Ville-Marie is the name of a

borough A borough is an administrative division in various English-speaking countries. In principle, the term ''borough'' designates a self-governing walled town, although in practice, official use of the term varies widely. History In the Middle Ag ...

(''

arrondissement An arrondissement (, , ) is any of various administrative divisions of France, Belgium, Haiti, certain other Francophone countries, as well as the Netherlands. Europe France The 101 French departments are divided into 342 ''arrondissements ...

'') in the centre of

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple- ...

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 thirte ...

. The borough is named after

Fort Ville-Marie Fort Ville-Marie was a French fortress and settlement established in May 1642 by a company of French settlers, led by Paul de Chomedey de Maisonneuve, on the Island of Montreal in the Saint Lawrence River at the confluence of the Ottawa River, i ...

, the French settlement that would later become Montreal (now

Old Montreal Old Montreal (French: ''Vieux-Montréal'') is a historic neighbourhood within the municipality of Montreal in the province of Quebec, Canada. Home to the Old Port of Montreal, the neighbourhood is bordered on the west by McGill Street, on th ...

), which was located within the present-day borough. Old Montreal is a

National Historic Site of Canada National Historic Sites of Canada (french: Lieux historiques nationaux du Canada) are places that have been designated by the federal Minister of the Environment on the advice of the Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada (HSMBC), as being ...

. The borough comprises all of

downtown Montreal Downtown Montreal (French: ''Centre-Ville de Montréal'') is the central business district of Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The district is situated on the southernmost slope of Mount Royal, and occupies the western portion of the borough of Ville ...

, including the Quartier des spectacles;

and the Old Port; the

Centre-Sud The Centre-Sud is a neighbourhood located in the easternmost edge of the Ville-Marie borough of the city of Montreal. Home to Montreal's Gay Village and to the Sainte-Marie area, the Centre-Sud has long been seen as one of the city's most c ...

area; most of

Mount Royal Park Mount Royal (french: link=no, Mont Royal, ) is a large intrusive rock hill or small mountain in the city of Montreal, immediately west of Downtown Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The best-known hypothesis for the origin of the name Montreal is the h ...

as well as

Saint Helen's Island Saint Helen's Island (french: Île Sainte-Hélène) is an island in the Saint Lawrence River, in the territory of the city of Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It forms part of the Hochelaga Archipelago. It is situated immediately offshore from Old Mont ...

and

Île Notre-Dame Notre Dame Island (french: Île Notre-Dame) is an artificial island in the Saint Lawrence River in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is immediately to the east of Saint Helen's Island and west of the Saint Lawrence Seaway and the city of Saint-Lambert ...

. In 2016, it had a population of 89,170 and an area of .

Geography

It is bordered by the city of Westmount (along

Atwater Avenue Atwater Avenue (officially in french: avenue Atwater) 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 ...

) to the west and the boroughs of

Le Sud-Ouest Le Sud-Ouest ( en, "the southwest") is a borough (''arrondissement'') of the city of Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Geography Le Sud-Ouest is an amalgam of several neighbourhoods with highly distinct histories and identities, mainly with working-cla ...

(along the

Autoroute Ville-Marie Route 136 (R-136), formerly Autoroute 720, known as the Ville-Marie Expressway (English) or Autoroute Ville-Marie (French) is an Autoroute highway in the Canadian province of Quebec that is a spur route of Autoroute 20 in Montreal. Its western ...

, Guy and Notre-Dame streets, and the Bonaventure Autoroute) to the southwest,

Mercier–Hochelaga-Maisonneuve Mercier–Hochelaga-Maisonneuve is a borough of Montreal, Quebec, Canada located in the southeastern end of the island. History ''See Mercier and Hochelaga-Maisonneuve articles for a more detailed histories of respective areas'' Hochelaga was f ...

(along the CP rail lines) to the east,

Le Plateau-Mont-Royal Le Plateau-Mont-Royal () is a borough (''arrondissement'') of the city of Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The Plateau-Mont-Royal takes its name from its location on a plateau, on the eastern side of Mont-Royal and overlooking downtown Montreal, across ...

(along

Sherbrooke Sherbrooke ( ; ) is a city in southern Quebec, Canada. It is at the confluence of the Saint-François and Magog rivers in the heart of the Estrie administrative region. Sherbrooke is also the name of a territory equivalent to a regional cou ...

