communica e o hei eading
public, p e e ing ‘ o ell’ a he han ‘ o show’ (45-46). These his o ians lacked he
objec i i y and dis ance om he subjec ma e one associa es wi h a ‘scien i ic’
analysis o his o ical ac s, which means ha no in equen ly he neu al oice which
mus cha ac e ize his o ical discou se is missing. The slow-mo ing ac ion and uni e sal
hemes o Roman ic his o ians imply ha hei his o ies un o many, many pages,
esul ing in wo ks wi h a la ge numbe o olumes, wi h a so o ‘no elis ic quali y’ o
hem. Al hough hey we e p ima ily in e es ed in poli ical and cons i u ional ma e s, we
ind in hei na a i es he kind o lo e o Na u e ha we associa e wi h ic ion w i e s
o his pe iod, wo o hei a o i e au ho s being he his o ical omance s Si Wal e
Sco and James Fennimo e Coppe . Thei na a i es include, he e o e, elabo a e
desc ip ions o scene y and landscape, as well as se ing, an essen ial elemen o hei
depic ions o he pas . Jus like he his o ians Gibbon, Michele , Tocque ille, and
Ca lyle, hey we e ead o ‘li e a y pleasu e’, in he wo ds o Richa d J. E ans (60).
In he cons uc ion o his na a i e on New F ance, Pa kman ollowed he
me hodological p ecep s o nine een h-cen u y Ge man his o iog aphy, as laid down by
o Leopold on Ranke (1795-1886),
8
who had main ained ha he p ima y goal o he
his o ian was o p o ide a e sion o his o y as i eally was o happened (wie es
eigen lich gewesen is ), ha ing a gued o he use o documen a y e idence and
philological me hods in his o y, in conjunc ion wi h a c i ical a i ude owa ds p ima y
8
sou ces. In he P e ace o The Old Régime, he w i es ha he employed all he documen s
he could lay his hands upon, le e s, dispa ches, memo ials, and o icial eco ds om
go e nmen and eligious a chi es on bo h sides o he A lan ic. Wi h a ce ain deg ee
o sa casm, he alludes o he massi e amoun o in o ma ion a ailable o he his o ian
in e es ed in he colonial beginnings o New F ance, ema king ha ‘[ ]he pen was
always busy in his ou pos o he old mona chy’ (x). He also de ails he kind o p ima y
ma e ials he used o compose his na a i e, ‘le e s, despa ches, and memo ials’, as well
as he eco ds o he Supe io Council o Quebec and he documen s in he ci il and
ecclesias ical a chi es o Canada (x). Again he e is sa casm when he w i es ha his
oluminous documen a ion exis s because ‘[ ]he king and he minis e demanded o
know e e y hing;’ (x) mo eo e , he adds, hese documen s managed su i e ‘ he pe ils
o e olu ion and he incendia y o ch o he Commune’ (x), he la e commen an
ob ious e e ence o New Englande s’ dislike o adical o ms o poli ical ac i i y such
as Jacobinism. In he P e ace o Pa Fou o his His o y, he also s a es unequi ocally
he hesis o his wo k: ‘This olume a emp s o show by wha me hods i [ he
mona chical adminis a ion o F ance] s o e o make good i s hold, why i achie ed a
ce ain kind o success, and why i ailed a las ’ (x). And he con inues: he aim o he
i s olume is ‘ o examine he poli ical and social machine’, whe eas ha o he olume
ha ollows is o see ‘ he machine in ac ion’ (xii). His claim o his o ical objec i i y is
also clea ly asse ed by him a he beginning o his na a i e: ‘Wi h he help o a sys em
o classi ied no es, I ha e colla ed he e idence o he a ious w i e s, and se down
wi hou ese e all he esul s o he examina ion, whe he a o able o un a o able’
(xi).
