By the early eighteenth century, urban society in the colony had become quite sophisticated. The more well-to-do families built fine homes, entertained lavishly, and interested themselves in the arts. Some of them had large private libraries and employed musicians. Paintings were imported from France and there were several artists at work in the colony. Most of their work consisted of religious paintings and portraits. Unfortunately, little of this work has survived. One portrait that has is this one of Jean-Baptiste Hertel de Rouville (1668-1722), which now hangs in the McCord Museum, Montreal. A seigneur and a captain in the Troupes de Ia Marine, the colonial regulars, Hertel was a member of one of the more illustrious Canadian families. He began his military career in his early teens, serving on several campaigns against the Iroquois and the Anglo-American colonists. He commanded the war party that destroyed Deerfield, Massachusetts, in February 1704. For his valour he was made a knight of the military order of St. Louis, the cross of which he wears in the portrait. The artist has made him appear haughty, aristocratic, and ruthless, all of which he was - being, in fact, a typical member of the Canadian military noblesse. For details of his career see the Dictionary of Canadian Biography, VoI. II and on the painting itself, see Dennis Reid, A Concise History of Canadian Painting, (Toronto: Oxford University Press, 1973), pp. 20-23.