University A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United Stat ...

streets, and

Pine A pine is any conifer tree or shrub in the genus ''Pinus'' () of the family (biology), family Pinaceae. ''Pinus'' is the sole genus in the subfamily Pinoideae. The World Flora Online created by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew and Missouri Botanic ...

and

Park A park is an area of natural, semi-natural or planted space set aside for human enjoyment and recreation or for the protection of wildlife or natural habitats. Urban parks are green spaces set aside for recreation inside towns and cities. ...

avenues) to the northeast, and

Outremont Outremont is an affluent residential borough (''arrondissement'') of the city of Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It consists entirely of the former city on the Island of Montreal in southwestern Quebec. The neighbourhood is inhabited largely by fran ...

and Côte-des-Neiges—Notre-Dame-de-Grâce (along the border of Mount Royal Park) to the north. It is bounded on the south by the

Saint Lawrence River The St. Lawrence River (french: Fleuve Saint-Laurent, ) is a large river in the middle latitudes of North America. Its headwaters begin flowing from Lake Ontario in a (roughly) northeasterly direction, into the Gulf of St. Lawrence, connecting ...

Government

Municipal

As of 2009, the office of borough mayor, rather than being elected by the borough's citizens, is held ''ex officio'' by the

mayor of Montreal The mayor of Montreal is head of the executive branch of the Montreal City Council. The current mayor is Valérie Plante, who was elected into office on November 5, 2017, and sworn in on November 16. The office of the mayor administers all ci ...

. Also, two of the members of the borough council are city councillors from other boroughs, chosen by the mayor. Rather than a dedicated borough hall, the borough's offices and council chambers are located in the Place Dupuis office tower at 800 De Maisonneuve Boulevard East. This governing structure is due to the unique status of Ville-Marie as the centre of Montreal.

Federal and Provincial

The borough is divided among the following federal ridings: *

Ville-Marie—Le Sud-Ouest—Île-des-Sœurs Ville-Marie—Le Sud-Ouest—Île-des-Sœurs is a federal electoral district in Quebec, Canada, that has been represented in the House of Commons of Canada since 2015. It encompasses a portion of Quebec formerly included in the electoral distric ...

Laurier—Sainte-Marie Laurier—Sainte-Marie is a federal electoral district in Downtown Montreal, Quebec, Canada, that has been represented in the House of Commons of Canada since 1988. Its population in 2016 was 111,835. Geography The district includes Côte ...

It is divided among the following provincial electoral districts: * Westmount–Saint-Louis *

Sainte-Marie–Saint-Jacques Sainte-Marie–Saint-Jacques is a provincial electoral district in the Montreal region of Quebec, Canada that elects members to the National Assembly of Quebec. It comprises part of the borough of Ville-Marie and part of the borough of Le Plateau ...

Hochelaga-Maisonneuve Hochelaga-Maisonneuve () is a neighbourhood in Montreal, Canada, situated in the east end of the island, generally to the south of the city's Olympic Stadium and east of downtown. Historically a poor neighbourhood, it has experienced significan ...

(small corner in east) * Saint-Henri–Sainte-Anne (small corner in south-west) *

(three small corners of Mount Royal Park to the borough's north-west)

Demographics

Neighbourhoods

Ville-Marie includes the city's

downtown ''Downtown'' is a term primarily used in North America by English speakers to refer to a city's sometimes commercial, cultural and often the historical, political and geographic heart. It is often synonymous with its central business district ...

, the historical district of

, Le Quartier Chinois, the

Gay Village A gay village is a geographical area with generally recognized boundaries that is inhabited or frequented by many lesbian, gay, bisexuality, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBT) people. Gay villages often contain a number of gay-orien ...

, the

Latin Quarter The Latin Quarter of Paris (french: Quartier latin, ) is an area in the 5th and the 6th arrondissements of Paris. It is situated on the left bank of the Seine, around the Sorbonne. Known for its student life, lively atmosphere, and bistro ...

