Picturesque Quebec : a sequel to Quebec past and present Part 27

"This individual, whose name was Abraham Martin, is described in a legal doc.u.ment, dated the 15th August, 1646, and preserved among the archives of the Bishop's Palace, at Quebec, as (the King's) Pilot of the St. Lawrence; an appointment which probably conferred on its possessor considerable official rank; for we find that Jacques Quartier, or Cartier, the enterprising discoverer and explorer of the St. Lawrence, when about to proceed in 1540, on his third voyage to Canada, was appointed by Francis I, Captain General and Master Pilot of the expedition which consisted of four vessels.

"That Martin was a person of considerable importance in the then infant colony of New France may also be inferred from the fact that, in the journal of the Jesuits and in the parish register of Quebec, he is usually designated by his Christian name only, Maitre Abraham; as well as from the circ.u.mstance of Champlain, the distinguished founder of Quebec and father of New France, having been G.o.d-father to one of Abraham's daughters (Helene) and of Charles de St. Etienne, Sieur de la Tour, of Acadian celebrity, having stood in the same relation to Martin's youngest son, Charles Amador.

"The earliest mention of Martin's name occurs in the first entry of the parish register of Quebec, viz., on, the 24th of October, 1621; when his son Eustache, who died shortly afterwards, was baptized by father Denis, a Franciscan Friar. The second baptism therein recorded is that of his daughter Marguerite, which took place in 1624; and it is stated in the register that these children were born of the legitimate marriage of Abraham Martin surnamed or usually known as _the Scot_ ("dict l'Ecossois.") Their family was numerous; besides Anne and other children previously to the opening of the register in 1621, the baptism of the following are therein recorded:--

Eustache,................ / 1621.

Marguerite,.............. 1624.

Marie,................... 1627.

Adrien,.................. Born in 1635.

Madelaine,............... 1640.

Barbe (Barbara),......... 1643.

Charles Amador,.......... / 1648.

who was the second Canadian raised to the priesthood, and became a canon at the erection of the chapter of Quebec."

As the reader will observe there is nothing to connect the Plains with that of the patriarch of Genesis. Nay, though our Scotch friend owned a family patriarchal in extent, on referring to The Jesuits' Journal we find, we regret to way, at page 120 an Entry, according to which the "Ancient Mariner" seems to have been very summarily dealt with; in fact committed to prison for a delinquency involving the grossest immorality.

The appellation of Plains of Abraham was formerly given by our historians to that extensive plateau stretching from the city walls to the Sillery Wood, bounded to the north by the heights of land overhanging the valley of the St. Charles, and to the south by the _coin du cap_ overlooking the St. Lawrence, whose many indentures form coves or timber berths, for storing square timber, &c., studded with deep water wharves.

The hill in St. John suburbs or ascent leading up from the valley of the St. Charles, where St. Roch has since been built to the table-land above, was from time immemorial known as COTE D'ABRAHAM, Abraham's Hill. Why did it bear that name?

On referring to the Parish Register of Quebec, from 1621 to 1700, one individual seems to have borne the name of Abraham, and that person is Abraham Martin, to whom under the appellation of _Maitre_ Abraham, repeated reference is made both in the Register and the Jesuits' Journal.

Abraham Martin, according to the doc.u.ments quoted by Col. Beatson, owned in two separate lots--one of twenty and the other of twelve _arpents_--thirty-two _arpents_ of land, covering, as appears by the subjoined Plan or Diagram copied from his work, a great portion of the site on which St. John and St. Louis Suburbs have since been erected.

Abraham's property occupied, it would seem, a portion of the area--the northern section--which, for a long period, also went under the name of Abraham's Plains. It adjoined other land of the Ursuline Ladies then owned on _Coteau St. Louis_, closer to the city, when 1667, [202] it was purchased by them; at that time, the whole tract, according to Col.

Beatson, went under the general name of Plains of Abraham. Such appear to be the results of recent researches on this once very obscure question.

