History was made here. When the British ultimately gained control of North America in 1763, their de

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Chapter TWO
Quebec
O
ne of the oldest cities
in Canada, there is no place livelier with the
joie de vivre and tra-ditional French culture
than Quebec City, the capital of Quebec. Quebec
is one of the
Fast Facts
One of the oldest cities in Canada (1608)
Considered one of the top ten tourist sites in N
orth America (Money Magazine) Only city with wa
lls in North America Only UNESCO World Heritage
City in North America Nearby are the Mont-more
ncy Falls, more than 30 meters higher than
Niagara Falls The citys famous hotel, the Chat
eau Frontenac, hosts one honeymoon couple on
average per day, and is one of the most
photographed buildings in the world.
95 of city-dwellers are French-speaking, and 30
speak English When dinner is not dinner Din
er is lunch dinner is souper.
Many restaurant chefs are trained in France goo
d item is the hote de table the set menu
Largest per capita number of gourmet restaurants
in North America
View of the city from Upper Town and the Chateua,
looking down on the river
most popular travel destinations in North
America. It mixes Old World charm and history
with modern-day atmosphere. In this city, where
95 of the les habitents speak French, French
culture and tradition is woven into daily life.
History was made here. When the British
ultimately gained control of North America in
1763, their decisive victory which started the
process was fought on the Plains of Abraham in
1759. Still a smallish city (population 170,000),
it rewards a days walk with a lifetime of
memories. Quebec is located at the narrowing of
the St. Lawrence river, from which it gets its
Algonquin name kebec. Its cultural dynamism
stems partly from the fact that it has long been
a crossroads for European and American culture.
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History
Before the Europeans came, the province was home
to many First Nations residents, with 11 nations
present at the time of Cartier, the first French
explorer who arrived in 1535. As Cartier made
friends with the Hurons and Algonquins using them
as guides, his party was attacked by the
Iroquois, who had a dispute with the Hurons. His
men fired back with their guns, and thus started
a blood feud between the French and the Iroquois.

Life in the new lands was difficult, with first
efforts at establishing a base at Stadacona
failing in the harsh winters. During the winter,
the settlers ran out of food and supplies, and
many died from exposure and scurvy. More than 70
years would pass before an another establishment
was made permanent, in 1608 by Samuel de
Champlain, further to the north in what is now
Quebec City. This site was chosen because of it
s location on the heights of a cliff overlooking
the narrowing of the St. Lawrence river (only 1
km wide at that point). It also had a natural
harbor. This position was strategic, because it
would allow an easier defence of the surrounding
lands against the British or American forces.
This site was visited often by Algonquin natives
and other Amerindians, and thus the fort served
as a trading post for foodstuffs and especially
furs.
Scurvy. A disease in which a person loses the
Jacques Cartier
At the base of the cliffs
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It was not until 1663 that Quebec became the
capital of New France (what would later be known
as Lower Canada). Once King Louis XIV took an
interest in the welfare of New France, it began
to grow rapidly, and the fur and lumber trade
became increasingly important to the local
economy. By the time the French lost control of
the area, the city had a population of around
8000 people, with magnificent buildings and
architecture, surrounded by forests, wilderness
and farmlands a scene of contrasts.
And then the British came. Under the command of
Wolfe, attacked the city with a large naval force
in 1759. Unable to attack because of the
cliff-face, Wolfe led a daring night raid farther
upstream, scaled the cliff, thus outflanking the
French forces under Montcalm, and attacked from
the rear in the Plains of Abraham. Both sides
fought bravely, but Quebec finally fell. Within
three years, the entire area of New France was
under British control, and New France was ceded
to Britain in 1762. In the early 19th century,
the port of Québec experienced a spectacular boom
because of the lumber trade, growing to third
largest in North America after New York and New
Orleans.
Boom-bust cylce A period of rapid success
followed by great difficulty
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Beginning in 1860, a number of factors hurt the
local economy. The lumber trade went into decline
when steel-hulled steamships replaced sailing
ships. And the opening of the canal at Lake
Saint-Pierre allowed large vessels to sail right
on through to Montréal without stopping in Québec
City. And so the city experienced in bust years,
from 1860 until about 1900. Quebec set about me
chanizing its industry, and by the beginning of
the 20th century was again an industrial leader
in Canada. The capital had 225 factories and
workshops employing 10,000 workers, including
over 4,000 in the footwear industry. Between
1901 and 1931, the city's population more than
doubled, rising from 69,000 to 150,000.
