Final answer:
Fort St. Louis did not thrive under La Salle's leadership due to navigational errors, disease impacts on local populations, La Salle's death, and broader French colonial struggles.
Step-by-step explanation:
Did Fort St. Louis Thrive Under the Leadership of La Salle?
Fort St. Louis, established by the French explorer La Salle in the late 17th century, did not thrive under his leadership. La Salle's ambition was to establish French control and create a colony near the Mississippi River; however, his expedition faced numerous challenges. La Salle did not see the populated lands as De Soto had once witnessed; instead, he reported extensive stretches of wilderness, an indication of the devastating impacts of diseases brought by earlier Europeans. Moreover, the inability to find the mouth of the Mississippi River led to the uncontested establishment of the fort at an inopportune site. La Salle's untimely death in 1687 further led to the decline and ultimate abandonment of Fort St. Louis.
This misfortune was indicative of the broader French struggles to establish a foothold in the Americas during this period. The French made several attempts to contest Spanish power and expand their own empire in regions such as Florida and Canada, but with varying degrees of success. Significant battles, changing alliances, and the broader context of European politics affected French colonial efforts. It wasn't until later, through events such as the capture of French outposts and the establishment of New Orleans, that the French finally began to cement their presence in the region, although this came long after La Salle's ill-fated attempt at colonizing the Mississippi valley.