Alexis de Tocqueville’s visit to Lower Canada in 1831

par Corbo, Claude

In Alexisde Tocqueville's works, many pages are dedicated to the inhabitants, theirhistoric destiny, as well as to the cultural and political situation of LowerCanada within the British Empire. His writings offer acute observations andpenetrating analyses on the topics listed above. Alexis de Tocqueville(1805-1859) is notably famous for his masterpiece Democracy in America (1835),which offers a brilliant analysis of the inevitable advent of the young UnitedStates of America's democratic society. In this work, Tocqueville examines withcare, a civilisation characterised by a desire for equality, a sometimes fanaticalindividualism and the ever looming tyranny of the majority. The work is basedon meticulous observations, accumulated during a nine-month journey across thecountry (from May 9^th 1831 to February 20^th, 1832) with acolleague, the magistrate, Gustave de Beaumont. It is less widely known thatthe two travellers also visited Lower Canada from August 23^th toSeptember 2^nd, 1831, as Tocqueville did not write any specific worksas a result of that particular voyage.

Article disponible en français : Alexis de Tocqueville et le Bas-Canada en 1831

Lower Canada in 1831
Toqueville's Visit and the Encounters that Resulted
Tocqueville's Views on Lower Canada
- NOTES
- BIBLIOGRAPHY
DOCUMENTS COMPLÉMENTAIRES

LowerCanada in 1831

Already a British colony for about 75 years, in 1831, Lower Canada'spopulation was predominantly French speaking, catholic and rural. A fifth ofthe total population of 550,000 inhabitants was of British origins.Agriculture, exploitation of natural resources and trade were at the heart ofthe economy. The Catholic Church, whose leaders had already adjusted themselveswell to the British Empire's domination of the colony, had taken to looking afterthe population, the work divided among its many parishes. A small secular bourgeoisie (a middle class largelycomposed of free-lance professions, businessmen, a few teachers andjournalists), intrigued by Europe's liberal ideas and by the politicalexperience of the United States, had become actively involved in their ownbrand of politics since the election of the first legislative assembly in 1791.At the time of Tocqueville's visits, political tensions had been building inLower Canada and would culminate in the armed rebellion of 1837-1838 (thePatriots' War). The Legislative Assembly (House of Representatives), composedmainly of French Canadian representatives, lead by Louis-Joseph Papineau, wasoften at odds with the British Governor and his Legislative Council (theGovernor appointed members of the Council, who were mostly British). Thecolony's budget was one of the main sources of disagreement, for the Assemblydemanded that they have control of it, while the governor sought to keep thispower for himself alone. Louis-Joseph Papineau's Canadian Party had beenseeking to establish its nationalist claims-the colony's internal autonomy-aswell as its liberal agenda-true power for the Legislative Assembly. It was to sucha country that Tocqueville had come.

Toqueville'sVisit and the Encounters that Resulted

Tocqueville and Beaumont's stay in Lower Canada ^{(NOTE 1)}appears to be somewhat of a spontaneous short pause in his plans to thoroughlyexplore the United States. In a letter to his mother, dated June 19^th,1831 (that makes it more than two months after he had arrived in the States)Tocqueville writes that he wishes to "make the trip that is quite the fashionaround here" and travel to the Niagara region. He goes on saying: "Canada raisesour curiosity. The French nation has been preserved there. As a result, one canobserve the customs and the language spoken during Louis XIV's reign ^{(NOTE 2)}.In a letter dated September 7^th, 1831, after his stay in LowerCanada, Tocqueville writes how happy he was with his decision to visit: "noteven six months ago, I believed, like everyone else, that Canada had becomethoroughly English". It was a discovery he fully appreciated, but that stillleft him a little perplexed: "We felt like we were at home and everywherepeople greeted us as one of their own, as descendants of "Old France" as theycalled it. But to me, it seems more like Old France lives on in Canada and thatit is our country [France] which is the new one ^{(NOTE 3)}." Thus, Tocqueville wassurprised by realties he discovered in Canada. Compared to his visits to otherforeign countries, the visit to Lower Canada was a brief one ^{(NOTE 4)}.Fortunately, it is his perspicacity, his clear-sightedness and his remarkablewisdom that make up for the shortness of his visit.