In line wi h he p ecep s o good Roman ic his o iog aphy, Pa kman also ollows
s ylis ic con en ion in his na a i e on The Old Régime, paying a en ion o cha ac e ,
9
scene and inciden , h ee o he p e equisi es o good ic ional w i ing. In his desc ip ion
o Louis XIV’s cou a Fon ainebleau, Pa kman’s li e a y s yle is pa icula ly
no iceable, namely he a en ion o de ail, he as pace o he na a i e and he copious
use o adjec i es, as he ollowing quo a ion sugges s:
Lea e Canada behind; c oss he sea, and s and, on an e ening in June, by
he edge o he o es o Fon ainebleau. Beyond he b oad ga dens, abo e
he long anges o moonli ees, ise he walls and pinnacles o he as
cha eau, — a sh ine o his o y, he go geous monumen o lines o
anished kings, haun ed wi h memo ies o Cape , Valois, and Bou bon.
The e was li le hough o he pas a Fon ainebleau in June, 1661. The
p esen was oo dazzling and oo in oxica ing; he u u e, oo adian wi h
hope and p omise. I was he mo ning o a new eign; he sun o Louis
XIV was ising in splendo , and he ank and beau y o F ance we e
ga he ed o pay i homage. (229-30)
And Pa kman con inues in he same egis e , adding o his ex a e e ence o he sou ce
o his inspi a ion, he pain ing o Louis XIV by Philippe de Champagne:
A you h ul cou , a you h ul king; a pomp and magni icence such as
Eu ope had ne e seen; a deli ium o ambi ion, pleasu e, and lo e, — all
his w ough in many a young hea an enchan men des ined o be
c uelly b oken. […] He e was Anne o Aus ia, he King's mo he , and
16
pa ience, and public spi i . The cemen o common in e es s, hopes, and
du ies compac ed he whole people like a ock o conglome a e; while he
people o New F ance emained in a s a e o poli ical seg ega ion, like a
baske o pebbles held oge he by he enclosu e ha su ounds hem.
(464)
Pa kman clea ly saw he F ench and English poli ical sys ems as i als, he
o me ha ing eplaced he la e o i s in insic supe io i y, bu he does no ail o
ecognize hose cases in which ex emes do indeed mee . In a isibly p esen is eading
o his o y, he w i es in he P e ace o The Old Régime: ‘The poli ical sys em which has
allen, and he an agonis ic sys em which has p e ailed, seem, a i s sigh , o o e
no hing bu con as s; ye ou o he omb o Canadian absolu ism come oices no
wi hou sugges ion e en o us. Ex emes mee , and Au oc acy and Democ acy o en
ouch hands, a leas in hei ices’ (ix-x). In chap e XVIII, o ins ance, he de ails he
cha ac e is ics o Canadian eudalism, w i ing ha wi h one di e ence i was simply an
ex ension o F ench eudalism in No h Ame ica. The se le s we e en i ely a he me cy
o he King, as no hing could be changed wi hou an o de om he mona ch:
A dec ee o he King, an edic o he council, o an o dinance o he in endan ,
migh a any momen change old condi ions, impose new ones, in e e e
be ween he lo d o he mano and his g an ees, and modi y o annul his
ba gains, pas o p esen . He was ne e su e whe he o no he go e nmen
would le him alone; and agains i s mos a bi a y in e en ion he had no
emedy. (309)

17
Pa kman holds, in e ec , ha he sys em was o ally unp edic able, wi h he
igh s o indi iduals, be hey noblemen o no , in any way p o ec ed. This con as s
clea ly wi h he his o y o he English colonies p io o he 1776 Re olu ion, which had
been le mo e o less alone o un hei a ai s and wi hou much in e e ence om he
Pa liamen in Wes mins e , wi h Ame ican colonis s in no way doub ing hei igh s as
Englishmen. In he case o New F ance, he au ho i y o he King o e his colony was
absolu e and undi ided, se ing, in Pa kman’s wo ds, ‘a double end, — o p oduce a
ain and ha mless e lec ion o F ench a is oc acy, and simply and p ac ically o supply
agencies o dis ibu ing land among he se le s’ (305). I was a ‘well-meaning
despo ism’, acco ding o him, whe eby he censi ai e had obliga ions owa ds his
seignio which included paymen s in money, kind o bo h, bu hese paymen s we e no
e y high, nei he egula ly en o ced on he habi an s, as Canadian noble amilies,
Pa kman adds, we e des i u e, p ac ically begga s, hough ull o ‘p ide and slo h’ (319).
