Sir Narcisse-Fortunat Belleau (October 20, 1808 – September 14, 1894) was a Canadian politician who served as the first

Lieutenant Governor of Quebec The lieutenant governor of Quebec (; French (masculine): ''Lieutenant-gouverneur du Québec'', or (feminine): ''Lieutenante-gouverneure du Québec'') is the viceregal representative in Quebec of the , who operates distinctly within the province ...

. Prior to

Canadian Confederation Canadian Confederation (french: Confédération canadienne, link=no) was the process by which three British North American provinces, the Province of Canada, Nova Scotia, and New Brunswick, were united into one federation called the Canada, Dom ...

, he served as the leader of the

Parti bleu The Blue Party (french: Parti bleu) was a political group that contested elections in the Eastern section of the Province of Canada. The Blue Party was ideologically located on the political right, and was defined by its support for the Catholi ...

Canada East Canada East (french: links=no, Canada-Est) was the northeastern portion of the United Province of Canada. Lord Durham's Report investigating the causes of the Upper and Lower Canada Rebellions recommended merging those two colonies. The new ...

Early life

He was born in

Quebec City Quebec City ( or ; french: Ville de Québec), officially Québec (), is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Quebec. As of July 2021, the city had a population of 549,459, and the Communauté métrop ...

in 1808. He studied at the

Petit Séminaire de Québec Petite or petite may refer to: *Petit (crater), a small, bowl-shaped lunar crater on Mare Spumans * ''Petit'' (EP), a 1995 EP by Japanese singer-songwriter Ua * Petit (typography), another name for brevier-size type *Petit four * Petit Gâteau *P ...

and went on to article in law, receiving his license to practice in 1832. In 1835, he married Marie-Reine-Josephte, the daughter of Quebec merchant

Louis Gauvreau Louis Gauvreau (May 11, 1761 – August 16, 1822) was a businessman and political figure in Lower Canada. He was born in Petite-Rivière-Saint-Charles near Quebec City in 1761 and studied at Quebec. He owned a general store and was also in ...

. In 1848, he ran unsuccessfully as a Reformer in Portneuf. In the same year, he was elected to the city council for Quebec and served as mayor from 1850 to 1853. During his term as mayor, a system providing drinking water was installed in the city. He served on the board of the

Quebec Bank Quebec Bank was founded on June 9, 1818 to meet a perceived need by some merchants and residents of Quebec City. They wanted an alternative to the newly founded Bank of Montreal which they felt was inadequate for the needs of the province. The ba ...

, later merged with the

Royal Bank of Canada Royal Bank of Canada (RBC; french: Banque royale du Canada) is a Canadian multinational financial services company and the largest bank in Canada by market capitalization. The bank serves over 17 million clients and has more than 89,000& ...

, from 1848 to 1893.

Political career

In 1852, he was appointed to the

Legislative Council of the Province of Canada The Legislative Council of the Province of Canada was the upper house 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 Canada, then known as ...

. He became a

Queen's Counsel In the United Kingdom and in some Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth countries, a King's Counsel (Post-nominal letters, post-nominal initials KC) during the reign of a king, or Queen's Counsel (post-nominal initials QC) during the reign of ...

in 1854. In 1857, he was named speaker of the Legislative Council and so became a member of the Executive Council. He was knighted in 1860. He became premier for Canada East and receiver general in 1865 on the death of Sir

Étienne-Paschal Taché Sir Étienne-Paschal Taché (5 September 1795 – 30 July 1865) was a Canadian doctor, politician, and Father of Confederation. Life Born in St. Thomas, Lower Canada, in 1795, the third son of Charles Taché and Geneviève Michon, Tach� ...

and served in that role until

Confederation A confederation (also known as a confederacy or league) is a union of sovereign groups or states united for purposes of common action. Usually created by a treaty, confederations of states tend to be established for dealing with critical issu ...

. He was nominated for a seat in the

Senate of Canada The Senate of Canada (french: region=CA, Sénat du Canada) is the upper house of the Parliament of Canada. Together with the Crown and the House of Commons, they comprise the bicameral legislature of Canada. The Senate is modelled after the B ...

in 1867 but withdrew when he was named the

first First or 1st is the ordinal form of the number one (#1). First or 1st may also refer to: *World record, specifically the first instance of a particular achievement Arts and media Music * 1$T, American rapper, singer-songwriter, DJ, and rec ...

in July of the same year. He refused a seat in the Senate when he retired from this post in 1873. He was made a Knight Commander of the

Order of St Michael and St George The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is a British order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George IV, George IV, Prince of Wales, while he was acting as prince regent for his father, George III, King George III. ...

in 1879.

Later life

After politics, Belleau continued to sit on the board of the Quebec Bank and took an active role in social functions. He maintained his political influence. He died at Quebec City in 1894 and left his fortune, which contemporaries estimated as between $200,000 and $400,000, to his nephew.

References

External links

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1808 births 1894 deaths Mayors of Quebec City Members of the Legislative Council of the Province of Canada Canadian Knights Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George Conservative Party of Canada (1867–1942) senators Lieutenant Governors of Quebec Premiers of the Province of Canada Canadian King's Counsel French Quebecers Members of the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Canada from Canada East {{Quebec-mayor-stub