Governors' Garden (

French French may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France ** French people, a nation and ethnic group ** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices Arts and media * The French (band), ...

: ''Jardin du Gouverneur'') is an

urban park An urban park or metropolitan park, also known as a city park, municipal park (North America), public park, public open space, or municipal gardens (United Kingdom, UK), is a park or botanical garden in cities, densely populated suburbia and oth ...

Quebec City Quebec City 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 Census Metropolitan Area (including surrounding communities) had a populati ...

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. Designed by Robert Desjardins, the garden is located immediately to the south of

Château Frontenac The Fairmont Le Château Frontenac, commonly referred to as the Château Frontenac (), is a historic hotel in Quebec City, Quebec, Canada. The hotel is situated in Old Quebec, within the historic district's Upper Town, on the southern side of Pl ...

and is bounded by Rue Mont-Carmel to the north, Rue des Carrières to the east, Avenue Sainte-Geneviève to the south, and Rue de la Porte to the west. It is in area.Governor's Garden
– Chateau Ramezay The park overlooks the

St. Lawrence River The St. Lawrence River (, ) is a large international river in the middle latitudes of North America connecting the Great Lakes to the North Atlantic Ocean. Its waters flow in a northeasterly direction from Lake Ontario to the Gulf of St. Lawren ...

to the east, beyond Dufferin Terrace. It was redeveloped in 2000 as a reference to gardens that existed around the city during the time of Claude de Ramezay in the first half of the 18th century. In 1731, there were almost 200 gardens in Quebec City, but many succumbed to building construction. The garden is in the formal French style, and is divided into three equal-sized sections: a

kitchen garden The traditional kitchen garden, vegetable garden, also known as a potager (from the French ) or in Scotland a kailyaird, is a space separate from the rest of the residential garden – the ornamental plants and lawn areas. It is used for grow ...

(''potager''), an

orchard An orchard is an intentional plantation of trees or shrubs that is maintained for food production. Orchards comprise fruit tree, fruit- or nut (fruit), nut-producing trees that are generally grown for commercial production. Orchards are also so ...

(''verger'') and a

pleasure garden A pleasure garden is a park or garden that is open to the public for recreation and entertainment. Pleasure gardens differ from other public gardens by serving as venues for entertainment, variously featuring such attractions as concert halls, b ...

(''jardin ornamental''). Surrounding these sections, at the foot of the long walls, is a fourth section consisting of herbs and medicinal plants informally distributed. A

ram Ram, ram, or RAM most commonly refers to: * A male sheep * Random-access memory, computer memory * Ram Trucks, US, since 2009 ** List of vehicles named Dodge Ram, trucks and vans ** Ram Pickup, produced by Ram Trucks Ram, ram, or RAM may also ref ...

's-head

fountain A fountain, from the Latin "fons" ( genitive "fontis"), meaning source or spring, is a decorative reservoir used for discharging water. It is also a structure that jets water into the air for a decorative or dramatic effect. Fountains were o ...

is part of the garden and serves as a reminder of the importance of wells in the gardens of yore, for they were the only handy source of water for the gardener. The

Wolfe–Montcalm Monument The Wolfe–Montcalm Monument is in Governors' Garden beyond the southern side of the Château Frontenac, Quebec. The obelisk is the oldest monument in Quebec City and the second-oldest war monument in Canada (1827) (the first being Nelson's Colu ...

, unveiled in 1828, stands at the eastern edge of the park, on Rue des Carrières.

Surrounding buildings

Several notable buildings surround the park on its three enclosed sides. ;Rue Mont-Carmel (north) *16 Rue Mont-Carmel – the only building other than Château Frontenac on this stretch of the street, this

townhouse A townhouse, townhome, town house, or town home, is a type of Terraced house, terraced housing. A modern townhouse is often one with a small footprint on multiple floors. In a different British usage, the term originally referred to any type o ...

, at the corner of Rue Haldimand, has been a hotel or bed and breakfast, including the Hotel Château de Lery up until the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

. It has also been the Au Jardin du Gouverneur ;Rue de la Porte (west) *a

terrace Terrace may refer to: Landforms and construction * Fluvial terrace, a natural, flat surface that borders and lies above the floodplain of a stream or river * Terrace, a street suffix * Terrace, the portion of a lot between the public sidewalk a ...

of seven buildings, including the Hôtel Château Bellevue at number 16 ;Avenue Sainte-Geneviève (south) *

1 Avenue Sainte-Geneviève 1 Avenue Sainte-Geneviève is a building in Quebec City, Quebec, Canada. Located on Avenue Sainte-Geneviève, overlooking the Governors' Garden from the south, it is the home of the United States Consulate General in Quebec City. The building a ...

, home of the United States Consulate General in Quebec City (1952) *9 Avenue Sainte-Geneviève, Hotel Manoir Sur le Cap *13 Avenue Sainte-Geneviève, Manoir Ste-Geneviève

Gallery

File:Jardin des Gouverneurs, Québec vue générale vers le sud-ouest depuis la rue des Carrières 11-d.na.civile-87-3308.jpg, A view from the northeastern corner of the park in 1987, prior to the

whitewash Whitewash, calcimine, kalsomine, calsomine, asbestis or lime paint is a type of paint made from slaked lime ( calcium hydroxide, Ca(OH)2) or chalk (calcium carbonate, CaCO3), sometimes known as "whiting". Various other additives are sometimes ...

ing of the Wolfe-Montcalm Monument

References

Buildings and structures in Quebec City Parks in Quebec City Urban public parks 18th-century establishments in Canada {{QuebecCity-stub