_THE BATTLE FIELD._

Two highways, lined with country seats, forest trees or cornfields run parallel, at a distance varying from one to half a mile, leading into Quebec: the _Grande Allee_, or St. Louis and the Ste. Foye road. They intersect from east to west the expanse, nine miles in length, from _Cap Rouge_ to the city. These well known chief arteries of travel were solidly macadamized in 1841. At the western point, looms out the oak and pine clad cliffs of a lofty cape--_Cap Rouge_ or _Redclyffe_. Here wintered, in 1541-2, the discoverer of Canada, Cartier and his followers, here, in 1543-4, his celebrated follower, Roberval, seems also to have sojourned during the dreary months of winter.

A small stream, at the foot of the cape, meanders in a north westerly direction through St. Augustin and neighbouring parishes, forming a deep valley all around the cape. The conformation of the land has led geologists to infer that, at some remote period, the plateau, extending to Quebec, must have been surrounded on all sides by water, the _Cap Rouge_ stream and St. Charles being the outlets on the west, north and east. This area increases in alt.i.tude until it reaches the lofty summit of Cape Diamond, its eastern boundary. Nature itself seems to have placed these rugged heights as an insurmountable barrier to invasion from the St.

Lawrence. With the walls, bastion and heavy city guns; with artillery in position on the _Cap Rouge_ promontory; cavalry patrolling the Sillery heights; a numerous army on the only accessible portion of the coast-- Beauport, Quebec, if succoured in time, was tolerably safe; so thought some of the French engineers, though not Montcalm.

"The two engagements," says Chauveau, "that of the 15th September, 1759, and that of the 28th of April, 1760, occupied nearly all the plateau hereinbefore described. The first, however, it would seem, was fought chiefly on the St. Louis road, whilst the second took place on the Ste. Foye road. Each locality has its monument, one erected in the honour of Wolfe, on the identical spot where he fell; the other in 1855, to commemorate the glorious fate of the combatants of 1760, where the carnage was the thickest, viz: on the site where stood Dumont's mill (a few yards to the east of the dwelling of J. W.

Duns...o...b.. Esq.)

"The victory of 1759 was a fitting reward of Wolfe's valour, punished the infamies of the Bigot _regime_ and withdrew Canada from the focus of the terrible chastis.e.m.e.nt which awaited France soon after--in the Reign of Terror--for her impiety and immorality. The victory of April, 1760, was a comforting incident--a species of compensation to a handful of brave and faithful colonists, for the crushing disaster which had befallen their cause, the preceding September. It was the crowning--though bootless victory--to the recent brilliant, but useless success of the French arms at Carillon, Monongahela, Fort George, Ticonderoga, Beauport Flats. It was, moreover, the last t.i.tle, added to numerous others, to the esteem and respect of their conquerors."

Of the second battle of the Plains, that of 28th April 1760, called by some writers "The battle of Ste. Foye," by others "The battle of Sillery Wood," so b.l.o.o.d.y in its results, so protracted in its duration, we have in _Garneau's History_ the first complete account, the historian Smith having glossed over with striking levity this "French victory." The loss of the rival Generals, at the battle of the Plains, of September, 1759, though an unusual incident in warfare, was not without precedent Generals Braddock and DeBeaujeu in 1755, had both sealed on the battlefield their devotion to their country with their blood on the sh.o.r.es of the Monongahela, in Ohio; in this case as in that of Wolfe and Montcalm, he whose arms were to prevail, falling first.

In 1759, everything conspired to transform this conflict into an important historical event. Even after the lapse of a century, one sometimes is fain to believe, it sums up all which Europe recollects of primitive Canada.

The fall of Quebec did not merely bring to a close the fierce rivalry of France and England in America. It lent an immense prestige to Great Britain, by consolidating her maritime supremacy over France--a supremacy she then so highly prized. The event, after the discouraging news which had prevailed, was heralded all over England by the ringing of the bells, and public thanksgiving. Bonfires blazed through the length and breadth of the land, it was a national victory which King, Peers and Commons could not sufficiently extol, and still what has been the ultimate result? By removing the French power from Canada--the only counterpoise to keep down the restless and thriving New England colonies, New England, from being strong got to be defiant. The surrender of Canada hastened the American Revolution. The rule of Britain soon ceased to exist in the New England Provinces; and later on, in 1810, by the abrogation of the right of search on the high seas, her maritime supremacy became a dead letter. As Mr.

Chauveau has remarked, "if the independence of America meant the lessening of the British prestige, it remains yet to be proved that France has benefitted thereby."

