Quebec City or Québec (French: Ville de Québec, or simply Québec) is the capital of the Canadian province of Quebec. It is the second largest city in the province, after Montreal. Quebec's Old Town (Vieux-Québec), the only North American fortified city north of Mexico whose walls still exist, was declared a World Heritage Site by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) in 1985 as the 'Historic District of Old Quebec'. It is also one of the oldest cities in North America. The city has a population of 528,595, and the metropolitan area has a population of 717,600 (2005).
Quebec City is known for its Winter Carnival and the Château Frontenac, a historic hotel which dominates the city skyline. The Assemblée nationale du Québec (provincial parliament), the Musée national des beaux-arts du Québec (National Museum of Fine Arts) and the Museum of Civilization are found within or near Vieux-Québec.
Among the tourist attractions in the city are Montmorency Falls and the Basilica of Sainte-Anne-de-Beaupré in the town of Beaupré.
History of the name QuebecThe low width of the river as it enters the towns of Quebec and Lévis, on the opposite bank, provided the name given to the city, Kébec being the Algonquin word meaning 'where the river narrows'.
From Stadacona to James WolfeQuebec City is one of the oldest settlements in Canada, only St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador, Port Royal, Nova Scotia, and Tadoussac, Quebec were created earlier. However Quebec city is the first to have been founded with the explicit goal of receiving permanent settlement and not as a commercial outpost, and therefore is often considered to be the first city in Canada.
Quebec was founded by Samuel de Champlain on 3 July 1608 at the site of a long abandoned St. Lawrence Iroquoian settlement called Stadacona. It was to this settlement that the name 'Canada' refers. It is the cradle of the Francophone population in North America. The place seemed favourable to the establishment of a permanent colony.
Before Champlain, French explorer Jacques Cartier built a fort at the site in 1535, where he stayed for the winter before going back to France in spring 1536. He came back in 1541 with the goal of building a permanent settlement. This first settlement was abandoned less than one year after its foundation, in the summer 1542, due in large part to the hostility of the natives combined with the harsh living conditions during winter.
At the end of French rule in 1763, the territory of present-day Quebec City was a world of contrasts. Forests, villages, fields and pastures surrounded the town of 8 000 inhabitants. The town distinguished itself by its monumental architecture, fortifications, muddy and filthy streets, affluent homes of masonry and shacks in the suburbs St-Jean and St-Roch. Despite its urbanity and its status as capital, Quebec City remained a small colonial city with close ties to its rural surroundings. Nearby inhabitants traded their farm surpluses and firewood for imported goods from France at the two city markets.
Quebec City was captured by the British in 1759 and held until 1763. It was the site of the Battle of the Plains of Abraham during the Seven Years' War, in which British troops under General James Wolfe defeated the French general Louis-Joseph de Montcalm and took the city. France later ceded New France to Britain.
British ruleDuring the American Revolution, the British garrison at Quebec City was assaulted by American troops in the Battle of Quebec. The defeat of the Americans put an end to their hopes that Canada would also rebel. Major General Isaac Brock fortified Quebec City by strengthening the walls and building an elevated artillery battery before the War of 1812.
Quebec City was the capital of Canada from 1852 to 1856 and from 1859 to 1865. After the Province of Canada was formed, the capital moved to Kingston and Montreal. When the Dominion of Canada was formed in 1867, the capital was moved to Ottawa. The Quebec Conference on Canadian Confederation was held here.
Twentieth and twenty-first centuriesIn World War II, two conferences were held in Quebec City. The first one was held in 1943 with Franklin Delano Roosevelt (the United States' president), Winston Churchill (the United Kingdom's prime minister), William Lyon Mackenzie King (Canada's prime minister) and T.V. Soong (China's minister of foreign affairs). The second one was held in 1944, and was attended by Churchill and Roosevelt. They took place in the buildings of the Citadelle and of nearby Château Frontenac. A large part of the D-Day Landings plans were made during those meetings.
CapitalThrough nearly four hundred years of its existence, Quebec City has served as a capital:
It is also the principal city of the Agglomeration of Quebec City, the Greater Quebec City Area, the administrative region of Capitale-Nationale, and the Quebec City Area.
