Parliament Building (Quebec)

The Parliament Building (French: Hôtel du Parlement) is an eight-floor building in Quebec City and home to the Parliament of Quebec, composed of the Lieutenant-Governor and the National Assembly. The building was designed by architect Eugène-Étienne Taché and was built from 1877 to 1886. With the frontal tower, the building stands at 52 metres or 171 feet in height. The building is located in Place de l'Assemblée nationale, atop Parliament Hill in the district of Vieux-Québec–Cap-Blanc–colline Parlementaire, just outside the walls of Old Quebec; this area is part of the borough of La Cité-Limoilou.

Parliament Building
Hôtel du Parlement
Parliament Building, in Quebec City
General information
Architectural styleSecond Empire
Address1045 rue des Parlementaires
Town or cityQuebec City, Quebec
CountryCanada
Coordinates46.808762°N 71.214178°W / 46.808762; -71.214178
Construction started1877
Completed1886
ClientCrown in Right of Quebec
OwnerCrown in Right of Quebec
Technical details
Size52 metres or 171 feet in height.
Design and construction
ArchitectEugène-Étienne Taché

Architecture

The building features the Second Empire architectural style that was popular for prestigious buildings both in Europe (especially France, where the style originated) and the United States during the latter 19th century. Even though the building's symmetrical layout with a frontal clock tower in the middle is typical of legislative institutions of British heritage, the architectural style is believed to be unique among parliament buildings found in other Canadian provincial capitals. Its facade presents a pantheon representing significant events and people of the history of Quebec.

Additional buildings were added next to the Parliament Buildings:

  • Édifice André-Laurendeau was added from 1935 to 1937 to house the Ministry of Transport.
  • Édifice Honoré-Mercier was added from 1922 to 1925 to house the Ministries of the Treasury (Finances), the Attorney General, and the Secretary General of the National Assembly.
  • Édifice Jean-Antoine-Panet was added from 1931 to 1932 for the Ministry of Agriculture.
  • Édifice Pamphile-Le May added from 1910 to 1915 for the Library of the National Assembly, various other government offices and the Executive Council.
A view of the building complex.

Statues

The Quebec National Assembly's facade has 22 statues of major people of the province's history and others on the building's grounds:

See also

References
  • Deschênes, Gaston (2007). The Québec Parliament Building: A Monument to History, Saint-Lambert: Stromboli, 263 p. ISBN 978-2-921800-24-2 [translation, Benjamin Waterhouse]
  • Noppen, Luc (1996). L'Hôtel du Parlement, témoin de notre histoire, Sainte-Foy : Publications du Québec, 204 p. ISBN 2-551-16328-5
  • L'Hotel du Parlement/National Assembly of Quebec

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