Quebec General Hospital. WM Care taken of wounded British in, 153; British guard placed on, 223; Lévis takes possession of, 265; painful scenes at, described, 265, 266. Bib.: Doughty, Cradle of New France.
Quebec, Hôtel Dieu. F Origin of, 28. L Laval lodges at, for a time, 33; nuns of, take charge of the general hospital, 236. Bib.: Doughty, Cradle of New France.
Quebec Library. Founded at Quebec in 1779. The first public library in what is now Canada. On Jan. 7 of that year, the following advertisement appeared in the Quebec Gazette: "A subscription has been commenced for establishing a publick library for the city and district of Quebec. It has met with the approbation of His Excellency the Governor and of the Bishop, and it is hoped that the institution, so particularly useful in this country, will be generally encouraged." The idea of the library originated with Governor Haldimand, and the first lot of books was purchased in England, under his instructions, by Richard Cumberland, the dramatist. An Act of incorporation obtained in 1840. Five years later, the library was absorbed by the Quebec Library Association, founded 1843; and in 1866 the Association dissolved and sold its books to the Quebec Literary and Historical Society (q.v.). Bib.: A detailed account of the Quebec Library, and the Quebec Library Association, will be found in Würtele's paper, in Quebec Lit. and Hist. Soc. Trans., 1887-1889.
Quebec Literary and Historical Society. Founded at Quebec in 1824, largely through the influence and liberality of the Earl of Dalhousie, then governor-general. Its purposes were "to discover and rescue from the unsparing hand of time the records which yet remain of the earliest history of Canada. To preserve while in our power, such documents as may be found amid the dust of yet unexplored depositories, and which may prove important to general history and to the particular history of this province." In 1829, another similar organization was absorbed; and in 1831 the society was incorporated by Act of Parliament. The library had been started the previous year, as well as the museum. Both have grown steadily, despite serious losses from fires. Bib.: The publications consist of Transactions and Historical Documents. The first volume of the former appeared in 1829, and the first part of the latter in 1838. The Trans., for 1887-1889 contain an account of the Society, its publications and its library, by F. C. Würtele, who also published in 1891 an Index to the series of publications.
Quebec, Province of. Area 351,873 square miles. Formed the principal part of Canada, as ceded to Britain in 1763. Under the Quebec Act, 1774, its boundaries extended west to the Ohio and Mississippi. In 1791, the province was divided into Upper and Lower Canada, with the Ottawa River as the boundary; in 1841 the two provinces were again united; and in 1867, Quebec became a province of the Dominion. The period of military rule extended from the conquest to 1764, when civil government was established. In 1775 the first Legislative Council met at Quebec. Constitutional government was established in 1791; and responsible government in 1841. Index: Dr Government of, embraced Canada, 7. S Divided, 1. Md Seigniorial Tenure in, 14; difficulties of Confederation in, 101; supports Confederation, 115; "doubtful and expectant" on entry into Dominion, 129; representation in Cabinet, 133; result of election of 1867 in, 141; excitement in, over Riel question, 242-244; Cartier's influence in, 266. See also Quebec Act; Constitutional Act; Seigniorial Tenure; Ninety-Two Resolutions; Responsible government; Rebellion of 1837; Lower Canada.
Quebec Revenue Act. Sy Provided fund for carrying on colonial government, 83. Bib.: Houston, Constitutional Documents of Canada.
Quebec Seminary. Opened 1668, in a house belonging to the widow of Guillaume Couillard, at the entrance to the governor's garden. Corner-stone of the first separate building laid in 1678; enlarged, 1701; restored and enlarged after the fire of 1866. Index: F Establishment of, 48. L Founded by Laval, 10, 47-50; empowered to collect tithes, 50; Laval transfers his personal income to, 56; affiliated with Foreign Missions of Paris, 57, 140; buildings erected for, 58; total destruction of, by fire, 58, 240; Saint-Vallier's high opinion of, 203; sends missionaries to Louisiana, 208; Saint-Vallier makes important changes in, 236; destroyed a second time by fire, 241. See also Laval University. Bib.: Doughty, Cradle of New France.
Quebec, Siege of, 1629. The previous year, David Kirke had sailed up the river, and sent a demand for the surrender of the fort, which Champlain peremptorily refused. Kirke thereupon returned to the gulf to meet the French fleet under De Roquemont, which he captured after a battle which lasted fifteen hours, and carried his prizes and prisoners back to England. The following year he returned, with a fleet of three sails, and Champlain surrendered the fort, the more readily as the little garrison was at the point of starvation. Index: See Quebec City; Kirke. Bib.: Kirke, The First English Conquest of Canada; Parkman, Pioneers of France.
Quebec, Siege of, 1690. Sir William Phipps, having captured Port Royal in May of this year, appeared before Quebec in October, with thirty-two ships and a force of over two thousand men. He immediately summoned Frontenac to surrender, and got a contemptuous refusal. Quebec was well defended both in men and guns, and after a fruitless attack on the town from the Beauport flats, and a subsequent bombardment in which he did much less damage to the town than his ships suffered from Frontenac's batteries, Phipps abandoned the siege. A little church then building in the Lower Town was named Notre Dame de la Victoire, to commemorate the victory. Index: See Quebec city; Phipps. Bib.: Myrand, Sir William Phipps devant Québec; Parkman, Frontenac.
Quebec, Siege of, 1759. Following the capture of Louisbourg, Duquesne, and Fort Frontenac, in the campaign of 1758, two expeditions were sent the following year against Quebec, one by land under Amherst, the second by water under Wolfe and Saunders. The French forces were commanded by Montcalm, whose plans were hampered at every stage by the interference of the governor, Vaudreuil. Wolfe commanded the attacking army, and Saunders the fleet. The former had as brigadiers Townshend, Monckton, and Murray. Montcalm had a force of over fourteen thousand men, partly regulars and partly militia. Wolfe's army numbered less than nine thousand men, but all were regulars. After bombarding the city from the Lévis shore, Wolfe, on July 31, made an unsuccessful attack at Montmorency. Several ineffective efforts followed, and it was not until early in September that Wolfe matured the plans which led to ultimate success. Landing his men at a cove two miles above the city, on the night of the twelfth, he had three thousand men upon the heights of Abraham before daybreak. Montcalm hastily assembled his troops and led them to the attack, but was completely defeated. During the battle, both Wolfe and Montcalm were mortally wounded, and five of the French brigadiers fell upon the field. The French were pursued to the gates of the city, and Townshend, who had succeeded to the command, had difficulty in re-forming his troops to repel an attack from the rear by Bougainville. The latter, however, after a brief engagement, was forced to retire; and the British remained masters of the field. Five days later, the city capitulated to Saunders and Townshend. Index: See Quebec City; Wolfe; Montcalm. Bib.: Doughty, Siege of Quebec; Woods, Logs of the Conquest of Canada and Fight for Canada; Bradley, The Fight with France; Knox, Historical Journal; Waddington, La Guerre de Sept Ans.