Flag of Quebec

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The flag of Quebec, called the Fleurdelisé, was adopted by the provincial government of Quebec, Canada, during the government of Maurice Duplessis. It was first flown on January 21, 1948, at the Parliament Building in Quebec City. The Act concerning the flag and emblems of Quebec states that "in all cases, the flag of Quebec has precedence over any other flag or emblem."^[1] However, federal laws require that the Sovereign's standard has highest precedence, followed by the national flag, meaning the flag of Quebec would sit third in the line of precedence.

The Fleurdelisé takes its white cross from the ancient royal flags of France and its white fleurs-de-lis and blue field from a banner honouring the Virgin Mary reputedly carried by French-Canadian militia at General Louis-Joseph de Montcalm's victory at Carillon (now Ticonderoga, New York). Contrary to popular belief, the fleurs-de-lis are not taken from the banner of the kings of France, who used golden fleurs-de-lis. The white fleurs-de-lis on Quebec's flag are symbols of purity, which originally represented the Virgin Mary.

The desire of French Canadians in the province for a distinctive flag is an old one. Other flags that had been used included the Parti Patriote flag, a horizontal green, white, and red tricolour, which became the flag of the Saint-Jean-Baptiste Society; as well as the French tricolour.

The direct predecessor of the modern Fleurdelisé was created by Elphège Filiatrault, a parish priest in Saint-Jude, Quebec. Called the Carillon, it resembled the modern flag except that the fleurs-de-lis were at the corners pointing inward. It was based on an earlier flag with no cross and with the figure of the Virgin Mary in the centre.

The Carillon flag was first raised on September 26, 1902, and is preserved in the Saint-Hyacinthe, Quebec archives. Another version, with the Sacred Heart in the centre, also appeared, but was left behind in the push for a new provincial flag after World War II. The Carillon flags were used informally.

On May 26, 1868, Queen Victoria granted a coat of arms to Quebec, and thus from this point forward it could be considered that Quebec's official flag was a blue ensign with a Union Jack in the canton, and the Quebec coat of arms in the fly. However, it appears to have never been used — various sources including the official Quebec government site [1] mention that it was the Union Jack that flew over the Parliament Building until January 21, 1948, not the blue ensign. In addition, in 1938, at the opening of a mining school in Val-d'Or, the flag used to represent the Quebec government was a banner of arms. This was done at the behest of public servant Burroughs Pelletier, who had been told that the Ministry wanted a symbol but were unsure as to what should be used.

In 1947, an independent member of the Legislative Assembly, René Chaloult, demanded a new provincial flag to displace the unpopular Canadian Red Ensign and replace the unpopular and largely unused Quebec blue ensign in the province. Various ideas were discussed between Chaloult, Lionel Groulx, and Duplessis. One such idea involved incorporating a red maple leaf (later to be adopted for the flag of Canada). Burroughs Pelletier was also asked to present a few projects to Duplessis, none of which were adopted. He was however asked to give advice as to what he thought about what became the current design.

On January 21, 1948, the new flag was adopted and was flown over the Parliament Building that very afternoon. Apparently, it was the Carillon flag that flew that day, because the modern Fleurdelisé (with the fleurs-de-lis repositioned upright to their modern configuration in correspondence with the rules of heraldry) was not available until February 2. [2]

The flag was adopted by Royal Proclamation, and the news was presented to the Legislative Assembly more or less as a fait accompli. Opposition leader Adélard Godbout expressed his approval, as did René Chaloult. A law governing the usage of the flag was later officially adopted by the legislature on March 9, 1950. A more recent version of such a law was adopted in 2002.

The flag is blazoned Azure, a cross between four fleurs-de-lis argent.

The flag's official ratio is 2:3, but the flag is very often seen as a 1:2 variant to match the flag of Canada in size when flying together.

A 2001 survey by the North American Vexillological Association ranked the Fleurdelisé as the best provincial or territorial flag, and the third-best of the flags of all American and Canadian provinces, territories, and states. ^[2]

[edit] See also

• Flag
• Coat of Arms of Quebec
• Symbols of Quebec
• Timeline of Quebec history
• List of Canadian provincial and territorial symbols

[edit] Notes

[edit] External links

• Government of Québec: Québec's Coat of Arms, Flag and Emblems
• The Flags of Canada — Quebec
• Ministère des relations avec les citoyens et de l'Immigration — Le fleurdelisé : reflet de notre histoire en Amérique (in French)
• Adoption of the flag (in French)
• Histoire des drapeaux québécois (in French)
• Flag History of Quebec
• Proposals for a flag of Quebec, 1900–1902
• Proposals for a flag of Quebec, 1903–1904 Various versions of the Carillon flag

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