The Imperial Lives of Louis Billouart de Kerlérec, Governor of Louisiana

Alexandre Dubé examines the autobiographical refashioning of Louis Billouart de Kerlérec (1707-1770), especially during his time as the governor of Louisiana (1753-1763), as he became increasingly involved in the Louisiana Affair. As Kerlérec produced successive narratives, re-inscribing his life within the Navy, the colony, and the imperial administration, he moved from the polite formalities of Navy practices to the intensely personal experiences of the Seven Years War. Subsequently, his narratives and style change again to an increasingly detached, administrative summary of his actions, and finally, to a morality tale: offering his life and experience, as a cautionary tale for the future of colonial administration. In comparison with his contemporaries (Vaudreuil-Cavagnal in Canada, Vaudreuil-Rigaud in Saint-Domingue, Mirabeau in Guadeloupe), Kerlerec’s life offers a powerful metaphor – one he intended himself – for understanding the actual intricacies of governance through the daily reconciliation of general principles and intimate convictions in the French empire in the 18th century.