After England defeated the Spanish Armada, the Spanish decided not to expand any further. This opened up North America to new explorers. In 1603, France sent Samuel Champlain to explore the northern part of North America and after several attempts, he established the settlement of Quebec City, the capital city of Canada, France’s first colony in the New World. Later, the French established another city in the southern part of North America, New Orleans in 1718, which would become the capital city of Louisiana. Together, Canada and Louisiana would make up “New France.” The French specialized in fur trading and had good relations with the Native Americans.

Furs where a luxury and a fashionable item in Europe at this time, and you could became very wealthy from trading furs. The fur trade developed into a big business. American Indian groups in North America served as good trading partners. They hunted and then traded the furs to the French in exchange for goods they did not have, such as metal tools and items made of cloth. The earliest French settlements in North America started as fur trading posts.