Fête nationale du Québec (Saint Jean Baptiste Day)

Infobox Holiday

---

caption = Fête nationale parade, Montreal, June 24, 2006
holiday_name = Fête nationale du Québec (Saint Jean Baptiste Day)
nickname = "La St-Jean", "Fête de St-Jean-Baptiste"
observedby =
POV-statement|date=August 2008
*Quebecers (Canada)
*French Canadians
*French Americans
date = June 24
celebrations =
Parades, bonfires, fireworks, feasting, drinking, musical concerts, flag waving, patriotic speeches, contests
type = national
longtype = Historical, cultural, national

Quebec's National Holiday (French: "Fête nationale du Québec") is the National Holiday [Gouvernement du Québec. " [http://www.canlii.org/qc/laws/sta/f-1.1/20080515/whole.html National Holiday Act] ", in "CanLII", Federation of Law Societies of Canada, updated to May 1st, 2008, retrieved June 29, 2008] of the Canadian province of Quebec. A paid statutory public holiday covered by the "Act Respecting Labour Standards" [Gouvernement du Québec. " [http://www.canlii.org/qc/laws/sta/n-1.1/20080515/whole.html An Act Respecting Labour Standards] ", in "CanLII", Federation of Law Societies of Canada, updated to May 1st, 2008, retrieved June 29, 2008] , it is celebrated annually on June 24, St. John the Baptist Day. [Gouvernement du Québec. " [http://www.canlii.org/qc/laws/sta/f-1.1/20080515/whole.html National Holiday Act] ", in "CanLII", Federation of Law Societies of Canada, updated to May 1st, 2008, retrieved June 29, 2008] [Gouvernement du Québec. " [http://www.cnt.gouv.qc.ca/en/leaves-and-absences/statutory-holidays/national-holiday/index.html National Holiday] ", in the site of the "Commission des normes du travail", 17 June 2008, retrieved June 29, 2008]

In Quebec, the festivities occur on June 23 and June 24, and since 1978 are publicly financed and organized by a National Holiday Organizing Committee ("Comité organisateur de la fête nationale"). June 24 continues to be celebrated as a festival of French Canadian culture in other Canadian provinces and in the United States. [cite web|author=Suzanne Thomas |title= St-Jean-Baptiste celebrations|work= Encyclopedia of Music in Canada |publisher=Historica Foundation |date= |accessdate=2008-07-30 |url=http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.com/index.cfm?PgNm=TCE&Params=U1ARTU0003085 |quote= Popular annual celebrations in French Canada on 24 June (the feast day of St John the Baptist) or on the days before or after this date.] [cite web|author= |title=Saint-Jean-Baptiste Day |work= Celebrate Canada! |publisher=Department of Canadian Heritage |date= |accessdate=|url=http://www.pch.gc.ca/special/canada/11/baptiste_e.cfm |quote=All across Canada, French Canadians express their cultural pride and rich heritage through colourful parades and lively parties on June 24 marking Saint-Jean-Baptiste Day. ]

Origins

The feast day of Saint John the Baptist was a very popular event in the "Ancien régime" of France, and it is still celebrated as a religious feast day in several countries, like Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Finland, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania.

The tradition landed in Canada with the first French colonists. According to the Jesuit "Relations", the first celebrations occurred on the banks of the Saint Lawrence River on the evening of June 23, 1636 with a bonfire and five cannon shots. cite web|author=Suzanne Thomas |title= St-Jean-Baptiste celebrations|work= Encyclopedia of Music in Canada |publisher=Historica Foundation |date= |accessdate=2008-07-30|url=http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.com/index.cfm?PgNm=TCE&Params=U1ARTU0003085 |quote= ] .

aint-Jean-Baptiste Day

" and their friends. [Lebel, Jean-Marie. " [http://www.biographi.ca/EN/ShowBio.asp?BioId=38012 Duvernay, Ludger] ", in "Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online", University of Toronto, Université Laval, 2000, retrieved June 29, 2008]

