The fall of Louisbourg and the removal of the inhabitants
alarmed the French authorities, who now entertained fears
for the safety of Canada and determined to take steps
for the recapture of the lost stronghold, and with it
the whole of Acadia, in the following year. Accordingly,
a formidable fleet, under the command of the Duc d'Anville,
sailed from La Rochelle in June 1746; while the governor
of Quebec sent a strong detachment of fighting Canadians
under Ramesay to assist in the intended siege. But disaster
after disaster overtook the fleet. A violent tempest
scattered the ships in mid-ocean and an epidemic carried
off hundreds of seamen and soldiers. In the autumn the
commander, with a remnant of his ships, arrived in Chebucto
Bay (Halifax), where he himself died. The battered ships
finally put back to France, and nothing came of the
enterprise. [Footnote: See The Great Fortress, chap.
iii.] Meanwhile, rumours having reached Quebec of a
projected invasion of Canada by New England troops, the
governor Beauharnois had recalled Ramesay's Canadians
for the defence of Quebec; but on hearing that the French
ships had arrived in Chebucto Bay, and expecting them to
attack Annapolis, Ramesay marched his forces into the
heart of Acadia in order to be on hand to support the
fleet.
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