As Howa d Dough y poin s ou in connec ion wi h The Conspi acy o Pon iac,
Pa kman's na a i es a e in used wi h con as ing o mula ions o wo compe ing
cul u es, ha o he F ench and ha o he English, c ea ing bina y opposi ions be ween
Feudalism and Democ acy, Pope y and P o es an ism, he swo d and he ploughsha e,
wa and ad en u e e sus ade and indus y, monopoly as opposed o ee en e p ise
(179). He labels as "coun e expe imen " he dissimila i ies be ween he coloniza ion o
New F ance and ha New England (251), iden i ying a iad o ideas in Pa kman which
explains he success o he New England se lemen s: “Libe a ianism, laissez ai e, and
he Pu i an gospel o mundane wo ks [...]” (251-2). Pa kman, he adds, was "s eeped [...]
in he Pu i an-indi idualis e hos o pe sonal accoun abili y" and con a y o English
18
se le s, hose o New F ance, in his iew, we e accoun able no o hemsel es, bu o a
highe en i y, he cen alized au ho i y o he King o F ance (264).
Common o all he Roman ic his o ians, Pa kman included, was he idea ha
human p og ess, which hey hough could be aced in he his o y o na ions, was a so
o line ha an, i you looked a he globe, in a iably om Eas o Wes and om No h
o Sou h. Poli ically, his p og ess had been associa ed o a change om au oc a o
democ a ic egimes, om absolu ism o democ acy ( he idea ha Feudalism and Royal
Absolu ism a e a chaic o ms o go e nmen is implici in The Old Régime, as he i le
i sel sugges s), bu as a as eligion was conce ned i was closely ied o Ch is iani y. I
was a line o e olu ion ha , as Da id Le in has poin ed ou , an om Roman
Ca holicism o he Re o ma ion and P o es an ism and om he la e o Bos onian
Uni a ians, wi h Roman Ca holics, Ame indians, Moo s and Jews being ega ded o he
mos pa as an i-p og essi e o ces (126). Al hough eligion in o med he ounda ion o
New England and New F ance, he ou comes we e unmis akably di e en . In his
passage om he inal pa ag aph o The Old Régime, he supe io i y o English
P o es an ism, which Pa kman associa es wi h he ma e ial p og ess o i s socie y and
wi h he indi idual eedom enjoyed by ci izens in gene al, is e iden :
15
This English conques was he g and c isis o Canadian his o y. I was
he beginning o a new li e. Wi h England came P o es an ism, and he
Canadian Chu ch g ew pu e and be e in he p esence o an ad e se
ai h. Ma e ial g ow h; an inc eased men al ac i i y; an educa ion, eal
hough enced and gua ded; a wa m and genuine pa io ism, -- all da e
om he peace o 1763. (467-8)
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One o he a gumen s pu o h by Pa kman o he di e gen poli ical pa hs
chosen by he colonies o New England and New F ance has o do wi h he exclusion o
he Hugueno s om he se lemen o Acadia. The Company o New F ance, c ea ed by
Ca dinal Richelieu o egula e he adminis a i e a ai s o he colony, excluded he
F ench P o es an s om he se lemen s along he S . Law ence Ri e , as well as he
F anciscan Récolle s, i als o he Jesui s. Fo Pa kman sugges s ha i Louis XIV had
allowed he Hugueno s o immig a e o New F ance, ee , mo e indus ious and
independen communi ies would ha e eme ged along he S . Law ence Ri e , simila o
hose ha had de eloped in he Massachuse s Bay a ea. Fo him, his was a majo law
in he coloniza ion o New F ance, as he Hugueno s, excluded om a p ocess ha was
solely in he hands o he Jesui s, we e associa ed wi h a mo e en ep eneu ial spi i and
s onge wo k e hic (and how much o his idea is a e lec ion o Gilded Age hinking is
an open ques ion). All o his would ha e ansla ed, Pa kman obse es especially in his
na a i es The Jesui s in No h Ame ica in he Se en een h Cen u y (1867) and La Salle
and he Disco e y o he G ea Wes (1869), in o ma e ial g ow h and p og ess o he
men and women o New F ance. Pa kman's an i-cle icalism agains he Jesui s and
Ca holic p ies s in gene al was qui e s ong (and ecu en ly agains he Pu i ans o New
England as well), no in equen ly no ing ha hei powe and in luence had been le
unchecked by he au ho i ies. In Mon calm and Wol (1884), o ins ance, e e ing o
F ançois Xa ie de La al (1623-1708), who was o become he i s bishop o Quebec,
Pa kman obse es: “The Jesui s, adep s in human na u e, had made a sagacious choice
when hey pu o wa d his conscien ious, zealous, dogged, and pugnacious p ies o
igh hei ba les" (q d. in Dough y 342).