It is also interesting to note the kinds of people Tocqueville met andtalked to. He spent time exchanging with farmers (when travelling around QuebecCity), clergymen (who, he says, constitute "the highest social class amongCanadians") and lawyers (during his visit of a courthouse). He also saw thosewho were still called "Indians". The elite left him thoughtful; he believedthat among the "enlightened classes" there was already the temptation of lettingthemselves be assimilated by the English; for "many [...] of them did not seemas eager as we would have thought to preserve some part of their origins, therebybecoming a distinct people. To us, it seemed many were not far from lettingthemselves be willingly assimilated by the English ^{(NOTE 5)}.

Tocqueville also had meaningful and rich exchanges with the notablepublic figures. However, the selection of notable individuals that he met withand cited is limited. He states that the French Sulpician Joseph-VincentQuiblier, Superior of the Grand Séminaire (who arrived in Canada in 1825) thathe met in Montreal on August 24^th, "is a cautious andconservative-minded man, quick to accommodate the powers that be." According tohim, the Mondelet brothers "are moderate reformists." John Neilson, aScottsman who arrived in 1790 and editor of the bilingual newspaper The QuebecGazette, as well as representative in the House of Assembly, "went toLondon in 1823 and 1828 to present petitions in protest against the union ofthe two Canadas." Neilson hadshared common ideas with Louis-Joseph Papineau; but, at the time Tocquevillevisited, Neilson and Papineau saw things differently and gradually grew apart.Tocqueville and Beaumont did not seem to meet anyone with more radicalpolitical positions. There are, in fact, no documents mentioning thatTocqueville would have met Papineau during his stay. Neither did he meet withmembers of the government of the public administration of Lower Canada.

Tocqueville'sViews on Lower Canada

For Tocqueville, Lower Canada was a discovery and a revelation thatproved to be both moving and painful.

Just as many other European travellers, Tocqueville loved the majesticlandscapes, such as that of the breathtaking Saint Laurence River. The countryis, in itself, picturesque and majestic. Nonetheless, he was concerned with thefate of the Natives, both in Lower Canada and in the United States. He expectsthat, for the aboriginal peoples, not much good will come out of the occupationof the lands by whites. His discovery of a French-speaking people bothsurprised and delighted him. He noticed the demographic growth of the FrenchCanadians, their numbers almost ten times what it was when the colony washanded over to Great Britain. But on certain occasions, he mostly remarksgladly that there is still a part of France living in North America, a strongand vigorous people that is aware of and close to its roots-even after threequarters of a century of British rule! French Canadians have kept their time-honouredcultural traditions alive. In a letter dated September 7^th, 1831, hedescribes his hosts: "They are still French to the core; not only the elderly, butall of them, even the little toddler who spins his top ^{(NOTE 6)}."Canada's French-speaking population "still remain very much like their OldFrench cousins".

He also notices that the French Canadians are a warm, welcoming peoplealways joyful; they are high-spirited and witty. In the countryside thrives awell-organised and properly housed peasantry. The villages are beautiful andthe country looks very much like the "Old France". The seigneurialsystem, which would last until 1854, is more of aformality than anything else, even though it is a source of irritation for some.But this does not keep the lands from being properly farmed or from prospering.Religion is central to the community; the clergy holds an important place andproves to be unquestionably loyal to the British authority. But, forTocqueville, religion seems to be a phenomenon built on a sincere faith, aswell as an important part of their identity, although it is something that shouldhave little to do with politics. Religion is, however, also an obstacle to mixed marriages. Mostcertainly, Tocqueville is deeply moved and happy to find a French speakingpopulation in Lower Canada; a people that is deeply rooted in its traditionsand identity, whose population is rapidly growing and that seems determined-despitea political conscience that does not express itself too loudly-to remain trueto itself.

But the joy of the rediscovery, the reunion with a too long lost French-speakingpeople, is quickly tarnished and even overshadowed by worries. The FrenchCanadians are obviously a conquered and subdued people. Even though the peasants are prosperous,the real wealth is in the hands of the country's Englishmen. The Mondeletbrothers, who Tocqueville met in Montreal on August 24^th, as well asthe anonymous English merchant he met on August 26^th, reveal to Tocquevillethat, "almost all the wealth and commerce is under English control". OnSeptember 1^st, Tocqueville confirms in his notes that "the Englishhave control of all foreign trade and run domestic trade without any opposition^{(NOTE 7)}".A conversation with an anonymous merchant from Quebec City confirms that theEnglish sector of the population, a minority, was very confident about itsfuture. The domination of French Canadians is noticeable when one observes the verydifferent situations governing the country's two spoken languages. In Montreal,as well as in Quebec City, the English language dominates public life and themarketplace: "The majority of the newspapers, ads and even the commercial signsof French-speaking shopkeepers are in English." In both cities, "all the signsare in English and there are only two English theatres". During his visit tothe courthouse in Quebec City, Tocqueville observes the predominance of theEnglish language and the mediocrity of the language of French-speaking lawyers,which is riddled with Anglicisms ^{(NOTE 8)}. The majority of newspapers arealso mostly in English. In these conditions, one cannot be too surprised thatTocqueville worried that the "enlightened classes" seemed interested to "mergewith the English".

