The Parti National was the name taken by the
Liberal Party of Quebec
The Quebec Liberal Party (QLP; french: Parti libéral du Québec, PLQ) is a provincial political party in Quebec. It has been independent of the federal Liberal Party of Canada since 1955. The QLP has always been associated with the colour red; e ...
,
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...
, under the premiership of
Honoré Mercier
Honoré Mercier (October 15, 1840 – October 30, 1894) was a Canadian lawyer, journalist and politician in Quebec. He was the ninth premier of Quebec from January 27, 1887, to December 21, 1891, as leader of the Parti National or Quebec Libera ...
.
Origin and beliefs
It was founded on November 17, 1885, the day following the execution of Métis Leader
Louis Riel
Louis Riel (; ; 22 October 1844 – 16 November 1885) was a Canadian politician, a founder of the province of Manitoba, and a political leader of the Métis people. He led two resistance movements against the Government of Canada and its first ...
. Many
French-speaking
French ( or ) is a Romance language of the Indo-European family. It descended from the Vulgar Latin of the Roman Empire, as did all Romance languages. French evolved from Gallo-Romance, the Latin spoken in Gaul, and more specifically in Nor ...
Catholic
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
s resented the way the federal government of
Sir John A. Macdonald
Sir John Alexander Macdonald (January 10 or 11, 1815 – June 6, 1891) was the first prime minister of Canada, serving from 1867 to 1873 and from 1878 to 1891. The dominant figure of Canadian Confederation, he had a political career that sp ...
had Riel hanged for treason. Mercier proposed to create a broader coalition which would include
Conservative
Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization i ...
dissidents as well as his Liberal base. In the following days 50,000 people gathered in the Champ de Mars 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 hear Mercier voice their support for Riel.
The Parti National, which was not affiliated with any federal party, promised to use the influence of the provincial government protect the
autonomy
In developmental psychology and moral, political, and bioethical philosophy, autonomy, from , ''autonomos'', from αὐτο- ''auto-'' "self" and νόμος ''nomos'', "law", hence when combined understood to mean "one who gives oneself one's ...
of
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 ...
and of its
French-speaking
French ( or ) is a Romance language of the Indo-European family. It descended from the Vulgar Latin of the Roman Empire, as did all Romance languages. French evolved from Gallo-Romance, the Latin spoken in Gaul, and more specifically in Nor ...
and Catholic identity.
Rise to power
The party won a narrow majority of seats to the
Legislative Assembly of Quebec
The Legislative Assembly of Quebec (French: ''Assemblée législative du Québec'') was the name of the lower house of Quebec's legislature from 1867 to December 31, 1968, when it was renamed the National Assembly of Quebec. At the same time, t ...
in the
1886 provincial election and took office in January 1887. It won a
landslide victory
A landslide victory is an election result in which the victorious candidate or party wins by an overwhelming margin. The term became popular in the 1800s to describe a victory in which the opposition is "buried", similar to the way in which a geol ...
in the
1890 election, doing poorly only in the
Mauricie
Mauricie () is a traditional and current administrative region of Quebec. La Mauricie National Park is contained within the region, making it a prime tourist location. The region has a land area of 35,860.05 km² (13,845.64 sq mi) and a popu ...
area where it was opposed by
Ultramontan Catholic
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
Bishop
A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution.
In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...
Louis-François Richer Laflèche
Louis-François Laflèche, (September 4, 1818 – July 14, 1898), was a Catholic bishop of the diocese of Trois-Rivières, in the province of Quebec, Canada.
Early life and career
He was born on September 4, 1818, in the village of Sainte-Ann ...
.
Its achievements include:
* Organizing the first interprovincial conference 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 1887
* Passing the ''Jesuit Estates Act'', which gave the order $400,000 in compensation for loss of property confiscated by the government decades earlier
* Establishing a department of Agriculture and Colonization in 1887 and appointing
Curé Labelle as its deputy minister
* Expanding the railroad to support the migration of urban residents to rural parts of Quebec, such as the
Laurentides
The Laurentides () is a region of Quebec. While it is often called the Laurentians in English, the region includes only part of the Laurentian mountains. It has a total land area of and its population was 589,400 inhabitants as of the 2016 Cens ...
and
Gaspésie
* Creating night schools, starting in 1889
Decline
With only 18 months served in its second term of office, the National Party was caught in a corruption scandal and removed from office by
Quebec Lieutenant-governor Auguste-Réal Angers
Sir Auguste-Réal Angers (4 October 1837 – 14 April 1919) was a Canadian judge and parliamentarian, holding seats both as a member of the House of Commons of Canada, and as a Senator. He was born in 1837 probably in Quebec City and died in ...