Québec City's economic focus for the second half
of the 20th century was more on the service
sector, finance, insurance, and retailing. The
civil service also became a big source of
employment with the Quiet Revolution of the
1960s.
In the 1960s, the Quebec government tried to
significant changes, called the Quiet
Revolution. On the economic level, the government
sought to increase francophones' control of the
province's economic assets, including electricity
production and distribution. Until then, this had
been largely dominated by English Canadian and
American investors. There was also an increased
sense of nationalism and a separate identity,
which went back historically to the arguments
between Quebec and Ottawa at confederation. It is
during the Quiet Revolution that the
Canadien(ne)s-français(es) (French Canadians)
became Québécois(es), thus marking a distinct
evolution from passive nationalism to a more
active pursuit of political autonomy. For some,
this could be achieved through a reform of the
British North America Act, while for
sovereignists, the BNAA was considered a null and
void act passed by an imperialist foreign power.
Other changes included the rapid and effective s
ecularistaion of society the creation of an
État-Providence (welfare state) massive
investments in the public education system and
the creation of a Ministry of Education.
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The Front de libération du Québec (Quebec
Liberation Front), commonly known as the FLQ, was
a nationalist terrorist group founded in the
1960s. Their activities formed the first
experience of terrorism in Canadas history. From
1963 to 1970, the FLQ committed over 200 violent
political actions, including bombings, bank
hold-ups and at least three deaths by FLQ bombs
and two deaths by gunfire. The group's
declarations called for a communist rebellion and
the establishment of a workers society, the
overthrow of the Quebec government, the
independence of Quebec from Canada.
On October 5, 1970, FLQ kidnapped James Cross, t
he British Trade Commissioner as he was leaving
his home for work. Shortly afterwards, on
October, the Minister of Labour and Vice-Premier
of Quebec, Pierre Laporte, was also kidnapped
while he was playing football with his family on
his front lawn. Laporte was murdered a week
later. Police discovered the location of the
kidnappers, and FLQ members were eventually
caught and either tried and convicted or granted
their request for exile to Cuba. Many years
later, they were able to return to Canada from
France, when reduced sentences were given.
The October Crisis contributed to the loss of su
pport of independence via violent means, and gave
rise to support for independence via political
means, which was embodied in the Parti
Quebecois.

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Culture
An uneasy alliance Québec City is the cradle of
French civilization in North America.
The Quebecois make up the largest French-speaking
population in North America, and make up about
24 of Canadas population. Other areas include
New Brunswick and Louisiana. The official
language in the province of Quebec is French, and
English is a minority language the only
Canadian province where that is the case.
When the British took over French Canada, they d
id not try to force the French to change, as they
did in the United States. Learning from the
troubles they had with the Americans, the British
tried a more cooperative approach, recognizing
French identity and maintaining French
institutions and customs and laws. The reason for
this was political pragmatism, not humanistic
kindness. By treating the French more kindly, the
British hoped to avoid a rebellion, and the
possibility of an alliance with the Americans.
pragmatism. A way doing things that is practical,
connected more to what is necessary than what is
right.
Over time, many Quebecois have felt misunderstood
and not appreciated by the rest of Canada. When
Canada was born in 1867 at Confederation, Quebec
joined assuming they were one nation joining
another, English-speaking nation. For example,
schoolbooks of history and geography talk about
Quebec and Canada, not Quebec as part of Canada
a very different method compared to the rest of
Canada. The license plates are emblazoned with
the motto je me souviens I remember, in
reference to provincial pride and socio-cultural
heritage. On a recent trip, one can often see the
provincial flag displayed, but the red maple leaf
is noticeable for its rarity.
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Quebecois did not expect they would have to give
up their special cultural and political status.
In Quebec the provincial government is not called
a legislature, but a national parliament. School
textbooks of history and geography refer to
Quebec and Canada, not to Quebec as part of
Canada, and teach these subjects very differently
fro the way they are taught in the rest of the
country. Many English-speaking Canadians now re
alize how serious Quebec is about being a
sovereign country. While other Canadians accept
that Quebec has its own language and culture,
they tend to get annoyed with the added demands
and threats that Quebec uses from time to time.
