Marc Lescarbot

Marc Lescarbot (c. 1570–1641) was a French author, poet and lawyer. He is best known for his Histoire de la Nouvelle-France (1609), based on his expedition to Acadia (1606–1607) and research into French exploration in North America. Considered one of the first great books in the history of Canada, it was printed in three editions, and was translated into German and twice into English.

Lescarbot also wrote numerous poems. His dramatic poem Théâtre de Neptune was performed at Port Royal as what the French claim was the first European theatrical production in North America outside of New Spain. Bernardino de Sahagún, and other 16th-century Spanish friars in Mexico, created several theatrical productions, such as Autos Sacramentales.

Lescarbot was born in Vervins, and his family was said to be from nearby Guise in Picardy. He wrote that his ancestors originated in Saint-Pol-de-Léon, Brittany. He first studied at the Collège in Vervins, then at Laon, now part of Reims. Thanks to the protection of Msgr. Valentine Duglas, the bishop of Laon, he was supported by the Collège of Laon to complete his studies in Paris. He had a classical education, learning Latin, Greek, and Hebrew, and acquiring a wide knowledge of ancient and modern literatures. He also studied canonical and civil law.

After graduating as a Bachelor of Laws in 1598, Lescarbot took a minor part in the negotiations for the Treaty of Vervins between Spain and France. At a moment when the discussions seemed doomed to failure, Lescarbot delivered a Latin discours in defence of peace. When the treaty was concluded, he composed a poem "Harangue d’action de grâces", wrote a commemorative inscription, and published Poèmes de la Paix.

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