Fort Towson

The sieur de Sauvolle (c. 1671 – 1701), known for certainty only by his surname,^[a] was the first governor of the French territory of Louisiana. He accompanied the brothers Iberville and Bienville on their first voyage to Louisiana in 1699 and their explorations inland. On May 2, 1699, he was appointed commander of the new Fort Maurepas, and in January 1700 he became the territory's governor. His journal is one of the earliest sources for the history of the region. Sauvolle died suddenly, likely from yellow fever, on August 21, 1701.^[4]

Despite the survival of his journal entries and the journals of Iberville, almost nothing is known about Sauvolle: neither his ancestry nor the year of his birth, nor even much of his name. Iberville mentions him as "M. de Sauvolle".^[2] Statements by various historians that his first name was Antoine or François-Marie, that he was the sieur de la Villantry, or that he was a brother of Iberville and Bienville are assertions not supported by multiple sources.^[4]

Notes

^ His name is also recorded as Sauvole, de Sauvolle, and Sauvolle de la Villantry^[1]^[2]^[3]

^ Thompson, Maurice (1888). The Story of Louisiana. Boston, Massachusetts: D. Lothrop Co. p. 26.
^ ^a ^b Iberville, Pierre Le Moyne (1981) [1700]. "Second Voyage to the Mississippi: The Journal of the Renommée". In McWilliams, Richebourg Gaillard (ed.). Iberville's Gulf Journals. Tuscaloosa, Alabama: University of Alabama Press. pp. 106–156. ISBN 978-0-8173-0539-0.
^ Iberville, Pierre Le Moyne (1981) [1702]. "Third Voyage to the Mississippi: The Journal of the Renommée". In McWilliams, Richebourg Gaillard (ed.). Iberville's Gulf Journals. Tuscaloosa, Alabama: University of Alabama Press. pp. 157–179. ISBN 978-0-8173-0539-0.
^ ^a ^b Hémard, Ned (2018). "Sauvolle, Man of Mystery" (PDF). New Orleans Nostalgia. p. 4.

External links

Gayarré, Charles (1854). History of Louisiana: The French Domination. Vol. 1. New York, New York: Redfield. pp. 71–78. (a somewhat romanticized account)
Galloway, Patricia Kay (1990). "Sieur de Sauvole". In Dawson III, Joseph G. (ed.). The Louisiana Governors: From Iberville to Edwards. Baton Rouge, Louisiana: LSU Press. pp. 4–7. ISBN 978-0-8071-1527-5.

Government offices
Preceded by none	French Governor of Louisiana 1699–1701	Succeeded by Jean-Baptiste Le Moyne de Bienville

[4] His name is also recorded as Sauvole, de Sauvolle, and Sauvolle de la Villantry^[1]^[2]^[3]

[Thompson1888-1] Thompson, Maurice (1888). The Story of Louisiana. Boston, Massachusetts: D. Lothrop Co. p. 26.

[GulfJournals2-2] Iberville, Pierre Le Moyne (1981) [1700]. "Second Voyage to the Mississippi: The Journal of the Renommée". In McWilliams, Richebourg Gaillard (ed.). Iberville's Gulf Journals. Tuscaloosa, Alabama: University of Alabama Press. pp. 106–156. ISBN 978-0-8173-0539-0.

[GulfJournals3-3] Iberville, Pierre Le Moyne (1981) [1702]. "Third Voyage to the Mississippi: The Journal of the Renommée". In McWilliams, Richebourg Gaillard (ed.). Iberville's Gulf Journals. Tuscaloosa, Alabama: University of Alabama Press. pp. 157–179. ISBN 978-0-8173-0539-0.

[Hémard2018-5] Hémard, Ned (2018). "Sauvolle, Man of Mystery" (PDF). New Orleans Nostalgia. p. 4.

[a]

[4]

[2]

[1]

[3]

Colonial Governors of Louisiana
First French Louisiana (1682–1762)	Sauvolle Bienville Cadillac Bienville Lepinay Bienville Boisbriand Perier Bienville Vaudreuil Billouart d'Abbadie Aubry	Coat of Arms of New France Coat of Arms of the Province of Louisiana
Spanish Louisiana (1762–1802)	Ulloa Aubry O'Reilly Unzaga Gálvez Miró Carondelet Gayoso Bouligny Calvo Vidal Salcedo
Second French Louisiana (1802–1804)	Laussat