Acadia is named in the novel’s account of England’s expanding power during Queen Anne’s reign, as one of the territories Louis XIV was thought likely to relinquish. Its significance here is geopolitical: the reference places Acadia within the anticipated retreat of French influence, not within a narrated campaign or a completed transfer of control.

Acadia in the Imperial Contest

The passage groups Acadia with St. Christopher and Newfoundland, describing France as likely to give up its hold over these possessions. This expectation follows a survey of England’s military strength and recent gains, including its campaigns in Europe and its advance elsewhere overseas. Acadia thus enters the narrative as part of a wider reckoning with the changing balance between England and France.

The Cape Breton Context

The account connects the anticipated loss of Acadia to the prospect that France might be permitted to continue fishing for cod at Cape Breton. The distinction matters: the passage presents a possible concession and a forecast of French retreat, not a reported English takeover of Acadia. The location serves as evidence of the scale of the imperial pressure bearing on France in this political panorama.