Final answer:
The French traded beaver pelts for guns, blankets, alcohol, and other trade goods with Native Americans. These pelts were used in Europe to make fashionable beaver hats. The trade was part of the larger European extraction of resources from North American colonies.
Step-by-step explanation:
The French traded beaver pelts for various goods with the Native Americans in the New France region of North America, which mainly covered parts of what is now Canada. The French crews traded their beaver pelts primarily for items such as guns, blankets, alcohol, and other trade goods.
The beaver pelts were highly sought after in Europe, especially in the French fashion industry, where they were used for the manufacturing of beaver hats, which enjoyed significant popularity as they were naturally waterproof and had a glossy sheen. Silk hats eventually took over as the fashionable choice in the 1850s, which, combined with the increasing scarcity of beavers due to overhunting, led to the decline in the beaver pelt trade.
These trading relationships facilitated alliances with Native American tribes, with the French often siding with the Algonquin and the Huron against their enemies, such as the Iroquois. These alliances had significant impacts on the dynamics and outcomes of regional conflicts, known as the Beaver Wars, and were part of the larger effort by European nations to exploit the natural resources of their North American colonies.