Explorer Samuel de Champlain arrived on the ship ''Don de Dieu'', or "Gift of God" to found

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 ...

in 1608. ''Don de Dieu'' is one of three ships that set sail from France under Captain Henry Couillard in the spring of 1608 to

Tadoussac Tadoussac () is a village in Quebec, Canada, at the confluence of the Saguenay and Saint Lawrence rivers. The indigenous Innu call the place ''Totouskak'' (plural for ''totouswk'' or ''totochak'') meaning "bosom", probably in reference to the tw ...

, from where the men, bringing the materials, reached on small boats what is now the Vieux-Québec (Canada), on July 3, 1608, date of the founding of

Quebec City Quebec City ( or ; french: Ville de Québec), officially Québec (), is the capital city of the Canadian province of Quebec. As of July 2021, the city had a population of 549,459, and the metropolitan area had a population of 839,311. It is t ...

. The ship is remembered in the

motto A motto (derived from the Latin , 'mutter', by way of Italian , 'word' or 'sentence') is a sentence or phrase expressing a belief or purpose, or the general motivation or intention of an individual, family, social group, or organisation. Mot ...

: ''Don de Dieu feray valoir,'' "I shall put God's gift to good use."

1633 voyage to Quebec

In 1633, Cardinal Richelieu appointed Champlain as his lieutenant, giving him the opportunity to return to Quebec. (Champlain had been removed from his position as Governor of Quebec the prior year and had dedicated himself to working on a new edition of his voyages.) In March 1633, Champlain set sail for Quebec with about 200 colonists in three ships, ''Don de Dieu'', ''St. Pierre'', and ''St. Jean''. He was received in Quebec with "loud acclamations."

Replica ship at 300th anniversary

A pageant was held for the 300th anniversary, the Quebec Tercentenary in 1908.

July 23. At 3 p.m. — Arrival of Champlain on his ship, ''Don de Dieu''. At 4 o'clock. — Presentation of the Civic Address of welcome to H.R.H. The Prince of Wales with other official ceremonies commemorative of Champlain and of the founding of Quebec. Review of the Historical procession in front of the Champlain Monument. Illumination of the combined fleets and of the surrounding country in the evening and great display of fireworks on the Heights of Levis opposite Quebec.

References

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External links

Arrival of the ''Don de Dieu''
photograph and article from the ''Quebec Tercentenary Commemorative History''
Description of the ''Don de Dieu''
with drawing of the model at the Quebec Tercentenary Ship names Ships of France History of Quebec City Water transport in Quebec Samuel de Champlain 1600s ships Age of Discovery ships Age of Sail individual ships