François-Marie Bissot, Sieur de Vincennes

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

François Marie Bissot, Sieur de Vincennes (June 17, 1700 in Montreal, Canada-March 25, 1736 near Mobile, Alabama^[1]) was a French Canadian explorer, soldier who established several forts in what is now the U.S. state of Indiana, including Fort Vincennes.

Contents 1 Early life 2 Military Career 3 Notes 4 References

[edit] Early life

François Bissot was named François Margane after his godfather and uncle.^[2] He was born in Montreal to Jean Baptiste Bissot, Sieur de Vincennes and Marguerite Forestier on June 17, 1700. In 1717, he joined his father at Kekionga, a village of the Miami People in present day Fort Wayne, Indiana.

[edit] Military Career

In May of 1722, Vincennes was commissioned an Ensign. He took control of the fort at Ouiatanon, near present day Lafayette, Indiana, in the 1720s. ^[3] He was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant in 1730, and made commandant in what is now southern Indiana. He rebuilt Fort Vincennes, which was named after him

He was captured and burnt at the stake by the Chicacha Indians on March 25, 1736.

[edit] Notes

1. ^ Andrew R. L. Cayton, Frontier Indiana (Bloomington, IN: Indiana University Press, 1996), 17, 20.
2. ^ The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia. s.v. "François Marie Bissot, sieur de Vincennes," http://columbia.thefreedictionary.com/Vincennes,+Jean+Baptiste+Bissot,+sieur+de (Accessed May 17, 2006).
3. ^ Cayton, 5.

[edit] References

The Free Dictionary Quebec History