The Hudson Bay expedition of Jean-François de Galaup, comte de La Pérouse was a series of military raids on the lucrative fur trading posts and fortifications of the Hudson's Bay Company on the shores of Hudson Bay by a squadron of the French Royal Navy. Setting sail from Cap-Français in 1782, the expedition was part of a global naval war between France and Great Britain during the American Revolutionary War.
Operating under secret orders from the Marquis de Castries, France's marine minister, La Pérouse sailed from Cap-Français in May 1782, and arrived before the Prince of Wales Fort in early August. That fort and York Factory both surrendered without a fight, although some of the stored furs at York were spirited away by a company ship that evaded the French fleet.
Many of the British prisoners were put on a sloop which they sailed back to England. Men on La Pérouse's fleet, which had sailed with minimal winter provisioning to maintain secrecy, suffered from scurvy and other diseases because of their hardships. The Hudson's Bay Company finances suffered because of the raid, and it contributed to reductions in the native population that did business with the company.
Read more about Hudson Bay Expedition: Background, Expedition, Aftermath
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