This groundbreaking history documents the roots of slavery in everyday
colonial Canada and the extreme measures taken by subsequent generations
to eradicate any record of their presence. Beginning with the French
regime in colonial Canada 1629, noted historian Marcel Trudel examines
the roots of slavery and its pervasive existence until its eventual
abolition from the British Empire in 1834. Drawn from Trudel's
exhaustive scrutiny of unpublished 17th- through 19th-century archival
records, this survey gives a human face to more than 4,000 aboriginal
and black slaves who were bought, sold, and exploited in colonial
Canada. The compelling narrative chronicles the slaves' often horrific
living conditions, the joys and sorrows of their daily existence, and
their quest to gain liberty. The extensive research not only reveals the
identities of Canadian slave owners, but sheds light on the whitewashing
undertaken by politicians, historians, and ecclesiastics who
deliberately falsified records and glorified their colonial-era heroes
in order to remove any trace of these slaves held in bondage for more
than 200 years.