French North America

New France
Nouvelle-France
Colony of France
1534–1763
Flag Royal Coat of arms
Motto Montjoie Saint Denis! "Mountjoy Saint Denis!"
Anthem Marche Henri IV "March of Henry IV"
New France in 1750 (blue)
Capital		Quebec
Languages		French
Religion		Roman Catholic
Political structure		Autonomous colony
King
•	1534–1547	Francis I (first)
•	1715–1763	Louis XV (last)
Viceroy
•	1534–1541	Jacques Cartier (first)
•	1755–1760	Pierre de Rigaud (last)
Legislature		Sovereign Council
Historical era		Colonial Era
•	Voyage of 1534	24 July 1534
•	Foundation of Quebec	3 July 1608
•	Treaty of Utrecht	11 April 1713
•	Capitulation of Quebec	18 September 1759
•	Capitulation of Montreal	8 September 1760
•	Treaty of Paris	10 February 1763
Currency		New France livre
Succeeded by Province of Quebec Nova Scotia Newfoundland Louisiana
Today part of		Canada  United States  France (as French Overseas collectivity of Saint Pierre and Miquelon)

New France (French: Nouvelle-France) was the area colonized by France in North America during a period beginning with the exploration of the Gulf of Saint Lawrence by Jacques Cartier in 1534 and ending with the cession of New France to Spain and Great Britain in 1763. At its peak in 1712 (before the Treaty of Utrecht), the territory of New France, also sometimes known as the French North American Empire or Royal New France, extended from Newfoundland to the Canadian prairies and from Hudson Bay to the Gulf of Mexico, including all the Great Lakes of North America.

The territory was divided into five colonies, each with its own administration: Canada, Hudson's Bay, Acadia, Newfoundland (Plaisance), and Louisiana. The Treaty of Utrecht resulted in the relinquishing of French claims to mainland Acadia, the Hudson Bay and Newfoundland, and the establishment of the colony of Île Royale, now called Cape Breton Island, where the French built the Fortress of Louisbourg. Acadia had a difficult history, with the Great Upheaval, remembered on July 28 each year since 2003. The descendants are dispersed in the Maritime Provinces of Canada, in Maine and Louisiana in the United States, with small populations in Chéticamp, Nova Scotia and the Magdalen Islands.