On this June 24, George-Étienne Cartier's "Ô Canada! mon pays, mes amours" was first sung during a grand patriotic banquet gathering about sixty francophones and anglophones of Montreal [Attending the event were reformist politicians Louis-Hippolyte Lafontaine, Edouard Rodier, George-Étienne Cartier, Dr. Edmund Bailey O'Callaghan, Louis Perrault, Thomas Storrow Brown, and Montreal mayor Jacques Viger.] , in the gardens of lawyer John McDonnell, near the old Windsor Station. The "Canada" in the song refers to Lower Canada, today's southern Quebec. Rounds of toasts went to the Parti patriote, the United States, Ireland, and the Ninety-Two Resolutions. [Prémont, Donald. " [http://cgi2.cvm.qc.ca/glaporte/1837.pl?out=article&pno=0046 Duvernay, Ludger (1799-1852)] ", in the site "Les Patriotes de 1837@1838", May 20, 2000, retrieved June 29, 2008]

Two days later, "La Minerve" concluded: "This holiday, whose goal is to solidify the union of the "Canadiens", will not go without bearing fruit. It will be celebrated annually as a national holiday and will not miss producing the happiest results." ["Cette fête dont le but est de cimenter l'union des Canadiens ne sera pas sans fruit. Elle sera célébrée annuellement comme fête nationale et ne pourra manquer de produire les plus heureux résultats", in "La Minerve", June 26, 1834] The celebration recurred in 1835, 1836, 1837.

Following the defeat of the insurrectional movement during the Lower Canada Rebellion and the military repressions which followed, the day was not celebrated for several years. [Lebel, Jean-Marie. " [http://www.biographi.ca/EN/ShowBio.asp?BioId=38012 Duvernay, Ludger] ", in "Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online", University of Toronto, Université Laval, 2000, retrieved June 29, 2008]

.)

The celebrations were supported by the Catholic church and started to be primarily religious around that time. The lighting of bonfires, a traditional custom on the Nativity of Saint John which ultimately reached back to pre-Christian Midsummer celebrations were still lit at night. [cite web|url=http://www.claudenadeau.net/saint-jean.html |author=Claude Nadeau |title=Histoire de la fête nationale des Québécois: la Saint-Jean Baptiste |accessdate=2008-10-04 |quote:" Déjà en des temps immémoriaux, les peuples païens célébraient le solstice d'été par un grand feu de joie, symbolisant la lumière qui était à son apogée."] In addition, the first "Saint-Jean-Baptiste" parades were organized. They became an important tradition over time. The procession of allegorical floats was introduced in 1874.

On June 24, 1880, the "Saint-Jean-Baptiste" Society organized the gathering of all francophone communities across North America. The event was the first National Congress of French Canadians ("Congrès national des Canadiens français"). On this occasion, the citizens of Quebec City were the first ones to hear the "Ô Canada" of Franco-American Calixa Lavallée, based on a poem by a Quebec Superior Court judge, Adolphe-Basile Routhier. The song was commissioned by the "Saint-Jean-Baptiste" Society. It was well received but did not become a widely known song for many years. (English words were later written for a royal tour in 1901. In 1980, "O Canada" became the official national anthem of Canada.)

In 1908, Pope Pius X designated St. John the Baptist as the patron saint of French Canadians. From 1914 to 1923 the processions were not held. In 1925, 91 years after the Ludger Duvernay's banquet in Montreal, June 24 became a legal holiday in Quebec.

During and after the Quiet Revolution, Saint-Jean-Baptiste Day became very political. The religious symbolism associated with the celebrations was rejected by the younger generations. In 1969, the little St. John the Baptist icon was destroyed during a riot. This led to the interruption of the parade, which did not take place the next year.

