Québec City | The Canadian Encyclopedia

Settlement

For several thousand years prior to the arrival of the Europeans, the web site of Québec City was occupied by autochthonal hunters and fishermen. In 1535, Jacques Cartier discovered a reasonably large iroquoian village, Stadacona, whose 1,000 or indeed inhabitants lived from fish, hunting and the cultivation of corn. sometime between 1543 and 1608, when Samuel de Champlain arrived at the locate, Stadaconans had disappeared and been replaced by the periodic mobile Algonquians, probable Montagnais-Naskapi .
With a mandate from the king of France, Cartier wintered near Stadacona in 1535–36 and returned in 1541–42, spending a difficult winter at Cap Rouge, a few kilometres upriver, before heading home plate with barrels of despicable minerals ( see Diamonds of Canada ). Jean-François de la Rocque Roberval ( 1542–43 ) spent the surveil winter at Cap Rouge, but the bankruptcy of these early expeditions diminished french pastime in the area, and a permanent settlement was not established until 1608 when Champlain founded a deal military post. The post was captured by the Kirke brothers in 1629, but was restored to the french by the Treaty of Saint-Germain in 1632. The town successfully repulsed assaults by Sir William Phips in 1690, but was conquered by the british in 1759 ( see Battle of the Plains of Abraham ). It resisted an attempted invasion by a boastfully american push in 1775–76, so the colony remained under british control.

Development

St. Lawrence River determined the nature of its development. In the age of cruise, it held a dominant allele put as a port of submission and exit for ocean-going vessels. It cursorily became the remove port for domestic and extraneous craft ( particularly furs and lumber ) and the arrival and passing sharpen for travellers and immigrants to North America. From the beginning, its localization made Québec City a political, administrative and military center .
The long delay in establishing a rail link to the city, the technological developments in ocean-going vessels that enabled them to bypass the city and navigate immediately to Montréal, and finally the shift of population and the economy westward, all tended to reduce Québec City ‘s importance in the mid-19th century. Despite perennial efforts, the city was unable to maintain its earlier put as a focus of economic production and deal, and it gradually became a peasant and regional administrative center .
between 1960 and 1980, the considerable growth of the provincial government accelerated the growth of the city and its suburb and gave added stress to the relative importance of its administrative routine. however, since the 1980s, and specially in the 1990s, this vogue levelled off slightly due to cuts in government services. The city has besides continued to develop as a cultural concentrate and tourist destination ( see Tourism ) .

Cityscape

Festive atmosphere, Old Québec. Credit: Claudel Huot, Quebec City Tourism

About half the buildings in the Historic District of Old Québec were built before 1850. Some date back to the era of New France (photo by Pierre St. Jacques, courtesy Parks Canada).

Avenue Saint-Denis, Old Québec.\r\nPhoto credit: Yves Tessier, Tessima, Quebec City Tourism.

Rue Saint-Louis (street) at night, Old Québec. Credit: Luc-Antoine Couturier, Quebec City Tourism.

Credit: Luc-Antoine Couturier, Quebec City Tourism.
PreviousNext In the seventeenth hundred, the inhabitants of Québec City beginning occupied the narrow strip of land between the promontory and the port ( Lower Town ), and then the promontory itself, following in the wake of the religious institutions and colonial administration that occupied Upper Town. This expansion was strongly influenced by the construction of and improvements to the town ‘s fortifications, which were established chiefly in the Upper Town but besides on the banks of the river. ( see Fortifications of Québec National Historic Site )
The fortifications and military barracks occupied a considerable area and restricted the administration of a residential civilian population, which was limited already by the development of religious institutions ( the Bishop ‘s Palace, the cathedral, the seminary, colleges and convents, the Hôtel-Dieu and the Château Saint-Louis ). Lower Town was for many years the residential and commercial centre. Both parts form the core of the previous city, which is still well preserved and has been partially reconstructed as separate of the Place Royale project .
At the end of the french government, Lower Town stretched along the interface toward the Intendant ‘s Palace, to the north of the promontory. During the nineteenth hundred, the town broke out of its fortified confines and stretched west on the promontory, along the banks of the Rivière Saint-Charles and to the foot of the north face of the promontory. These new parts of town were often built hurriedly and of wood, and fell victim to a number of major fires ( Saint-Roch, 1845 ; Saint-Sauveur, 1866, 1870 and 1889 ; and Saint-Jean-Baptiste, 1845, 1876 and 1881 ). The consequence was major reconstruction and improved protective infrastructures ( water supply, firefighting services, etc. ) .


