René Lévesque Boulevard (), previously named Dorchester Boulevard, is one of the main streets in

Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

Quebec Quebec is Canada's List of Canadian provinces and territories by area, largest province by area. Located in Central Canada, the province shares borders with the provinces of Ontario to the west, Newfoundland and Labrador to the northeast, ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

. It is a main east–west thoroughfare passing through the downtown core in the borough of Ville-Marie. The street begins on the west at

Atwater Avenue Atwater Avenue (officially in ) is a major north–south street located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It links Doctor Penfield Avenue in the Ville-Marie borough to the north, and Henri Duhamel Street in the Verdun borough to the south. It is na ...

(though see below) and continues until it merges with Notre Dame Street East just east of Parthenais Street. This boulevard is named after former

sovereignist Sovereigntism, sovereignism or souverainism (from , , meaning "the ideology of sovereignty") is the notion of having control over one's conditions of existence, whether at the level of the self, social group, region, nation or globe. Typically ...

Quebec Premier The premier of Quebec ( (masculine) or eminine is the head of government of the Canadian province of Quebec. The current premier of Quebec is François Legault of the Coalition Avenir Québec, sworn in on October 18, 2018, following that ...

René Lévesque René Lévesque ( ; August 24, 1922 – November 1, 1987) was a Canadian politician and journalist who served as the 23rd premier of Quebec from 1976 to 1985. He was the first Québécois political leader since Confederation to seek, ...

. Much of René Lévesque Boulevard is lined with highrise office towers. Notable structures bordering René Lévesque Boulevard include, from west to east, the former

Montreal Children's Hospital Montreal Children's Hospital () is a children's hospital in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1904, it is affiliated with the McGill University Health Centre (MUHC) and McGill University, Faculty of Medicine. The hospital has 154 single-pati ...

, the

Canadian Centre for Architecture The Canadian Centre for Architecture (CCA; ) is a Architecture museum, museum of architecture and research centre in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is located at 1920, rue Baile (1920, Baile Street), between rue Fort (Fort Street) and rue Saint-Ma ...

E-Commerce Place E-Commerce Place () (CCE) is an office complex of two towers located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is located on René-Lévesque Boulevard West between Mountain Street and Lucien L'Allier Street in Downtown Montreal. It derives its name from t ...

1250 René-Lévesque 1250 René-Lévesque, formerly known as the "IBM-Marathon Tower," is Montreal's second-tallest skyscraper, with a roof height of 199 meters (without its spire), and a total height of 226.5 meters including the spire. The height definition follow ...

CIBC Tower CIBC Tower () is a 45-storey skyscraper in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The International Style office tower was built by Peter Dickinson, with associate architects Ross, Fish, Duschenes and Barrett, and was the city's tallest building from 1962 ...

Mary, Queen of the World Cathedral Mary, Queen of the World Cathedral or in full Mary, Queen of the World and St. James the Great Cathedral is a minor basilica in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, and the seat of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Montreal. It is the third largest church i ...

, the

Queen Elizabeth Hotel Fairmont The Queen Elizabeth () is a historic grand hotel in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. With 950 rooms and 21 floors it is the largest hotel in Quebec, and the second largest Fairmont hotel in Canada after the Fairmont Royal York in Toronto. Lo ...

Place Ville-Marie Place Ville Marie (, abbr. PVM) is a large office and shopping complex skyscraper in Downtown Montreal, Quebec, Canada, comprising four office buildings and an underground shopping plaza. The main building, 1 Place Ville Marie (formerly Royal B ...

Central Station Central stations or central railway stations emerged in the second half of the nineteenth century as railway stations that had initially been built on the edge of city centres were enveloped by urban expansion and became an integral part of the ...

, Telus Tower, St. Patrick's Basilica,

Complexe Desjardins Complexe Desjardins is a mixed-use office, hotel, and shopping mall complex located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, in the Quartier des spectacles area of Saint Catherine Street.Complexe Guy-Favreau Complexe Guy-Favreau is a twelve-storey building complex containing Canadian government offices built in 1984. It is located at 200 René Lévesque Boulevard in Ville-Marie, Montréal and extends over a six-acre plot of land, formerly part of ...

Hydro-Québec Building The Hydro-Québec Building () in Montreal, Quebec, Canada stands at with 27 floors. Completed in 1962, it houses the headquarters for Hydro-Québec as well the Montreal offices of the Premier of Quebec. The building was designed by Gaston Gagni ...