On the basis of these observations he concludes bluntly: "it is easy tosee that the French Canadians are a conquered people ^{(NOTE 9)}." For Tocqueville, LowerCanada's future is uncertain. Some elements do seem encouraging: the people'sstrong sense of identity, the peasantry's healthy economy and spirits, thedevelopment of the school system, the sheer number of people. But the FrenchCanadians and their culture still seem to face many dangers.

Tocqueville tried to envision the future of the French-Canadian people,but his ideas remained hesitant and groping. However, it seems as though he wasable to foresee the hardships that were destined to befall not only theFrench-speaking people of Lower Canada who would eventually become Quebeckers, butalso the rest of the peoples living across the North American continent. As heevaluates the future of Lower Canada during his visit there, as well as yearslater, notably in 1833 and in 1837, Tocqueville willingly puts the blame on thelack of energy France put into its colonisation endeavours in New France. In aletter dated November 26^th, 1831, he criticises France's dealingswith its North American colony during the 18th century, referring to the"abandonment" of loyal subjects of the French Empire. Then he adds that it was"one of the greatest ignominies of Louis XV's shameful reign".

Although his discovery of Lower Canada had brought him much joy, after visitingthe courthouse in Quebec City on August 26^th, 1831, Tocqueville wouldmake a statement that he would never go back on. It is a statement that many nationsand peoples, Quebec among them, have begun to appreciate since: "I have neverbeen more convinced than after I left the courthouse that the greatest and mostirreversible tragedy for a people is to be conquered ^{(NOTE 10)}." OnAugust 29^th, he wrote that he believed the people might "awaken":nonetheless all would be lost if the upper classes didn't shoulder theirresponsibilities, instead of letting themselves being swallowed by the "trendto assimilate into English society". Three months later, on November 26^th,his concerns for the future of North America and Lower Canada's French-speakingpopulations reasserted themselves: "I have just seen in Canada, a million braveand intelligent French people that are fit to one day form the basis of greatFrench-speaking nation in North America, but who now live as strangers in theirown country. The conquerors have a firm hold on commerce, jobs, wealth andpower. They form the upper classes, dominating the entire society. In everylocality where the French Canadians do not have the upper hand in terms oftheir sheer strength in numbers, the dominated people is gradually losing itsculture, its language and its national identity. ^{(NOTE 11)}

Even though the French Canadian elite did not "merge with the English",as Tocqueville had feared, but rather, many members of that same elite began (aroundthe middle of the 19^th century) the fight to promote and developFrench-speaking culture, Alexis de Tocqueville's observations on Lower Canadaand the French speaking population of North America are still relevant. Hisworks on Lower Canada were not largely available before the publication of the5^th volume of his complete works in 1957. The first publication inQuebec became available in 1973. Later (but before the author's editionpublished in 2003; see bibliography), only partial publications were printed. Nevertheless,Tocqueville's writings have captured the attention of several political commentators,including political experts Stéphane Dion and Gérard Bergeron, who have writtenreading commentaries that offer comparisons between Tocquevilles's works andQuebec's evolution over the last half century. Tocqueville's views on thehardship of being a French speaker in North America still offer material forreflection. Thus the rediscovery of his writings on the matter is a positiverecent development that is ever increasingly captivating the interest of many.

ClaudeCorbo

Faculty of political science

Université du Québec à Montréal

NOTES

Note 1: After leaving Buffalo (N.Y) by boat on August 20^th, 1831,Tocqueville and Beaumont arrived in Montreal on the 23^rd of August andleft on the evening of the 24^th. The steamship John-Molson left themin Quebec City on the evening of the 25^th. They stayed in QuebecCity until August 31^st; they visited the city, met various people ofinfluence, visited a "reading room", as well as a civil court. Excursionsallowed them to discover various countryside villages surrounding Quebec City: theystopped in Ancienne-Lorette on August 28^th, Beauport on the 29^th(although Beaumont wrote it was on the 28^th), as well as communitieson the south bank of the St. Laurence River as far as Saint-Thomas-de-Montmagnyon the 31^st. On the same day, they sailed back to Montreal aboardthe Richelieu, after which they left Lower Canada on September 2^ndand headed for Albany (N.Y) and then Boston.

