Quebec's Government House, known as Spencer Wood, was the viceregal residence of Quebec. It was built in 1854. Located at Bois-de-Coulonge Park [1] (upstream of the Plains of Abraham and overlooking Anse-au-Foulon) in Sillery, it was purchased by the Quebec government in 1870, and served as the residence of Quebec lieutenant governors until 1966, when a major fire destroyed the main residence. [2]
Originally, the residence of the governor of New France was at the Château St-Louis, in the capital, Quebec City. The monarch's representative continues to work and reside in that city; however, like Ontario, Quebec no longer has an official Government House, after Spencer Wood burned down in 1966. Instead the governor holds an office and a suite of rooms for entertaining near the Parliament Building.
From 1867 to 1881 lieutenant governors of Quebec maintained a separate working office at the Maison Sewell, after which it was moved to the old parliament buildings. It remained there until 1979 when the office moved again to the Édifice André-Laurendeau , where all the fittings and furniture were brought to from the former location. [3] Inside are reception rooms, offices and support facilities. The royal suite is the site of swearing-in ceremonies for Cabinet ministers, where royal assent is granted, and where the lieutenant governor receives the premier. Whenever the sovereign or other members of the Royal Family are in the provincial capital, the lieutenant governor resides at a hotel, usually the Château Frontenac.
The history of this park goes back at the very start of the French regime in 1633, when Louis d'Ailleboust de Coulonge , third governor of New France, occupied it. [4] [5] This estate and several other properties of the governor became one large estate (much larger than today’s park) on 9 April 1657 and was named the châtellenie of Coulonge. [4] [5] It was after his death that the estate was sold to the sisters of the Augustine order the Hôtel-Dieu, and on 12 May 1676, the Quebec Seminary acquired the property. [4] [5]
After the British conquest, the seminary, not having enough funds, sold one of the lots in 1780 to an English officer, Henry Watson Powell, who named this area Powell Place. [4] [5] To create comfortable living quarters, he had a villa, greenhouses and trails built. The park again changed its name in 1811, when Michael Henry Perceval became owner and called it Spencer Wood. [4] [5] However, its splendour today is owed in part to Henry Atkinson, who bought this land in 1833. [4] With his gardener, he created an English-style garden with elms, oaks and trails. Without an owner in 1854, the estate was divided into several sections and the most imposing lot was bought by the government of the Province of Canada to house the governor general. [4]
Six years later, a fire completely destroyed the governor general’s residence. The house was rebuilt in 1862, with a castle-like length of 56 metres (184 ft), a servant’s wing, and a winter garden. In 1870, Spencer Wood was sold to the province of Quebec and was then home to the lieutenant governor. A few modifications were made throughout the years, namely the fountain that we see today. The Spencer Wood estate was renamed Bois-de-Coulonge in 1950. [4] In total, 21 lieutenant governors succeeded each other at this estate and the last one, Paul Comtois, died in the fire which destroyed the house on 21 February 1966, while trying to save the Blessed Sacrament from the private chapel. [4] [2] It was in 1986, after the estate was abandoned, that restoration was undertaken. Finally, the National Capital Commission of Quebec became its owner in 1996. [4]
The 12th arrondissement of Paris is one of the 20 arrondissements of the capital city of France. Situated on the right bank of the River Seine, it is the easternmost arrondissement of Paris, as well as the largest by area. In 2019, it had a population of 139,297.
The lieutenant governor of Quebec (; is the representative in Quebec of the monarch, who operates distinctly within the province but is also shared equally with the ten other jurisdictions of Canada, as well as the other Commonwealth realms and any subdivisions thereof, and resides predominantly in his oldest realm, the United Kingdom. The lieutenant governor of Quebec is appointed in the same manner as the other provincial viceroys in Canada and is similarly tasked with carrying out most of the monarch's constitutional and ceremonial duties. The present and 30th lieutenant governor of Quebec is Manon Jeannotte, who has served in the role since January 25, 2024.
The Bois de Vincennes, located on the eastern edge of Paris, France, is the largest public park in the city. It was created between 1855 and 1866 by Emperor Napoleon III.
The Bois de Boulogne is a large public park that is the western half of the 16th arrondissement of Paris, near the suburb of Boulogne-Billancourt and Neuilly-sur-Seine. The land was ceded to the city of Paris by the Emperor Napoleon III to be turned into a public park in 1852.
