The licenses to hunt and trade for coureurs de bois were granted by whom?

• A. The French authorities
• B. Indigenous chiefs
• C. The British Crown
• D. The Hudson's Bay Company

Answer: (A)

In New France, the fur trade was regulated by the French colonial administration. The licenses to hunt and trade for coureurs de bois were issued by French authorities—the governor and intendant acting on behalf of the French king. This system allowed the Crown to regulate who could operate in the interior and trade with Indigenous peoples, as well as to collect revenue and manage relationships. Indigenous chiefs might grant local trading permissions in specific contexts, but formal licenses came from the French authorities. The British Crown or the Hudson’s Bay Company did not grant these licenses for the French colonial era.