René Goulaine de Laudonnière
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René Goulaine de Laudonnière (c. 1529-1582) was a French Huguenot explorer and the founder of the French colony of Fort Caroline, located in present-day Jacksonville, Florida.
Laudonnière was a Huguenot nobleman from Poitou, France. In 1562, he was appointed second in command of the Huguenot expedition to Florida under Jean Ribault. Leaving in February 1562, the expedition returned home in July after establishing a small colony in present-day South Carolina.
After the French Wars of Religion broke out between French Catholics and Huguenots, Ribault fled France and sought refuge in England. Meanwhile the Huguenots planned another expedition to Florida and eventually Laudonnière was placed in command in Ribault's absence. In 1564 Laudonniere received 50.000 crowns from Charles IX and returned to a Florida with three ships and 300 Huguenot colonists.
Laudonnière arrived at the mouth of the May River (today called the St. Johns River) on June 22 1564. He sailed up the river where he eventually founded Fort Caroline (named for the king) in what is now Jacksonville. He made contact with the Timucua tribe who at first helped the colonists, and showed him a shrine they had built around a monument left behind by Ribault. When some of the men complained about the manual labor, Laudonnière sent them back to France.
The colony did not flourish and had to get food from the Timucua. Colonists complained and small group of them seized a ship and sailed to the Gulf of Mexico to become pirates. Deserters from the colony angered the Timucua who refused to give any more food. Colonists had to rely on acorns and roots and finally rebelled.
In August 3 1565 Laudonnière bought food and a ship from passing privateer John Hawkins so he could ship the colonists back to France. When he was waiting for a favorable wind, Jean Ribault arrived with 600 more settlers and soldiers on September 10. Ribault also informed Laudonniere that the king suspected his loyalty, that his nominal governorship of Florida was now void and he had to return to France to face charges.
Events interrupted Laudonnière's departure when the Spanish fleet of Pedro Menéndez de Avilés appeared. The Spanish regarded Florida as their territory and Menéndez was hunting for trespassers with the goal of removing the French presence in Florida. Ribault took most of the soldiers with him to attack Spanish fort of St Augustine. He left Laudonnière with 100 men but only 20 soldiers. On October the fleet ran into heavy storm that destroyed the ships. Ribault was washed to the shore, where the Spanish captured and later killed him.
Spanish troops landed off the shore on September 4 and attacked Fort Caroline on September 20. They defeated the remaining garrison and killed all the men. Laudonnière managed to escape with some soldiers and left for the shore, where Ribault's son was anchored with three ships. They set sail to follow Ribault but eventually sailed to England.
Laudonnière recovered his health in Bristol and returned to France in 1566. The king refused to help him and he went into retirement to write his memoirs. He died in 1582; his memoirs, L'histoire notable de la Floride, contenant les trois voyages faits en icelles par des capitaines et pilotes francais, were published in 1586.
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