Québec City


Perched atop cap Diamant, surveying the St. Lawrence River, 
Québec City is one of the landmarks of North American history.
 
Samuel de Champlain saw the potential of this natural citadel, 
and founded a fur-trading post here in 1608. As religious institutions 
and government buildings sprang up within the fortifications of the 
Upper Town, merchants and craftsmen settled in the Lower Town alongside 
the River. Québec City was a valuable prize sought after many times in 
the wars of the 17th and 18th centuries. When it finally fell to the 
English in 1759, New France became a British colony.

Québec City, the cradle of French civilization in North America, 
is today a busy seaport, an important centre of services and research, 
a cultural hot spot and, of course, the provincial capital. 
The remarkable parliament buildings (Hôtel du Parlement) are well worth a visit.