René Marc Jalbert (20 February 1921 – 21 January 1996) was a retired

Canadian Forces } The Canadian Armed Forces (CAF; french: Forces armées canadiennes, ''FAC'') are the unified military forces of Canada, including sea, land, and air elements referred to as the Royal Canadian Navy, Canadian Army, and Royal Canadian Air Force. ...

officer and

sergeant-at-arms A serjeant-at-arms, or sergeant-at-arms, is an officer appointed by a deliberative body, usually a legislature, to keep order during its meetings. The word "serjeant" is derived from the Latin ''serviens'', which means "servant". Historically, s ...

of the

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 ...

, known for his role in ending

Denis Lortie Denis Lortie (born March 10, 1959) is a former Canadian Forces corporal. In 1984, he stormed into the Parliament Building in Quebec City and opened fire with several firearms, killing three government employees and wounding 13 others. The Natio ...

's killing spree in the Parliament Building on 8 May 1984. Later he served as

Usher of the Black Rod Black Rod (officially known as the Lady Usher of the Black Rod or, if male, the Gentleman Usher of the Black Rod) is an official in the parliaments of several Commonwealth countries. The position originates in the House of Lords of the Parliam ...

for the

Parliament of Canada The Parliament of Canada (french: Parlement du Canada) is the federal legislature of Canada, seated at Parliament Hill in Ottawa, and is composed of three parts: the King, the Senate, and the House of Commons. By constitutional convention, the ...

Military career

Jalbert served in

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

and the

Korean War , date = {{Ubl, 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 (''de facto'')({{Age in years, months, weeks and days, month1=6, day1=25, year1=1950, month2=7, day2=27, year2=1953), 25 June 1950 – present (''de jure'')({{Age in years, months, weeks a ...

, ultimately attaining the rank of major in the Royal 22^e Régiment.

Sergeant-at-arms

After his military career, he served as sergeant-at-arms in the

. On 8 May 1984,

entered the Parliament Building in the morning, before government business had begun, killing three government employees and wounding 13 others on his way to the Assembly Chamber. Upon learning of Lortie's presence, Jalbert entered the Assembly Chamber. Seeing Lortie in uniform, Jalbert showed the gunman his identification as a military veteran, opening a dialogue with him. Jalbert convinced Lortie to allow several employees to leave the premises. Then he invited Lortie into his downstairs office to discuss the situation, in effect setting himself up as hostage while removing Lortie from the scene. At extreme personal risk, Jalbert spent four hours persuading Lortie to surrender to police. Jalbert's actions almost certainly prevented a higher death toll. For his bravery, Jalbert was awarded the Cross of Valour, Canada's highest civilian award for bravery, which was presented to him 9 November 1984, by Governor General

Jeanne Sauvé Jeanne Mathilde Sauvé (; April 26, 1922 – January 26, 1993) was a Canadian politician and journalist who served as Governor General of Canada, the 23rd since Canadian Confederation. Sauvé was born in Prud'homme, Saskatchewan, and educate ...

in a ceremony at Rideau Hall, Ottawa. The award citation reads:

Usher of the black rod and legacy

From July 1985 to March 1989, Jalbert was

in the federal

in Ottawa, the most senior protocol position in the Parliamentary staff. Jalbert died at age 74 in 1996. His younger brother was film and television actor

Pierre Jalbert Pierre Jalbert (9 January 1925 – 22 January 2014) was a Canadian skier, actor, and motion picture film and sound editor, primarily known for his role as "Caje" on the US television 1960s World War II program ''Combat!''. Early life He was ...

, who died in 2014. In 2006 a street in Quebec City was named after René Jalbert.www.ville.quebec.qc.ca Toponymy
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Awards and decorations

Jalbert's personal awards and decorations include the following:

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jalbert, René 1921 births 1996 deaths Canadian military personnel of the Korean War Canadian Army personnel of World War II Recipients of the Cross of Valour (Canada) Quebec civil servants Royal 22nd Regiment officers