Appletons' Cyclopædia of American Biography/Isles, Andre

​ISLES, André (eel), Chevalier des, French ad- venturer, b. in Dieppe in 1530 ; d. in Florida in 1565. Admiral Coligny, having resolved to secure lands in America, where the French Protestants could be at liberty to enjoy their religion, gave Des Isles in 1560 two vessels, with orders to discover some convenient locality not occupied by European set- tlers. Sailing from Dieppe in May, 1560, he was driven by storms on the coast of Florida, and land- ed in July near a cape, which he named French cape and which is now known as Cape San Juan. He discovered on 5 Aug. the river Royale, built a fort, and, leaving twenty men to hold it, re- turned to France. The result of the expedition greatly pleased Admiral Coligny, but religious dis- sensions prevented him from sending another expe- dition before 1562, when he appointed Capt. Ribaut governor of the proposed colonies, and gave him three ships carrying 600 emigrants. Des Isles ac- companied the expedition, and acted as Ribaut's lieutenant. They found the fort destroyed and its garrison dead, but rebuilt it and named it Fort Royal, and Des Isles was left in command of the place with 250 men. Ribaut returned from France in the following year with a re-enforcement of 300 men, but Coligny had appointed a new commander for Fort Royal, the Count of Laudonniere, and his arrival caused trouble. Des Isles, supported by Ribaut, refused to relinquish the fort, and when he was compelled to do so established a new colony at the mouth of Toubachire. Everything prospered at first, but soon hostilities began between the ri- vals, and when Ribaut returned with re-enforce- ments in 1565, he found the French reduced to about 125 men. He pacified the captains, and went on an exploration of the coast, but during his absence the Spanish, under Menendez, attacked Fort Royal, and Laudonniere, in spite of the oppo- sition of Des Isles, signed a capitulation, which the Spaniards violated, massacring all the French.