''L'Assemblée des six-comtés'' (French for "The Assembly of the Six Counties"), also known as ''Manifestation des Canadiens contre le gouvernement anglais, à Saint-Charles, en 1837'' ("Demonstration of the

Canadien French Canadians, referred to as Canadiens mainly before the nineteenth century, are an ethnic group descended from French colonists first arriving in France's colony of Canada in 1608. The vast majority of French Canadians live in the provi ...

s against the British colonial government, at Saint-Charles, in 1837"), is a large

oil painting Oil painting is a painting method involving the procedure of painting with pigments combined with a drying oil as the Binder (material), binder. It has been the most common technique for artistic painting on canvas, wood panel, or oil on coppe ...

executed on

canvas Canvas is an extremely durable Plain weave, plain-woven Cloth, fabric used for making sails, tents, Tent#Marquees and larger tents, marquees, backpacks, Shelter (building), shelters, as a Support (art), support for oil painting and for other ite ...

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

artist Charles Alexander Smith in 1890.« Je me souviens ». When Art Imagines History
, in mnba.qc.ca, retrieved Sept. 17, 2011 It depicts the

Assembly of the Six Counties The Assembly of the Six Counties () was an assembly of Patriote leaders and approximately 6,000 followers held in Saint-Charles, Lower Canada (present-day Quebec) on October 23 and October 23, 1837, despite the June 15 Proclamation of the g ...

, an event in 1837, part of the

history of Quebec Quebec was first called ''Canada'' between 1534 and 1763. It was the most developed colony of New France as well as New France's centre, responsible for a variety of dependencies (ex. Acadia, Plaisance, Louisiana, and the Pays d'en Haut). Co ...

and the Patriote movement. It is displayed in the permanent exhibition of the

Musée national des beaux-arts du Québec The Musée national des beaux-arts du Québec (), abbreviated as MNBAQ, is an art museum in Quebec City, Quebec, Canada. The museum is located in National Battlefields Park and is a complex of four buildings. Three of them were purpose-built for ...

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 ...

Composition

The picture includes many elements of what is known about the Patriote movement and their time. It features a number of Patriote leaders, upon the stage at the right, with accurate appearance. Patriote leader

Louis-Joseph Papineau Louis-Joseph Papineau (; October 7, 1786 – September 23, 1871), born in Montreal, Province of Quebec (1763–1791), Quebec, was a politician, lawyer, and the landlord of the ''seigneurie de la Petite-Nation''. He was the leader of the reform ...

is shown in a speech to the crowd. At the bottom right stand three flags. From the left,

the first The First or The 1st may refer to: Arts and entertainment Albums * The 1st (album), ''The 1st'' (album), by Willow, 2017 * The First (Shinee album), ''The First'' (Shinee album), 2011 * The First (single album), by NCT Dream, 2017 Television * T ...

represents the influence the Patriotes received from the French Revolution, the second is the Patriote flag and

the third is a light novel series, that has also been made into manga and anime series by Ryo Hoshino and illustrated by Ariko Ito. The anime series goes under the name . According to the New York Comic Convention, ''The Third'' has been licensed by ...

embodies the admiration of the Patriote for the

American Revolution The American Revolution (1765–1783) was a colonial rebellion and war of independence in which the Thirteen Colonies broke from British America, British rule to form the United States of America. The revolution culminated in the American ...

. The Patriote flag remains a visual

leitmotiv A leitmotif or () is a "short, recurring musical phrase" associated with a particular person, place, or idea. It is closely related to the musical concepts of ''idée fixe'' or ''motto-theme''. The spelling ''leitmotif'' is a partial angliciza ...

across the composition. The right field profusely displays maple leaves, a symbol of the

French Canadian French Canadians, referred to as Canadiens mainly before the nineteenth century, are an ethnic group descended from French people, French colonists first arriving in Canada (New France), France's colony of Canada in 1608. The vast majority of ...

s of the time (they have now been discarded by their modern-day Québécois and

Quebec nationalist Quebec nationalism or Québécois nationalism is a feeling and a political doctrine that prioritizes cultural belonging to, the defence of the interests of, and the recognition of the political legitimacy of the Québécois nation. It has been ...

successors because of their appropriation by the Canadian federation). In the same section is the

Coat of arms of Quebec The coat of arms of Quebec () was adopted by order-in-council of the Government of Quebec on 9 December 1939,anachronistic An anachronism (from the Greek , 'against' and , 'time') is a chronological inconsistency in some arrangement, especially a juxtaposition of people, events, objects, language terms and customs from different time periods. The most common typ ...

detail, as this version, contemporary to the painting's execution, is the first arms of Quebec post-Confederation, granted in 1868). The crowd, mesmerized and invigorated at the same time by Papineau's much celebrated oratory skills, holds many signs reading nationalist and independence slogans. Many in attendance wear the

tuque A knit cap, colloquially known as a beanie, is a piece of knitted headwear designed to provide warmth in cold weather. It usually has a simple tapered shape, although more elaborate variants exist. Historically made of wool, it is now often mad ...

s and ceintures fléchées belts characteristic of the Patriote

symbology A symbol is a mark, sign, or word that indicates, signifies, or is understood as representing an idea, object, or relationship. Symbols allow people to go beyond what is known or seen by creating linkages between otherwise different concepts ...

