So I've been looking around for some map/quick scenario ideas, and I found that there was a colonizing plan conducted by governor Étienne-François Turgot (1721-89) at the request of Étienne François de Choiseul with the intention of settling Maltese people in French Guiana. This experiment was poorly prepared and became a resounding failure as its survivors fled to the Îles du Salut. Is there any way that its outcome could have been changed to give the Maltese a greater presence there?
"Later in the century, Étienne-François Turgot, a Hospitaller and colonial administrator, tried unsuccessfully to settle Maltese people in Guiana."
"King Louis XV appointed [Turgot] governor of Guyana but the colonizing expedition conducted in 1763 at the request of Étienne François de Choiseul, poorly prepared, was a resounding failure. Similarly, because of power struggles, accused of embezzlement, Turgot ended up being the subject of a lettre de cachet."
"After the Treaty of Paris in 1763, which deprived France of almost all her possessions in the Americas other than Guiana and a few islands, Louis XV sent thousands of settlers to Guiana who were lured there with stories of plentiful gold and easy fortunes to be made. Instead they found a land filled with hostile natives and tropical diseases. One and a half years later only a few hundred survived. These fled to three small islands which could be seen off shore and named them the Iles de Salut (or "Islands of Salvation"). The largest was called Royal Island, another St. Joseph (after the patron saint of the expedition), and the smallest of the islands, surrounded by strong currents, Île du Diable (the infamous "Devil's Island"). When the survivors of this ill-fated expedition returned home, the terrible stories they told of the colony left a lasting impression in France."
"Étienne-François Turgot worked hard to transport large groups of Maltese settlers to Guiana but could not sway them."
"A project by Chevalier Turgot involving the Maltese did not materialise. In 1763, Chevalier Étienne-François Turgot, brother of Louis XV's Minister of Finance, was appointed Governor of Guyana. It was necessary to populate the colony with the king's subjects and Turgot persuaded Louis XV to make a gratuitous concession of a considerable part of the new colony to the Order of St John. The King had already asked the Grand Master to send some Maltese families there and with this purpose in mind had sent Chevalier Menon to Malta. Turgot's arguments reveal what he thought of the Maltese. He wrote in a Memoire:
"King Louis XV appointed [Turgot] governor of Guyana but the colonizing expedition conducted in 1763 at the request of Étienne François de Choiseul, poorly prepared, was a resounding failure. Similarly, because of power struggles, accused of embezzlement, Turgot ended up being the subject of a lettre de cachet."
"After the Treaty of Paris in 1763, which deprived France of almost all her possessions in the Americas other than Guiana and a few islands, Louis XV sent thousands of settlers to Guiana who were lured there with stories of plentiful gold and easy fortunes to be made. Instead they found a land filled with hostile natives and tropical diseases. One and a half years later only a few hundred survived. These fled to three small islands which could be seen off shore and named them the Iles de Salut (or "Islands of Salvation"). The largest was called Royal Island, another St. Joseph (after the patron saint of the expedition), and the smallest of the islands, surrounded by strong currents, Île du Diable (the infamous "Devil's Island"). When the survivors of this ill-fated expedition returned home, the terrible stories they told of the colony left a lasting impression in France."
"Étienne-François Turgot worked hard to transport large groups of Maltese settlers to Guiana but could not sway them."
"A project by Chevalier Turgot involving the Maltese did not materialise. In 1763, Chevalier Étienne-François Turgot, brother of Louis XV's Minister of Finance, was appointed Governor of Guyana. It was necessary to populate the colony with the king's subjects and Turgot persuaded Louis XV to make a gratuitous concession of a considerable part of the new colony to the Order of St John. The King had already asked the Grand Master to send some Maltese families there and with this purpose in mind had sent Chevalier Menon to Malta. Turgot's arguments reveal what he thought of the Maltese. He wrote in a Memoire:
'I have always thought that the Maltese were more suited than any other people to establish a colony, especially in a hot climate [...]. They are robust, hard-working, sober, good swimmers, excellent and brave sailors. Their wives are fertile'
In a letter to Minister Choiseul dated 14 June, 1763, he wrote:
'I dare assure you that in time of war you can always count on the Maltese, few sailors are as good as them and if you treat them well, they can be very good servants'"
"Though Turgot barely scratched the surface of the settlement question, he devoted much more energy to developing two ideas. His efforts reveal him to be a pugnacious and arrogant man, just as they also demonstrate his political errors. The first idea was to use the Maltese. [...] Turgot did not limit himself to mere recommendations. On March 27, 1763, he outlined for the Grand Master of the Military Order of Malta, Manuel Pinto da Fonseca, the mutual benefits of such an enterprise: the Grand Master would find opportune profits to clear up his financial liabilities. Turgot added that "Greeks and white slaves" could swell the ranks. [...] At 84, Pinto da Fonseca had a solid experience of Court practices and the realities of the island. Turgot's request was not the first he had received. On December 26, 1762, the Knight of Pennes, France's representative to the Order, had argued the benefits awaiting 2 to 3,000 Maltese families should they emigrate to the American colonies. The answer was clear: the Maltese did not wish to settle in Guiana. Choiseul passed the letter to Turgot, who believed he would be more convincing. A month later, Pinto da Fonseca presented at great length to his "dear and beloved religious associate" that there would be no positive response to his proposal. The text is long and restrained. In answer to popular belief that Malta was an overcrowded island, the Grand Master presented the image of few inhabitants, so few that they were insufficient to accomplish portuary work. Furthermore, Pinto da Fonseca claimed the colony was an "unknown" territory, and the climate would be "unhealthy." [...] However, due to the vast difference between Valletta, the splendid capital, and the island's poor and rural hinterlands, the Grand Master would not object to the departure of volunteer families. This was not enough for Turgot, who would find a solution a little later on. Baptiste Moscat, a Maltese officer taken prisoner during the Seven Years War, volunteered to go to Cayenne and offered to recruit others. He started with the Maltese sailors in Marseille and continued in Malta itself; his efforts resulted in 200 people signing on. Turgot then requested Menou, another Maltese knight, to recruit other families. Only 60 settlers stepped forward."In a letter to Minister Choiseul dated 14 June, 1763, he wrote:
'I dare assure you that in time of war you can always count on the Maltese, few sailors are as good as them and if you treat them well, they can be very good servants'"
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