Note 2: Alexis de Tocqueville, Correspondance Familiale, Œuvres Complètes, t.XIV, Paris, Gallimard, 1998, p. 105.

Note 3: Ibid., p. 129. To his sister-in-law Émilie, on the same day,Tocqueville tells her that she would find in Lower Canada's "people very similarto her beloved people from Lower Normandy", ibid., p. 132.

Note 4: Thus in comparison, Tocqueville visited Italy and Sicily for fourmonth, from December 1826 to April 1827, as well as England and Ireland fromthe end of April to the end of August 1835.

Note 5: Alexis de Tocqueville, Œuvres, Paris, Gallimard, « Bibliothèque de laPléiade », t. I, p. 209.

Note 6: Alexis de Tocqueville, Correspondance Familiale, p. 130.

Note 7: Alexis de Tocqueville, Œuvres 1, p. 210.

Note 8: Ibid., p. 202, 203, 204.

Note 9: Ibid., p. 202.

Note 10: Alexis de Tocqueville, Œuvres I, p. 205.

Note 11: Alexis de Tocqueville, Correspondance Familiale, p. 146.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Alexis de Tocqueville'sworks

Tocqueville, Alexis de, Œuvrescomplètes : œuvres, papiers et correspondances, édition définitive publiéesous la direction de J.P. Mayer, Paris, Gallimard, 1951-2002, 18 tomes en 30volumes.

Tocqueville, Alexis de, Œuvres,Paris, Gallimard, (three volumes published to date), à compter de 1991. (Coll.« Bibliothèque de la Pléiade ».)

Tocqueville, Alexis de, Lettreschoisies. Souvenirs 1814-1859, Paris, Gallimard, 2005. (Coll.« Quarto ».)

In addition, there are several pocket editions of Démocratie en Amérique.

Tocqueville's writingson Lower Canada

Tocqueville au Bas-Canada,textes présentés par Jacques Vallée, Montréal, Éditions du Jour, 1973, 185 p.

Regards sur le Bas-Canada,choix de textes et présentation de Claude Corbo, Montréal, Typo, 2003, 326 p.

A few pages by Tocqueville on Lower Canada have also been reproduced in the following written works:

Hébert, Robert, L'Amériquefrancophone devant l'opinion étrangère 1756-1960. Anthologie, Montréal,L'Hexagone, 1989, p. 97-101.

Bureau, Luc, Pays etmensonges. Le Québec sous la plume d'écrivains et de penseurs étrangers,Montréal, Boréal, 1999, p. 351-363.

Studies on Tocqueville andLower Canada:

Bergeron, Gérard, QuandTocqueville et Siegfried nous observaient..., Sillery, Québec, Presses del'Université du Québec, 1990.

Dion, Stéphane, « Lapensée de Tocqueville. L'épreuve du Canada français », Revue d'histoirede l'Amérique française, vol. 41, n^o 4, 1988, p. 537-552.

Langlois, Simon,« Alexis de Tocqueville, un sociologue au Bas-Canada », La RevueTocqueville/The Tocqueville review, vol. XXVII , n^o 2, 2006, p. 553-574.

Leclercq, Jean-Michel,« Alexis de Tocqueville au Canada (du 24 août au 2 septembre 1831) »,Revue d'histoire de l'Amérique française, vol. 22, n^o 3, 1968, p. 343-364. (Cet article est tiré d'un mémoireprésenté à l'Université de Lille en 1965 pour l'obtention d'un diplôme d'étudessupérieures en sciences politiques intitulé Les études canadiennes d'Alexisde Tocqueville.)

Those seeking more information on Tocqueville and Beaumont's voyage to the United States might find Wilson Pierson's very knowledgeable study on the matter very helpful: Tocqueville and Beaumont in America, New York, Oxford University Press, 1938, or the abridged version published by Dudley C. Lunt, with the consent of the author: Tocqueville in America, Garden City (N.Y.), Double day, 1959.
There are also short anlyses of Tocqueville's ideas on Lower Canada available, particularly in Heinz Weinmann, Du Canada au Québec: généalogie d'une histoire, Montréal, L'Hexagone, 1987, p. 225-235, and in Armand Yon, Le Canada français vu de France, Québec, Presses de l'Université Laval, 1975, p. 13-15.