Noël Brûlart (or ''Brulart''"''Sillery''" on Quebec toponymy commission.) de Sillery (1577–1640) was a French diplomat who, upon renouncing the world and taking holy orders, provided from his fortune for the establishment of a mission in
New France
New France (french: Nouvelle-France) was the area colonized by France in North America, beginning with the exploration of the Gulf of Saint Lawrence by Jacques Cartier in 1534 and ending with the cession of New France to Great Britain and Spai ...
.
The youngest child of Lord Pierre Brûlart de Berni and Dame Marie Cauchon de Sillery, Noel was named for the day of his birth, December 25, 1577. He joined the military-religious order of the
Knights of Malta
The Sovereign Military Order of Malta (SMOM), officially the Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of Saint John of Jerusalem, of Rhodes and of Malta ( it, Sovrano Militare Ordine Ospedaliero di San Giovanni di Gerusalemme, di Rodi e di Malta; ...
at a young age and distinguished himself by his service on that island.
In 1607, while on leave, he was presented at court in Paris. In 1614 he was made Ambassador to the Spanish court and in 1622, to Rome. It was in Rome that he first conceived of the idea of renouncing worldly goods and joining the priesthood.
He returned to Paris in 1624, where he lived a life of luxury that, for all the honours and riches he enjoyed, failed to satisfy him. In 1626, moved by the words of
St. Vincent de Paul
Vincent de Paul, CM (24 April 1581 – 27 September 1660), commonly known as Saint Vincent de Paul, was a Occitan French Catholic priest who dedicated himself to serving the poor.
In 1622 Vincent was appointed a chaplain to the galleys. Afte ...
, he vowed to reform his life, dedicating his considerable energy, talents and fortune to the task of helping others. He began to give his money in support of a wide variety of charitable causes and foundations.
In 1632, he began to prepare in earnest for holy orders and divested himself of his palatial property in Paris. He successfully petitioned the Pope for the special dispensation that was required for a Knight of Malta to leave the order and become a priest.
In 1632, he gave twelve thousand pounds to fund the foundation of a mission in New France (Canada), which would eventually be named Sillery, in remembrance of his generosity. He became a priest in 1634. The mission, at that time called St. Joseph Mission, was built in 1638.
The former city of Sillery, Québec, was named for him. Located just west of old
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 ...
, Sillery was among the many outlying municipalities amalgamated into an expanded Quebec City on January 1, 2002. Its former territory now forms part of the borough of