Denis-Benjamin Viger (; August 19, 1774 – February 13, 1861) was a 19th-century politician, lawyer, businessman in

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 ...

. He was a leader in the ''Patriote'' movement. Viger was part of the

militia A militia () is generally an army or some other fighting organization of non-professional soldiers, citizens of a country, or subjects of a state, who may perform military service during a time of need, as opposed to a professional force of r ...

in the early 19th century and then a captain in the

War of 1812 The War of 1812 (18 June 1812 – 17 February 1815) was fought by the United States of America and its indigenous allies against the United Kingdom and its allies in British North America, with limited participation by Spain in Florida. It bega ...

. He retired from the militia in 1824 with the rank of major.

Biography

Viger was born 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 ...

to Denis Viger and Périne-Charles Cherrier. His father had represented

Montreal East Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple-pe ...

district in the

Legislative Assembly of Lower Canada The Legislative Assembly of Lower Canada was the lower house of the bicameral structure of provincial government in Lower Canada until 1838. The legislative assembly was created by the Constitutional Act of 1791. The lower house consisted of el ...

from 1796 to 1800. In 1808, he married the 30-year-old daughter of

Pierre Foretier Pierre Foretier (January 12, 1738 – December 3, 1815) was a fur trader, seigneur and official in Lower Canada. He was born in Montreal in 1738, the son of a shoemaker who died when Pierre was nine. He became a merchant supplying goods to fu ...

, Marie-Amable Foretier. They had one child who died in 1814. He was elected to the

for Montreal East in 1808 and 1810, then in

Leinster Leinster ( ; ga, Laighin or ) is one of the provinces of Ireland, situated in the southeast and east of Ireland. The province comprises the ancient Kingdoms of Meath, Leinster and Osraige. Following the 12th-century Norman invasion of Ir ...

in 1810 and 1814 and in

Kent Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...

in 1816, 1820, 1824 and 1827. In 1829, he was appointed to the

Legislative Council of Lower Canada The Legislative Council of Lower Canada was the upper house of the bicameral structure of provincial government in Lower Canada until 1838. The upper house consisted of appointed councillors who voted on bills passed up by the Legislative Assembly ...

. Prominent in the ''Patriote'' movement and denounced as the owner of seditious newspapers, Viger was imprisoned in 1838 when

martial law Martial law is the imposition of direct military control of normal civil functions or suspension of civil law by a government, especially in response to an emergency where civil forces are overwhelmed, or in an occupied territory. Use Marti ...

was imposed in Lower Canada; refusing to post

bail Bail is a set of pre-trial restrictions that are imposed on a suspect to ensure that they will not hamper the judicial process. Bail is the conditional release of a defendant with the promise to appear in court when required. In some countries ...

in protest of the repressive martial law and demanding a regular trial, he was not released until May 1840. In 1841, he was elected to the

Legislative Assembly of the Province of Canada The Legislative Assembly of the Province of Canada was the lower house of the legislature for the Province of Canada, which consisted of the former provinces of Lower Canada, then known as Canada East and later the province of Quebec, and Upper C ...

representing Richelieu. From December 12, 1843 to June 17, 1846 he was one of the

Joint Premiers of the Province of Canada Joint premiers of the Province of Canada were the prime ministers of the Province of Canada, from the 1841 unification of Upper Canada and Lower Canada until Confederation in 1867. Following the abortive Rebellions of 1837, Lord Durham was appoint ...

. He was elected in a by-election to represent

Trois-Rivières Trois-Rivières (, – 'Three Rivers') is a city in the Mauricie administrative region of Quebec, Canada, at the confluence of the Saint-Maurice River, Saint-Maurice and Saint Lawrence River, Saint Lawrence rivers, on the north shore of the Sain ...

in 1845 but resigned in 1847. He was appointed to the Legislative Council in 1848 but lost his seat for nonattendance in 1858. Viger died in Montreal in 1861.

External links

* *
Ancestors of Denis-Benjamin Viger (french)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Viger, Denis-Benjamin 1774 births 1861 deaths Canadian prisoners and detainees Members of the Legislative Assembly of Lower Canada Members of the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Canada from Canada East Members of the Legislative Council of the Province of Canada Pre-Confederation Quebec people Premiers of the Province of Canada Presidents of the Saint-Jean-Baptiste Society of Montreal

Biography

See also

External links