Resistance, Infiltration, and Rapprochement: French Inhabitants in Spanish Upper Louisiana, 1766-1780

Abstract

This thesis addresses the question of how the people of Upper Louisiana lived under Spanish imperial authority from 1766 to 1780, and how they reacted to the transition from French to Spanish governance. More specifically, this thesis looks at the direct interactions that inhabitants had with the Spanish colonial officials in St. Louis and New Orleans. To further understand these imperial relationships, it looks at how the French inhabitants from different colonies (Upper Louisiana, Lower Louisiana, and the Illinois Country) interacted with each other, as a way of understanding Spanish authority and its limits. This thesis is interested in the French inhabitants’ relationship with the Spanish state. It provides insight into the nature of governance and imperial relationships and examines how colonial peoples accepted and contested imperial regime change. This analysis helps to understand the limits of imperial authority on the imperial frontier. The three chapters are arranged chronologically and comparatively to understand the different responses of the French inhabitants to the evolving policies of the Spanish regime.