Role of Women in New France

... Women: Makers and Partakers of Canadian History The Role of Women in New France As New France developed as a colony in North America between the sixteenth and eighteenth centuries, the significant contributions of key players became engrained in Canadian history. While the majority of recognizable explorers, traders, and generals are male, there are numerous accounts of women assisting or taking charge of various aspects of colonial life. Aboriginal women were able to influence both sides of the fur trade through intermarriage. European women took part in building convents, educating young girls, and gaining political leverage through their spouses. While their usefulness was never-ending, women, both European and Aboriginal, were subjected to a very different lifestyle as New France was being molded into a nation. This new lifestyle opened up many opportunities and, despite the ever-present toils and patriarchal views that they had to endure, both European and Aboriginal women acted as

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