Edmée Lejeune (abt. 1624 - aft. 1693)

Born about 1624 in Loudon, Vienne, Poitou-Charentes, France [uncertain]

Daughter of Pierre Lejeune and Unknown Unknown

Wife of François Gautrot — married 1644 in Port Royale, Acadie

Descendants

Died after 1693 in Port Royale, Acadie

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Categories: French Immigrants to Acadia | Port-Royal, Acadie | Acadians.

Edmée Lejeune is an Acadian. Join: Acadians Project Discuss: ACADIA

Edmée Lejeune migrated from France to Acadia.

Biography

Edmée Lejeune is the ancestral matriarch of the Acadian Gautrot family.^[1] She was born in France around 1624.^{[2] [3]} She was the sister of Catherine Lejeune and Pierre II Lejeune. It is often written that Pierre Lejeune was their father, but this is not known.

Edmée and her siblings made their way to Acadia. Around 1644, Edmee married widower François Gautrot.^[2] Between 1645 and 1668, the couple had nine children: Marie, Jean, Renée, Marguerite, François, Claude, Charles, Jeanne and Germain.

Francois owned a lot adjoining the side of the old Fort (which, according to Stephen White^[2] was expropriated in 1705 to extend the Fort in Port-Royal). It is not clear how long the family they lived there.

In 1654, the family would have witnessed Port-Royal's capture by Robert Sedgwick, who led 300 British soldiers and volunteers.^[4]:

"The [French] soldiers at Port-Royal, who numbered about 130 … put up a brief defence against Sedgwick. Setting up an ambush between the landing site of the English troops and the fort, the Frenchmen fired on the attackers but proved no match for the experienced Roundheads. The French soon "took their heels to ye Fort." On August 16 the fort surrendered... Sedgwick granted honourable terms, allowing the defenders to march out of the fort with flags flying, drums beating, and muskets at the ready. The soldiers and employees working at the fort were offered transportation back to France and given enough pelts to cover their wages."^[5]

Although Germain Doucet, the commander of Port Royal, left for France, most Acadians, including the Gautrot family, remained in Acadia. They were permitted to retain their land and belongings and were guaranteed religious freedom.^[5] Dunn describes life in Acadia during the 16 years of nominal British rule:

"During the years of British rule, most of the Port-Royal population moved upriver away from the town. Using the agricultural practices initiated under D'Aulnay, the Acadians dyked and cultivated extensive salt marshes along the river and raised livestock. Through necessity, residents had reached an accommodation with New England traders who had become their sole source for the goods that they could not produce themselves... New England traders exchanged their goods for Acadian produce and furs... There were seventy to eighty families in the Port Royal area in 1665."

By 1671 the British had ceded Acadia to France and French settlement resumed.^[6] In 1671^[7], the family homestead had six arpents^[8] under cultivation and they had 16 cattle and 6 sheep.

Edmee appears to have died between the 1693 and 1698 census.

Discussion

Ethnic Origins. Some have speculated that Edmée had an Amerindian mother. The Mothers of Acadia maternal DNA project posts its ongoing Maternal DNA results here. To date, the haplogroup of both sisters is consistently reported as U6a7a, indicating European origins.

Another group known as Ancestry Out of Acadia DNA PROJECT, posts its results here. They too report that Catherine and Edmee have European haplogroups, in particular, basic testing has revealed U6a and more complete testing U6a7a. Thus, there is a growing body of consistent and concordant results indicating European origins and nothing to the contrary.

Location of Birth. Regarding the Lejeune siblings' specific location of birth in France, there are no birth records. In contrast, Massignon^[9] argues that a number of familial alliances existed among the first settlers of Acadia PRIOR to their arrival in Acadia, which points to a common French origin. She believes they lived in the Acadian Governor d'Aulnay's seigneury in France near Loudon (comprising of the villages of Angliers, Aulnay, Martaizé and La Chausée). Regarding the Lejeune sisters, Massignon claims that they were allied with the Savoie through Catherine's marriage and the Gautrot through Edmee's marriage. It is not clear to me that the sisters married prior to their arrival in Acadia. Stephen White claims the Catherine married Savoie in Acadia.^[10] Edmee's marriage around 1644 to Gautrot may have taken place in Acadia as he was among the first settlers and was already a widower at the time of his marriage to Edmee^[1] and was definitely in Acadia prior to 1650^[2] (some claim 1636^{[citation needed]}).

D'Entremont in his "Histoire du Cap-Sable, 1763", states the first Lejeune and his French wife arrived in Acadia before or during the time of Isaac de Razilly. Isaac de Razilly was appointed Governor fo Acadia in 1632 and died three years later in 1635. D'Entremont implies that the Lejeunes arrived in Acadia sometime prior to 1636. D'Entremont also notes the first Lejeune couple had three children at the time of their arrival in Acadia: Aimee Lejeune, born between 1622 & 1625, Pierre Lejeune, born after Aimee and before Catherine Lejeune, who was born about 1633. D'Entremont further states that Pierre Lejeune II married an Amerindienne.