20
Supe s i ion, ana icism and eligious belie we e all ana hema o a ionalis s like
Pa kman, who along wi h o he li e a y his o ians, liked o con as , in he wo ds o
No ick, ‘P o es an i ue wi h Ca holic ice, as well as Anglo-Saxon libe y wi h La in
absolu ism’ (46). The Ca holic cle gy was an ob ious a ge o li e a y his o ians o i s
supposedly licen ious beha io and co up mo als, he p ies c a being p ecisely, as
Le in also pu s i , ‘ he mos unna u al, non-libe a ian, non-Teu onic subjec ’ (92).
Pa kman’s c i icism o eligious ins i u ions in New F ance ex ended o he subjec o
educa ion, en i ely in he hands o he Jesui s, who a e s ongly c i icized no only o
hei sho comings as educa o s, bu also o hei co- esponsibili y in main aining he
poli ical s a us quo in he colony. The ollowing passage is o ha e ec :
All educa ion was con olled by p ies s o nuns. The ables eache s in
Canada we e he Jesui s. Thei college o Quebec was h ee yea s olde
han Ha a d. We hea a an ea ly da e o public dispu a ions by he
pupils, a e he pa e n o hose ou namen s o ba en logic which
p eceded he eign o induc i e eason in Eu ope, and o which he
a che ype is o be ound in he scholas ic duels o he So bonne. The boys
we e some imes pe mi ed o ac ce ain app o ed d ama ic pieces o a
eligious cha ac e , like he Sage Visionnai e. On one occasion hey we e
allowed o play he Cid o Co neille, which, hough ema kable as a
li e a y wo k, con ained no hing h ea ening o o hodoxy. They we e
augh a li le La in, a li le he o ic, and a li le logic; bu agains all ha
migh ouse he acul ies o independen ac ion, he Canadian schools
p uden ly closed hei doo s. The e was hen no i al popula ion, o a
di e en o igin and a di e en ai h, o compel compe i ion in he ace o
21
in elligence and knowledge. The Chu ch s ood sole mis ess o he ield.
Unde he old egime he eal objec o educa ion in Canada was a
eligious and, in a less deg ee, a poli ical one. The ue pu pose o he
schools was: i s , o make p ies s; and, secondly, o make obedien
se an s o he Chu ch and he King. All he es was ex aneous and o
sligh accoun . (425-6)
I should no be o go en, howe e , as has been sugges ed, ha al hough he
Ca holic and he P o es an cle gy had di e en in e p e a ions o ‘ he ene s o he One
T ue Fai h’, ‘ hey s ood uni ed in hei sco n o na i e eligious belie s’ (Nobles 29).
