The four ships of the La Salle…
February 1685 CE
The four ships of the La Salle expedition carry almost three hundred people, including soldiers, artisans and craftsmen, six missionaries, eight merchants, and over a dozen women and children.
France and Spain had ceased hostilities shortly after their departure, and Louis is no longer interested in sending La Salle further assistance.
Details of the voyage are kept secret so that Spain will be unaware of its purpose, and La Salle's naval commander, the Sieur de Beaujeu, resents the fact that La Salle had not informed him of their destination until the party was well underway.
The discord between the two had intensified when they reached Santo Domingo and quarreled over where to anchor.
Beaujeu had sailed to another part of the island, allowing Spanish privateers to capture the St. François, which had been fully loaded with supplies, provisions, and tools for the colony.
During the 58-day voyage, two people had died of illness and one woman had given birth to a child.
The voyage to Santo Domingo had lasted longer than expected, and provisions had run low, especially after the loss of the St. François.
La Salle has little money with which to replenish supplies, and finally two of the merchants aboard the expedition sell some of their trade goods to the islanders, and lend their profits to La Salle.
To fill the gaps left after several men deserted, La Salle recruits a few islanders to join the expedition.
In late November 1684, when La Salle had fully recovered from a severe illness, the three remaining ships had continued their search for the Mississippi River delta.
Before they left Santo Domingo, local sailors had warned that strong Gulf currents flowed east and would tug the ships toward the Florida straits unless they corrected for it.
On December 18, the ships reach the Gulf of Mexico and enter waters that Spain claims as its territory.
None of the members of the expedition have ever been in the Gulf of Mexico or know how to navigate it.
Due to a combination of inaccurate maps, La Salle's previous miscalculation of the latitude of the mouth of the Mississippi River, and overcorrection for the currents, the expedition fails to find the Mississippi.
Instead, they land at Matagorda Bay in early 1685, 400 miles (644 km) west of the Mississippi.
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