In almost a year, to the day, we will commemorate the 250th anniversary of the adoption of the Quebec Act of 1774. A decisive event for the development of Quebec’s unique political and constitutional trajectory, it will mark a quarter of a millennium of recognition of part of its distinct character in North America.
It is important not only to emphasize its historical roots, but also to reflect on the collective memory attached to it, then on what this founding moment means for the Quebec of today and tomorrow.
Situating the Quebec Act
What happens in 1774 is decisive in many respects. To a certain extent, we are breaking with the assimilating institutional logic outlined by the Royal Proclamation a decade earlier. As we remember, this is in the wake of the Seven Years’ War (1756-1763), where the French and British imperial aims collide. A French colony for more than two centuries, “Quebec” fell under British control through the Conquest and the Treaty of Paris in 1763.
We then find ourselves at a critical juncture for the political and collective future of Quebec: the Royal Proclamation undermines the institutional and societal foundations on which the accent of America had hitherto been built. In addition to imposing the application of British laws in Quebec – in the fields of criminal law and civil law –, to calling into question the organization of the territory (cantonal regime rather than seigneurial), English is decreed the unique language of justice, without forgetting that Catholics are forbidden to hold public office, unless they renounce their faith by taking the Test oath.
But the assimilating purpose will never gain full momentum. From a socio-demographic point of view, the subjects of British origin who lived around the St. Lawrence River represented only a meager 1% of the population in 1766. What is more, other factors contributed to changing the balance of power on the ground, which is observed, among others, by Governor James Murray. A little further south, we then witness the rise of discontent in the Thirteen Colonies, which worries the colonial authorities. And for good reason, the Philadelphia Congress twice invited (in 1774 and 1775) the “Canadians” to join what would become the American Revolution – a proposal that would, however, remain a dead letter.
The effects of the Quebec Act
It was in this context that the metropolis developed a new constitutional framework for its colony, which called into question several key ideas that were characteristic of the regime set up in 1763. While an assimilating “institutional path” had opened up with the Conquest , another trajectory, more tolerant of Canadians, emerged with the Quebec Act of 1774. A coexistence took shape between two peoples with distinct languages, cultures and legal traditions. It was, in a way, a way of ensuring a certain loyalty of the inhabitants – but especially of its elites, members of the Catholic clergy – of the Province of Quebec and of competing with the invitation of the Congress of Philadelphia.
The means chosen to achieve this: to proceed with the adoption of the Quebec Act, on June 22, 1774, by the Parliament of Westminster.
Among the reforms introduced were freedom of worship, the replacement of the Test oath by an oath of loyalty to the king, and the reintroduction of French civil law.
Even if the Quebec Act is silent on the language question, it revives the institutional pillars on which French culture and language in North America are based. As such, the civil law of French origin remains, to this day, a particularity of Quebec within Canada and in North America.
In many ways, the Constitutional Act of 1791 as well as the British North America Act of 1867 find their inspiration in the normative logic brought about by the Quebec Act of 1774. This is why this moment is so important and deserves our full attention.
A symposium to mark the 250th anniversary of the Quebec Act
Strong in the conviction of the historical, memorial and contemporary significance of the Quebec Act of 1774 for Quebec society, we will organize an important scientific meeting in June 2024. The colloquium The Quebec Act after 250 years: highlighting the past, founding the future will bring together experts from several disciplines, including law, political science and history. The event, which will be held in Quebec, will be an opportunity to review the Quebec Act, its main legacies and its lasting influence for 250 years now. At the same time, it will fuel reflection on the future and future of the Quebec nation and its distinct character in North America.
In this sense, marking the 250th anniversary of the Quebec Act is also an invitation to draw inspiration from it to found the future of the Quebec nation.