Sillery, Quebec
Encyclopedia
Sillery is a former city in central Quebec
, Canada
. Located just west of old Quebec City
, Sillery was among the many outlying municipalities amalgamated into an expanded Quebec City on January 1, 2002. Its former territory now forms part of the new Borough of Sainte-Foy—Sillery—Cap-Rouge. The name Sillery is still used to refer to the affluent neighbourhood.
Sillery was named for Noël Brûlart de Sillery
(1577–1640), Knight of Malta
. A wealthy and successful French diplomat
, he renounced worldly goods and became a Catholic
priest
. He provided the funds for the establishment in 1638 of a settlement for Native American
(First Nations
) converts to Catholicism.
The community, Canada's first native reservation, was established at a cove where the Algonquin fished for eels. Originally named in honour of St. Joseph, the settlement became the home of up to 40 Algonquin Christian families, who lived there most of the year, excluding the hunting season. Missionaries to New France, such as Jacques Gravier
, studied with the natives at Sillery to learn their languages before going to more distant settlements. By the early 18th century, he had compiled a nearly 600-page dictionary of Kaskaskia
Illinois
-French. Many of the community's natives fell victim to epidemics of new infectious disease
s, to which they had no natural immunity. The settlement was largely depopulated by the late 1680s.
Renamed Sillery in honor of its founder, the town later became important as a port for the lumber
industry. The city of Sillery's motto was: "Non multa, sed multum," meaning, "Not many things, but much," a fit descriptor for the small enclave. From the land at the water's edge, the community spread up to the top of the heights overlooking the Saint Lawrence River
.
In 1760 during the French and Indian War
the Battle of Sainte-Foy
was fought near Sillery during a French attempt to re-capture Quebec which had been taken by the British the previous year.
Commanding the bluffs just west of the city of Québec, in modern times Sillery was known principally for its quiet tree-lined streets, its historic churches, its views of the river, and several very old schools run by a variety of religious orders. Its coat of arms (see link below) consisted of a red shield with a white Maltese cross in the upper right hand corner and a three-masted ship in the lower left.
On January 1, 2002, as part of a legislated amalgamation of cities across the Province of Quebec, Sillery ceased operations. Its territory is now a part of the Sainte-Foy—Sillery—Cap-Rouge Borough of the City of Quebec. Of the former municipalities that now comprise Quebec City, Sillery was relatively linguistically diverse. It had more anglophone citizens (4%) than the norm and the greatest proportion of allophones (5%) in the region.
According to the Canada 2006 Census:
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. Located just west of old Quebec City
Quebec City
Quebec , also Québec, Quebec City or Québec City is the capital of the Canadian province of Quebec and is located within the Capitale-Nationale region. It is the second most populous city in Quebec after Montreal, which is about to the southwest...
, Sillery was among the many outlying municipalities amalgamated into an expanded Quebec City on January 1, 2002. Its former territory now forms part of the new Borough of Sainte-Foy—Sillery—Cap-Rouge. The name Sillery is still used to refer to the affluent neighbourhood.
Sillery was named for Noël Brûlart de Sillery
Noël Brûlart de Sillery
Noël Brûlart de Sillery was a French diplomat who, upon renouncing the world and taking holy orders, provided from his fortune for the establishment of a mission in New France....
(1577–1640), Knight of Malta
Knights Hospitaller
The Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of Saint John of Jerusalem of Rhodes and of Malta , also known as the Sovereign Military Order of Malta , Order of Malta or Knights of Malta, is a Roman Catholic lay religious order, traditionally of military, chivalrous, noble nature. It is the world's...
. A wealthy and successful French diplomat
Diplomat
A diplomat is a person appointed by a state to conduct diplomacy with another state or international organization. The main functions of diplomats revolve around the representation and protection of the interests and nationals of the sending state, as well as the promotion of information and...
, he renounced worldly goods and became a Catholic
Catholic
The word catholic comes from the Greek phrase , meaning "on the whole," "according to the whole" or "in general", and is a combination of the Greek words meaning "about" and meaning "whole"...
priest
Priest
A priest is a person authorized to perform the sacred rites of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particular, rites of sacrifice to, and propitiation of, a deity or deities...
