Monuments and Sights in and Around Montréal

La Place d'Armes:

During the French régime, the Place d'Armes was the heart of the city. It was used for both military maneuvers and religious processions. It was also the location of the Gadoys well, the main water supply for the town. In the square stands a statue of the city's founder, Paul de Chomedey de Maisonneuve, created in 1895 by sculptor Philippe Hébert. It was here in 1644 that the early settlers battled the Iroquois and Maisonneuve killed the native chief. At the base of the statue's pedestal are representations of Jeanne Mance, founder of the first Ville-Marie hospital, caring for an Iroquois child; Major Lambert Closse, defender of the village with his dog Pilote who warned colonists of an imminent Iroquois attack; Charles LeMoyne, head of a famly of famous explorers; and an Iroquois warrior.

La Basilique de Notre-Dame:

Rising on the south side of the Place d'Armes, Notre Dame Basilica is in the same location as Montréal's first parish church, built in 1627. The basilica was constructed in 1829, a twin-towered, neogothic structure which was designed by James O'Donnell, a Protestant who is said to have been converted to Catholicism during the building process. He is buried under the church. Fourteen stained glass windows trace the history of Ville-Marie. The church can seat 5,000; the organ has 5,772 pipes.

The eastern tower, known as "Temperance" houses a carillon of ten bells. In Perseverance, the western tower, hangs "le grand bourdon", the heaviest bell in the western hemisphere. It was in La Basilique de Notre-Dame that Céline Dion was married in 1994.

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Le Vieux Séminaire:

Adjacent to Notre Dame Basilica is the Sulpician Seminary. Constructed in 1683, it is Montréal's oldest building. It was built as a residence for the Sulpicians who lived there and governed their seigneurie. The bell tower, symmetrical gabled windows and curbed pediment are all typical of 17th century architecture in New France. The public clock, installed in 1701, is said to be the oldest in North America. The seminary is now used as a retirement home for the religious community and is not open to the public.

Place Jacques Cartier:

Most charming of the old city's squares, the Place Jacques Cartier slopes down from the Hôtel de Ville towards the Saint Lawrence. Its cobblestoned streets are lined with old stone buildings dating from the 1700's. The many restaurants, cafés, street musicians, artists, horse-drawn calèches and flower vendors contribute to the festive atmosphere.

A column commemorating Lord Horatio Nelson's naval victory at Trafalgar rises at one end of the Place while the Quai Jacques Cartier lies at the other extremity. Half-way down the Place is the rue St. Amable, a narrow alley where artists display their work and do portraits.

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Hôtel de Ville:

Above the Place Jacques Cartier and across la rue Notre Dame, rises the Town Hall, designed in 1876 by Maurice Perrault. Its Second Empire style includes balconies, turrets and mansard roof. It was from the balcony above the main entrance that Charles de Gaulle delivered his famous "Vive le Québec libre" speech in 1967 which pleased the crowd but strained relations between France and Canada.

Château Ramezay:

Built in 1705, this lovely stone residence, a Norman style home with a round tower, was built for Claude de Ramezay, the eleventh governor of Montréal. It also served as a mansion for English governors after the colony passed into British hands in 1763. When American revolutionaries captured Montréal in 1775, the château was used as military headquarters by generals Benedict Arnold and Richard Montgomery, and later that year by Benjamin Franklin.

Notre-Dame-de-Bonsecours Chapel:

Marguerite Bourgeoys, founder of the Notre-Dame Congregation of nuns, instigated the building of a wooden chapel on this site in 1657. At that time it was outside the settlement, and a visit there constituted a pilgrimage outside the protection of the village and fort. The original church was destroyed by fire in 1754. The present chapel dates from 1771 and is known as "the sailors' church", as it is a landmark for boats coming up the river. Offerings of model ships hang from the sanctuary ceiling, gifts of appreciation from sailors who were spared from shipwrecks. A statue of Our Lady, added in the 1800's, faces the river with arms outstretched as if to welcome new arrivals and to bless those departing on the dangerous voyage back to Europe. The church's tower provides an excellent view of the old port.

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The Marguérite Bourgeoys Museum:

Housed at Notre-Dame-de-Bonsecours Chapel, exhibits at this museum recreate the life (1620-1700) of Canada's first woman saint and Montréal's first school teacher. In November of 1657 Monsieur de Maisonneuve gave Marguérite Bourgeoys a stable in which to open a school.

