HISTORICAL FICTION — SPECULATIVE FICTION

Guillaume Returns To France

Chapter Thirty —Life as a Huguenot takes a turn for the worse

“So,” Bernard asked of his best friend, “Are you going to stay in New France or go back home?”

Guillaume hesitated for a moment as though he was yet undecided before replying, “I’m going to go back to France. There’s a woman there who is waiting for me.”

“Do you think that Jeanette is still waiting for you,” Bernard guffawed. “She’s likely married and a mother already. I bet she married a fat, rich old man. She’s a smart one, not dumb enough to wait for a poor soldier like you to return.”

“She’s still waiting. My aunt has received a letter from her. Jeanette knows that François died.”

Bernard gave Guillaume a sympathetic look as he offered consolation. “It’s going to be hard, when you see the Bélair family. As for me, I’m going to stay. The lieutenant says that the King is sending us women to be our brides, women who’ll be coming with dowries. We’re also supposed to get some land, a year’s worth of supplies, and money, more than I would ever get if I returned to France and worked for another twenty years.”

“You’ll make a great habitant, my friend,” laughed Guillaume. “The only problem with your plan is the fact that you are the most unlikely person to be married that I know. You like women too much.”

Guillaume returned to France with four hundred and fifty other soldiers in the summer of 1668. He was going home, but he knew that one day he would be returning to this strange land.

Guillaume made it back to La Rochelle in the late summer of 1668 only to find the Bélair family had returned to their original family home in Blacqueville near Rouen. As soon as he was discharged from the Carignan-Salières, Guillaume left the port city in order to see if Jeanette had kept her resolve to wait for him.

Guillaume abandoned the surname, Lepetitbreton, taking on his old family name, Longpré. It was in early September when he finally arrived at the farming village. Guillaume remembered hearing his grandfather talking about a branch of the Longpré family having settled here in the distant past. He resolved to look into this once he had found out what he could about the Bélairs

“Madame Bélair,” Guillaume began as he appeared at their door. “I am truly sorry that I was unable to bring François home. Before he passed, he gave me this note to give to you.” François hadn’t written the note for he had died in battle. Guillaume had heeded the Lieutenant’s counsel to create the note for the mother.

She took the crumpled piece of paper that barely contained five sentences, her eldest son’s final words to his mother. Nodding her head in silent thanks as the tears coursed down her face, she opened the door wider for Guillaume to enter. Inside, Jeanette stood still with her arms sheltering two younger siblings who became afraid seeing their mother cry.

Guillaume looked into her eyes, hoping to see a sign that she was glad that he had survived. Guillaume had made several other stops on his journey from La Rochelle, to other families that had lost sons giving each family a final note from the son or brother that had died in the service of King Louis XIV, his mates from the Fredière troop. At one of his stops the grieving mother had hurled insults at him, wishing he had died instead of her son.

Jeanette looked at Guillaume and smiled. At that moment Guillaume knew he had made the right decision to return. This was the woman with whom he was going to spend the rest of his life. They were married three months later, on December 6, 1668. Their first child was born eighteen months later in the spring of 1670, a son they named Guillaume.

Children arrived with a frequency that pleased Jeanette’s mother. With five children in the family, Guillaume and Jeanette had enjoyed a prosperous life. Guillaume had found work within the Huguenot community. He served as a security guard as funds and goods were transferred from France to a secure account in England.

At times he made voyages to New England, New France, and other ports in the New World to ensure that the owners weren’t cheated. It was a good life that provided for his family’s welfare, as well as teaching him more than he realised. He had become proficient in a number of languages making his worth to the Huguenot community to be invaluable.

The relations between the Huguenots and the dominant Catholic society of France continued to be strained. Occasional attacks on individuals ensured that the Huguenots remained vigilant. During the spring and early summer of 1685, the incidents began to escalate.

“Monsieur Allard?” questioned the minister following the secret morning service being held at Guillaume’s home. The church services were never held in the same location twice in a row. The small community in Blacqueville made sure that there would be no predictable pattern of location, day of the week, or time for their religious gatherings. “What have you heard from Rouen?”

“The news is not good,” Dominique Allard related in a sombre voice. It appears as though the King is wavering in his meagre support of our right to religious freedom. The Dragonnades have stepped up their persecution. I fear that King Louis XIV is about to revoke the Edict of Nantes. In my opinion, it is becoming too dangerous to remain here in France. Guillaume and I have discussed removing our families to England for their safety.”

Guillaume was quick to add in his voice to the discussion. “Monsieur Allard and I will stay here in Blacqueville once we have our families safely stowed in England. We realise that we have a responsibility to protect our collective interests. We encourage the other families to do the same. The Dragonnades are spreading out from Rouen and will soon be here to destroy as much of our industry and wealth as they can with the permission of the King.”

Previously

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