Henri Membertou (died 18 September 1611) was the sakmow (Grand Chief) of the Mi'kmaq First Nations tribe situated near Port Royal, site of the first French settlement in Acadia, present-day Nova Scotia, Canada. Originally sakmow of the Kespukwitk district, he was appointed as Grand Chief by the sakmowk of the other six districts.His exact date of birth is not known. However, Membertou claimed to be a grown man when he first met Jacques Cartier, which would mean that he was probably born in the early years of the sixteenth century.

Membertou was the leader of a small band of Mi'kmaq whose hunting and fishing territory included the area of Port-Royal.In addition to being sakmow or political leader, Membertou had also been the head autmoin or spiritual leader of his tribe — who believed him to have powers of healing and prophecy. Both Lescarbot and explorer Samuel de Champlain wrote of having witnessed him conducting a funeral in 1606 for Panoniac, a fellow Mi'kmaw sakmow who had been killed by the Armouchiquois or Passamaquoddy tribe, of what is now Maine. Seeking revenge for this and similar acts of hostility, Membertou led some 500 warriors in a raid on the Armouchiquois town, Chouacoet, present-day Saco, Maine, in July, 1607, killing 20 of their braves, including two of their leaders, Onmechin and Marchin. He first met the French when they arrived to build the Habitation at Port-Royal in 1605, at which time, according to the French lawyer and author Marc Lescarbot, he said he was over 100 and recalled meeting Jacques Cartier in 1534. Membertou became a good friend to the French. Father Biard described him as being tall and large limbed compared to the other natives. It is also said that he had a beard in contrast to the others who removed any facial hair. Also, unlike most sakmowk who were polygamous, Membertou had only one wife, who was baptised with the name of "Marie". Lescarbot records that the eldest son of Chief Membertou had the name Membertouchis (Membertouji'j, baptised Louis Membertou after the then-King of France, Louis XIII), while his second and third sons were called Actaudin (absent at the time of the baptism) and Actaudinech (Actaudinji'j, baptised Paul Membertou). He also had a daughter, given the name Marguerite. After building their fort, the French left in 1607, leaving only two of their party behind, during which time Membertou took good care of the fort and them, meeting them upon their return in 1610.

On June 24th 1610 (Saint John the Baptist Day), Membertou became the first Aboriginal to be baptised in New France. The ceremony was carried out by priest Jessé Fléché. He had just arrived from New France and he went on to baptize all of Membertou's immediate family. There was no proper preparation due to the fact that priest Jessé Fléché did not speak the Algonquian language and on their part, the Aboriginals did not speak enough French. It was then that Membertou was given the baptized name of the late king of France, Henri. This was a sign of alliance and good faith.

Membertou was very eager to become a proper Christian as soon as he was baptized. He wanted the missionaries to learn the Algonquian language so that he could be properly educated. Biard relates how, when Membertou's son Actaudin became gravely ill, he was prepared to sacrifice two or three dogs to precede him as messengers into the spirit world, but when Biard told him this was wrong, he did not, and Actaudin then recovered. However, in 1611, he contracted dysentry which is one of the many infectious diseases that was brought and spread in the New World by the Europeans. By September 1611, he was very ill. Membertou insisted on being buried with his ancestors, something that bothered the missionaries. However; Membertou soon changed his mind and requested to be buried among the French. He died on September 18th 1611. In his final words he charged his children to remain devout Christians.

The last year of Membertou's life shows a pattern that emerged among the indigenous people that were "Christianized" by European missionaries. They did not understand the principles of Christianity thus they could hardly have been said to be converted. They often died shortly after they were baptized and usually dying from the contagious diseases that were usually introduced by the missionaries themselves.

Bumsted, J.M. (2007). A History of the Canadian Peoples. Canada: Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-542349-6

*Biography at the Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online

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