Marguérite was assisted by her future students in cleaning the abandoned building and the school opened in April of 1658, providing a place for the children of the new colony to become educated. Later, a school for Amerindian children was begun at the mountain mission on Mont Royal.

Marguérite welcomed and trained the "filles du roi" when they arrived from France, preparing them for a new life on a new continent. She also trained teachers, providing educators for Ville-Marie. Marguérite Bourgeoys was canonized in 1982. She is commemorated in one of the stained glass windows in the Basilique de Notre Dame on the Place d'Armes. The Stable School of 1658 was the first of a large number of schools and colleges founded by the Sisters of Notre Dame. The congregation of sisters which she founded is still active world-wide in a mission of education.

Bonsecours Market:

This neoclassical building with silver dome was designed in 1850 by William Footner and George Browne to resemble a Roman temple. It faces the old port, and is located just east of the Jacques Cartier pier, on the site of a colonial official's palace. It once served as Montréal's City Hall and central market. It now accomodates a number of boutiques as well as special exhibitions.

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Le Vieux Port:

Montréal's Old Port was converted in 1992 from a dreary commercial wharf area to an appealing pedestrian promenade and park with public spaces, bike paths, exhibition halls, picnic tables and places to shop. Quai de l'Horloge stands at the eastern end of the area. Here a clock tower was built in 1922 with 92 steps leading to observation decks. A variety of boat cruises leave from the docks, including the "saute-moutons", jet-propelled boats which ride the Lachine Rapids.

Place Royale and old Customs House:

In 1611, French explorer Samuel de Champlain named this area near the river "Place Royale" hoping to make it the site of a new colony.

The first colonists, who arrived with Sieur de Maisonneuve in 1642, used the spot as a military square and called it "Place d'Armes". By 1706 the area had become a large marketplace known as "Place du Marché". The square links the new Pointe-à-Callière Museum of Archeology and History with the Old Customs House, built in 1836 and designed by John Ostell.

Pointe-à-Callière Museum of Archeology and History:

This modern museum was built for Montréal's 350th birthday celebration in 1992 on the site where the Sieur de Maisonneuve and the first colonists put up a stockade in 1642. The location is a triangle at the mouth of the Little St-Pierre River. The first settlement consisted of a few houses, a chapel, barracks, a store and a hospital. A cemetery was added the following year. Louisi-Hector Callière, governor of Montréal from 1684-1698, built his house on this spot. Callière is best remembered for negotiating a peace treaty in 1701 with the Iroquois. The Museum explains Montréal's history with a multimedia presentation, and contains an archeological crypt as well as scale models of the city showing its development through the centuries.

Hôpital des Soeurs Grises:

Next to Place d'Youville is the colony's second hospital, begun in 1694 and in operation until 1851. Its direction was taken over in 1747 by Marguerite d'Youville, a religious and wealthy widow who founded the order of the Gray Nuns (les Soeurs Grises). This congregation was chartered by Louis XV and was dedicated to caring for the orphans, the poor, the elderly and the sick of the colony. The building is currently used for administrative offices and as a novitiate for future nuns.

The colony's first nurse was Jeanne Mance, who arrived in 1642, the only woman to accompany Maisonneuve and his orginal settlers. She founded the Hôtel-Dieu, still one of the principal hospitals of Montréal, although it has changed location since its first building in 1645 near the site of the present Basilique de Notre Dame.

Parc du Mont-Royal:

Montréal is named for the 761 ft (232m) hill that rises from the island, steeply on one side and gradually sloping on the other. Jacques Cartier claimed it for his king, François I, in 1535, naming in "Mont Royal". Today the mountaintop is a 496 acre park, designed by Frederick Law Olmsted, the US landscape architect who planned New York City's Central Park. Park attractions include:

Lac aux castors (Beaver Lake) - is a small, artificial lake, a favorite spot for picnics and sunbathing in summer and ice skating in winter.

Le grand chalet - built in 1931, provides a panoramic view of Montréal from its terrace. The chalet has washrooms and a snack bar. The nearby Centre de la Montagne has visitor information and a walker's map of the park.