, UQAM and the

Maison Radio-Canada Maison de Radio-Canada (; English: ''CBC House''), located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, is the broadcast headquarters, studios and master control for all French-language radio and television services of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (kn ...

. Former structures on the street include the

Laurentian Hotel The Laurentian Hotel was a 1000-room hotel on Dorchester Street, now René Lévesque Boulevard, in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The hotel was built in 1947 and demolished in 1977. The building was designed by Charles Davis Goodman, who was the arch ...

and a residential area razed to make way for the future

YUL Condos YUL Condominiums is a large residential skyscraper complex in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The towers are located on René-Lévesque Boulevard at the corner of Bishop and Mackay, near E-Commerce Place and the Bell Centre Bell Centre (French: ' ...

residential project. All of Canada's French radio and television networks are located within a few blocks of each other, making the street French Canada's media centre. The street separates the adjacent

Place du Canada Place du Canada (part of Dominion Square until 1967) is a large urban square in downtown Montreal. Overview At it is slightly larger than the adjacent Dorchester Square, with a more varied topography due to a downward slope towards De la Ga ...

and

Dorchester Square Dorchester Square, originally Dominion Square, is a large urban square in downtown Montreal. Together with Place du Canada, the area is just over or of manicured and protected urban parkland bordered by René Lévesque Boulevard to the south ...

Dorchester

From the time of its formal naming in 1844, the street was known as "Dorchester Boulevard" in honour of

Guy Carleton, 1st Baron Dorchester Guy Carleton, 1st Baron Dorchester (3 September 1724 – 10 November 1808), known between 1776 and 1786 as Sir Guy Carleton, was a British Army officer and colonial administrator. He twice served as Governor of the Province of Quebec, from 176 ...

(1724–1808),

Governor A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...

of the

Province of Quebec Quebec is Canada's largest province by area. Located in Central Canada, the province shares borders with the provinces of Ontario to the west, Newfoundland and Labrador to the northeast, New Brunswick to the southeast and a coastal border ...

and

Governor General of Canada The governor general of Canada () is the federal representative of the . The monarch of Canada is also sovereign and head of state of 14 other Commonwealth realms and resides in the United Kingdom. The monarch, on the Advice (constitutional la ...

. As part of the

Golden Square Mile The Golden Square Mile (, ), also known as the Square Mile, is the nostalgic name given to an urban neighbourhood developed principally between 1850 and 1930 at the foot of Mount Royal, in the west-central section of downtown Montreal in Quebec, Ca ...

, several mansions once stood on this street. Shortly after

Jean Drapeau Jean Drapeau (; 18 February 1916 – 12 August 1999) was a Canadian politician who served as mayor of Montreal for 2 non-consecutive terms from 1954 to 1957 and from 1960 to 1986. Major accomplishments of the Drapeau Administration include ...

was elected mayor in 1954, his administration ordered the destruction of hundreds of buildings along Dorchester. In 1955, the street was widened into an eight-lane boulevard. The name was changed in 1987 after the death of

Quebec premier The premier of Quebec ( (masculine) or eminine is the head of government of the Canadian province of Quebec. The current premier of Quebec is François Legault of the Coalition Avenir Québec, sworn in on October 18, 2018, following that ...

. A portion of the thoroughfare located in the largely anglophone city of

Westmount Westmount () is a city on the Island of Montreal, in southwestern Quebec, Canada. It is an enclave of the city of Montreal, with a population of 19,658 as of the 2021 Canadian census. Westmount is home to schools, an arena, a pool, a public li ...

, between Clarke and Atwater, retains the name " Boulevard Dorchester", as does a portion in the mainly French-speaking

Montréal-Est Montreal East (, ) is an on-island suburb in southwestern Quebec, Canada, on the island of Montreal. Montreal-Est has been home to many large oil refineries since 1915. History The formation of Montréal-Est as a municipality was initiated in ...

, where it is known as "Rue Dorchester."

Other streets of the same name

There is an unrelated street called ''Boulevard René-Lévesque'' on

Nuns' Island Nuns' Island (officially Île-des-Sœurs; ) is an island located in the Saint Lawrence River that forms a part of the city of Montreal, Quebec. It is part of the borough of Verdun. History Originally called Île Saint-Paul in honour of the ...

Verdun Verdun ( , ; ; ; official name before 1970: Verdun-sur-Meuse) is a city in the Meuse (department), Meuse departments of France, department in Grand Est, northeastern France. It is an arrondissement of the department. In 843, the Treaty of V ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rene Levesque Boulevard Boulevards in Montreal Downtown Montreal Centre-Sud Quartier Latin, Montreal