And Quebec is serious about the sovereignty issu
e. In 1995, there was a vote on whether Quebec
should separate. . By a very, very small
majority, Quebec said no, they wanted to stay
but almost half said yes. Canada now stands at a
crossroads, as one of its founding provinces
declares its extreme unhappiness with the rest of
the country. The position of Quebec in
Confederation has been an important issue in
federal elections from the beginnings of Canadian
history, and shows no sign of being resolved
anytime soon. While Montreal is Quebec's undisp
uted center for urban sophistication and culture,
Quebec City is more purely French. Only 30
percent of the population speaks English, but the
French heritage and character here goes way
beyond language. As the country cousins of
Montrealers, life is more laid-back for
Quebeckers. Laughter and neighborliness come
easier to them, and an air of friendliness is
worn like comfortable old clothes. There is a
regional pride of the past and reverence for
tradition. And anyone with a day to spend here
can absorb a lot of history as well as observe
modern life with a walking tour around the city.
Quebec was a very Roman Catholic society until r
ecent years. The Church projected itself as the
protector of the French language and culture.
Archbishops of large cities were very influential
at all government levels. In small towns, the
influence of the priest was often equal or
superior to that of the town's mayor. Before any
political decision could be made, politicians
made sure that it would be in accordance with
Catholic belief and attitudes. Congregations of
nuns controlled and managed the province's
education, social and medical service. Simply
put, Quebec was one of the world's Catholic
strongholds.
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Since the Quiet Revolution of the 1960s, Quebec
has become much more secular. Nonetheless about
90 of the population still claims to be
Catholic, but few regularly attend services or
pay the tithe which the faithful are supposed to
give to the Church. As a result, much of the
province's Catholic church architecture is in
peril, with parishes not having enough funds for
necessary upkeep. Some churches are even closi
ng, merging with another parish. As church
attendance is now extremely low, few individuals
are willing to become priests, monks or nuns.
Therefore, many small towns must now share their
priest with neighboring towns. The influence of
the Catholic Church is strongest in rural regions
and weakest in the Montreal area.
Despite a common language, French, Quebecers see
the culture of France as foreign in essentially
the same way that Americans see British or
Australian culture. However, since the 1960s, the
cultural ties between France and Quebec have
increased significantly and the exchange between
the two has resulted in some cross-pollination.
The Quebec government does not charge foreign
student fees to students from France and certain
other French-speaking countries, so some of the
cultural exchange is brought in person.
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Tourism
There may be no better place to start than from
Place-Royale, where Champlain built the first
dwelling on the site now occupied by
Notre-Dames-des-Victoires, one of the oldest
churches in the province. From the shops in the
historic Lower Town, you can climb (or ride the
funicular) to the churches, monuments, stores,
and restaurants of the walled Upper Town above.
Horse-drawn carriages clop b
y, strollers browse among artists and their work
on the narrow Rue du Tresor, and street musicians
play from impromptu stages along the Dufferin
Terrace. A walk along the Promenade past the C
hateau brings you to the Citadelle, where
red-coated sentries stand ceremonial guard over a
riverfront that teems with commercial boat
activities, including day and evening sightseeing
excursions. Back along the ma
in streets of Sainte-Anne and Sainte-Jean,
window-shoppers hungry for souvenirs check out
jewelry and crafts, while those with an appetite
for food get a mouth-watering sampling of menus
from restaurant windows--or from those
ever-present and invariably pretty hostesses at
the doorways.
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Those venturing outside the gates will find more
restaurants, more shopping, and great
people-watching along the Grande Allee, as well
as imposing architecture and structures like the
nearby Parliament Building. But i
f you have time and inclination, you might opt
for a drive in the country by renting a car and
circumnavigating nearby Ile d'Orleans. This
island in the middle of the St. Lawrence River
has half-a-dozen tiny villages with churches,
shops, bakeries, cafes, and several hundred
ancestral buildings. Reminiscent of rural France,
the countryside is replete with small farms,
roadside produce stands, and cider shops.
Also nearby is Montmorency Falls, in a park near
the bridge leading to Ile d'Orleans. Here a
cable car rises up a cliff to a restaurant and
suspension bridge spanning the falls, which
plunge 272 feet--almost 100 feet higher than
Niagara.