On the most easterly tip of Gaspé, Quebec, famous French explorer Jacques Cartier planted his very first cross of conquest, a practice of the well-established Doctrine of Discovery. This 30 ft wooden cross, emblazoned with fleur de lis and a sign reading, ‘Vive le Roy de France,’ was a physical and symbolic representation of French sovereignty of the land, resources, and people it now lorded over…Despite Cartier’s claim to the legendary Chief Donnacona of the St. Lawrence Iroquois, that this was simply a navigational marker. This act sealing his fate amongst the ranks of other famous explorers like Christopher Columbus, John Cabot, and Samuel de Champlain. So, what were the consequences of this act? And why do we care about a cross erected almost 500 years ago? Let’s find out…