Sillery, a former independent city founded in 1637, is one of 35 administrative sectors, which are unincorporated places, located in the post-expansion jurisdiction of the City of Quebec, Quebec, Canada. Sillery was one of multiple self-governing municipalities amalgamated into a vastly expanded Quebec City, that went into legal effect on January 1, 2002, as part of the province-wide 2000–06 municipal reorganization in Quebec. Located alongside in what pre-merger was the southwestern border of Quebec City, Sillery is a constituent district of the borough of Sainte-Foy–Sillery–Cap-Rouge. The territorially expanded City of Quebec consists of six boroughs.
The Parliament Building of Quebec is an eight-floor structure and is home to the National Assembly of Quebec, in Quebec City, Quebec, Canada. The Parliament Building was designed by architect Eugène-Étienne Taché in a Second Empire style and built between 1877 and 1886, in the heart of Quebec's Parliament Hill. The National Assembly first met there on March 27, 1884, even though the building was only fully completed two years later, on April 8, 1886. From the 1910s to the 1930s, the government built several adjacent buildings to expand its office spaces, creating a parliamentary complex, of which the Parliament Building is the main edifice. This structure is a successor of several earlier buildings, the earliest of which was built in 1620 and among which there were two other parliament houses that served as legislatures.
Édifice André-Laurendeau is an eleven-storey office tower located at 1050, rue des Parlementaires in Quebec City, Quebec. The Beaux-Arts structure was built between 1935 and 1937, designed by Lacroix, Drouin and Bergeron, and is the property of the Crown in Right of Quebec. In 1980, it was named in honour of journalist and politician André Laurendeau.
Sir François Langelier, was a Canadian lawyer, professor, journalist, politician, the tenth Lieutenant Governor of Quebec, and author. He was born in Sainte-Rosalie, Lower Canada and died in Spencer Wood, Sillery, Quebec.
The Château Ramezay is a museum and historic building on Notre-Dame Street in Old Montreal, opposite Montreal City Hall in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
The château de Neuilly is a former château in Neuilly-sur-Seine, France. Its estate covered a vast 170-hectare park called "parc de Neuilly" which comprised all of Neuilly that is today to be found between avenue du Roule and the town of Levallois-Perret. It was built in 1751, and largely destroyed in 1848, except for one wing which was integrated into a new convent building in 1907.
The Parc de Saint-Cloud, officially the Domaine national de Saint-Cloud, is a domaine national located mostly within the Saint-Cloud commune, in the Hauts-de-Seine department, near Paris, France.
The Chateau St. Louis in Quebec City was the official residence of the French Governor of New France and later the British Governor of Quebec, the Governor-General of British North America, and the Lieutenant-Governor of Lower Canada.
The Arboretum de Xertigny, also known as the Arboretum du Château des Brasseurs, is a municipal arboretum and park located at Mairie 1, le Château, Xertigny, Vosges, Grand Est, France. It is open daily without charge.
Duke of Kent House or Kent House is situated on the corner of Rue Saint-Louis and Haldimand, behind the Château Frontenac in Quebec City, named after its most famous resident Prince Edward, Duke of Kent and Strathearn. Though altered and transformed since its original construction, the most part of its foundations and of the first floor walls date back to about 1650, making it one of the oldest houses, if not the oldest house in Quebec City. In 1759, the Articles of Capitulation of Quebec were signed within the house. The present edifice has remained largely unchanged since 1819. It served as the French Consulate from 1980 to 2015.
Parliament Hill is located in Quebec City in the borough of La Cité-Limoilou, specifically in districts of Vieux-Québec—Cap-Blanc—colline Parlementaire and Saint-Jean-Baptiste. In addition to the Parliament Building of Quebec, the Hill has a few shopping streets and residential areas and public green spaces. The hill on which it is located is the promontory of Quebec.
The Château Haldimand was a castle that stood where the Château Frontenac now stands in Quebec City, Quebec, Canada. The building was constructed between 1784 and 1786.
Terrasse Dufferin is a boardwalk that wraps around the Château Frontenac in Quebec City, Quebec, towards the Citadelle, overlooking the St. Lawrence River.
The Bois-de-Saraguay Nature Park is a large nature park in the Ahuntsic-Cartierville borough of Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
Governors' Garden is an urban park in Quebec City, Quebec, Canada. Designed by Robert Desjardins, the garden is located immediately to the south of Château Frontenac and is bounded by Rue Mont-Carmel to the north, Rue des Carrières to the east, Avenue Sainte-Geneviève to the south, and Rue de la Porte to the west. It is 750 square metres (8,100 sq ft) in area. The park overlooks the St. Lawrence River to the east, beyond Dufferin Terrace.
Media related to Spencer Wood at Wikimedia Commons Media related to Parc du Bois-de-Coulonge at Wikimedia Commons
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