This text is part of the special section Discovering our history
Accompanied by the director general of the Museum of the Hospitallers, Paul Labonne, we set out to discover the conventual ensemble of the sisters. The crypt, the chapel, the garden and the monastery, where they lived for more than 150 years, contain many historical secrets.
It is with sincere enthusiasm that Paul Labonne greets us at the entrance of the Musée des Hospitalières de l’Hôtel-Dieu de Montréal, located at the foot of Mount Royal. “Do you see that staircase? he says immediately, pointing to the huge wooden artifact. It comes from the town of La Flèche, in France, from where the first three Hospitallers left to reach Canada in 1659.
This exceptional testimony is a privileged link with the story of these women, sent by Jeanne Mance, co-founder of Montreal and the Hôtel-Dieu, to help her administer the hospital after she had broken her arm. As proof of their great influence, Mr. Labonne shows us the letters patent of King Louis XIV for the establishment of the Hospitallers on the island of Montreal. On these precious documents, exhibited at the museum, we distinguish with surprise the fingerprint of the Sun King.
Pioneering women
In 1861, the religious community settled in the monastery of a convent complex erected by the architect Victor Bourgeau, now owned by the City of Montreal, since 2019. The stone building was designed and built in the shape of E, so as to enlarge the wings more easily.
The sisters were cloistered there, that is to say, they had to stay within a well-defined perimeter. They ate in a large refectory and slept in “cells”, narrow individual rooms reconstituted in the museum.
Judith Moreau de Brésoles, Catherine Macé and Marie Maillet, the first three hospitallers, are considered to be the pioneers of health and care in Montreal. After the death of Jeanne Mance, they will manage the hospital for nearly three centuries. Their days are dedicated to patient care, apothecary and hospital management. “They could attend masses in the chapel behind a gate, but they had no contact with the outside world, except the bishop and the sick”, emphasizes Paul Labonne.
After 1940, the sisters had to take a university education in pharmacy to continue practicing as pharmaceuticals multiplied. Jeanne Phaneuf thus became the first pharmacist sister of the Hôtel-Dieu trained at the University of Montreal in 1941.
Ten years later, Sister Marie-Louise Allard also distinguished herself when she put forward the idea of creating a clinical research department. This initiative will make the Hôtel-Dieu the first French-speaking Canadian hospital to have a laboratory specialized in arterial hypertension and oedema. “They were avant-garde,” comments Mr. Labonne.
The chapel and the crypt
A few minutes after learning about the legacy of these pioneering women, we head to the chapel-church, located in the center of the building. A large dome overlooks its choir. In the dome, we discover the first decoration painted in Montreal with a structured iconographic program. “It’s not just decoration, it’s characters whose history is linked to monastic orders,” says Mr. Labonne enthusiastically. It is also the only one remaining among the three made by the German muralist John Held, in Montreal. »
Below the chapel, after going through several winding mazes, we find the oldest wing of the monastery: the crypt. A charged atmosphere is felt there from the first seconds. And for good reason: the entire community, 600 nuns, is buried on the other side of the brick wall, near the tomb of Jeanne Mance.
Occasionally, the sisters — who still live in a wing of the monastery — gather in places that remain the most authentic part of the convent complex. “This cemetery is the only thing that the sisters did not sell to the City,” whispers Mr. Labonne. It’s guaranteed time travel. »
The Sisters’ Garden
The visit ends with a walk in the peaceful fruit garden, where a string of apples have already escaped from the branches, which does not fail to attract a few rabbits.
It’s hard to imagine that you’re in the middle of a big metropolis when you walk among the trees and the flowers. The silhouette of Mount Royal in peripheral vision, we pass in front of the root cellar built in 1869 and the small chapel of the Immaculate Conception.
This green space is nestled behind the monastery, between Avenue des Pins and Rue Duluth. It was laid out by the Hospitallers to feed the patients of the hospital and to become the largest orchard on the island of Montreal, in the 19th century.e century.
For the director of the museum, it is important to preserve all the tangible and intangible heritage of the sisters, who have contributed a great deal to the history of Montreal. This is notably possible thanks to the work of the collections manager, Judith Houde, who oversees the security and conservation conditions of the 22,000 objects in the museum’s collection. In a well-guarded room, she documents, labels and organizes paintings, books and other sculptures in order to make them accessible to the general public.
Below the chapel, after going through several winding mazes, we find the oldest wing of the monastery: the crypt. The entire community, 600 nuns, is buried in the crypt, near the tomb of Jeanne Mance.
The stone building was designed and built in an E-shape, so that the wings could easily be enlarged. The sisters were cloistered there, that is to say, they had to stay within a well-defined perimeter.