Who did Sieur de La Salle explore?
René-Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle (1643-1687) was a French explorer. He was sent by King Louis XIV (14) to travel south from Canada and sail down the Mississippi River to the Gulf of Mexico. He was the first European to travel the length of the Mississippi River (1682).
When did Sieur de La Salle explore?
La Salle claimed the entire Mississippi River basin for France. Born in Rouen, France on November 22, 1643, he came to Canada in 1666 and founded the first settlement near Montreal. He then led several expeditions on the Great Lakes and the Ohio River and explored the Mississippi River in 1682.
What did Rene Cavelier discover?
René-Robert Cavelier de La Salle, would-be Jesuit, fur trader, explorer, intriguer, discoverer of the Mississippi delta (b at Rouen, France 21 Nov 1643; assassinated 19 Mar 1687 in Texas).
What was La Salle’s most important discovery?
René Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle (1643-1687), was a French explorer and colonizer, best known for his discovery of the Mississippi Delta.
Why did La Salle claim Louisiana for France?
La Salle secured a contract for the colonization of lower Louisiana from Louis XIV in 1683. The plan was to reach the Mississippi by sea and secure a permanent settlement upriver that would provide the French with a strategic advantage over Spanish interests throughout the Gulf of Mexico.
What was Sieur de La Salle best known for?
René-Robert Cavelier, sieur de La Salle, (born November 22, 1643, Rouen, France—died March 19, 1687, near Brazos River [now in Texas, U.S.]), French explorer in North America who led an expedition down the Illinois and Mississippi rivers and claimed all the region watered by the Mississippi and its tributaries for …
What are 2 interesting facts about La Salle?
La Salle built a fort on Lake Ontario in 1673. He started a fur trade that made him a lot of money. Then he built a ship. La Salle sailed across Lakes Erie, Huron and Michigan.
What ultimately happened to the French explorer La Salle?
In 1682 La Salle’s first expedition traveled down the Mississippi River and reached its mouth. His second expedition, begun in 1684, was a disaster, ultimately resulting in the deaths of La Salle and most of the settlers.
What happened when La Salle returned from France?
After many vicissitudes, La Salle and Tonty succeeded in canoeing down the Mississippi and reached the Gulf of Mexico. There, on April 9, 1682, the explorer proclaimed the whole Mississippi basin for France and named it Louisiana.
What happened to the first ship La Salle lost?
La Belle was wrecked in present-day Matagorda Bay the following year, dooming La Salle’s Texas colony to failure. The wreckage of La Belle lay forgotten until it was discovered by a team of state archaeologists in 1995.