The City of Montreal will today mark the 375th anniversary of its founding as a French colony, with the ringing of church bells and a day of events capped by the lighting of the Jacques Cartier Bridge.
The statue of Paul de Chomedey, Sieur de Maisonneuve, stands in front of the Notre Dame Basilica in Old Montreal.
At 8 a.m. today, residents are invited to assemble outside city hall on Rue Notre-Dame to attend the Maisonneuve Regiment’s parade that will head to the Notre Dame Basilica. The mayor of Montreal and the prime minister of Canada and the premier of Quebec will be in attendance.
At 8:45 a.m. in front of the Basilica, the original bell from St. Joseph’s Oratory will be joined by the ringing of churches bells around the city to mark the arrival of French missionaries and settlers led by Paul Chomedey de Maisonneuve on the island of Montreal May 17, 1642.
At 9 a.m., residents can attend a heritage anniversary mass, which will be attended by the mayor of Montréal, the prime minister of Canada and premier of Quebec will be in attendance, representatives of different religious faiths and representatives of the First Nations.
At 10:30 a.m., at Place d’Armes, Montreal’s founders, Jeanne-Mance and Paul de Chomedey, Sieur de Maisonneuve, will be honoured.
In the evening, beginning at 9:45 p.m., Living Connections: A Lighted Work for the Jacques Cartier Bridge, will be unveiled.
The Montreal Gazette ran an interesting article yesterday about the history of Montreal that began thousands of years before the French arrived.
Joyeux anniversaire, Montréal ! Happy birthday!
Very cool
Sorry that we missed it, my ancestors were there before 1650
Joe
Oh, that must have been glorious! I hope Montreal will continue the celebration far beyond this today’s events. I’ll be headed that way Saturday and have been watching all your posts concerning historic exhibits in Montreal lately with great interest, Gail. They’ve been inspiring–and certainly making me wish I had been able to get there sooner.
Joyeux anniversaire, Montréal ! Happy birthday!
Next year the city of New Orleans, Louisiana which I am a native of will be also celebrating the 300th year anniversary of founding in 1718. I am especially excited to have linked my family to both cities through several French ancestors who helped found and settled both places. I invite you to see here:http://michaelnhenderson.com/french-female-ancestor-documented-links-native-of-new-orleans-to-founders-and-settlers-of-quebec-canada/
That’s pretty cool, being connected to both cities.