A belie e in he ‘mani es des iny’ o he Uni es S a es as na ion, Pa kman
shows biased a i udes in his his o ical na a i es owa ds Na i e Ame icans, who a e
o en depic ed as being eache ous, i esolu e, and con olled by he senses, a he han
by eason. As S ephen Tonso has no ed, a he han seeing he Indian as embodying he
image o he noble, hough unci ilized, human being, ‘Pa kman ound he Indian o be
sa age, c uel, cap icious and incapable o a ional hough ’ (249). He saw no p oblem in
he displacemen o he Indian popula ions om hei e i o ies, conside ed as simply a
ic o y o ci iliza ion o e ba ba ism. Pa kman is pa icula ly c i ical, o ins ance, o
Indian supe s i ion, as we can in e om his passage in connec ion wi h Jesui a emp s
a p osely izing he na i e popula ions:
The e was a beas ly supe s i ion p e alen among he Hu ons, he
I oquois, and o he ibes. I consis ed o a "medicine" o mys ic eas , in
which i was essen ial ha he gues s should de ou e e y hing se be o e

22
hem, howe e ino dina e in quan i y, unless absol ed om du y by he
pe son in whose behal he solemni y was o dained, — he, on his pa ,
aking no sha e in he banque . So g a e was he obliga ion, and so
s enuously did he gues s ul il i , ha e en hei os ich diges ion was
some imes uined pas edemp ion by he excess o his bene olen
glu ony. These es ins a mange ou had been equen ly denounced as
diabolical by he Jesui s, du ing hei mission among he Hu ons; bu
now, wi h a pliancy o conscience as excusable in his case as in any
o he , hey esol ed o se aside hei sc uples, al hough, judged om
hei poin o iew, hey we e exceedingly well ounded. (90-1)
The na a i es o he Roman ic o li e a y his o ians a e o an excep ionalis
na u e, Ame ican ins i u ions and poli ical p ac ices being p aised o hei un i alled
quali ies. Pa kman is no excep ion in his espec , as we ha e been ying o
demons a e. A his o ian in whose na a i es he excep ionalis quali y o he Ame ican
poli ical na ion is pa icula ly no iceable is Geo ge Banc o . Though admi ing in his
His o y o he Uni ed S a es om he Disco e y o he Ame ican Con inen (1838) ha
he p og ess o he coun y had occu ed unde he banne o ‘a a o ing P o idence’, he
obse es ha he ‘ge m’ o Ame ican ins i u ions, namely he desi e o eedom and
popula so e eign y, can be ound in he ea ly his o y o he coun y. He w i es ha he
Uni ed S a es was he i s na ion ‘in he p ac ice and he de ense o he equal igh s o
man’, a na ion whe e ‘ he so e eign y o he people’ was undispu ed (1). When
Pa kman posi s in his ex Libe y and P o idence e sus Absolu ism / Royal
P e oga i e and Jesui ical Fana icism, he is w i ing in he li e a y ein o Banc o ,
he e o e. The ollowing passage om he opening pages o Banc o ’s His o y o he
23
Uni ed S a es is pa icula ly elling, no jus o being enden ious and biased, some hing
o pa icula in e es o us, his o iog aphically, bu because i condenses he mo al c eed,
he poli ical he o ic, and he his o ical my hs ha ha e been pe pe ua ed h oughou
U.S. his o y om Pa kman’s days o he so-called consensus his o ians o he 50s and
ea ly 60s.
16
The Uni ed S a es o Ame ica cons i u e an essen ial po ion o a g ea
poli ical sys em, emb acing all he ci ilized na ions o he ea h. A a
pe iod when he o ce o mo al opinion is apidly inc easing, hey ha e
he p ecedence in he p ac ice and he de ence o he equal igh s o man.
The so e eign y o he people is he e a conceded axiom, and he laws,
es ablished upon ha basis, a e che ished wi h ai h ul pa io ism. While
he na ions o Eu ope aspi e a e change, ou cons i u ion engages he
ond admi a ion o he people, by which i has been es ablished. […] Ou
go e nmen , by i s o ganiza ion, is necessa ily iden i ied wi h he
in e es s o he people, and elies exclusi ely on hei a achmen o i s
du abili y and suppo . E en he enemies o he s a e, i he e a e any
among us, ha e libe y o exp ess hei opinions undis u bed; and a e
sa ely ole a ed, whe e eason is le ee o comba hei e o s. (1-2)
Pa kman sha es wi h he his o ian Hen y Adams, au ho o His o y o he Uni ed
S a es du ing he Adminis a ions o Thomas Je e son and James Madison (1889-91),
and a ansi ional igu e be ween he abo e-men ioned Roman ic his o ians o he ea lie
pa o he nine een h cen u y and he ‘p o essional’ his o ians o he la e pa o he
24
cen u y, he idea ha he coloniza ion o he No h Ame ican con inen had ep esen ed
an ex ension o Eu opean ci iliza ion in he New Wo ld. Pa kman, hough, as John
Higham has no ed in his book His o y – P o essional Schola ship in Ame ica (1989),
always showed a pa icula p e e ence o ‘explo ing he common expe ience o he
g ea mass o he Ame ican people’, unlike Adams, who chose he p oximi y o he
co ido s o powe (155). P ecisely on wha sepa a es hese wo his o ians, Wayne
Fields, in an essay en i led ‘The Ame ican Adams’, obse es: ‘I F ancis Pa kman
(1823-93) w o e his o y in which he oes occupy cen e s age, gene a e he ene gy which
d i es his o y, Adams ega ded he oes as ha de o come by, o cing his o y, o he
mos pa , o ge along wi h hem’ (202).
