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Quebec City (French, Québec), a Canadian city, is the capital of Quebec. Quebec's Old
Town (Vieux Québec), the only fortified city north of Mexico whose walls still
exist, was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1985. The city has a population of 169,076
(2001), while the metropolitan area has a population of 682,757 (2001).
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 accent, no "city") by
both the provincal and federal governments in both languages.
The mayor of Quebec City is Jean-Paul L'Allier.
Geography
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").
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 La Citadelle, a
Canadian Forces installation and vice-regal residence. The National Assembly, Quebec's provincial legislature,
is also near the Citadelle.
The Upper Town is linked by stairways and a funicular to the Lower Town, which
includes such sites as the ancient Notre Dame de la Victoire 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.
Founded by the Jesuits one year before Harvard University,
Laval was the first university in North America. 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.
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.
History
Quebec City is the 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.
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.
Quebec City was capital of Canada from 1859 to 1865, the last before Ottawa. The Quebec Conference on Canadian Confederation was held here.
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.)
See also
External links
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North: Shannon, Saint-Gabriel-de-Valcartier, Stoneham-et-Tewksbury,
Lac-Beauport |
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| West: Saint-Catherine-de-la-Jacques-Cartier, Pont-Rouge, Neuville |
Quebec City |
East: Sainte-Brigitte-de-Laval, Boischatel |
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South: Levis, Saint-Pierre-de-l'Ile-d'Orleans |
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