, the recently gentrified Quartier international and Cité Multimédia as well as the Quartier des Spectacles which is currently under development. Other neighbourhoods of interest in the borough include the affluent

Golden Square Mile / ''Mille carré doré'' , native_name_lang = , settlement_type = Neighbourhood , image_skyline = Ravenscrag.jpg , image_alt = , image_caption = '' Ravenscrag'', built for Sir Hugh Allan ...

and Îlot-Trafalgar-Gleneagles at the foot of

Mount Royal Mount Royal (french: link=no, Mont Royal, ) is a large intrusive rock hill or small mountain in the city of Montreal, immediately west of Downtown Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The best-known hypothesis for the origin of the name Montreal is the ...

and the

Shaughnessy Village Shaughnessy Village (sometimes referred to as the Concordia Ghetto) is a neighbourhood of Montreal, Quebec, Canada, located on the western side of the Ville-Marie borough. It is bounded by Guy Street to the east, Atwater Street to the west, Sher ...

Quartier Concordia Quartier Concordia is a neighbourhood redevelopment project centred on Concordia University's Sir George Williams campus in downtown Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Bordered by Sherbrooke Street, Saint-Mathieu Street, René Lévesque Boulevard René ...

area home to thousands of students at

Concordia University Concordia University (French: ''Université Concordia'') is a public research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1974 following the merger of Loyola College and Sir George Williams University, Concordia is one of the t ...

. The borough also comprises most of

Cité du Havre Cité du Havre is a neighbourhood in the borough of Ville-Marie of the city of Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is located on a narrow man-made peninsula, the Mackay Pier (''Jetée Mackay''), which was largely built to protect the Old Port of Montreal ...

, and

Transportation

Montreal's interurban rail and bus terminals, and its two commuter rail terminals (

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 ...

, Lucien-L'Allier and the Downtown Terminus) are in the borough. It is served by the

Orange Orange most often refers to: *Orange (fruit), the fruit of the tree species '' Citrus'' × ''sinensis'' ** Orange blossom, its fragrant flower *Orange (colour), from the color of an orange, occurs between red and yellow in the visible spectrum * ...

Green Green is the color between cyan and yellow on the visible spectrum. It is evoked by light which has a dominant wavelength of roughly 495570 nm. In subtractive color systems, used in painting and color printing, it is created by a combin ...

, and Yellow Lines of the

Montreal Metro The Montreal Metro (french: Métro de Montréal) is a rubber-tired underground rapid transit system serving Greater Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The metro, operated by the Société de transport de Montréal (STM), was inaugurated on October 14, ...

. The Metro's central station, Berri-UQAM (which is a terminus of the Yellow Line), and the Central Bus Station, are also located in Ville-Marie. Two autoroutes serve the area: Autoroute Bonaventure and the partly underground

. Two bridges — the Victoria Bridge and

Jacques-Cartier Bridge The Jacques Cartier Bridge (french: pont Jacques-Cartier) is a steel truss cantilever bridge crossing the Saint Lawrence River from Montreal Island, Montreal, Quebec, to the south shore at Longueuil, Quebec, Canada. The bridge crosses Sa ...

— provide access to the South Shore, while the Pont de la Concorde provides access to

and

Notre Dame Island Notre Dame Island (french: Île Notre-Dame) is an artificial island in the Saint Lawrence River in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is immediately to the east of Saint Helen's Island and west of the Saint Lawrence Seaway and the city of Saint-Lambert ...

(

Parc Jean-Drapeau Jean Drapeau Park (officially in French: ''Parc Jean-Drapeau'') (formerly called ''Parc des Îles'') is the third-largest park in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It comprises two islands, Saint Helen's Island and the artificial island Notre Dame Is ...

). The Jacques-Cartier Bridge also provides access to Saint Helen's Island and Notre Dame Island.

Attractions

Many of Montreal's most famous attractions are situated in Ville-Marie. Most of its office towers, including

1000 de La Gauchetière 1000 de la Gauchetière is a skyscraper in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is named for its address at 1000 De la Gauchetière Street West in the downtown core. It is Montreal's second tallest building. It rises to the maximum height approved ...

1250 René-Lévesque 1250, boulevard René-Lévesque is a , 47-storey skyscraper in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The building was designed by Kohn Pedersen Fox Associates for IBM Canada and Marathon Realty, hence the former name "IBM-Marathon Tower". It is now named ...

