5. Cartier's Second Voyage - 1535 to 1536
Jacques Cartier discovers the territory of Canada and Hochelaga
Updated: January 26, 2024
On the 19th of May 1535 CE, the winds were favorable in the port town of St. Malo, France. Captain Jacques Cartier ordered his sailors, companions, and specialists to board the three sailing vessels docked in the harbor. The King of France had covered the cost for the ships, sailors, and provisions. The largest vessel was the carrack Grande Hermine of 100 to 120 tons. The second largest was the carrack Petite Hermine of about sixty tons. The smallest was the bark Émerillon of about forty tons. Cartier was to command this little fleet, all seaworthy and manned with about one hundred experienced sailors.1
While the ships sat at the docks in St. Malo, the ship’s crews and dockworkers had been busy provisioning the ships for the upcoming expedition. They mended the sails and prepared them for sailing. They loaded barrels of gifts and trinkets, gunpowder and carefully wrapped weapons which they stored below decks. They distrib…
