150th anniversary of the Consulate General of France in Québec City

Wednesday, September 9, 2009

• Courriel
• Facebook
• Twitter
• Linked In
• RSS

• Politics

On September 8, political figures, historians and observers of France-Québec relations took part in the Symposium on the 150th anniversary of the Consulate General of France in Québec City. The event made it possible to mark the milestones of France-Québec relations since the institution of the French diplomatic post in Québec City in 1859 and determine new prospects for this fruitful collaboration.

Loupe

Photo: CGF

This symposium, which was organized by the France-Québec Commission sur les lieux de mémoire communs, was attended by the new French Consul General, Hélène Le Gal, and the Québec’s Deputy Minister of International Relations, François Turenne.

Accounts by primary actors in France-Québec relations and presentations by observers and specialists allowed participants to appreciate the tremendous progress in relations between France and Québec. Steps taken towards closer ties in the 1960s enabled these relations to expand to now include many areas of government action, such as economy, education, culture, health, etc., but also to recover the ever so vital direct link between the French and Quebecers.

Invited to speak, the Deputy Minister of International Relations emphasized the future potential for Québec-France relations, especially as concerns the Agreement on Mutual Recognition of Professional Qualifications signed last year by Mr. Sarkozy and Mr. Charest. This agreement, which will make it easer for qualified workers to acquire a permit to practice a regulated profession or trade in both France and Québec “illustrates […] the innovative ability, talent for recreation and capacity to open new fronts of our relations,” declared Mr. Turenne.

Finally, the Cap-aux-Diamants history magazine took advantage of this symposium to create an insert on the 150th anniversary of the Consulate General of France in Quebec City, which will appear in the next issue of the publication. In it, the Société de généalogie de Québec reveals the civil registry directory of the Consulate General of France from 1859-1934, which includes a census of the French population in Quebec City during that period.

Symposium on the 150th anniversary of the Consulate General of France in Quebec City (in French)

Commission franco-québécoise sur les lieux de mémoire communs (in French)

Québec-France relations

Société de généalogie de Québec

Cap-aux-Diamants magazine (in French)