. He provided the funds for the establishment in 1638 of a settlement for Native American
Indigenous peoples of the Americas
The indigenous peoples of the Americas are the pre-Columbian inhabitants of North and South America, their descendants and other ethnic groups who are identified with those peoples. Indigenous peoples are known in Canada as Aboriginal peoples, and in the United States as Native Americans...
(First Nations
First Nations
First Nations is a term that collectively refers to various Aboriginal peoples in Canada who are neither Inuit nor Métis. There are currently over 630 recognised First Nations governments or bands spread across Canada, roughly half of which are in the provinces of Ontario and British Columbia. The...
) converts to Catholicism.
The community, Canada's first native reservation, was established at a cove where the Algonquin fished for eels. Originally named in honour of St. Joseph, the settlement became the home of up to 40 Algonquin Christian families, who lived there most of the year, excluding the hunting season. Missionaries to New France, such as Jacques Gravier
Jacques Gravier
Jacques Gravier was a French Jesuit missionary in the New World. He founded the Illinois mission in 1696, where he administered to the several tribes of the territory...
, studied with the natives at Sillery to learn their languages before going to more distant settlements. By the early 18th century, he had compiled a nearly 600-page dictionary of Kaskaskia
Kaskaskia
The Kaskaskia were one of about a dozen cognate tribes that made up the Illiniwek Confederation or Illinois Confederation. Their longstanding homeland was in the Great Lakes region...
Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
-French. Many of the community's natives fell victim to epidemics of new infectious disease
Infectious disease
Infectious diseases, also known as communicable diseases, contagious diseases or transmissible diseases comprise clinically evident illness resulting from the infection, presence and growth of pathogenic biological agents in an individual host organism...
s, to which they had no natural immunity. The settlement was largely depopulated by the late 1680s.
Renamed Sillery in honor of its founder, the town later became important as a port for the lumber
Lumber
Lumber or timber is wood in any of its stages from felling through readiness for use as structural material for construction, or wood pulp for paper production....
industry. The city of Sillery's motto was: "Non multa, sed multum," meaning, "Not many things, but much," a fit descriptor for the small enclave. From the land at the water's edge, the community spread up to the top of the heights overlooking the Saint Lawrence River
Saint Lawrence River
The Saint Lawrence is a large river flowing approximately from southwest to northeast in the middle latitudes of North America, connecting the Great Lakes with the Atlantic Ocean. It is the primary drainage conveyor of the Great Lakes Basin...
.
In 1760 during the French and Indian War
French and Indian War
The French and Indian War is the common American name for the war between Great Britain and France in North America from 1754 to 1763. In 1756, the war erupted into the world-wide conflict known as the Seven Years' War and thus came to be regarded as the North American theater of that war...
the Battle of Sainte-Foy
Battle of Sainte-Foy
The Battle of Sainte-Foy, sometimes called the Battle of Quebec, was fought on April 28, 1760 near the British-held town of Quebec in the French province of Canada during the Seven Years' War . It was a victory for the French under the Chevalier de Lévis over the British army under General Murray...
was fought near Sillery during a French attempt to re-capture Quebec which had been taken by the British the previous year.
Commanding the bluffs just west of the city of Québec, in modern times Sillery was known principally for its quiet tree-lined streets, its historic churches, its views of the river, and several very old schools run by a variety of religious orders. Its coat of arms (see link below) consisted of a red shield with a white Maltese cross in the upper right hand corner and a three-masted ship in the lower left.
On January 1, 2002, as part of a legislated amalgamation of cities across the Province of Quebec, Sillery ceased operations. Its territory is now a part of the Sainte-Foy—Sillery—Cap-Rouge Borough of the City of Quebec. Of the former municipalities that now comprise Quebec City, Sillery was relatively linguistically diverse. It had more anglophone citizens (4%) than the norm and the greatest proportion of allophones (5%) in the region.
According to the Canada 2006 Census:
- Population: 11,803
- % Change (2001–2006): -0.9
- Dwellings: 4,856
- Area (km²): 6.7 km²
- Density (persons per km²): 1,761.3
External links
Coat of arms (picture of Sillery police badge):- http://membres.lycos.fr/police/collection/SILLERY2.JPG