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'{{for|the rice grower and miller in southeast Texas|Joseph Eloi Broussard}} {{Infobox military person | name = Joseph Broussard | image = Joseph Broussard en Acadia HRoe 2009.jpg | caption = Joseph Broussard, known as "Beausoleil". A portrait by [[Herb Roe]]. | birth_date = 1702 | death_date = {{Death year and age|1765|1702}} | birth_place = [[Port-Royal_(Acadia)|Port-Royal]], [[Acadia]], [[New France]]<br>{{smaller|(present-day [[Annapolis Royal]], [[Nova Scotia]], Canada)}} | death_place = [[Loreauville, Louisiana|St. Martinville]], [[Louisiana (New Spain)|Louisiana]], [[New Spain]]<br>{{smaller|(present-day Loreauville, [[Louisiana]], U.S.)}} | placeofburial = Unknown location near Loreauville, Louisiana | nickname = ''Beausoleil'' | allegiance = {{flagicon image|Old_Acadia_Flag.svg}} [[Acadia]] | branch = [[Military history of the Acadians|Acadian militia]] | serviceyears = | rank = [[Captain (Canada)|Captain]] | unit = | commands = | battles = [[Father Rale's War]] * [[Siege of ]][[Annapolis Royal, Nova Scotia|Annapolis Royal]] (1724) [[King George's War]] *[[Battle of Grand Pre]] [[Father Le Loutre's War]] *[[Battle at Chignecto]] * [[Raid on Dartmouth (1751)]] *[[Raid on Lawrencetown (1754)]] [[French and Indian War]] *[[Battle of Beausejour]] *[[Battle of Bloody Creek (1757)]] * [[Battle of Restigouche]] | awards = | relations = | laterwork = Led Acadians to [[Louisiana]]. Militia captain of the Acadians of the [[Atakapa]]s<ref name="www2.umoncton.ca"/> }} '''Joseph Broussard '''(1702–1765), also known as '''Beausoleil''' ({{lang-en|Beautiful Sun}}), was a leader of the [[Acadians|Acadian]] people in [[Acadia]]; later [[Nova Scotia]], [[Prince Edward Island]], and [[New Brunswick]]. Broussard organized a [[Military history of the Mi’kmaq people|Mi'kmaq]] and [[Military history of the Acadians|Acadian militia]]s against the British through [[King George's War]], [[Father Le Loutre's War]] and during the [[French and Indian War]]. After the loss of Acadia to the British, he eventually led the first group of Acadians to southern Louisiana in present-day [[United States]]. His name is sometimes presented as Joseph Gaurhept Broussard; this is likely the result of a transcription error.<ref>{{cite web | url =http://bayoutechedispatches.blogspot.com/2012/04/middle-name-or-clerical-error-joseph.html| title = Middle Name or Clerical Error?: Joseph Broussard dit Beausoleil and 'Gaurhept', Shane K. Bernard| accessdate=2012-06-28}}</ref> Broussard is widely regarded as a hero and an important historical figure by both Acadians and Cajuns. ==Life== Broussard was born in [[Port-Royal_(Acadia)|Port-Royal, Nova Scotia]] in 1702 to Jean-François Broussard and Catherine Richard. His father came from [[Poitiers]] and his mother was born in Port Royal. He lived much of his life at Le Cran (present-day [[Stoney Creek, New Brunswick|Stoney Creek]], [[Albert County, New Brunswick]]), along the [[Petitcodiac River]] with his wife Agnes and their eleven children. During [[Father Rale's War]], Broussard participated in a raid on [[Annapolis Royal, Nova Scotia]] (1724).<ref>James Laxer, ''The Acadians: In Search of a Homeland,'' Anchor Canada Press, p. 103</ref> ===King George's War=== During [[King George's War]], under the leadership of French priest [[Jean-Louis Le Loutre]], Broussard began actively resisting the British occupation of Acadia. Broussard's forces often included [[Mi'kmaq people|Mi'kmaq]] allies in their resistance against the British. In 1747 he participated in and was later charged for his involvement with the [[Battle of Grand Pré]]. (see [[History of the Acadians]])<ref name="www2.umoncton.ca">{{cite web| url =http://www2.umoncton.ca/cfdocs/etudacad/1755/index.cfm?id=010505000&lang=en&style=G&admin=false&linking=| title =History:1755-Joseph Broussard dit Beausoleil (c. 1702-1765)| accessdate =2009-03-14| deadurl =yes| archiveurl =https://web.archive.org/web/20090520171929/http://www2.umoncton.ca/cfdocs/etudacad/1755/index.cfm?id=010505000&lang=en&style=G&admin=false&linking=| archivedate =2009-05-20| df =}}</ref> ===Father Le Loutre's War=== During [[Father Le Loutre's War]], after the construction of [[Fort Beausejour]] in 1751, Broussard joined [[Jean-Louis Le Loutre]] at Beausejour. In an effort to stop the British movement into Acadia, in 1749 Broussard was involved in one of the first raids on [[Raid on Dartmouth (1751)|Dartmouth, Nova Scotia]] which resulted in the deaths of five British settlers.<ref>John Grenier (2008). The Far Reaches of Empire: War in Nova Scotia, 1710-1760. p.150</ref> The following year, Broussard was in the [[Battle at Chignecto]] and then shortly afterward he led sixty Mi'kmaq and Acadians to attack Dartmouth again, in what would be known as the [[Raid on Dartmouth (1751)|"Dartmouth Massacre"]] (1751). Broussard and the others killed twenty British civilians and took more prisoners.<ref>John Grenier (2008). The Far Reaches of Empire: War in Nova Scotia, 1710-1760. p.160</ref> Cornwallis temporarily abandoned plans to settle Dartmouth.<ref>John Grenier (2008). The Far Reaches of Empire: War in Nova Scotia, 1710-1760. p.161</ref> In late April 1754, Beausoleil and a large band of Mi'kmaq and Acadians left Chignecto for Lawrencetown. They arrived in mid-May and in the night opened fired on the village. Beausoleil killed and scalped four British settlers and two soldiers. By August, as the raids continued, the residents and soldiers were withdrawn to Halifax.<ref>Diane Marshall. Heroes of the Acadian Resistance. Formac. 2011. p. 110-111</ref> [[File:CaptureOfAlcideAndLys.jpg|thumb|right| [[Action of 8 June 1755|Capture of French ships Alcide and Lys]] off Newfoundland. The ships were carrying war supplies for Acadians and Mi'kmaq]] In the [[Action of 8 June 1755]], a naval battle off [[Cape Race]], Newfoundland, on board the French ships Alcide and Lys were found 10,000 scalping knives for Acadians and Indians serving under Chief [[Jean-Baptiste Cope]] and Acadian Beausoleil as they continue to fight Father Le Loutre's War.<ref>Thomas H. Raddall. Halifax: Warden of the North. Nimbus. 1993. (originally 1948)p. 45</ref> Broussard was also active in the fight against Lieutenant Colonel [[Robert Monckton]] in the [[Battle of Beausejour]].<ref>John Grenier (2008). The Far Reaches of Empire: War in Nova Scotia, 1710-1760. p.171</ref> ===French and Indian War=== With Le Loutre imprisoned after the [[Battle of Beausejour]], Broussard became the leader of an armed resistance during the [[expulsion of the Acadians]] (1755&ndash;1764), leading assaults against the British on several occasions between 1755 and 1758 as part of the forces of [[Charles Deschamps de Boishébert et de Raffetot]].<ref name="www2.umoncton.ca"/> After arming a ship in 1758, Broussard traveled through the upper [[Bay of Fundy]] region, where he attacked the British. His ship was seized in November 1758. He was then forced to flee, travelling first to the [[Miramichi Valley|Miramichi]] and later imprisoned at [[Fort Edward (Nova Scotia)|Fort Edward]] in 1762. Finally, he was transferred and imprisoned with other Acadians in [[City of Halifax|Halifax, Nova Scotia]]. ===Arrival at Louisiana=== Released in 1764, the year after the signing of the Treaty of Paris, Broussard left Nova Scotia, along with his family and hundreds of other Acadians, to [[Saint-Domingue]] (present-day Haiti).<ref>Shane K. Bernard. "Cajuns and their Acadian ancestors: a young reader's history", 2008, University Press of Mississippi, p. 31, {{ISBN|978-1-934110-78-2}}</ref> Unable to adapt to the climate and diseases that was killing Acadians, he led the group to settle in [[Louisiana]].