, Québec Province, Canada (Quebec)
1685 - King Louis XIV decreed Code Noir (Black Code),ordered all Jews out of French colonial empire; defined slavery rules, restricted activities of free Negroes; forbade any religious activities other than Roman Catholic

In 1685, King Louis XIV issued the Code Noir (Black Code), a sweeping set of decrees that governed slavery and race relations across the French colonial empire, including New France’s territories. The Code Noir sought to regulate the status of enslaved Africans, free Black people, and religious practice, reflecting both the economic priorities of the colonies and the religious policies of the French crown.

The decree ordered all Jews to leave French colonies, reinforcing the policy that only Roman Catholicism was permitted, and strictly restricted the rights and activities of free Black people, limiting their economic, social, and legal autonomy. For enslaved Africans, the Code set rules for treatment, punishment, and conversion to Catholicism, theoretically providing minimal protections while entrenching their legal status as property.

While New France itself had relatively few enslaved Africans compared to the Caribbean colonies, the Code Noir established a legal and moral framework that defined racial hierarchy and slavery throughout the French empire. It reinforced the intertwining of colonial economics, social control, and Catholic orthodoxy, demonstrating how the crown sought to impose order and uniformity across its overseas territories. The 1685 decree would have lasting consequences for the social structure of French colonies, shaping the lives of enslaved people, free Blacks, and religious minorities for decades.

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