To Montréal, and finally the shift of population and the economy westward, all tended to reduce Quebec City's importance in the mid-19th century.

The long delay in establishing a rail link to the city, the technological developments in ocean-going vessels that enabled them to bypass the city and navigate directly

From the beginning, its location made Quebec City a political, administrative and military centre. The arrival and departure point for travellers and immigrants to North America. It quicklyīecame the transfer port for domestic and foreign trade (especially furs and timber) and In the age of sail, it held a dominant position as a port of entry and exit for ocean-going vessels. Lawrence River determined the nature of its development. It resisted an attempted invasion by a large American force in 1775–76, so the colony remained under British control. The town successfully repulsed assaults by Sir William Phips in 1690, but was conquered by the British in 1759 ( see Battle of the Plains of Abraham). The post was capturedīy the Kirke brothers in 1629, but was restored to the French by the Treaty of Saint-Germain in 1632. Jean-François de la Rocque Roberval (1542–43) spent the following winter at Cap Rouge, but the failure of these early expeditions diminished French interest in the area, and a permanent settlement was not established until 1608 when Champlain founded a trading post. With a mandate from the king of France, Cartier wintered near Stadacona in 1535–36 and returned in 1541–42, spending a difficult winter at Cap Rouge, a few kilometres upriver,īefore heading home with barrels of worthless minerals ( see Diamonds of Canada).

Sometime between 15, when Samuel de Champlain arrived at the site, Stadaconans had disappeared and been replaced by the occasional nomadic In 1535, Jacques Cartier discoveredĪ fairly large Iroquoian village, Stadacona, whose 1,000 or so inhabitants lived from fishing, hunting and

For several thousand years prior to the arrival of the Europeans, the site of Quebec City was occupied by Indigenous hunters and fishermen.

Map of lesage airport and quebec city