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Cartier and his men being welcomed to the village of Hochelaga

Cartier's had three ships on his second voyage: the Grande Hermine, Petite Hermine, and Emerillon. He took a crew of 110 with him on May 19th 1535. It took Cartier 50 days to cross the Atlantic,arriving at the mouth of the St. Lawrence River on August 13th. His two Indian guides led him up the St. Lawrence, to the Iroquoian village of Stadacona, now Quebec City. Cartier then sailed up to Hochelaga (now Montreal). When he returned to Stadacona, he found relations between the natives and the men he left behind strained.

During the winter, the French fleet lay frozen in the St. Lawrence River and the French lived in a fort they built. Most of the French came down with scurvy, and 25 Frenchmen died, either from scurvy or exposure to the harsh winter. The natives provided the French with a cure for scurvy, which most likely saved the lives of most of the expedition. Cartier returned to France on July 15, 1536.