Isaac de Razilly (1587–1635)[1] was a member of theFrench nobility appointed a knight of theOrder of St. John of Jerusalem at the age of 18. He was born at the Château d'Oiseaumelle in theProvince of Touraine,France. A member of theFrench navy, he served for many years during which he played an important role in theFrench colony ofAcadia inNew France. He was the son of François de Razilly and Catherine de Villiers, brother ofClaude de Razilly andFrançois de Razilly.[2]
Isaac de Razily explored the coast ofBrazil in 1612-15 near the island ofMarajó, in the attempts to establishFrance Equinoxiale, with his brother and leader of the expeditionFrançois de Razilly.[3]
Issac de Razilly already sailed toMorocco in 1619, under the orders ofLouis XIII who was considering a colonial venture in Morocco.[4] He was able to reconnoiter the coast as far asMogador.
In 1624, he was put in charge of an embassy to the pirate harbour ofSalé in Morocco, in order to solve the affair of thelibrary ofMulay Zidan. He was imprisoned and put under chains before being released, although he had to leave many Christian captives behind.[5] The mission of Razilly was accompanied by the firstCapuchins to establish themselves in Morocco.[6]
Razilly took part in theBlockade of La Rochelle during the suppression of theHuguenot rebellion, where he commanded the blockade fleet, and lost an eye there.[7][8]
Soon after, in 1626, he wrote pamphlets advocating commercial expansion overseas, either in Africa, Asia or America, such as hisArticles pour persuader un chacun de risquer sur mer et trouver fonds pour la navigation.[9] He submitted the memorandum toCardinal Richelieu.[3]
AsRichelieu andPère Joseph were attempting to establish a colonial policy, Razilly suggested them to occupyMogador (Essaouira) inMorocco in 1626. The objective was to create a base against the Sultan ofMarrakesh, and asphyxiate the harbour ofSafi. He departed forSalé on 20 July 1629 with a fleet composed of the shipsLicorne,Saint-Louis,Griffon,Catherine,Hambourg,Sainte-Anne,Saint-Jean. He bombarded the city the Salé and destroyed 3 corsair ships, and then sent theGriffon under [Treilleboi to Mogador. The men of Razilly saw the fortress ofCastelo Real in Mogador, and landed 100 men with wood and supplies onMogador island, with the agreement of Richelieu. After a few days however, theGriffon reimbarked the colonists, and departed to rejoin the fleet in Salé.[10]
In 1630, Razilly was able to negotiate the purchase of French slaves from the Moroccans. He visited Morocco again in 1631, and participated to the negotiation of theFranco-Moroccan Treaty of 1632, with the help of descendants ofSamuel Pallache (seePallache family).[11]
In 1632, Razilly became involved, at the request ofCardinal Richelieu, in the colonization ofAcadia. Razilly landed at La Hève, nowLaHave, Nova Scotia, with 300 men and 3 monks and builtFort Sainte Marie de Grace. He took possession ofPort Royal to establish a French colony and offered the Scottish settlers to buy back their lands and give them a safe trip back to Scotland. To deal with a shortage of funds, a company was set up by Razilly and some of his friends which became known as the Razilly-Condonnier company. Together with theCompagnie de la Nouvelle France, an expedition was outfitted to sail to Acadia. The King gave Razilly the official title oflieutenant-general for New France.
One of his able lieutenants in Acadia wasCharles de Menou d'Aulnay who was instrumental in maintaining the shipping to and from France. As well, he took on military tasks such as ordering the taking of control ofFort Pentagouet atMajabigwaduce on thePenobscot Bay, which had been given to France in an earlier Treaty, and to inform the English they were to vacate all lands North of Pemaquid. This was accomplished shortly before Razilly's death and resulted in all the French interests in Acadia being restored.
Razilly died suddenly atLaHave, Nova Scotia in December 1635.[12]
| French Governors of Acadia (1603-1623) | |
|---|---|
| Scottish Governors of Nova Scotia (1621-1632) | |
| French Governors of Acadia (1631-1654) | |
| English Governors of Nova Scotia (1654-1670) | |
| French Governors of Acadia (1654-1677) | |
| Dutch Governors of New Holland (Acadia) (1674-1676) | |
| French Governors of Acadia (1677-1690) | |
| English Governors of Nova Scotia (1690-1691) | |
| French Governors of Acadia (1691-1710) | |
| French Governors of Île Royale (1714-1745) | |
| British Governors of Cape Breton (1745-1748) | |
| French Governors of Île Royale (1748-1758) | |
| Related articles | |
Lieutenant-governors who served in the absence of governors are listed in parentheses. Acting administrators are listed initalics. | |