Timeline

c1624 birth, in France

c1644 marriage to widower François Gautrot

c1645 birth, daughter Marie

c1648 birth, son Jean

c1652 birth, son Renee

c1654 birth, daughter Marguerite

1654 British capture Port-Royal; French settlement ceases^[11]

c1657 birth, son Francois

c1659 birth, son Claude

c1661 birth, son Charles

c1665 birth, daughter Jeanne

1667-70 Treaty of Breda cedes Acadia to the French; settlement resumes^[12]

c1668 birth, son Germain

1671 residence Port Royal

1678 residence Port Royal

1686 residence Port Royal

1687 War of the League of Augsburg (King William’s War) starts between England and France^[13]

1690 Phipps captures and sacks Port-Royal, coerces inhabitants' oaths of allegiance to English Crown, sets up local Peacekeeping Council and leaves within 12 days.^[14][15][16] Seaman from two ships later loot

1693 residence, Port Royal

a1693 death

Sources

• 1671 Acadian Census at Port Royal: Francois GAUTEROT, 58, wife Edmee LeJEUNE 47; Children (married): Marie 35, Charles 34, Marie 24, Rene 19, Marguerite 16; (not married): Jean 23, Francois 19, Claude 12, Charles 10, Jeanne 7, Germain 3; cattle 16, sheep 6.

• 1678 Acadian Census at Port Royal: Francois Gautreau & Aymee LeJeune, 6 acres, 8 cattle 2 boys: age 20- born 1658 Claude, 1659, 1659 18 1660 Charles 1661 1661

• 1686 Acadian Census at Port Royal: Francois GOTRO 71, Emee LAJEUNE 61

• 1693 Acadian census at Port Royal: Aimee LEJEUNE widow (of Francois GOTROT) 71.

• John Austin Young, The Lejeunes of Acadia and the Youngs of Southwest Louisiana, John Austin Young, Grand Pere Farm

• Source: Mariage avec François Gautreau vers 1644, Port-Royal, Acadie (Stephen White page 691)

1. ↑ ^{1.0 1.1} <White, Stephen A. La généalogie des trente-sept familles hôtesses des "Retrouvailles 94", Les Cahiers de la Société historique acadienne, vol. 25, nos 2 et 3 (1994). (Gautreau) >
2. ↑ ^{2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3} White, Stephen A., Patrice Gallant, and Hector-J Hébert. Dictionnaire Généalogique Des Familles Acadiennes. Moncton, N.-B.: Centre D'études Acadiennes, Université De Moncton, 1999, Print, p 1048; 691-692.
3. ↑ The 1671 Port Royal Census lists Edmee's age as 47, which puts her birth at around 1624
4. ↑ William I. Roberts, 3rd, “SEDGWICK, ROBERT,” in Dictionary of Canadian Biography, vol. 1, University of Toronto/Université Laval, 2003–, accessed November 20, 2013
5. ↑ ^{5.0 5.1} Dunn, Brenda. A History of Port Royal / Annapolis Royal 1605-1800. Nimbus Publishing, p 23-24(1654 Capture of Port-Royal); p25-27;29 (the English period 1654-1670).
6. ↑ In collaboration, “MORILLON DU BOURG,” in Dictionary of Canadian Biography, vol. 1, University of Toronto/Université Laval, 2003–, accessed November 20, 2013
7. ↑ Charles Trahan's translations adding land holdings to 1671 Census
8. ↑ Statistics Canada defines an arpent as 0.845 acres. According to Clark (Clark, Andrew Hill, Acadia: The Geography of Early Nova Scotia to 1760. Madison: University of Wisconsin Press, 1968, p 87): "The arpent was a basic French unit of land measurement, both linear and areal, but its size at the time is uncertain. In length, 200 feet may be a rough equivalent for an arpent in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries; it was later standardized to 192 feet. An areal arpent may have been something less than an acre (the usual equivalent was .845 acres) although it has been given the equivalent of as much as an acre and a half in some twentieth century definitions."
9. ↑ Massignon, Geneviève. "Les parlers français d'Acadie, enquête linguistique", Librairie Klincksieck, Paris, 1962, 2 tomes, p32 (first French families in Acadia) p37 (Lejeune sisters' origins).
10. ↑ White, Stephen A. La généalogie des trente-sept familles hôtesses des "Retrouvailles 94", Les Cahiers de la Société historique acadienne, vol. 25, nos 2 et 3 (1994). (Savoie)
11. ↑ William I. Roberts, 3rd, “SEDGWICK, ROBERT,” in Dictionary of Canadian Biography, vol. 1, University of Toronto/Université Laval, 2003–, accessed November 20, 2013
12. ↑ In collaboration, “MORILLON DU BOURG,” in Dictionary of Canadian Biography, vol. 1, University of Toronto/Université Laval, 2003–, accessed November 20, 2013
13. ↑ Griffiths, Naomi E.S., From migrant to Acadian : a North-American border people, 1604-1755, Montreal (Québec), McGill-Queen's University Press, 2005, p147-151 (King William’s War); p 267-268 (oaths of allegiance)
14. ↑ C.P.Stacey, “PHIPS, SIR WILLIAM,” in Dictionary of Canadian Biography, vol. 1, University of Toronto/Université Laval, 2003, accessed November 20, 2013
15. ↑ Biography of William Phipps
16. ↑ C.Bruce Fergusson,“LA TOURASSE, CHARLES,” in Dictionary of Canadian Biography, vol. 1, University of Toronto/Université Laval, 2003, accessed November 20, 2013

• White, Stephen A., Patrice Gallant, and Hector-J Hébert. Dictionnaire Généalogique Des Familles Acadiennes. Moncton, N.-B.: Centre D'études Acadiennes, Université De Moncton, 1999, Print, p1048.

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