This content is archived.
The Citadelle, Saturday, September 15, 2007
Welcome to the Citadelle of Québec! My husband, Jean-Daniel Lafond, and I are thrilled to be with you on this magnificent autumn day, even if the weather isn’t cooperating. It is good to be in Quebec City.
Look around you. The view from the Citadelle is unrestricted. High atop Cap-Diamant, where the majestic St. Lawrence River narrows—which is the original Indian meaning of the word Quebec—this is the only military fortification in North America that remains intact.
Some very decisive pages of our history were written within these walls. And the Royal 22e Régiment proudly carries on these traditions today, traditions it follows with great courage, here at home and abroad.
The Citadelle should be seen as a place that is rich in our collective history. It is also one of the jewels of this city, whose history dates back to our country’s very beginnings.
On July 3, 2008, Quebec City will celebrate the 400th anniversary of its founding by French explorer Samuel de Champlain, the first governor of New France.
Four hundred years.
Four hundred years of a Francophone presence in the Americas and the beginning of an adventure that would lead to the creation of the Canada we know today.
Four hundred years of determination, setting down roots, and growth, marked by the sometimes brutal meeting of people, civilizations, cultures and languages that history forced to cross paths.
And we are continuing that tradition of meeting here today.
I want to tell you how the Office of the Governor General will be taking part in Quebec City’s 400th anniversary celebrations, here at the Citadelle.
First, there is the Redoubt.
You no doubt caught a glimpse of it during your tour: it is one of the oldest preserved military buildings in Canada.
In honour of the celebrations for the 400th anniversary, and in collaboration with the Royal 22e Régiment and Public Works and Government Services Canada, we helped to restore it and it is now a museum-quality building.
My husband, Jean-Daniel Lafond, has been working passionately on this project since November 2005.
My husband and I want to open the Citadelle to the public as much as possible next year—when Quebec will be hosting thousands of visitors—as a means of highlighting the richness of a heritage that has very deep roots in this continent.
We would also like to honour Mayor Andrée Boucher, with whom we worked for over a year, and who shared her great enthusiasm with us. We want to remember Ms. Boucher today and salute her memory.
Thank you for coming out on such a rainy day. Your warmth and kind regards have most certainly made up for the lack of sunshine.