You are now on the Rue de l'Escale, the last street in La Rochelle still paved with these rounded cobbles, worn smooth as eggs, and there is a wonderful story about where they came from. The story goes that ships would arrive here light, nothing much in the hold, coming perhaps from Canada with furs, or down from northern Europe. But an empty ship rides too high and sails badly, so they filled their holds with stones for ballast, rounded stones from far-off beaches. And when they reached La Rochelle to load up with heavy salt and wine, they had to dump the ballast first, and here it went, underfoot, paving the street. Cobbles carried across the ocean from who knows where. Now, I owe you the honest footnote. Geologists who have actually looked at these stones think a good many of them came from northern Europe rather than Canada, so the romantic Canadian version may be more romance than fact. It is a genuine debate, and I rather like that we cannot be sure. And this seems like a perfect setting to talk about the excitement that once filled the streets of La Rochelle. For centuries, the city was one of France's great Atlantic gateways, sending ships across the ocean to a place Europeans called the New World. This was the name given to the Americas after their discovery by Europeans, and among France's colonies, none was more important than New France, centred on what is now Quebec. Now, for many ordinary people, life in France offered few opportunities. Land was scarce, poverty was widespread, and rigid social classes made it difficult to improve one's future. In New France, however, the French Crown promised something many could only dream of. Settlers could receive land, assistance to establish farms, and the chance to own property and build a new life. So, La Rochelle became one of the principal departure ports for these voyages. Ships leaving its harbour carried settlers, soldiers, missionaries, and supplies up the Saint Lawrence River to Quebec. Among those who embarked from here was one remarkable group of travellers known as the Filles du Roi, meaning the King's Daughters. Despite the name, they were not the daughters of King Louis the Fourteenth. They were young women, many of them orphans or from poor families, whose passage to New France was paid for by the king. Can you guess why? At the time, New France faced a serious problem. The colony was filled with soldiers, fur traders, and labourers, but there were very few women. Without families, the settlement could never become a permanent society. To solve this, the Crown offered these women free passage across the Atlantic, a trousseau of clothing and household goods, and even a dowry to encourage marriage. Those who reached Quebec were usually welcomed by colonial authorities and quickly married settlers. They became wives, mothers, and partners in building farms and communities. Historians estimate that these women had thousands of children, and today millions of French Canadians can trace at least one branch of their family tree back to a Fille du Roi. Follow the map towards the great tower at the water's edge.