, the

Tour de la Bourse The Tour de la Bourse ( en, Stock Exchange Tower) is a 48-storey skyscraper in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is located at the intersection of Victoria Square and Saint Jacques Street in the International Quarter. It is connected by the undergro ...

Place Ville-Marie Place Ville Marie (PVM for short) is a large office and shopping complex skyscraper in Downtown Montreal, Quebec, Canada, comprising four office buildings and an underground shopping plaza. It serves as the main and official headquarters for Roya ...

, the

Sun Life Building The Sun Life Building (french: Édifice Sun Life) is a historic , 24-storey office building at 1155 Metcalfe Street on Dorchester Square in the city's downtown core of Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The building was completed in 1931 after three stag ...

, the

Maison Radio-Canada Maison Radio-Canada (English: ''CBC House'') is the broadcast headquarters, studios and master control for all French-language radio and television services of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (known in French as ''Société Radio-Canada''/ ...

, and many others are located here. Three of Montreal's four universities —

McGill McGill is a surname of Scottish and Irish origin, from which the names of many places and organizations are derived. It may refer to: People * McGill (surname) (including a list of individuals with the surname) * McGill family (Monrovia), a promin ...

, Concordia, and UQAM — are located in Ville-Marie, as are three of its four

basilica In Ancient Roman architecture, a basilica is a large public building with multiple functions, typically built alongside the town's forum. The basilica was in the Latin West equivalent to a stoa in the Greek East. The building gave its nam ...

s —

Mary, Queen of the World Cathedral , native_name_lang = , image = Marie-Reine-du-Monde, Montréal.jpg , imagesize = , imagelink = , imagealt = , landscape = , caption = , pushpin ...

, Notre-Dame Basilica, and St. Patrick's Basilica. Cultural infrastructure includes

Grande Bibliothèque du Québec The Grande Bibliothèque du Québec (GBQ) was a public corporation of the province of Quebec, Canada. It came into existence in 1998 and merged with Bibliothèque nationale du Québec in 2002. Its purpose was to plan the creation of the Grande ...

Place des Arts Place may refer to: Geography * Place (United States Census Bureau), defined as any concentration of population ** Census-designated place, a populated area lacking its own municipal government * "Place", a type of street or road name ** Often ...

, the

Montreal Museum of Fine Arts The Montreal Museum of Fine Arts (MMFA; french: Musée des beaux-arts de Montréal, MBAM) is an art museum in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is the largest art museum in Canada by gallery space. The museum is located on the historic Golden Square ...

, the Quartier des spectacles, the

Montreal Science Centre The Montreal Science Centre () is a science museum in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is located on the Quai King-Edward ( King Edward Pier) in the Old Port of Montreal. Established in 2000 and originally known as the ''iSci Centre'', the museum cha ...

Pointe-à-Callière Museum Pointe-à-Callière Museum (french: Musée Pointe-à-Callière) is a museum of archaeology and history in Old Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It was founded in 1992 as part of celebrations to mark Montreal's 350th birthday. The museum has collections of ...

Musée Grévin Montreal The Musée Grévin Montreal was a waxwork museum in Montreal located in Montreal Eaton Centre in Ville-Marie, Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It was open daily; an admission fee was charged. History On April 17, 2013, Musée Grévin's parent co ...

, and numerous other important venues. Sports complexes include the

Bell Centre Bell Centre (), formerly known as Molson Centre (), is a multi-purpose arena located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Opened on March 16, 1996, it is the home arena of the Montreal Canadiens of the National Hockey League (NHL), replacing the Montr ...

, home of the

Montreal Canadiens The Montreal CanadiensEven in English, the French spelling is always used instead of ''Canadians''. The French spelling of ''Montréal'' is also sometimes used in the English media. (french: link=no, Les Canadiens de Montréal), officially ...

; the

Percival Molson Stadium Percival Molson Memorial Stadium (also known in French as ''Stade Percival-Molson''; commonly referred to as Molson Stadium in English or Stade Molson in French) is an outdoor football stadium in Downtown Montreal, on the slopes of Mount Royal, ...