The Ch\u00e2teau Frontenac in Québec City (Price, 1892-93) began a tradition of ch\u00e2teau-style railway hotels that became a distinctively Canadian architectural form (photo by Michel Gagnon/CUQ Communications).
growth to the west and north of the city has been even more solid in the twentieth hundred, peculiarly since the 1950s. The small parishes in outlying areas grew promptly as both residential and commercial cities : Sillery, Sainte-Foy, Charlesbourg, Cap-Rouge, L ’ Ancienne-Lorette, etc. Although the downtown area was quite radically transformed with the appearance of private and governmental buildings and a few major hotels, the historic character of the old city has been largely preserved. The modern buildings blend with the characteristic landscape of Québec City : the promontory, fortifications, Château Frontenac, Parliament Buildings, Rivière Saint-Charles, the Port and the Québec Bridge. The preservation of its fortifications gives Québec City the differentiation of being the merely wall city in North America .

Population

Although Québec City was the capital of the french empire in North America, for many years it was little more than a big greenwich village ( see New France ). In 1608 it had 28 inhabitants, and by the time of the Conquest in 1759, its population lone slightly exceeded 8,000. Growth was rapid in the inaugural one-half of the nineteenth century, and by 1861 it numbered closely 60,000 inhabitants. The growth resulted from the economic expansion associated chiefly with the timbre trade and the authoritative political and administrative activities centered in the city .
Québec City was besides both the entrance and transit interface for the substantial annual inflow of immigrants heading towards Upper Canada and the rest of North America. In some years the city ’ s population doubled during the summer, aggravating many attendant problems ( unsanitary conditions and epidemics ) .
As a consequence of the gradual slowdown in the timbre trade and shipbuilding in the second half of the nineteenth hundred, the population of the city remained relatively stable until the early twentieth century. In fact, the Lower and Upper Town experienced a decline as people moved to the fresh areas, particularly Saint-Roch. The overall population increase in a 40-year menstruation, 1861 to 1901, was only 14.7 per cent ( 60,000 to 68,840 ) .
Besides experiencing unfavorable economic conditions, the old city lacked residential space. entirely with the amalgamation of little outlying municipalities did its population begin to grow at the begin of the twentieth century. Metropolitan Québec however grew more quickly from the 1950s until the end of the 1970s, particularly in the new suburbs. In the early 1980s, this emergence again slowed, partially as a resultant role of stabilization of growth in the state overall .
According to the 2016 census, the population of the city itself was 531,902. When added to the populations of the suburb, the total population of Quebec City ’ s metropolitan area is 800,296 .
prior to the Conquest, Québec City ’ s population had been french. In the early nineteenth century this changed with the inflow of british immigrants. In 1851, 43 per cent of the city ’ s population was comprised of British and other groups, which decreased slightly to 41 per penny in 1861. This high proportion dropped quickly as immigration to Québec City stopped and as many british immigrants moved to other parts of Canada and to United States. By 1871, the share of non-francophones had fallen to 31.5 per penny, to 10 per cent in 1921, 6 per penny in 1971, and last, by 2011, to 4 per cent. According to the 2016 census, people citing canadian heathen origins make up the largest heathen group, at 68.4 per penny of the city ’ s population, followed by French ( 29.5 per penny ) and Irish ( 5.2 per penny ). visible minorities account for 6.4 per penny of city residents, with Black, latin american and arabian people making up the largest communities within this group.