La croix de Montréal - commemorates the promise of Paul de Chomedy, Sieur de Maisonneuve, to plant a wooden cross on the mountaintop in 1643 if the colony were spared from a winter flood. Today's cross, visible from all over the city, is 100 feet high, made of steel and illuminated at night. It is a reminder that the city was founded to be a mission post.

Oratoire Saint Joseph:

St. Joseph's Oratory, a huge basilica near Mont Royal Park, honors St. Joseph, Canada's patron saint. A local monk, Brother André, built a small wooden chapel here in 1904 and became known as a healer. His reputation attracted hundreds of pilgrims seeking cures. As offerings poured in, construction on the basilica began in 1924. Brother André died in 1937, some 30 years before work on the basilica was completed. He was beatified by the Pope in 1982, and is buried in the large, Italian Renaissance style basilica. On the grounds are a Way of the Cross as well as Brother André's original wooden chapel.

La Ville Souterraine:

Montréal's "underground city" is a huge pedestrian network extending 18 miles (30 kilometers) and connecting thousands of stores, restaurants, the subway system, the train station, bus lines, hotels, banks, office buildings, cinemas, theaters, exhibition halls and the University of Québec at Montréal. The complex began in 1962 with a shopping center underneath the new office building at Place Ville-Marie. Its development was hastened by the construction of the métro in 1966 and soon developers were rushing to connect new commercial ventures to the complex. The multi-level underground city provides a climate controlled escape from snow, rain or summer heat.

Parc Olympique:

To the east of Old Montréal is the large sports complex constructed for the 1976 Olympic Games. It was designed by the French architect Roger Taillibert and includes a stadium, tower, natatorium and the former velodrome which now houses the Biodôme.

Biodôme de Montréal

Opened in 1992, this complex allows visitors to explore the plants and animals of four ecosystems. In the tropical forest one sees monkeys, marmosets, parrots, bats, crocodiles, coatis and capybaras. The cooler Laurentian temperate forest section contains animals native to Québec: otters, beavers, ducks, birds, a lynx. The St. Lawrence marine ecosystem includes many fish, birds, and aquatic plants. The comical penguins are the main attraction in the polar environment. They dive, swim and seem to pose for the tourists' cameras.

The Olympic Stadium:

With a seating capacity of 56,385, hosts sporting events, concerts and conventions. The world's highest inclined tower leans at a 45 degree angle and is a tourist attraction in itself. A funicular transports passengers to the observation deck, from which there is a marvelous view of the city and surrounding region.

Montréal's Botanical Garden - is located across from the Olympic Stadium and may be reached by a shuttle bus. The Garden was founded in 1931 by a local priest. It contains more than 26,000 species and covers 182 acres. A small train transports visitors through the various segments: Chinese, Japanese, Zen, etc. One favorite is the garden of poisonous plants!

L'Ile Sainte Hélène:

The small island of Sainte Hélène was discovered by Samuel de Champlain in 1611 and named for his wife, Hélène Boulé. Under the French régime it was part of the seigneurie de Longueuil. In 1760 it was here that French troops finally surrendered to the English. Under British rule, a fort was constructed on the island in case of an American invasion. The fort was completed in 1824, but was never involved in armed conflict.

The Stewart Museum at the Fort - On display are artifacts from the period beginning with Cartier's explorations to the end of the colonial period. There is an excellent model of the city of Montréal as it appeared in 1760. During the summer there are military parades staged by the Compagnie Franche de la Marine and the 78th Fraser Highlanders.

Le Festin du Gouverneur - a restaurant located at the fort, recreates the ambiance of New France with typical Québecois cuisine and costumed servers.

In order to host Expo '67, the island was enlarged and 83 pavilions were constructed. The American pavilion was turned into the Biosphere (not to be confused with the Biodôme at the Olympic Park) which has environmental displays. The French and Québec pavilions became Montréal's casino.

La Ronde - a popular amusement park, is located at one end of the island. During June and July an international fireworks competition is held here.

L'Ile Notre Dame is an artificial island created in 1959 and enlarged in 1967. It contains a Formula 1 racetrack, a lake, beach, and gardens designed for the International Floralies of 1980. In June the Molson Grand Prix de Canda is held on the racetrack. In the winter, "La Fête des Neiges" takes place on the island.