The "Fête nationale"

In Quebec, June 24 or St. John the Baptist Day is officially a paid statutory public holiday covered by the "Act Respecting Labour Standards". [Gouvernement du Québec. " [http://www.canlii.org/qc/laws/sta/n-1.1/20080515/whole.html An Act Respecting Labour Standards] ", in "CanLII", Federation of Law Societies of Canada, updated to May 1st, 2008, retrieved June 29, 2008] [Gouvernement du Québec. " [http://www.canlii.org/qc/laws/sta/f-1.1/20080515/whole.html National Holiday Act] ", in "CanLII", Federation of Law Societies of Canada, updated to May 1st, 2008, retrieved June 29, 2008] [Gouvernement du Québec. " [http://www.cnt.gouv.qc.ca/en/leaves-and-absences/statutory-holidays/national-holiday/index.html National Holiday] ", in the site of the "Commission des normes du travail", 17 June 2008, retrieved June 29, 2008] In 1977, an Order-in-Council by Lieutenant Governor Hugues Lapointe, on the advice of René Lévesque, declared June 24 the national holiday of Quebec. The use of national in this context is controversial, because of the different usages of the word nation (see Nation, Ambiguity in usage).

The following year, the National Holiday Organizing Committee was created. The committee initially entrusted the organization of the events to the "Société des festivals populaires du Québec". In 1984, on the occasion of the 150th anniversary of the SSJB, the organization of the celebrations was entrusted to the "Mouvement national des Québécoises et des Québécois" (MNQ). [MNQ. " [http://www.fetenationale.qc.ca/la-fete-nationale-du-quebec-et-le-mouvement-national-des-quebecoises-et-quebecois-mnq.html La Fête nationale du Québec et le Mouvement national des Québécoises et Québécois (MNQ) ] ", in the site of the "Mouvement national des Québécoises et Québécois", 2008, retrieved June 21, 2008] [SSJB Mauricie. " [http://www.ssjbmauricie.qc.ca/action/fetenationale/historique.php Fête nationale] ", in the site of the "Saint-Jean-Baptiste of Mauricie", 2008, retrieved June 29, 2008]

Made by law the national holiday of Quebec, June 24 thus officially became the day of all Quebecers rather than only those of French-Canadian origins. Mainly by the actions of the MNQ, the celebrations were gradually secularized and June 23 and 24 became what they are nowadays. While the religious significance of the celebration is gone, the day remains popularly called "la St-Jean-Baptiste", or simply "la St-Jean".

2008 celebrations

The theme of the 2008 "Fête nationale" was "Four Centuries... to celebrate!", marking the founding of Quebec City and 400 years of French presence in North America. [cite web|author= |title= Quatre siècles… à célébrer !|work= |publisher= Mouvement national des Québécoises et Québécois|date= |accessdate=2008-07-30|url=http://www.fetenationale.qc.ca/thematique/limg-srcqmodulesmodswmenuproimagestransmenubottommenul2arrowgifqglimggquatre-siecles-a-celebrer.html |quote= En 2008, la Fête nationale souligne non seulement la fondation de la ville de Québec, mais aussi quatre siècles de présence francophone en Amérique du Nord. ] Spokespersons were artist Chloé Sainte-Marie and historian Jacques Lacoursière. [MNQ. " [http://www.fetenationale.qc.ca/thematique/mot-des-porte-parole-de-la-fete-nationale-2008.html Mot des porte-parole de la Fête nationale 2008 ] ", in the site of the "Mouvement national des Québécoises et Québécois", 2008, retrieved June 21, 2008] 750 local celebrations were organized throughout Quebec on June 23 and 24 of that year. [MNQ. [http://www.fetenationale.qc.ca/les-actualites/32-actualites/199-communique-bilan-fete-nationale-du-quebec-2008.html Communiqué - bilan Fête nationale du Québec 2008] , in the site of the "Mouvement national des Québécoises et Québécois", 2008, retrieved June 21, 2008]

Political nature of the celebration

Until the 1970s, Dominion Day, which fell on July 1, was little more than a day away from work for most Canadians.Fact|date=August 2008 To respond to the Quebec nationalist reappropiation of "Saint-Jean-Baptiste" Day, the federal government promoted July 1 as a national holiday for Canada. It did so by furnishing funds for lavish celebrations and by changing the name of the holiday to Canada Day. The use of "national" in the context of a provincial holiday is controversial for some Canadians, because of the different usages of the word "nation" in English, see Nation (Ambiguity in usage). More Quebecers celebrate "la St-Jean" on June 24 than Canada Day on July 1.