In The Old Régime Pa kman shows a keen in e es in social ma e s in New
F ance.
17
He goes o g ea leng hs o desc ibe Canadian socie y in i s a ious aspec s,
hus p o iding a social backd op o his na a i e ( his was no uncommon o nine een h
-cen u y his o ians: Thomas Macaulay (1800-1859) and J. R. G een (1837-1883), o
example, included de ailed in o ma ion on he s a e o English socie y in sepa a e
chap e s o hei na a i es). Bu , again, Pa kman’s accoun o he se lemen o New
F ance con as s s ongly wi h ha o he English colonies. He w i es, o ins ance, ha
he F ench C own wo ked ha d o encou age emig a ion o he colony, d awing on he
bes elemen s om di e en pa s o he coun y, e en hough hese we e mos ly
uneduca ed peasan s, wi h li le o no money. Fu he mo e, he no es ha he o ice s
who had se ed in he colony we e gi en incen i es o emain in he e i o y, including
ac s o land, a ‘mili a y coloniza ion’ which, in his iew, ma ked indelibly he
cha ac e o he Canadian people (279). Women had o be impo ed o he colony om
di e en pa s o F ance and om di e en socio-economic backg ounds, some o
whom o ill- epu e (280).
25
Rhe o ically, he asks why despi e such gene ous policies encou aging people o
emig a e and o ha e child en he popula ion o Canada ne e g ew much (es ima ed o
be app oxima ely 25,000 a he ime). The answe , acco ding o him, was because ‘i
was mainly an immig a ion o single men and single women’ (291), a he han amilies
al eady cons i u ed, which would ha e p o ided a much be e backg ound upon which
o build s able communi ies. Mo eo e , he whole p ocess was di ec ed by he King
himsel : ‘The new se le was ound by he King, sen o e by he King, and supplied by
he king wi h a wi e, a a m, and some imes wi h a house. Well did Louis XIV ea n he
i le o Fa he o New F ance’ (291). Fo Pa kman, his excessi e cen aliza ion o
policy was coun e p oduc i e, sugges ing ha his ac made Canadian se le s less
en ep eneu ial, less educa ed, and qui e possibly less democ a ic in hei poli ical
aspi a ions. Whe e was oom o he kind o ugged indi idualism and sel - eliance ha
had cha ac e ized he se lemen o he US, adi ionally associa ed wi h p o i in he
Sou h and eligious eeling in he No h?
This excessi e in e e ence in he li e o he colony by he oyal go e nmen in
Pa is ex ended o he economy as well. T ue, he se le s could engage in ade o
comme ce, bu hose ac i i ies we e limi ed in scope, as Pa kman ema ks, so much so
ha ‘exposed o such icissi udes om he in e en ion o in endan s, minis e s, and
councils, […] a imes i [ he domes ic ade] was almos banished’ (322). To make his
poin , Pa kman desc ibes one o he mos in e es ing ‘cha ac e s’ in his his o ical
na a i e, he ‘ o ing gen ilhomme’, he un i led noblemen who engaged in ade, he
Wes e n u - ade ha is, in ime o peace and we e ‘a menace and a e o o he
neighbou ing English colonis ’, in hese e ms:
32
Pa kman, F ancis. His o y o F ance and England in No h Ame ica. To on o:
Geo ge N. Mo ang, 1898.
P esco , William Hickling. His o y o he Reign o Fe dinand and Isabella he
Ca holic, o Spain. London: Geo ge Rou ledge and Sons, 1841.
Tonso , S ephen.‘The Conse a i e as His o ian’, Mode n Age, Summe /Fall 1983. 246-
55.
