From 1663-1673, King Louis XIV sent nearly 800 young women to populate the colony of New France, now Quebec. The women were called “ The Filles du Roi ” or “daughters of the king.” The king paid for the passage of his wards across the Atlantic and gave them a dowry in exchange for an agreement to marry. This highly successful program set off the largest baby boom in world history. Today it is said that most people of French-Canadian descent can trace their roots to at least one of these women. While the filles du roi are well-celebrated in Québec, little is known about this history to most people outside of Canada, including the author’s Vermont family. In this book, the author sets out to tell the story of his paternal grandmother’s fifteen filles du roi ancestors. In the effort to weave together what is known about each of them, he found tales of struggle and hardship, murder and misery, resilience and longevity, and a connection to the founding of New France and the establishment of French culture in the New World. His family’s French roots run deep.