How much of these momentous changes can be traced to the incidents (perhaps the treason of Bigot), [203] which made the scale of victory incline to British valour on the 13th of September, 1759!

Those desirous of obtaining a full account of the two battles of the Plains are referred among other works, to "Quebec Past and Present." I shall merely borrow from Col. Beatson's very rare volume details not to be found in the ordinary histories.

"It has," says Col Beatson, "been alleged that Montcalm in hastening to meet the British on an open plain, and thereby to decide in a single battle, the fate of a fertile Province nearly equal in extent to one-half of Europe, was not only forgetful of his usual caution, but acted with culpable temerity."

Such action, however, proceeded from no sudden impulse, but from a n.o.ble resolve deliberately formed after the most mature consideration and recorded some time previously.

Painfully convinced how little security the weak defences of the city could afford against the determined a.s.sault of well disciplined and ably led troops, he believed that however great the risk of meeting his daring adversary in the open field, this course was the only one that seemed to promise him any chance of success. Besides, he had a force numerically [204] superior to that of the English General, could he have concentrated them at one spot. Bougainville with the flower of the French army, the grenadiers and volunteers, 3,000 strong, according to professor Dussieux, was at Cap Rouge, six miles from the battlefield and took no part in the fight, having arrived there more than one hour after the fate of Canada was decided. 1,500 men had been left at the Beauport camp to repel the feint by Admiral Saunders'

ships, on the morning of the 13 Sept., 1759. The Charlesbourg, Lorette and Beauport militia had been granted leave to return home that week, to look after their harvest: a curious coincidence.

The French army was as follows, viz: Left The Royal Roussillon Regiment, a battalion Regulars. Militia.

Wing of the marines, or colony troops, and Canadian militia........................... 1,300 2,300 Centre.--The Regiments of Bearn and militia. ...... 720 1,200 Right The Regiments of La Sarre and Languedoc, Wing a battalion of the marine, and militia..... 1,600 400 ----- ----- 3,620 3,900

Wolfe's _field-state_ on the morning of the 13th September, showed only 4,828 men of all ranks, from the General downwards; but of these every man was a trained soldier.

And within little more than an hour's march from the Plains, he could not honourably have remained inactive while believing that only a part of the enemy's force was in possession of such vantage ground; and neither the dictates of prudence [205] nor his own chivalrous spirit and loyal regard for the national honour, would permit him to betray a consciousness of weakness by declining the combat, on finding himself unexpectedly confronted by the whole of Wolfe's army. Relying, doubtless, on the prestige of his victories during the campaign of the proceeding year (1758) in which he had been uniformly successful, and in which at Ticonderoga, with four thousand men he had defeated General Abercromby at the head of nearly four times that number--he endeavoured by a confident bearing and encouraging expressions [206]

to animate his troops with hopes which he himself could scarcely entertain; and though almost despairing of success, boldly resolved to attempt, by a sudden and vigorous onset, to dislodge his rival before the latter could intrench himself in his commanding position, and it is surely no blot on his fame that the superior discipline and unflinching steadiness of his opponents, the close and destructive volley [207] by which the spirited but disorderly advance of his battalions was checked, and the irresistible [208] charge which completed their confusion, rendered unavailing his gallant effort to save the colony; for (to borrow the words of the eloquent historian of the _Peninsular War_), "the vicissitudes of war are so many that disappointment will sometimes attend the wisest combinations; and a ruinous defeat, the work of chance close the career of the boldest and most sagacious of Generals, so that to judge a commander's conduct by the event alone is equally unjust and unphilosophical."

In the remarkable letter said to have been addressed to his cousin, M.

de Mole, _President au Parlement de Paris_, and dated _from the camp before Quebec, 22nd August_, 1759,"--a fortnight before the battle-- MONTCALM thus pathetically describes how hopeless would be the situation in the event of WOLFE effecting a landing near the city; and, with a firm heart, foretold his own fate,

"Here I am, my dear cousin, after the lapse of more than three months still contending with Mr. WOLFE, who has incessantly bombarded Quebec with a fury unexampled in the attack of any place, which the besieger has wished to retain after his capture.

"Nearly all the whole of Lower Town has been destroyed by his batteries and of the Upper Town a great part is likewise in ruins. But even if he leaves not one stone upon another, he will never obtain possession of the capital of the colony whilst his operations continue to be confined to the opposite side of the river.