Vi zhum, Richa d. The Ame ican Comp omise – Theme and Me hod in he
His o ies o Banc o , Pa kman,, and Adams. No man, Oklahoma: Uni e si y o
Oklahoma P ess, 1974.

33
1
I ha e used he 1898 edi ion o F ancis Pa kman’s wo ks published by Geo ge N. Mo ang (To on o),
which was based on he one by John Wilson and Son (Camb idge), wi h copy igh s by Li le, B own, and
Company (1897). Pa kman in oduced a no e o his e ised edi ion o 1893 whe e he w i es ha he has
added chap e s on he ‘ i al claiman s o Acadia, -- La Tou and D’Aulnay’, as well a ew o he de ails o
lesse impo ance, due o an absence o ma e ials on hose subjec s.
2
William Hickling P esco (1796-1859) was bo n in Salem, Massachuse s. A g adua e o Ha a d, he
published His o y o he Reign o Fe dinand and Isabella he Ca holic, o Spain (1838), The Conques o
Mexico (1843), The Conques o Pe u (1847), and His o y o he Reign o Philip II (3 ols., 1855-1858),
le incomple e.
3
Geo ge Banc o (1800-1891) was bo n in Wo ces e , Massachuse s. A g adua e o Ha a d, he s udied
a Heidelbe g, Gö ingen and Be lin. He published His o y o he Uni ed S a es om he disco e y o he
con inen o he end o he Re olu iona y Wa (1834-1874), in en olumes (a six- olume ab idged
e sion o i came ou in 1876) and The His o y o he Fo ma ion o he Cons i u ion o he U.S. (1882).
4
John Lo h op Mo ley (1814-1877) was bo n in Do ches e , Massachuse s. Also a g adua e o Ha a d,
he s udied in Gö ingen, om 1832 o 1838. His bes -known his o ical wo ks we e: The Rise o he Du ch
Republic (3 ols., 1856), His o y o he Uni ed Ne he lands (4 ols., 1860-1867), and The Li e and Dea h
o Ba ne eld (1874).
5
He be Bax e Adams augh a he depa men o his o y and poli ical science a he Johns Hopkins
Uni e si y om 1876 o 1901. His majo w i ings include: The Ge manic O igin o he New England
Towns, Saxon Ti hing-Men in Ame ica, No man Cons ables in Ame ica, and Me hods o His o ical S udy.
6
A p o esso o his o y a Wisconsin (1890–1910) and la e a Ha a d (1911–1924), F ede ick Jackson
Tu ne is bes -known o his ‘F on ie Thesis’, which he pu o h in a pape en i led ‘The Signi icance o
he F on ie in Ame ican His o y’ (1893), ead be o e he Ame ican His o ical Associa ion in Chicago,
du ing he ci y’s 1893 Wo ld Columbian Exposi ion.
7
J. F anklin Jameson was he i s managing edi o o he Ame ican His o ical Re iew (AHR). In 1905,
he became he di ec o o he Depa men o His o ical Resea ch o he Ca negie Ins i u ion o
Washing on. His bes -known wo k is The Ame ican Re olu ion Conside ed as a Social Mo emen (1926).
8
This Ge man his o ian, ega ded as he a he o mode n his o ical schola ship, exe ed a emendous
in luence on Ame ican schola s and uni e si ies h oughou he nine een h cen u y.
9
Daniel de Rémy de Cou celle (1626 –1698), who was he Go e no Gene al o New F ance om 1665
o 1672, in oduced imp o emen s in he judicial sys em o he colony. He ca ied ou an agg essi e wa
agains he I oquois, bu succeeded in so ing ou many o he con lic s ha exis ed among he di e en
Indian ibes in Acadia.
10
Jean Talon, Coun d'O sain ille (1626 – 1694), was he i s In endan o New F ance o ac ually eside
in he colony (Louis Robe was In endan om 1663 o 1665, bu ne e came o New F ance). Appoin ed
by Louis XIV and his minis e , Jean-Bap is e Colbe , as he In endan o Jus ice, Public O de and
Finances in Canada, Acadia and New oundland, Talon se ed o wo e ms: 1665 o 1668 and 1669 o
1672. He was ins umen al in p omo ing emig a ion o he colony, including o e 1,000 women known as
he illes du oi – he king's daugh e s.
