Evangeline

Evangeline: A Tale of Acadie is a narrative poem by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, first published in 1847. It tells a deeply emotional story of love, loss, and lifelong devotion set against the historical backdrop of the Expulsion of the Acadians.

The poem follows Evangeline Bellefontaine, a young Acadian woman living in the peaceful French colony of Acadia (in what is now eastern Canada). She is engaged to Gabriel Lajeunesse, and their future seems secure—until British forces forcibly remove the Acadians from their land. During the chaos of the expulsion, Evangeline and Gabriel are separated.

What follows is a lifelong journey. Evangeline wanders across early North America—from forests and rivers to growing settlements—searching for Gabriel.