. Mercier stepped down as party leader and the Liberals were overwhelmingly defeated in the
1892 election. Mercier was later cleared of all charges.
Other ''Partis Nationaux''
* Mercier had tried to create a "Parti national" in 1872. This first attempt seems to have been short-lived and fruitless.
Biography of Honoré Mercier, Assemblée nationale du Québec
*Nationalist
Nationalism is an idea and movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the state. As a movement, nationalism tends to promote the interests of a particular nation (as in a group of people), Smith, Anthony. ''Nationalism: The ...
politicians René Chaloult
René Chaloult (January 26, 1901 – December 20, 1978) was a nationalist politician in Quebec, Canada.
Background
He was born on January 26, 1901, in Quebec City.
Political career
Chaloult first won a seat to the Legislative Assembly of ...
, Oscar Drouin
Oscar Drouin (September 29, 1890 – July 16, 1953) was a politician in Quebec, Canada.
Background
He was born on September 29, 1890 in Quebec City.
Member of the legislature
Drouin won a by-election in 1928 and became the Liberal Member ...
, Joseph-Ernest Grégoire
Joseph-Ernest Grégoire (July 31, 1886 – September 17, 1980) was a French Canadian politician.
Background
He was born in Disraeli, Quebec on July 31, 1886. He was an attorney and a professor. Member of the Barreau du Quebec in 1913, ...
, Philippe Hamel
Philippe Hamel (October 12, 1884 – January 22, 1954) was a nationalist and progressive politician in Quebec, Canada.
Background
He was born on October 12, 1884, in Quebec City. His father was Charles-Antoine-Auguste and his mother was So ...
and Adolphe Marcoux
Adolphe Marcoux (October 29, 1884 – September 10, 1951) was a physician and a nationalist politician in Quebec, Canada.
Born in Beauport, Quebec, Marcoux won a seat to the Legislative Assembly of Quebec as a Union Nationale candidate in ...
announced the creation of a "Parti National" in 1937, after they had left
Left may refer to:
Music
* ''Left'' (Hope of the States album), 2006
* ''Left'' (Monkey House album), 2016
* "Left", a song by Nickelback from the album ''Curb'', 1996
Direction
* Left (direction), the relative direction opposite of right
* L ...
the Union Nationale. It seems that this effort was abandoned briefly after. Chalout and Drouin ran as Liberals in the 1939 election.
See also
* Politics of Quebec
The politics of Quebec are centred on a provincial government resembling that of the other Canadian provinces, namely a constitutional monarchy and parliamentary democracy. The capital of Quebec is Quebec City, where the Lieutenant Governor, Pr ...
* National Assembly of Quebec
The National Assembly of Quebec (officially in french: link=no, Assemblée nationale du Québec) is the legislative body of the province of Quebec in Canada. Legislators are called MNAs (Members of the National Assembly; french: link=no, déput ...
* List of Quebec general elections
This article provides a summary of results for the general elections to the Canadian province of Quebec's unicameral legislative body, the National Assembly of Quebec (and its predecessor, the Legislative Assembly of Quebec). The number of sea ...
* Timeline of Quebec history
This article presents a detailed timeline of Quebec history. Events taking place outside Quebec, for example in English Canada, the United States, Britain or France, may be included when they are considered to have had a significant impact on Qu ...
* List of political parties in Quebec
The following is a list of all political parties in the Canadian province of Quebec. Parties represented in the National Assembly
Other registered parties
Other parties authorized by the Director-General of Elections:
Unregistered parties
* ...
* Liberal Party of Quebec
The Quebec Liberal Party (QLP; french: Parti libéral du Québec, PLQ) is a provincial political party in Quebec. It has been independent of the federal Liberal Party of Canada since 1955. The QLP has always been associated with the colour red; e ...
Footnotes
External links
National Assembly historical information
La Politique québécoise sur le Web
{{Authority control
Provincial political parties in Quebec
Political parties established in 1885
1885 establishments in Quebec
Quebec Liberal Party