Bristol merchant gets Royal seal of approval

A merchant venturer from Bristol has been given the royal seal of approval almost 400 years after he established Canada's first English settlement.

At a ceremony in Newfoundland in eastern Canada, attended by Prince Charles and his wife, the Duchess of Cornwall, the legacy left by John Guy was remembered yesterday with the unveiling of a plaque by modern-day merchant venturer Trevor Smallwood.

Mr Smallwood, who lives in Churchill, North Somerset, is Master of the Society of Merchant Venturers, the 450-year-old institution that also funded John Cabot's voyage of discovery.

Yesterday, he visited a new legacy centre in the village of Cupids, close to the secluded cove where Guy and a party of 38 intrepid colonists landed in August 1610.

The celebrations form part of those set up by Cupids 400, a group in Newfoundland commemorating the quadricentennial of the founding of the colony.

Mr Guy, who also held the role of Master of the Merchant Venturers, was the first governor of the settlement and is acknowledged as one of Canada's founding fathers.

The determined colonists set sail from Bristol in July 1610 with the intention of starting a fishing and farming community and also trading with Newfoundland's indigenous Beothuk people.

Their inspirational story, which tells of them enduring harsh winters, crop failures, scurvy and pirates, will be commemorated at the centre, which will also house 140,000 artefacts uncovered in archaeological digs at the site of the settlement.

Mr Smallwood said: "John Guy and his fellow brave settlers embody Bristol's proud maritime and mercantile heritage and its pioneering spirit.

"Their struggle to survive thousands of miles from their home city in often terrible conditions is among the most inspiring stories to come out of the city's long and colourful history.

"So it is a great honour to be invited to Cupids to what is in effect the start of its 400th anniversary celebrations.

"The legacy centre will demonstrate for generations to come the important roles of the city of Bristol and the Merchant Venturers in the foundation of Canada and the British Empire."

Mr Guy finally left the colony in 1613 after falling out with the Newfoundland Company over land and wages, and returned to Bristol, where he became the city's mayor, in 1618 and then MP in 1620 and 1624. He died five years later.

Celebrations in the now thriving village of 800 people will take place during August next year. They will include arts and music festivals and historical re-enactments.