French and English names for Quebec CityThe city is called Québec (with an acute accent) by both the provincial and federal governments in both languages. To differentiate between Quebec the city and Quebec the province in English, the city is commonly referred to as 'Quebec City' while the province is referred to as 'Québec'. It is common for the accent to be dropped in English texts.
In French, Quebec City is generally referred to simply as 'Québec' without the French equivalent of the word 'city.' French names of large geographical regions such as provinces and countries are typically preceded by articles whereas city names are not (unless it is part of the name, such as 'La Malbaie'). As a result, the province is called le Québec ('in Quebec' = au Québec, from Quebec = du Québec) while the city is simply Québec ('in Quebec City' is à Québec, 'from Quebec City' = de Québec).
The official legal, corporate name of the city is Ville de Québec in both languages.[1] In the English section of Quebec City's official website, the city is referred to as 'Québec City' (with the acute accent over the 'e').
In French, residents of Quebec City are called Québécois (male) or Québécoise (female). To avoid confusion with Québécois/e meaning an inhabitant of the province, the term Québécois/e de Québec for residents of the city is sometimes used (as opposed to Québécois/e du Québec, resident of the province). In English, the term Quebecer (or Quebecker) is sometimes used, but use of the French Québécois or Québécoise is increasingly common.
Also, Quebec City is sometimes referred to as 'la capitale nationale' ('the national capital'). The government officially named it this way under the Union Nationale party. Its region bears this name as well.
Municipal public administrationThe mayor of Quebec City is Andrée P. Boucher, independent, and the chief of the official opposition is Ann Bourget from the Renouveau municipal de Québec.
Quebec City is protected by Service de police de la Ville de Québec and Service de protection contre les incendies de Québec.
International networks, twinning and agreementsQuebec City is twinned with the cities of :
It has agreements of co-operation and friendship with :
in quebec poeples had a war in 1795 until 1802. people discover animals in the forest,towns,and lakes!
The city todayQuebec City has thirty-four districts in eight boroughs.
* These neighbourhoods are not legally separate.
The Lower Town is filled with original architecture and street designs, dating back to the city's beginnings. Murals and statues are also featured. The Lower Town is also noted for its wide variety of boutiques, many featuring hand-crafted goods.
DemographicsAccording to the last (May 2001) census, there were 682,757 people residing in Quebec City, of whom 48.2% were male and 51.8% were female. Children under five accounted for approximately 4.7% of the resident population of Quebec City. This compares with 5.2% in the province of Quebec, and 5.6% for Canada overall.
In terms of French-language dominance, Montreal - when compared to Quebec City, would be considered by many to be a bilingual city, with many of its residents having a working knowledge of both French and English. Quebec City and its surrounding region, on the other hand, is largely Francophone.
In mid-2001, 13.0% of the resident population in Quebec City was of retirement age (65 and over for males and females) compared with 13.2% in Canada; therefore, the average age is 39.5 years of age compared to 37.6 years of age for Canada as a whole.
In the five years between 1996 and 2001, the population of Quebec City grew by 1.6%, compared with an increase of 1.4% for the province of Quebec as a whole. Population density of Quebec City averaged 216.4 people per square kilometre, compared with an average of 5.3, for the province of Quebec as a whole.
At the time of that May 2001 census, the population of the Quebec City authority was 682,757, but was 710,700 when encompassing the Greater Quebec City Area, compared with a resident population in the province of Quebec of 7,237,479 people.
According to the 2001 census, over 90% of the population was Roman Catholic, along with sizable Jewish and Protestant populations.
Quebec City is served by Jean Lesage International Airport, located in the West of the city. [2]
The city also has a large major port on the St-Lawrence in the first, fifth and sixth boroughs. Web site
Three bridges, the Quebec Bridge and Pierre Laporte Bridge connect the city with the south shore of the Saint Lawrence River, as does a ferry service to Lévis, and Orleans Island Bridge connects Quebec City with the Orleans Island. The city is a major hub in the Quebec provincial road network, fanning out from both sides of the river with an extensive autoroute system.
Several important motorways of the Quebec road network pass by Quebec City, of which Autoroute 40 connects it towards the west to Montreal and Autoroute 175 connects it towards the north to Chicoutimi.
