Gabriel Christie (1722-1799), a British military officer, acquired a vast estate in Quebec after the Seven Years war, including five timber-rich seigneuries in the Upper Richelieu Valley, our study area. These were inherited by two of his sons in succession: Napier Christie Burton (1758-1835) and William Plenderleath Christie (1780-1845). An examination of the available deeds of concession for our study area shows the legal framework of the tenure and the seigneurs' survey and land granting policies. Seigneurial rents increased between 1785 and 1820, but it was the accumulation of seigneurial arrears, followed by strict collection practices after 1835, which contributed most to social stratification and unrest. A seigneurial monopoly on mill construction and the use of water power was decentralized after 1815 so that manufactures were established by entrepreneurs with capital who acquired a share of the seigneur's rights through patronage. The seigneur's role in regional development--the rise of villages, settlement, and industrial growth--was significant particularly as a system of clientage which helped shape the social structure.

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