Ludger Duvernay (January 22, 1799 – November 28, 1852), born in Verchères, Quebec, was a

printer Printer may refer to: Technology * Printer (publishing), a person or a company * Printer (computing), a hardware device * Optical printer for motion picture films People * Nariman Printer (fl. c. 1940), Indian journalist and activist * James ...

by profession and published a number of newspapers including the '' Gazette des Trois-Rivières,'' the first newspaper in Lower Canada outside of Quebec City and Montreal, and also ''

La Minerve ''La Minerve'' (French for "The Minerva") was a newspaper founded in Montreal, Lower Canada (present-day Quebec) by Augustin-Norbert Morin to promote the political goals of Louis-Joseph Papineau's Parti patriote. It was notably directed by Ludge ...

'', which supported the

Parti patriote The Parti canadien () or Parti patriote () was a primarily francophone political party in what is now Quebec founded by members of the liberal elite of Lower Canada at the beginning of the 19th century. Its members were made up of liberal prof ...

and

Louis-Joseph Papineau Louis-Joseph Papineau (October 7, 1786 – September 23, 1871), born in Montreal, Quebec, was a politician, lawyer, and the landlord of the ''seigneurie de la Petite-Nation''. He was the leader of the reformist Patriote movement before the Lower ...

in the years leading up to the

Lower Canada Rebellion The Lower Canada Rebellion (french: rébellion du Bas-Canada), commonly referred to as the Patriots' War () in French, is the name given to the armed conflict in 1837–38 between rebels and the colonial government of Lower Canada (now southe ...

Biography

Duvernay was one of several journalists imprisoned early in 1832 for criticizing the non-elected legislative council that represented the interests of the

Château Clique The Château Clique, or Clique du Château, was a group of wealthy families in Lower Canada in the early 19th century. They were the Lower Canadian equivalent of the Family Compact in Upper Canada. They were also known on the electoral scene ...

. Duvernay, editor of ''La Minerve'' and

Daniel Tracey Daniel Tracey (probably 1794 – July 18, 1832) born in Roscrea, Tipperary County, Ireland, was a doctor, journalist and Canadian politician. He arrived in the Province of Lower Canada (today Quebec) with his younger siblings in 1825. Th ...

, another editor of the English language ''The Vindicator'' newspaper were arrested for libel and imprisoned together for 40 days for writing articles that said that "it is certain that before long all of America must be republican." They were released after much public support and condemnation of the arrests. He was arrested by the authorities on four separate occasions. On April 5, 1836, he fought in a duel with

Clément-Charles Sabrevois de Bleury Lt.-Colonel The Hon. Clément-Charles Sabrevois de Bleury (October 28, 1798 – September 15, 1862) of Montreal was a soldier, seigneur, lawyer, politician, newspaper founder and noted duellist. Bleury Street in Montreal is named for him. His n ...

, which ended with him being shot in the right

knee In humans and other primates, the knee joins the thigh with the leg and consists of two joints: one between the femur and tibia (tibiofemoral joint), and one between the femur and patella (patellofemoral joint). It is the largest joint in the hu ...

. On June 9, 1834, Duvernay founded the ''Association Saint-Jean-Baptiste'' (today, the

Société Saint-Jean-Baptiste The Saint-Jean-Baptiste Society (french: Société Saint-Jean-Baptiste) is an institution in Quebec dedicated to the protection of Quebec francophone interests and to the promotion of Quebec sovereignism. It is known as the oldest patriotic assoc ...

and designated June 24 a day of celebration of ''Canadien'' history and culture. The society was previously known as the Société ''Aide-toi et le ciel t'aidera'' ("help yourself and Heaven will help you"), founded by Duvernay on March 8, 1834. Duvernay was briefly a member of 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 ele ...

representing Lachenaie in 1837. When on November 16 Governor Gosford issued warrants for the arrest of 26 patriot leaders, Duvernay was on the list. He had however been warned that his arrest was imminent and fled in time to

Burlington, Vermont Burlington is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Vermont and the seat of Chittenden County. It is located south of the Canada–United States border and south of Montreal. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the population was 44,743. It ...

. He returned to

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 ...

in 1842 to resume publication of a more moderate ''La Minerve,'' which was at first sympathetic to

Louis-Hippolyte Lafontaine Sir Louis-Hippolyte Ménard '' dit'' La Fontaine, 1st Baronet, KCMG (October 4, 1807 – February 26, 1864) was a Canadian politician who served as the first Premier of the United Province of Canada and the first head of a responsible governmen ...

and then later,

George-Étienne Cartier Sir George-Étienne Cartier, 1st Baronet, (pronounced ; September 6, 1814May 20, 1873) was a Canadian statesman and Father of Confederation. The English spelling of the name—George, instead of Georges, the usual French spelling—is explained ...

. In 1922, June 24 became a public holiday in Quebec, and since 1977 it has been the national holiday of Quebec.Donald Prémont.
Duvernay, Ludger (1799-1852)
", in the site ''Les Patriotes de 1837@1838'', May 20, 2000 On his death in Montreal in 1852, 10,000 people attended his funeral. Duvernay was interred in the

Cimetière Notre-Dame-des-Neiges Notre Dame des Neiges Cemetery (french: Cimetière Notre-Dame-des-Neiges) is a rural cemetery located in the borough of Côte-des-Neiges-Notre-Dame-de-Grâce, Montreal, Quebec, Canada which was founded in 1854. The entrance and the grounds run a ...

Work

Newspapers, reviews

* ''Gazette des Trois-Rivières'', Trois-Rivières, 1817 * ''L'Ami de la religion et du roi'', Trois-Rivières, 1820 * ''Le Constitutionnel'', Trois-Rivières, 1823 * ''L'Argus'', Trois-Rivières, 1826–1828 * ''Canadian Spectator'', Montreal 1822-1829 * ''La Minerve'', Montreal, 1826–1837 and 1842–1899 * ''Le Guide du cultivateur, ou Nouvel almanac de la température pour chaque jour de l'année'', Montreal, 1830–1833 * ''Le Patriote Canadien'',

, 1839-1840 * ''La Revue canadienne'', Montreal, 1845–1848

Other

* "Liste des journaux publiés dans le Bas-Canada depuis 1764", in ''La Canadienne'', Montreal, October 22, 1840 : 3–4

Notes

References

In English

* * Abidor, Mitch.
The Patriotes Rebellion
, in ''Marxists.org''

In French

* Donald Prémont.
Duvernay, Ludger (1799-1852)
, in the site ''Les Patriotes de 1837@1838'', May 20, 2000 * Denis Monières. ''Ludger Duvernay et la révolution intellectuelle au Bas-Canada'', Montréal : Éditions Québec/Amérique, 1987, 231 p. * Jean-Marie Lebel. ''Ludger Duvernay et La Minerve. Étude d'une entreprise de presse montréalaise de la première moitié du XIXe siècle'', Université Laval, 1982, 212 p. * Robert Rumilly. ''Histoire de la Société Saint-Jean Baptiste de Montréal. Des patriotes au fleurdelisé'', Montréal : Éditions de l'Aurore, 1975, 564 p.