Three principal expressways cross the agglomeration from the north to the south (starting from the west) : Autoroute Henri-IV, Autoroute du Vallon, and Autoroute Laurentienne. Three other motorways cross the western part of town (from north to south): Autoroute Félix Leclerc (known by the inhabitants as 'Autoroute de la Capitale'), Autoroute Charest, as well as Champlain Boulevard, which goes along the river to the Downtown area, then another Autoroute called Dufferin-Montmorency allows easier access to the extreme east of the city.
The city is served by VIA Rail (Gare du Palais), and is the eastern terminus of the railway's main Quebec City-Windsor Corridor. The bus station, with connections to the provincial long-distance bus network, is also in the same location.
The Réseau de transport de la Capitale is responsible for public transportation by bus. Web site in French only
AttractionsMany of the city's attractions are east of the fortification walls in Vieux-Québec (Old Quebec). This area has a distinct European feel unique in North America with its stone buildings and winding streets lined with shops and restaurants. Porte St-Louis (St. Louis Gate) and Porte St-Jean (St. Jean Gate) are the main gates through the walls from the modern section of downtown. West of the walls are the Colline-Parlementaire (Parliament Hill) district and the Plaines d'Abraham (Plains of Abraham).
Quebec City's skyline is dominated by the massive Château Frontenac Hotel, perched on top of Cap-Diamant. The hotel is beside the Terrasse Dufferin (Dufferin Terrace), a walkway along the edge of the cliff, offering beautiful views of the Saint Lawrence River.
Near the Château Frontenac is Notre-Dame de Québec Cathedral, mother church of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Quebec. It is the first church in the New World to be raised to a basilica and is the primatial church of Canada.
The Terrasse Dufferin leads toward the nearby Plains of Abraham, site of the battle in which the British took Quebec from France, and the Citadel of Quebec, a Canadian Forces installation and the federal vice-regal secondary residence. The National Assembly, Quebec's provincial legislature, is also near the Citadelle.
The Haute-Ville (Upper Town) is linked by the Escalier «casse-cou» (literally 'neck-breaker' steps) and a funicular to the Basse-Ville (Lower Town), which includes such sites as the ancient Notre Dame des Victoires church, the historic Petit Champlain district, the port, and the Musée de la Civilisation (Museum of Civilization). Laval University is located in the western end of the city, in the borough of Sainte-Foy. However, Laval University's school of architecture is located in Vieux Quebec. The central campus of the Université du Québec is also located in Quebec City. Canon balls are placed beside 'Château Frontenac.'
Quebec City is known for its Winter Carnival and for its Saint-Jean-Baptiste Day celebrations.
Tourist attractions located near Quebec City include Montmorency Falls and the Basilica of Sainte-Anne-de-Beaupré.
MuseumsAutumn (September & October)
Winter (November to March)
Spring (April & May)
Summer (June to August)
First borough (La Cité)
The Quebec Nordiques played in the World Hockey Association (WHA) from 1972 to 1979 and then in the National Hockey League (NHL) from 1979 to 1995, maintaining a strong rivalry with the Montreal Canadiens. Due to financial problems, the team moved to Denver, Colorado in 1995, becoming Colorado Avalanche. There has been discussion of bringing a team back to the city, but mayor Andrée Boucher has not supported the project. It is generally expected that Quebec City will need to build a new arena to get a new team, replacing the Colisée Pepsi, as well as organizing an ownership group.
There have been discussions around getting a Canadian Football League team. Quebec City is expected to be in competition with Moncton and Halifax for the franchise, though a new stadium would likely be needed as well. The local football team, the Rouge & Or of the Université Laval remains popular.
The IIHF World Championships is the oldest existing international event in ice hockey. A popular belief in Quebec City and Canada is that the 2008 edition of the tournament will mark the first time it is contested in North America. This is obviously a motive of pride in a city still mourning the loss of its beloved NHL franchise, the Nordiques, which moved to Denver, CO in 1995 and was renamed the Avalanche. However, that claim is incorrect. Another famous city holds the honour of being the first ever North American host to the IIHF World Championships. And that city is none other than Denver, CO. Together with Colorado Springs, the Mile High City hosted the 1962 IIHF World Championships.
Media People associated with Quebec City
