To the Acadians who experienced the expulsion, it was a harsh and cruel deed, filled with suffering and hardships that tax the imagination.  It was an experience that lingered in the minds of the survivors for many years, and it was an experience that was related to the younger Acadian exiles over and over for years, resulting in a deep rooted hatred for those responsible for driving them from their homes.              This hatred for the British lingered in the minds of the Acadians for a long time. And according to historian Gayarre in “History of Louisiana”, vol. III p.131, it manifested itself during the American Revolution, when Spanish governor, Bernado de Galvez, in support of the Americans, organized an expedition in Louisiana to attack and clear the British strongholds of Fort Bute at Bayou Manchac, across from the Acadian settlement at St. Gabriel,  Baton Rouge, Natchez on the banks of the Mississippi,  and capture the forts at Mobile and Pensacola.             The expedition included the Acadians who had settled along the Mississippi River in an area called the Acadian Coast, from the Attakapas and Opelousas posts in southwest Louisiana and from upriver in Pointe Coupée. “It was not difficult to get the Acadians to volunteer……” (Gayarre “History of Louisiana” vol. III p. 125-126).               “The Louisiana Militia behaved with extraordinary discipline and fortitude.  It was found difficult to restrain their ardor, particularly that of the Acadians, who, at the sight of the British troops, being inflamed with rage at their recollection of their old injuries, were eager to rush on those who had desecrated their hearths, burned their paternal roofs to the ground, and driven them into exile like miserable outlaws and outcasts.” (Citizen Soldiers: Southwest Louisianians Defend the Nation  By. Mike Jones ‑ Lake Charles Press) ________________________________________________________________________ AOL now offers free email to everyone. Find out more about what's free from AOL at AOL.com.