, home of the

Montreal Alouettes The Montreal Alouettes ( French: Les Alouettes de Montréal) are a professional Canadian football team based in Montreal, Quebec. Founded in 1946, the team has folded and been revived twice. The Alouettes compete in the East Division of the Cana ...

; and the

Circuit Gilles Villeneuve The Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, also spelled ''Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve'' (), is a motor racing circuit in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is the venue for the FIA Formula One Canadian Grand Prix. It has previously hosted the FIA World Spor ...

, site of the Canadian Grand Prix. Hospitals include the

Centre hospitalier de l'Université de Montréal The Centre hospitalier de l'Université de Montréal (CHUM, translated as University of Montreal Health Centre) is one of two major healthcare networks in the city of Montreal, Quebec. It is a teaching institution affiliated with the French-lan ...

(CHUM) megahospital, opened in 2017, as well as the

Montreal General Hospital The Montreal General Hospital (MGH) (french: Hôpital Général de Montréal) is a hospital in Montreal, Quebec, Canada established in the years 1818-1820. The hospital received its charter in 1823. It is currently part of the McGill University ...

and

Hôpital Notre-Dame Hôpital Notre-Dame ( en, Notre Dame Hospital) is a hospital in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is located on Sherbrooke Street, Sherbrooke Street East in the borough of Ville-Marie, Montreal, Ville-Marie, across from La Fontaine Park. It was establi ...

. Major parks and recreation areas include

and its park,

(the site of

Expo 67 The 1967 International and Universal Exposition, commonly known as Expo 67, was a general exhibition from April 27 to October 29, 1967. It was a category One World's Fair held in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is considered to be one of the most su ...

Dorchester Square , photo = Square Dorchester 01.jpg , photo_width = , photo_caption = , map = Canada Montreal , map_width = , type = Town square , location = Downtown Montreal, Ville-Marie Montreal, Quebec, Canada , nearest_city = , coords = , coo ...

and

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 Gau ...

, and the Old Port. The

Montreal Public Libraries Network The Montreal Public Libraries Network (, previously ''Réseau des bibliothèques publiques de Montréal'') is the public library system on the Island of Montreal in Quebec, Canada. It is the largest French language public library system in North A ...

operates the Frontenac and Père-Ambroise libraries in the eastern part of the borough.

Economy

As Ville-Marie contains Montreal's central business district, numerous companies are headquartered or have major regional offices in the borough, including

Bombardier Aerospace Bombardier Aviation is a division of Bombardier Inc. It is headquartered in Dorval, Quebec, Canada. Its most popular aircraft included the Dash 8 Series 400, CRJ100/200/440, and CRJ700/900/1000 lines of regional airliners, and the newer CS ...

Education

The

Commission scolaire de Montréal The Commission scolaire de Montréal (CSM ''Montreal school board''), was a board from 1998 until 2020, as a result of a law passed by the Quebec government that changed the school board system from religious denomination to linguistic denominatio ...

(CSDM) operates French-language public schools.

Elementary

* ''École Marguerite-Bourgeoys'' * ''École Garneau'' * ''École Champlain'' * ''École Jean-Baptiste-Meilleur'' * ''École Saint-Anselme''

Specialized

* ''École des métiers de la restauration et du tourisme de Montréal'' * ''École des métiers des Faubourgs-de-Montréal'' * ''École Éducation pour Adultes Centre Lartigue'' * ''École Éducation pour Adultes Centre Gédéon-Ouimet'' The

English Montreal School Board The English Montreal School Board (EMSB, french: Commission scolaire English-Montréal – CSEM) is one of five public school boards on the island of Montreal. At 92.4 percent, the English Montreal School Board has the highest rate of students wh ...

(EMSB) operates English-language schools.

Elementary

* '' F.A.C.E. Elementary School'' (jointly run with the CSDM)

High school

* '' F.A.C.E. High School'' (jointly run with the CSDM)

References

External links

Borough's website
(in French for now) {{Coord, 45.508556, N, 73.562846, W, source:frwiki_region:CA_type:landmark, format=dms, display=title Ville-Marie, Montreal Boroughs of Montreal Academic enclaves

Geography

Government

Municipal

Federal and Provincial

Demographics

Neighbourhoods

Transportation

Attractions

Economy

Education

Elementary

Specialized

Elementary

High school

See also

References

External links