Charles Hindelang (March 29, 1810 – February 15, 1839) was a French-born military man who fought for the independence of

Lower Canada The Province of Lower Canada (french: province du Bas-Canada) was a British colony on the lower Saint Lawrence River and the shores of the Gulf of Saint Lawrence (1791–1841). It covered the southern portion of the current Province of Quebec an ...

(present-day

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

). For these actions, he was hanged by the British authorities. Born in Paris, he also had a

Swiss Swiss may refer to: * the adjectival form of Switzerland * Swiss people Places * Swiss, Missouri * Swiss, North Carolina *Swiss, West Virginia * Swiss, Wisconsin Other uses *Swiss-system tournament, in various games and sports *Swiss Internation ...

heritage and was a

Calvinist Calvinism (also called the Reformed Tradition, Reformed Protestantism, Reformed Christianity, or simply Reformed) is a major branch of Protestantism that follows the theological tradition and forms of Christian practice set down by John Ca ...

. Hindelang took part in the

French Revolution of 1830 The French Revolution of 1830, also known as the July Revolution (french: révolution de Juillet), Second French Revolution, or ("Three Glorious ays), was a second French Revolution after the first in 1789. It led to the overthrow of King ...

(the July Revolution), in which he became an officer. He declared that he came to the Americas to do commerce at the demand of his parents. This was however contradicted by P. H. Touvrey, a compatriot of Hindelang present during the Rebellion, who said that Hindelang specifically came to join the Lower Canada Rebellion. Recruited by Ludger Duvernay in the United States, he arrived in Lower Canada on November 4, 1838. During the Lower Canada Rebellion of 1838, he fought the

Battle of Odelltown The Battle of Odelltown was fought on November 9, 1838, between Loyal volunteer forces under Lewis Odell and Charles McAllister and Patriote rebels under Robert Nelson, Médard Hébert and Charles Hindelang. The rebels were defeated in this b ...

on Patriote ranks, the last battle of the conflict. The Patriotes were defeated. Hindelang was apprehended shortly after as he attempted to flee back to the United States, and was sentenced to death. He was

hanged Hanging is the suspension of a person by a noose or ligature around the neck.Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed. Hanging as method of execution is unknown, as method of suicide from 1325. The ''Oxford English Dictionary'' states that hanging in ...

on February 15, 1839 at the Pied-du-Courant Prison in

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...

with such people as

François-Marie-Thomas Chevalier de Lorimier François-Marie-Thomas Chevalier de Lorimier (December 27, 1803 – February 15, 1839), also known under shorter names such as François-Marie-Thomas de Lorimier, Marie-Thomas Chevalier de Lorimier or Chevalier de Lorimier, was a notary who fought ...

. In front of the crowd, before the execution, he shouted: "The cause for which I am sacrificed is noble and great .. Canadiens, my last goodbye is the old cry of France: Long live freedom! (''

Vive Vive may refer to: *Vive, Viva, a Romance language expression * ''Vive'' (José José album), 1974 * ''Vive'' (Lucía Méndez album), 2004 *Vive (a cappella group), a cappella group from England, United Kingdom *ViVe Televisión, a state-owned Ven ...

la liberté!'')""On a choisi le meilleur"
by Jean-Claude Germain, L'aut'journal, n.196, February 2001 His character plays a notable role in

Pierre Falardeau Pierre Falardeau (December 28, 1946 – September 25, 2009) was a Québécois film and documentary director, pamphleteer and noted activist for Quebec independence. Falardeau wrote at least one book, ''Rien n'est plus précieux que la liberté ...

's film '' February 15, 1839'' about the incarceration and execution of the Patriotes.

References

1810 births 1839 deaths French Calvinist and Reformed Christians French soldiers Military personnel from Paris Executed revolutionaries Lower Canada Rebellion people Quebec revolutionaries Executed French people 19th-century executions by the United Kingdom People executed by Lower Canada People executed by British North America by hanging Executed people from Île-de-France {{France-mil-bio-stub

See also

References