11
Some o he i les o he chap e s a e hemsel es sel -explana o y as o he o e a ching heme o The
Old Régime: ‘Royal In e en ion’ (chap. XIII), ‘Pa e nal Go e nmen ’ (XV), ‘Canadian Feudalism’
(chap. XVIII), ‘Canadian Absolu ism’ (chap. XXIV).
12
In he His o y o Fe dinand and Isabella, o ins ance, on he ea ly his o y o Cas ile and A agon,
P esco does no ail o poin ou he ‘libe al p inciples o go e nmen ’ b ough by he Visigo hs o he
Ibe ian Peninsula, who, in his iew, sha ed wi h hei Teu onic b o he s ‘ he ge m o some o hose
ins i u ions which, wi h o he na ions, and unde happie auspices, ha e o med he basis o a well-
egula ed cons i u ional libe y’ (3). The same is ue o Mo ley, who, in The Rise o he Du ch Republic
also alludes o his Teu onic ge m, w i ing ha he Du ch Re olu ion, he English Re olu ion, and he
Ame ican Re olu ion had all been pa one chain o e en s: ‘To all who speak he English language, he
his o y o he agony h ough which he Republic o Holland was ushe ed in o li e mus ha e peculia
in e es , o i is a po ion o he eco ds o he Anglo-Saxon ace – essen ially he same, whe he in
F iesland, England, o Massachuse s’ (i ).
13
Tu ne had been a s uden o He be Bax e Adams, one o he abo e-men ioned p o essional
his o ians, who augh him a Johns Hopkins in he 1880s.
14
Thei mos in luen ial wo ks we e, in he case o Cha les A. Bea d, An Economic In e p e a ion o he
Cons i u ion o he Uni ed S a es (1913), and wi h espec o He be C oly, The P omise o Ame ican Li e
(1909)
34
15
A he end o he Se en Yea s' Wa , o he F ench and Indian Wa , as i is o en e e ed o on he No h
Ame ican con inen , he Bou bons los New F ance o G ea B i ain, as well as Spanish Flo ida, some
Ca ibbean islands and Senegal. The e ms o he ag eemen we e se in The T ea y o Pa is, also known as
he Peace o Pa is, signed on 10 Feb ua y 1763 by he kingdoms o G ea B i ain, F ance and Spain.
16
Hen y S eele Commage , Louis Ha z and Daniel Boo s in a e he names ha come immedia ely o
mind. Thei mos in luen ial books we e: Hen y S eele Commage , The Ame ican Mind (1950), Louis
Ha z, The Libe al T adi ion in Ame ica (1955), Daniel Boo s in, The Ame icans – The Na ional
Expe ience (1965). I should no be o go en, howe e , ha he P og essi e his o ians o he ea ly
wen ie h cen u y had al eady ques ioned his ision o Ame ican his o y.
17
The i les o he ollowing chap e s o The Old Régime indica e hei social subjec ma e : ‘Ma iage
and Popula ion’ (chap. XVI), ‘The New Home’ (chap. XVII), ‘T ade and Indus y’ (chap. XX), ‘Mo als
and Manne s’ (chap. XXIII).
18
Pa kman quo es Jacques-René de B isay de Denon ille, Ma quis de Denon ille (1637-1710),
Go e no Gene al o New F ance om 1685 o 1689, who in one o his le e s o Jean-Bap is e Colbe ,
da ed No embe 13, 1685, wa ns him o his eal dange in Canadian socie y: ‘Abo e all hings,
Monseigneu , pe mi me o say ha he nobles o his new coun y a e e e y hing ha is mos begga ly,
and ha o inc ease hei numbe is o inc ease he numbe o do-no hings. A new coun y equi es ha d
wo ke s, who will handle he axe and ma ock. The sons o ou councillo s a e no mo e indus ious han
he nobles; and hei only esou ce is o ake o he woods, ade a li le wi h he Indians, and, o he mos
pa , all in o he diso de s o which I ha e had he hono o in o m you.’ (320)