pulations. In order for the French to succeed, they must turn to diplomacy, generate allies, and overcome enemies. Upon arriving in the New World, the French were to encounter two primary Indian linguistic groups, the Algonquian and the Iroquois. Later, a third group was to be discovered south of Lake Superior, the Sioux. Knowing the futility of going at it alone, Champlain carefully considered which native tribes to cultivate into allies. The choice was readily apparent though, for the Huron people were located in a prime commercial hub and had been so for countless years. With this firmly in mind, Champlain threw the weight of France--what little military strength that could reach across the sea--into alignment with the Huron nation and its allies. Thus it was that in 1609, Champlain found himself traveling southward, to the lake that bears his name today, in order to provide the Huron with weapons against their enemies known as the Five Tribes. Both the Huron and the Five Tribes were members of the Iroquois linguistic family. However, over time the Five Tribes became known as the Iroquois in general, while the Huron simply became known as the Huron. In any event, Champlain was able to forge a lasting alliance between the Huron and the French that would last until the fall of New France and even beyond. This alliance enabled them to build strong commercial and military ties that would benefit both parties. Unfortunately, the alliance also meant that the French would be in a state of perpetual war with the Five Tribes. This, in the end, would prove to be the downfall of both the Huron and French aspirations. Champlain and his days of exploration were not quite over. For in the years 1615-16, he traveled to Georgian Bay and wintered among the Huron who had settled in the area southeast of Lake Huron. Planning to explore even farther westward, Champlain would have himself “become, in all probability, the ...