Economy, Transportation and Labour Force

The early economy of Québec City was immediately dependent upon its activities as a transit port for basic products exported to Europe ( fur, cereals and log ) and for imported manufactured products. The considerable expansion of this trade enabled Québec City to maintain a relatively competitive position with Montreal as the major trade centre of the state until the mid-19th hundred .
At that time, the commercial position of Québec City was badly affected by the decline in the lumber trade and the shift from raw timber to lumber ; the development of railroad track networks that bypassed the city ( the Grand Trunk Pacific Railway passed on the south prop up, opposite the city ) ; the weakness of the city ’ south backwoods ; the dredge of the St. Lawrence River between Québec City and Montreal ; the expansion of economic relations with the United States ; and, the impact of technical variety on deal and exile. Montreal quickly acquired a prevailing position in the moment half of the nineteenth hundred in deal and finance, transportation and diligence .
Québec City ’ s center classify, which was already declining in numbers, attempted to maintain its position but failed. It struggled to attract the transcontinental railways, such as the Quebec, Montreal, Ottawa and Occident Railway as character of the Canadian Pacific Railway ( which in 1879, was the first railway to reach the city ), ampere well as the National Transcontinental Railway and the Canadian Northern Railway, and to have them adopt the port of Québec City as their ocean terminal .
Efforts were besides made to have the two shores of the river connected by a bridge. The Québec Bridge ( 1900–1917 ) is silent the largest cantilever bridge in the universe, but experienced dangerous construction difficulties in 1907 and 1916 ( see Québec Bridge Disaster ). The bridge actually helped promote the circulation of products to ports farther east. A second bridge, the Pierre-Laporte, was built in 1970. It is a suspension bridge, located a few hundred metres from the earlier one .
In the middle of the nineteenth century, the city went through an industrial revolution, peculiarly in the footwear industry, which gradually became the largest informant of employment for the region. however, the city was unable to maintain growth in its manufacture sector, and the footwear industry declined in the 1920s. even though respective other industries appeared and disappeared, and offered employment to a significant number of people, they did not manage to diversify the city ’ s industrial foundation. These industries included shipbuilding, breweries, corsetry, tobacco products, munitions, and pulp and newspaper .
today, most jobs in Québec City are concentrated in health care and sociable aid, populace administration and retail. The city benefits from its status as the peasant capital and the regional administrative and services center. It besides attracts an increasing number of tourists .

Government and Politics

From 1765 to 1833, and from 1835 to 1840, the city was administered by a committee of justices of the peace appointed by the governor and composed largely of landowners, french canadian professionals and british merchants. The commission was creditworthy for ensuring that the orders of the legislature of Lower Canada were respected. Following atmospheric pressure from the local anesthetic population, Québec City received its inaugural municipal rent in 1833. This lasted until 1835. A second was issued in 1840. These charters established an elected municipal council with the world power to adopt regulations in their sphere of jurisdiction .
From 1833 to 1856, and 1870 to 1908, the mayor was elected by the reeves and councillors, and then immediately by citizens ( property owners and tenants ) by hidden ballot from 1856 to 1870 and after 1908. furthermore, the number of reeves, councillors and districts changed on many occasions as a consequence of annexations, in finical those of Saint-Sauveur ( 1889 ), Saint-Malo ( 1908 ), Limoilou ( 1909 ), Montcalm ( 1913 ), Notre-Dame-des-Anges ( 1924 ), Les Saules ( 1969 ), Duberger ( 1970 ), Neufchatel ( 1971 ) and Charlesbourg Ouest ( 1973 ) .
Formed in 1970, the urban community of Québec City includes 13 municipalities on the north shore and is responsible for plan, populace transit ( STCUQ ), property appraisal, and industrial and tourism forwarding. In 2001, as contribution of a large-scale provincial government project to amalgamate municipalities ( much referred to as the “ forced amalgamation ” project ), the municipalities of the urban residential district were joined together to form the fresh city of Québec. In 2004, a vote was held on de-amalgamation : the new city lost Saint-Augustin-de-Desmaures and L ’ Ancienne-Lorette but otherwise remained intact .
The function Québec City played as a “ national ” capital until 1840 ( and subsequently 1851–55 and 1859–65, during the Union period ), and as a peasant capital since 1867, has given it a extra relationship with home, provincial and municipal politicians. then much so, in fact, that with the exception of a few businessmen prior to 1870, most of the city ‘s mayors have besides been involved in political careers at higher levels before, after and tied during their mandates. One of the most celebrated mayors, Simon-Napoléon Parent ( 1894–1906 ), was besides Minister of Lands and Forests ( 1897–1905 ) and premier of Québec ( 1900–05 ). A Commission de la capitale nationale du Québec was established in 1995 to promote and develop all facets of Québec City as a “ home ” capital .

