-
Quebec Is Settled by the Europeans
Quebec (now Quebec City) was founded by Samuel de Champlain, a French explorer and Diplomat. -
The Seven Years' War Begins
The Seven Years' War was a global war fought between 1756 and 1763. This war had several significant battles in Quebec and the outcome of these battles would shape what Quebec is today. At the end of the war, the Treaty of Paris was signed, ceding all land in Canada to the British. -
The Quiet Revolution Begins
The Quiet Revolution was a period of intense political change. It started in June 1960 with the election of Jean Lesage. The main intent of the revolution was to take more control over health care and education, which had previously been controlled by the Roman Catholic Church. -
General De Gaulle Starts the "Vive le Québec libre" Movement
On 24 July 1967, during a visit to the 1967 International and Universal Exposition, General Charles de Gaulle, president of France, said to a large crowd from the balcony of Montréal's City Hall a sentence that would change the history of Canada, “Vive le Québec libre!". This statement would embolden the Quebec sovereignty movement. -
Quebec's October Crisis
The October Crisis began on the 5th of October 1970 with the kidnapping of James Cross, the British trade commissioner of Montreal. He was kidnapped by extreme members of the FLQ (Front de Libération du Québec) which was founded in 1963 mainly because of rising unemployment. The FLQ's goal was an independent Québécois state. -
The Parti Québécois Comes to Power
On November 15, 1976, The Parti Québécois led by René Lévesque defeated incumbent Robert Bourassa. The Parti Québécois quickly brought in Bill 1 (later changed to bill 101) which established French as the sole official language of Quebec. -
The First Québec Referendum (1980)
The 1980 Quebec referendum was a Parti Québécois plan for Quebec sovereignty. In this referendum, the government asked the people of Québec to give it an authority to “negotiate a new agreement with the rest of Canada." The result of the referendum was a 60/40 win for the "no" to separation camp and resulted in Trudeau calling together the provincial premiers in a first ministers' conference. -
The Bloc Québécois is Created
The Bloc Québécois is a federal political party that was created officially on June 15, 1991. The party promotes Quebec's interests and Quebec sovereignty in the House of Commons. The party at first was led by former federal Conservative cabinet minister Lucien Bouchard. However, he left in 1996 to become the leader of the Parti Québécois and premier of Quebec in January 1996. -
The Second Referendum (1995)
On 30 October 1995, the referendum on Québec sovereignty was sealed by a narrow victory for the “No” to separation group, the same outcome as the 1980 referendum. -
Québec Solidaire is Formed
Françoise David founded Québec Solidaire in 2006 as a left-wing feminist, environmentalist party. In a provincial election on December 8, 2008, the first Quebec Solidaire candidate, Amir Khadir, was elected in the Montreal riding Mercier.
