Newfoundland and Labrador

E

Settlement

When the London and Bristol Company began to establish resident fisheries to control the fishing industry, it also began promoting settlement. In 1610 John Guy, a Bristol merchant, brought 39 settlers to Conception Bay. By 1621 there were colonies at Cambriol, Renews, and Ferryland, the last founded by George Calvert (an English nobleman who explored North America and was instrumental in acquiring the colonial charter of Maryland). However, none of these villages prospered. The lack of success was due to the harsh climate, the poor soil, ill-chosen settlers, ineffective leadership, and the seasonal nature of the fisheries. Moreover, the fishers were hostile to the settlers, who were not only competing with them, but had also settled in the areas that were ideal for fishing stations. This animosity between fishers and colonists dominated much of Newfoundland’s history thereafter.

F

Western Charter

The Newfoundland colonists were unable to control the more numerous transient fishers. These fishers were sponsored by the English western-port merchants, an influential group in England. In 1634 King Charles I of England issued the Western Charter, which gave the captain of the first ship that came to a harbor for a fishing season the title of Admiral of the Harbour and authority over all ships and residents at that harbor for that season. The reasoning behind this royal order was that the fishing ships, with the twice-annual crossings they required, had become a valuable training ground for sailors. This training would be lost if resident fisheries were allowed to develop. Also, England relied heavily on the income from fish sold throughout Europe. Thus, Newfoundland’s position as a base for the English fishing industry was established.

In 1637, the rule of the fishing admirals notwithstanding, Charles I granted all of the island to Sir David Kirke and his associates. However, Kirke’s colony, based at Ferryland, also failed to prosper. The hardy settlers remained, but thereafter without any aid from England.

G

Struggle for Control

While the settlers fought the western-country fishers and the elements for a foothold on Newfoundland, the surrounding sea became filled with hostile ships. The hazards of fishing became so great that Oliver Cromwell, who ruled England as lord protector from 1653 to 1658, ordered a naval escort to protect the fisheries. The commodore of the convoy was given jurisdiction over the entire island for the fishing season.

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Meanwhile, France had come to realize Newfoundland’s strategic importance as a gateway to Canada. However, the French had similarly restricted settlement in favor of fishing. Then, in 1662, they settled and stationed troops in Placentia, a settlement on the island of Newfoundland. It was designated as the seat of the French royal governor and the base for France’s Newfoundland activities.

From that time on, the English settlers were subjected not only to the threat of French aggression, but also to Dutch raids when England went to war against The Netherlands over colonies, and the war was carried to North America. In 1665 and 1673 the Dutch plundered St. John’s. After the second attack the English fortified the harbor, but they did little else to aid Newfoundland. The influence of the western-port merchants was so strong that the Western Charter was revised to more strongly favor the fishers over the settlers. By the end of the 17th century, property ownership had been restricted and settlement within 10 km (6 mi) of the sea prohibited. The English fishers, emboldened by the revisions, attacked towns and robbed the settlers at will.

H

French and British Conflicts

Before Newfoundland had time to recover from the devastation wrought by the French and the English fishers, it became the scene of a prolonged struggle for control of North America. The French land and sea forces based at Placentia repeatedly raided outlying settlements and fishing vessels. In 1696, during King William’s War, in which the English and French fought over North American colonies, French troops overran the Avalon Peninsula and burned St. John’s. The English later refortified the port, but in 1708 during Queen Anne’s War between France and Great Britain (a union of three countries headed by England), it again fell to the French. From this date until the Peace of Utrecht, which ended Queen Anne’s War in 1713, the French virtually controlled Newfoundland. However, the British were victorious elsewhere, and in the treaty, France surrendered Nova Scotia, Hudson Bay, and Newfoundland, although it retained fishing rights on the coast between Cape Bonavista and Riche Point on the island of Newfoundland, the so-called French Shore.

I

Government

When the war ended, there were about 2,000 demoralized and exploited people clinging to Newfoundland’s rocky shores. There were no schools, no churches, and no law and order other than the arbitrary rule of the fishing admirals. The island had become a market for New England goods and a midway point for British sailors anxious to enter the lucrative New England trade. Both of these activities were contrary to official British policy. Thus, when Lord Vere Beauclerk, commodore of the fleet, suggested controls for Newfoundland in 1728, his recommendation found broad support as a means of suppressing the illegal trade and the exodus of able seamen. In 1729 Captain Henry Osborne became the first naval governor. He was in residence only for the fishing season, but he instituted the first semblances of government in Newfoundland. He left behind justices of the peace and constables to maintain peace during the winter months, although these men had only limited authority over the fishing admirals.