Cultural Life

Night parade at Winter Carnival. Credit: Carnaval de Quebec, Quebec City Tourism

Credit: Luc Rousseau, Quebec City Tourism

Summer Festival show. Credit: Yves Tessier, Tessima, Quebec City Tourism
PreviousNext The city remains a major center of french culture and the seat of the merely francophone government in North America. In addition to conserving these traditions, it has managed to maintain a greater cultural homogeneity than Montréal, the early major punt of french culture .
Its teaching institutions include the Séminaire de Québec ( 1668 ) and Université Laval ( 1852 ). Until 1920, the latter was the lone francophone university in the state ; its satellite campus in Montréal, founded in 1876, became an independent university known as the Université de Montréal ( 1920 ). This situation much produced bitterness within the ranks of the clergy and in provincial political circles. long located in the historic zone of Old Québec, Université Laval gradually moved to a roomy newly campus in the suburb from the 1950s on. Starting in the 1960s, the administrative headquarters and several component institutions of the Université du Québec were established in Québec City .
The historic character of Québec City is reflected in the architecture of the erstwhile city, which has been the capable of major restorations and has become the site of exceptional museums. In 1985, this part of the city was recognized as a United Nations World Heritage Site. The municipal, peasant and union governments have combined their efforts to restore Place Royale, Artillery Park and the fortifications ( Québec Citadel, walls, gates, south prop up forts ), the Old Port, the Voûtes du Palais, the Séminaire de Québec, a count of private religious museums, the Musée de la civilization ( 1988 ), and the Musée de l’Amérique française ( 1806, 1993 ). Québec City was chosen in 1993 as host for the general secretariat of the Organization of World Heritage Cities .
The Musée du Québec ( 1933 ) was renamed the Musée national des beaux-arts du Québec in 2002. It contains collections of ancient and modern works and is separate of a big urban park, the Plains of Abraham, or Parc des Champs-de-Bataille ( 1908 ), which commemorates the battle leading to the accrue of the city in 1759 and ultimately of New France to the british army a year late ( see Battle of the Plains of Abraham ). There is besides an aquarium near the Québec Bridge and the Grand Théâtre de Québec ( 1971 ), base of the Orchestre symphonique de Québec.

A number of downhill and cross-country ski centres, including Mont Sainte-Anne, Stoneham, and Lac-Beauport, are located within a few minutes of the city. After having excellent minor league field hockey teams for many years, Québec City finally entered the region of major league field hockey with the Québec Nordiques ( 1972 ), who were members of the National Hockey League ( NHL ) from 1979 to 1995. The team was sold and moved to Denver, Colorado. As the Avalanche, this team won the Stanley Cup in 1996 and again in 2001. A new multi-purpose stadium is due to open in 2015, and it is hoped that this new facility will bring professional field hockey back to the area. The city is besides host to an international runt field hockey tournament .
Tourists and residents are attracted by a total of popular events : the Québec Winter Carnival ( see Winter Festivals ), which has been held every February since 1954 ; the Québec City International Summer Festival each July, and a number of major anniversaries, including the three-hundredth anniversary of the establish of Québec City in 1908, the 375th in 1983, the 400th in 2008, and the 450th anniversary of Jacques Cartier ‘s arrival in 1984. Increasingly, summer events such as these yield people an opportunity to enjoy many international-calibre musical performances on the Plains of Abraham .
Of Québec City ‘s many literary figures, mention should be made of Roger Lemelin, whose novels depict the wage-earning districts of the city. Robert Lepage has made a remarkable contribution to theatre, as has Ex Machina, his international-calibre creative multimedia company, established in 1997. Five television receiver stations serve the city, one of which is english, there are respective community stations, and there are a number of radio stations and two day by day newspapers, Le Soleil and the Journal de Québec .