Important
Anniversaries
June 24
Quebec's
National Day
Established in
1834
The Significance of a Historic Declaration
On June 24, the people of Quebec officially mark their
National Day, established in 1834 by the Quebec patriot and
elected representative Ludger Duvernay and the members of the
Aide-toi, le ciel t'aidera Society ("God helps those who help
themselves"). Duvernay was also publisher and editor of the
patriot newspaper La Minerve. The Society had been founded on
March 8 that year with the aim to "provide a designated
place for thought to discuss the country's state of affairs" and
"to rekindle the burning desire of love of country, either by
shedding light on the deeds of those governing us, or by paying
fair tribute to the eloquent and brave defenders of our
rights."
The Society organized a banquet on June 24, 1834 in the
garden
of the lawyer MacDonnell to institute a national celebration for
Canadiens of all origins (today, the term Quebeckers is used). It
was the first celebration of the people of the nascent Quebec
nation in which Duvernay, the patriots, their elected
representatives and their party, the Patriot Party, recognized the
people as "the
primary source of all legitimate authority," and in doing so also
recognized their sovereignty.
June 24, 1834: Ludger Duvernay and the members of the Aide-toi,
le ciel t'aidera Society institute June 24 as Quebec's National Day. (mnq.quebec)
This national celebration established by Duvernay and
the
elected members of the Patriot Party fell on the same date as
Saint-Jean-Baptiste Day but was not the same. In fact
Saint-Jean-Baptiste Day had been introduced long before by the King of
France and the Catholic high clergy in the colonies of the French
empire in opposition to the June 21 summer solstice celebrated by
the Indigenous peoples.
 The Church, through the
Council of Trent (1545-1563),
attempted to Christianize the solstice festivities -- a
celebration of light around a joyous bonfire -- by replacing it
with a portrayal of submission in the person of Saint John the
Baptist, "the lamb of God." In the same vein, in 1702,
Monseigneur de Saint-Vallier in his Catechism for the Diocese of
Quebec, intended for the Canadiens, noted that the Catholic
Church in the New World (i.e. the colonies of the French empire)
considered the solstice ceremony acceptable so long as the "dances and
superstitions" of the Indigenous peoples were banished. It was not
until
1908 that Pope Pius X -- advocating the division of the Canadian
people into so-called French Canadians and English Canadians,
which the British empire was so determined to impose -- named
Saint John the Baptist the patron saint of "French Canadians."
Sixty years later, on June 24, 1968 and 1969, at a time the
resurgence of Quebec's movement for independence and people's
sovereignty was in full swing, this symbol of division and
submission was swept aside and, once again, the National Day
celebration
saw the people joyfully dancing around a bonfire.
It is noteworthy that today on June 21, National
Aboriginal
Day, a "Solstice of the Nations" also takes place. It is "an
expression of exchange and friendship amongst nations living in
Quebec." The Fire Ceremony is held by the Indigenous nations "to
encourage closer ties amongst the peoples living on Quebec
territory," so that "the coals of that fire light up the bonfire
of the Great Show of Quebec's National Celebration, on the Plains
of Abraham."
On National Day the people of Quebec celebrate the
patriots who fought in the mid-19th century for independence from
Britain and to establish an independent homeland and a republic which
vests sovereignty in the people: Nelson, De Lorimier,
Côté, Chénier, Duvernay and O'Callaghan, amongst
others. They celebrate too all those who have espoused and continue to
espouse the cause of the Quebec Patriots, in particular all those
committed to elaborating a nation-building project commensurate with
the needs of the times.
This article was published in
Volume 49 Number 23 - June 22, 2019
Article Link:
: The Significance of a Historic Declaration
Website: www.cpcml.ca
Email: editor@cpcml.ca
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