Quebec City, Quebec
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Template:Canadian City Quebec City (officially, Québec), is the capital of the Canadian province of Quebec. 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 UNESCO in 1985. The city, following the 2002 merger with several former suburbs, has a population of 507,986, while the metropolitan area has a population of 710,700 (2004).
To differentiate between Quebec the city and Quebec the province, the city is referred to as Quebec City. In French, the province is called le Québec ("in Quebec" = au Québec) while the city is simply Québec without the le. "In Quebec City" is à Québec. Officially, the city is called Québec (with an acute accent, no "city") by both the provincial and federal governments in both languages.
The mayor of Quebec City is Jean-Paul L'Allier.
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Geography
See also: List of Quebec City borroughs.
The city is perched on Cap Diamant, a large rock outcropping at the edge of the Saint Lawrence River, whose topography encouraged its defensive use. The thinness of the strait between Quebec City and Lévis on the opposite shore give the city and consequently the province its name (kebek is an Algonquian word for "narrow passage").
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Demographics
The population of the city is aging, and fertility is low. Only 16% of the population is under 14, while those over 65 constitute 13%.
Racial make-up
- White: 97.3%
- All others: 2.7%
Religious make-up
- Roman Catholic: 91.2%
- Protestant: 1.3%
- No religion: 5.9%
Attractions
Quebec City's skyline is dominated by the massive Château Frontenac hotel, perched on top of Cap Diamant. The hotel is on the Terrasse Dufferin, a walkway along the edge of the cliff, offering beautiful views of the Saint Lawrence.
Near the Château Frontenac is Notre-Dame de Québec Cathedral, see of the Archbishop of Quebec. It is the first cathedral and first basilica to have been built in the New World, and is the primate 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 vice-regal residence. The National Assembly, Quebec's provincial legislature, is also near the Citadelle.
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The Upper Town is linked by stairways and a funicular to the Lower Town, which includes such sites as the ancient Notre Dame des Victoires church, the historical Petit Champlain district, the port, and the Musée de la Civilisation.
Laval University is located in the western end of the city. The central campus of the Université du Québec is also located in Quebec City.
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.
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Transportation
Quebec City is served by Jean Lesage International Airport, which is located in the borough of Sainte-Foy. The city also has a port on the Saint Lawrence.
Two bridges, the Quebec Bridge and Pierre Laporte Bridge, connect the city with the south shore of the Saint Lawrence, as does a ferry service. 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 Réseau de transport de la Capitale is responsible for public transportation by bus.
History
Quebec City is the second oldest extant European settlement in Canada. It was founded by Samuel de Champlain in 1608 on the site of a First Nations settlement called Stadacona. It was to this settlement that the name Canada refers (kanata is an Iroquoian word meaning "village").
Quebec City was captured by the British in 1629 and held until 1632.
As mentioned above, this city 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.
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During 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 fortifed Quebec City by strengthening the walls and building an elevated artillery battery prior to the War of 1812.
Quebec City was capital of Canada from 1859 to 1865, the last before Ottawa. The Quebec Conference on Canadian Confederation was held here.
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In World War II two conferences were held in Quebec City. The first one was held in 1943 with Franklin Delano Roosevelt (United States' president), Winston Churchill (United Kingdom's prime minister), 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 Chateau Frontenac.
In April 2001, Quebec City hosted the Summit of the Americas to discuss the Free Trade Area of the Americas; it also hosted massive anti-globalization demonstrations, provoked both by the summit and by the decision to wall off a large portion of the historic city with a four-metre-high chain-link fence for the duration. Police forces were widely accused of excessive use of force during the demonstrations.
On January 1, 2002, Quebec City and 12 other municipalities of the Communauté urbaine de Québec were merged into to the new Quebec City "megacity," which is divided into 8 boroughs:
| Borough | Former Cities |
| La Cité | Quebec City |
| Les Rivières | Quebec City, Vanier |
| Sainte-Foy--Sillery | Sainte-Foy, Sillery |
| Charlesbourg | Charlesbourg |
| Beauport | Beauport |
| Limoilou | Quebec City |
| La Haute-Saint-Charles | Lac-Saint-Charles, Loretteville, Saint-Émile, Quebec City |
| Laurentien | Val-Bélair, Saint-Augustin-de-Desmaures, Cap-Rouge, L'Ancienne-Lorette, Sainte-Foy |
Residents of Quebec City are called Québécois. To avoid confusion with Québécois meaning an inhabitant of the province, the term Québécois de Québec is sometimes used (as opposed to Québécois du Québec - in French, the city is Québec and the province, le Québec.)
The motto of Quebec City is Don de Dieu feray valoir, "I shall put God's gift to good use."
Sports Teams
Quebec Remparts of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League
Quebec Radio X of the North American Hockey League
Capitales de Québec of the Can-Am League
Former Teams
Quebec Nordiques of the National Hockey League
Quebec Citadelles of the American Hockey League
See also
External links
- Quebec City Guide : http://www.telegraphe.com
- Ville de Québec (English) (http://www.ville.quebec.qc.ca/en/accueil/index.shtml)
- Québec City Newspapers : Le Journal de Québec (http://www.journaldequebec.com/), Le Soleil de Québec (http://lesoleil.cyberpresse.ca/), Voir (http://www.voir.ca/une.aspx?zone=2)
- Quebec Restaurants Guide : http://www.restobooking.com
| North-West: Saint-Raymond | North: Shannon, Saint-Gabriel-de-Valcartier, Stoneham-et-Tewksbury, Lac-Beauport | |
| West: Saint-Catherine-de-la-Jacques-Cartier, Pont-Rouge, Neuville | Quebec City | East: Sainte-Brigitte-de-Laval, Boischatel |
| South: Levis, Saint-Pierre-de-l'Ile-d'Orleans |
Template:Canada capitals Template:Capitale-Nationaleaf:Québec (stad) de:Québec (Stadt) es:Ciudad de Quebec eo:Kebeko fr:Québec (ville) ja:ケベック市 pl:Quebec (miasto) pt:Quebeque (cidade) sv:Quebec, Quebec vi:Québec zh:魁北克市