<ref>C. A. Pincombe and E. W. Larracy, ''Resurgo: The History of Moncton, Volume 1'', 1990, Moncton, p. 30 {{fv|date=July 2015}} {{ISBN|0969463405}}</ref> He was among the first 200 [[Acadians]] to arrive in Louisiana on February 27, 1765, aboard the ''Santo Domingo''.<ref>[http://www.carencrohighschool.org/LA_Studies/ParishSeries/LafayetteParish/Broussard.htm "Broussard named for early settler Valsin Broussard"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090521212233/http://www.carencrohighschool.org/LA_Studies/ParishSeries/LafayetteParish/Broussard.htm |date=2009-05-21 }}</ref> On April 8, 1765, he was appointed militia captain and commander of the "Acadians of the [[Atakapa]]s" the area around present-day St. Martinville, La.<ref name="www2.umoncton.ca"/> Not long after his arrival, Joseph Broussard died near what is now [[St. Martinville, Louisiana|St. Martinville]] at the presumed age of 63. The exact date of his death is unknown, but it is assumed to have been on or about October 20, 1765. Many of his descendants live in southern Louisiana and Nova Scotia. ==Descendancy== Broussard's 21st-century descendants include [[Tina Knowles|Célestine "Tina" Knowles]] ([[Married and maiden names|née]] Beyincé), her two daughters [[Beyoncé Knowles|Beyoncé]] and [[Solange Knowles|Solange]], and also her four grandchildren Jules, Blue, Sir, and Rumi.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/megan-smolenyak-smolenyak/a-peek-into-blue-ivy-cart_b_1200346.html |title=A Peek into Blue Ivy Carter's Past |first= |last= |work=[[The Huffington Post]] |publisher=[[AOL]] |date=January 12, 2012 |accessdate=January 14, 2012}}</ref> ==Modern cultural references== The [[Cajun music]] group [[BeauSoleil]] is named after him. A New Brunswick group "Beausoleil Broussard" was very popular in the 1970s. He is a character in the novel ''Banished from Our Home: The Acadian Diary of Angelique Richard, Grand-Pre, Acadia, 1755'' (2004) by Sharon Stewart. A dramatized, historically inaccurate version of Beausoleil is featured in the Acadian novel ''Pélagie-la-Charette,'' by Antonine Maillet. Part of his militant Acadian hero story is told in the documenatry feature "Zachary Richard, Cajun Heart" by Acadian director Phil Comeau. ==See also== *[[Military history of Nova Scotia]] *[[Military history of the Acadians]] ==References== {{reflist}} ==Further reading== *Dianne Marshall. ''Heroes of the Acadian Resistance The Story of Joseph (Beausoleil) Broussard and Pierre Surette 1715-1755''. Formac Publishing. 2011. *Warren A. Perrin. Acadian Redemption: From Beausoleil Broussard to the Queen's Royal Proclamation. 2004. * John Mack Faragher, ''A Great and Noble Scheme: The Tragic Story of the Expulsion of the French Acadians from their American Homeland'' (New York: W. W. Norton & Company, 2005). *Warren A. Perrin, ''Acadian Redemption: From Beausoleil Broussard to the British Queen's Royal Proclamation'' (Opelousas, La.: Andrepont Publishing, 2005). * Dean Jobb, ''The Acadians: A People's Story of Exile and Triumph''. John Wiley & Sons, 2005 (published in the United States as ''The Cajuns: A People's Story of Exile and Triumph'') ==External links== * {{cite DCB |first=C. J. |last=d’Entremont |title=Brossard, Beausoleil, Josepth |volume=3 |url=http://www.biographi.ca/en/bio/brossard_joseph_3E.html}} {{Authority control}} {{DEFAULTSORT:Broussard, Joseph}} [[Category:Military history of Acadia]] [[Category:Canadian military personnel from Nova Scotia|Nova Scotia]] [[Category:Military history of New England]] [[Category:Military history of the Thirteen Colonies]] [[Category:Canadian military personnel from New Brunswick]] [[Category:Acadian people]] [[Category:French Canadian people of the French and Indian War]] [[Category:People deported from Canada]] [[Category:18th-century pirates]] [[Category:1702 births]] [[Category:1765 deaths]] [[Category:People of Colonial Spanish Louisiana]] [[Category:People from Albert County, New Brunswick]] [[Category:Date of death unknown]] [[Category:Date of birth unknown]]'