"Notwithstanding all his efforts during these three months, be has. .h.i.therto made no progress towards the accomplishment of his object. He is ruining us, but without advantage to himself. The campaign can scarcely last another month, in consequence of the approach of the autumnal gales, which are so severe and so disastrous to shipping.

"It may seem that, after so favourable a prelude, the safety of the colony can scarcely be doubtful. Such, however, is not the case, as the capture of Quebec depends on a _coup-de-main_. The English have entire command of the river, and have only to effect a landing on this side, where the city without defences is situated. Imagine them in a position to offer me battle! _which I could no longer decline, and which I ought not to gain_.

"Indeed, if M. WOLFE understands his business he has only to receive my first fire, give a volley in return, and then charge; when my Canadians--undisciplined, deaf to the sound of the drum, and thrown into confusion by his onset--would be incapable of resuming their ranks. Moreover, as they have no bayonets with which to oppose those of the enemy, nothing would remain for them but flight; and then-- behold me beaten without resource.

"Conceive my situation! a most painful one for a General-in-Chief, and which causes me many distressing moments.

"Hitherto, I have been enabled to act successfully on the defensive; but will a continuance in that course prove ultimately successful?

that is the question which events must decide! Of this, however, you may rest a.s.sured, that I shall probably not survive the loss of the colony. There are circ.u.mstances which leave to a General no choice but that of dying with honour; such may soon be my fate; and I trust that in this respect posterity will have no cause to reproach my memory."

[209]

MONTCALM, conspicuous in front of the left wing of his line, and WOLFE, at the head of the 28th Regiment, and the Louisbourg Grenadiers, towards the right of the British line, must have been nearly opposite to each other at the commencement of the battle, which was most severe in that part of the field; and, by a singular coincidence each of these heroic leaders had been twice wounded during the brief conflict before he received his last and fatal wound.

But the valiant Frenchman, regardless of pain, relaxed not his efforts to rally his broken battalions in their hurried retreat towards the city, until he was shot through the loins, when within a few yards of the St. Louis Gate. And so invincible was his fort.i.tude that not even the severity of this mortal stroke could abate his gallant spirit or alter his intrepid bearing. Supported by two grenadiers--one at each side of his horse--he re-entered the city; and in reply to some woman who, on seeing blood flow from his wounds as he rode down St. Louis street, on his way to the chateau, [210] exclaimed, _Oh, mon Dieu!

mon Dieu! le marquis est tue!_ courteously a.s.sured them that he was not seriously hurt, and beg them not to distress themselves on his account. _Ce n'est rien! Ce n'est rien! Ne vous affligez pas pour moi, mes bonnes amies._ The last words of WOLFE--imperishably enshrined in history--excite, after the lapse of a century, the liveliest admiration and sympathy, and similar interest may, perhaps be awakened by the narrative of the closing scene in the eventful career of his great opponent.

On the 24th of March, 1761, the French troops who had served in Canada under Montcalm, through M de Bougainville, applied to the British Government for leave to raise a monument to the ill.u.s.trious dead hero.

The British Government, through Mr. Pitt, sent back to Paris on the 10th April, 1761, a graceful letter of acquiescence. The inscription had been prepared by the _Academie des Inscriptions et Belles Lettres_. Unfortunately the marble on which the inscription was engraved by some cause or other never reached Canada. However, in 1831, Lord Aylmer erected over the tomb of the marquis, in the Ursuline Convent, a simple mural tablet of white marble, having the following concise and beautiful epitaph from his Excellency's own pen--

HONNEUR a MONTCALM Le Destin en lui derobant la Victoire L'a recompense par une mort glorieuse.

In the course of the following year (1832), there was also erected by his Lordship a small monument on the battle-field to indicate the spot where WOLFE expired, which structure, having become injured, has since given place to a pedestal and column about thirty-five feet high, surmounted by a Roman helmet wreathed with a laurel, and sword; both in bronze.

On two sides of the pedestal are inserted bronze panels, with inscriptions cast in bold relief; one of which thus briefly records the place, circ.u.mstances, and date of the conquering hero's death:

Here Died WOLFE Victorious September the 13th, 1759.