. The Colonne de la liberté stands tall in the background (the one from

Henri Julien Henri Julien (baptized Octave-Henri Julien; 14 May 1852 – 17 September 1908) was a Canadian artist and cartoonist noted for his work for the ''Canadian Illustrated News'' and for his political cartoons in the '' Montreal Daily Star''. ...

illustration An illustration is a decoration, interpretation, or visual explanation of a text, concept, or process, designed for integration in print and digitally published media, such as posters, flyers, magazines, books, teaching materials, animations, vi ...

and the contemporary replica appear much shorter). Finally, a very young girl at the immediate left-of-the-middle evocatively stares at the spectator.

History

Smith was commissioned to paint it for display in the chamber of the Legislative Assembly in the Parliament of Quebec City. However, the government of

Premier of Quebec 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 tha ...

Charles-Eugène Boucher de Boucherville did not accept it, and the work was passed unto various owners before finally becoming part of the Musée national des beaux-arts du Québec collection. Located in Room 10, it is a part of the permanent exhibition of Quebec history-related art called ''Je me souviens : Quand l’art imagine l’histoire'' ("

Je me souviens () is the official motto of Quebec, and translated literally into English means: "I remember." The exact meaning of this short sentence is subject to several interpretations, though all relate to the History of Quebec, history of the Quebec peo ...

otto of Quebec When Art Imagines History"). The picture has seen restoration. Nowadays, a great number of books related to the Patriotes, or their era in Quebec, use the painting, often cropped, to illustrate their cover page. In a similar fashion, initial plans to erect a statue in honour of Louis-Joseph Papineau on the Quebec City Parliament Hill were aborted because of the then-controversial aspect of what was seen as a

revolutionary A revolutionary is a person who either participates in, or advocates for, a revolution. The term ''revolutionary'' can also be used as an adjective to describe something producing a major and sudden impact on society. Definition The term—bot ...

figure. A smaller statue was instead made for interior display in the Parliament and a monument such as the one originally envisioned was inaugurated in the 2000s.

Subject

The Assembly of the Six Counties gathered Patriote leaders and approximately 4,000 followers in Saint-Charles,

Lower Canada The Province of Lower Canada () was a British colonization of the Americas, British colony on the lower Saint Lawrence River and the shores of the Gulf of Saint Lawrence established in 1791 and abolished in 1841. It covered the southern portion o ...

(present-day

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, ...

) on October 23 and October 24, 1837. Presided by

Wolfred Nelson Wolfred Nelson (10 July 1791 – 17 June 1863) was the mayor of Montreal, Quebec, from 1854 to 1856. Biography Nelson was born in Montreal. His father, William Nelson, was an immigrant to Colonial America from Newsham, North Yorkshire, Eng ...

, it is the most famous of the various popular assemblies held during that year protesting the

Russell Resolutions The Lower Canada Rebellion (), commonly referred to as the Patriots' Rebellion () in French, is the name given to the armed conflict in 1837–38 between rebels and the colonial government of Lower Canada (now southern Quebec). Together wit ...

. It was a prelude to the

Lower Canada Rebellion The Lower Canada Rebellion (), commonly referred to as the Patriots' Rebellion () in French, is the name given to the armed conflict in 1837–38 between rebels and the colonial government of Lower Canada (now southern Quebec). Together wit ...

of 1837 that sought the independence of a Lower Canadian republic. Speakers were united in their protest of the British colonial government, but, as one part supported economic

boycott A boycott is an act of nonviolent resistance, nonviolent, voluntary abstention from a product, person, organisation, or country as an expression of protest. It is usually for Morality, moral, society, social, politics, political, or Environmenta ...

s of British products, the other appealed to an armed uprising.

Notes

References

* Maurice Champagne.
L'Assemblée des six comtés
, in ''Bulletin de la bibliothèque de l'Assemblée nationale'', volume 24, issue 1, April 1995, p. 3-5. * Mario Béland.
Un destin inachevé: L’assemblée des six comtés de Charles Alexander Smith
, in ''Cap-aux-Diamants: La revue d'histoire du Québec'', n° 30, 1992, p. 30-33 *

External links

"Musée National des Beaux-Arts du Québec - Salle 10"
at the

website {{DEFAULTSORT:Assemblee des six-comtes, L' 1890 paintings Canadian paintings Culture of Quebec Lower Canada Rebellion Patriote movement Political art Flags in art