During this period, Governor General Georges Vanier, who, as viceroy, always fostered unity and biculturalism, found himself the target of Quebec sovereigntists in Montreal, on "Saint-Jean-Baptiste" Day, 1964, wherein a group of separatists held placards reading "Vanier vendu" ("Vanier sold") and "Vanier fou de la Reine" ("Vanier, jester to the Queen"). [Hubbard, R.H.; Rideau Hall; McGill-Queen’s University Press; Montreal and London; 1977; p. 233] Four years later, with the new Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau in attendance on the eve of a general election, a riot broke out on "Saint-Jean-Baptiste" Day, and 290 people were arrested. Trudeau was filmed refusing to take cover or leave the grandstand when the rioters pelted it with rocks, as well as bottles containing paint and acid. The scene was broadcast on Radio-Canada's and CBC's evening news. Many saw it as an open act of courage, and it impressed the electorateFact|date=June 2008. The incident contributed to his Liberal Party winning a significant majority the next day.Fact|date=June 2008

According to William Johnson, many non-French-Canadian minorities view June 24 as an ethnic and politicized event rather than a civic celebration, citing the overtly sovereignist and nationalistic overtones of many celebrations [cite news
last = Johnson
first = William
coauthors =
title = Why Fête Nationale is really Fête Nationaliste
work = Globe and Mail
pages =
publisher = CTVglobemedia Inc.
date = 2008-06-26
url = http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20080626.wcofete26/BNStory/specialComment/
accessdate = 2008-06-29] .

Notes

References

In English

* Thomas, Suzanne. " [http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.com/index.cfm?PgNm=TCE&Params=U1ARTU0003085 Saint-Jean-Baptiste celebrations] ", in "The Canadian Encyclopedia", Historica Foundation, 2008
* Gouvernement du Québec. " [http://www.canlii.org/qc/laws/sta/f-1.1/20080515/whole.html National Holiday Act] ", in "CanLII", Federation of Law Societies of Canada, updated to May 1st, 2008
* Gouvernement du Québec. " [http://www.cnt.gouv.qc.ca/en/leaves-and-absences/statutory-holidays/national-holiday/index.html The National Holiday] ", in the site of the "Commission des normes du travail", 17 June 2008

In French

* Keller, Catherine. " [http://web.archive.org/web/20051125161229/http://french.epochtimes.com/news/5-6-21/2024.html Fête de la St Jean] ", in the on line edition of " [http://french.epochtimes.com/ La Grande Époque] ", June 21, 2005
* RDAQ. " [http://www.rdaq.qc.ca/cgi-bin/templates/framesets/bottomFrameset.cfm?dir=chroniques La Saint-Jean-Baptiste] ", in the site of the "Réseau des services d'archives du Québec", 2001
* Prémont, Donald. "24 juin 1834 - Le premier banquet de la Saint-Jean-Baptiste", in Les Patriotes de 1837@1838, March 10, 2000
* Nadeau, Claude, " [http://www.claudenadeau.net/saint-jean.html Histoire de la fête nationale des Québécois : la Saint-Jean Baptiste] ", in "Claudenadeau.net", 1998 (her personal Web site)
* Bizier, Hélène-Andrée and Paulette, Claude (1997). "Fleur de lys, d'hier à aujourd'hui", Montreal: Édition Art Global, 158 pages ISBN 2920718673
* Rumilly, Robert (1975). "Histoire de la Société Saint-Jean-Baptiste de Montréal, des Patriotes au fleurdelysé, 1834-1948", Montreal, Éditions de l'Aurore, 564 pages ISBN 0885320891
* Vaugeois, Denis (1978). "La Saint-Jean, fête de la fierté", in "Forces", XLIII, 2nd quarter, 1978
* Chouinard, H.-J.-J.-B. (1890). "Fête nationale des Canadiens-français célébrée à Québec, 1881-1889", Quebec ( [http://bibnum2.banq.qc.ca/bna/numtxt/23328.pdf online] )
* Chouinard, H.-J.-J.-B. (1881). "Fête nationale des Canadiens français célébrée à Québec en 1880", Quebec ( [http://bibnum2.banq.qc.ca/bna/numtxt/23326.pdf online] )

External links

* [http://www.fetenationale.qc.ca/ Official Website of the Fête nationale]