The prison ships leave La Baie Française while people watch from Le Cap Enragé

:: On this day, October 8, 1755, the brutal deportation of the Acadien people, "Le Grand Dèrangement" was well under way for the 2nd day...

Le Cap Enragé  aka Cape Enrage, was the dramatic observation point for Le Grand Dèrangement where they watched the ships leave La Baie Française.. now called the Bay of Fundy. That historical point marked the beginning of the exile that scattered the refugees & forced many down to Louisiana.
  
After ten years of writing and performing primarily in English, following the first Acadian World Congress of 1994, *Acadie(a)n-Cajun artist-activist Zachary Richard began to write again in French in earnest. One day while walking with his friend Denis Richard, Zachary discovered Le Cap Enragé in what is now New Brunswick, Canada, formerly l'Acadie. Returning to the hotel, no doubt overcome with emotion, envisioning what happened so many years ago, they composed the song that evening. 

Highly evocative Richard taps into it, deeply touching the collective Acadien-Cajun heart & soul with this beautiful song!

:: We post this here today in remembrance of our families and fellow Acadiens who were either imprisoned or forced to board the ships and leave l'Acadie, their American homeland. This was one of the first examples of state sponsored ethnic cleansing in North America. We honor our ancestors today and for the entire, sacred month of October. Vive l'Acadie! Vive Le Grand Réveil !!

~ E. Aucoin Gaudet





• Acadien with an 'en' is the French spelling of Acadian. As with many of our names, 'Acadian' with the 'an' ending, is the anglicized version of the original French. We prefer the French spelling! Nous préférons l'orthographe d'origine française! Bien sûr!

Cap Enragé Lyrics


(En français)
 
Cap Enragé

Le vent m’arrache la peau,
Il fouette les flancs et glace l’âme de mon bateau,
Amarré à la barre, j’entends ta voix, j’entends tes mots,
Chaque fois que le tonnerre me frappe de son echo.

Au large du Cap Enragé,
Au large de tous ce que j’ai perdu, tout ce que j’ai sauvé
Peut-être que je suis allé beaucoup trop loin pour empêcher,
Mon pauvre bateau de prendre l’eau et de couler.

Refrain:
Montre moi l’étoile pour me guider,
Prend le vent dans tes bras pour le calmer.
Je t’ai aimé, je t’ai aimé,
Jamais autant aimer, qu’au large du Cap Enragé.

Sur le Cap Enragé,
Elle guette avec les yeux abandonnés,
Envoyer une prière avec une voile déséspérée.
Si seulement je pouvais te faire comprendre la vérité.

(In english)
 
Cape Enrage

The wind tears my skin,
It whips the flanks and freezes the soul of my ship.
Tied to the tiller, I hear your voice, I hear your words
Each time that the thunder strikes me with its echo.

Offshore at Cape Enrage
Offshore from all that I have lost, all that I have saved.
Maybe I went too far to stop
My poor boat from taking water and sinking.

Chorus :
Show me the star to guide me,
Take the wind in your arms to calm it.
I have loved you, I have loved you,
But never loved you as much as offshore at Cape Enrage.

On Cape Enrage,
She watches with abandoned eyes.
Sending a prayer on desperate sails,
If only I could make you understand the truth.

  ~ Zachary Richard, Denis Richard