French president Charles de Gaulle visited Québec City three times. In July 1944, he came as head of the Provisional Government of the French Republic, just one month after the Normandy landings. In April 1960, de Gaulle was welcomed to the city by Premier Antonio Barrette at a time when the province was Catholic and conservative. De Gaulle returned to Québec City in 1967, at the height of the Quiet Revolution, to tour the province by car. His trip ended in Montréal where he pronounced his famous “Vive le Québec Libre!” (long live a free Quebec). Three visits, three different eras!
Charles de Gaulle in the council chambers at city hall in Québec City
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The photograph was taken during the French president’s visit to city hall in 1967. Charles de Gaulle and his wife Yvonne stand before Mayor Gilles Lamontagne, journalists and guests. In one of his speeches, de Gaulle asserted that all of France had their eyes on Quebec.
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