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home / 世界杯决赛2022

queen elizabeth has died at age 96

the cheering that greeted royals on visits to quebec in the 1950s gave way to protests by nationalists and a riot in the '60s. by the '80s, the royals were received with growing indifference.

by andy riga

sep 8 2022
read time 7 minute read
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queen elizabeth has died at age 96 at balmoral, the royal family announced thursday.

the monarch had a front-row seat for quebec’s shifting allegiances during her 10 visits to the province over decades of royal visits.
cheering throngs of the 1950s gave way to protests by nationalists and a riot in the 1960s. starting in the 1980s, she was received with growing indifference, and as support for sovereignty waned, so did interest in demonstrating against the monarchy.

to share your memories of queen elizabeth, please email us at online@montrealgazette.com.

she first set foot in quebec as a 25-year-old princess in 1951 on what was the first of 22 official visits to canada.

she was greeted by enthusiastic admirers   in montreal. more than one million union jack-waving montrealers lined her route around the city. an estimated 40,000 people cheered as she and prince philip waved from a balcony at the windsor hotel overlooking what is now dorchester square.

two standing ovations erupted as the royal couple experienced a canadiens game, sitting in a private box behind the montreal bench as maurice (rocket) richard scored a pair of goals.
they retired to a private estate in the laurentians for a three-day vacation. on a snowy sunday, prince philip drove queen elizabeth to church in ste-agathe, “skidding slightly as he manoeuvred over icy roads,” driving by cheering hordes, the montreal gazette reported.
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the union jacks were out again in quebec city as thousands crowded outside the national assembly while premier maurice duplessis welcomed the couple. later, the princess inspected soldiers on the plains of abraham.
she briefly visited quebec again in 1957, this time as queen and canada’s head of state.
the crowds were exuberant. about 3,000 people greeted the queen and prince philip outside city hall in gatineau, according to a montreal gazette report. “some shouted two-language greetings like ‘bonjour, queen’ and ‘welcome, madame la reine.’ ”
in 1959, the queen and prince philip returned to quebec, this time for the opening of the st. lawrence seaway. hundreds of thousands of montrealers lined the streets as the royal couple took a 45-kilometre road tour of the city. “at some points, the throngs were so massive they threatened to break through protective cordons of police and military,” the montreal gazette reported.
the royal receptions grew cooler after that.
a trip to quebec city in the 1960s would be a turning point, one that is thought to have convinced the queen to steer clear of the provincial capital for another 23 years.
1964: queen elizabeth and prince philip visit quebec city, where nationalists hold protests and are beaten by police.
1964: queen elizabeth and prince philip visit quebec city, where nationalists hold protests and are beaten by police.
as part of a cross-canada tour in 1964, the queen and prince philip landed in a quebec where the quiet revolution was in full swing and nationalist fervour was at fever pitch. for some, at least, the queen was the ultimate symbol of colonialism and persona non grata.
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security was extremely tight. a year earlier, the terrorist front de libération du québec had planted bombs in federal armouries and in mailboxes in westmount, seriously injuring an army demolitions expert. in the u.s., an assassin had killed president john f. kennedy.
as soon as the queen arrived in quebec city, it became clear the visit would be unpleasant.
few lined the streets as the royals drove to the national assembly. the curious onlookers who did show up were subdued and far outnumbered by police and soldiers.
and hundreds showed up to protest.
chanting “le québec aux québécois,” separatists rallied outside quebec city hall, the national assembly and the château frontenac.
then all hell broke loose.

“at perhaps a dozen spots where demonstrators did not move on as fast as the police wished, the constables lashed out with their riot sticks,” montreal gazette reporter bill bantey wrote. “mostly, the blows were on the small of the back, the buttocks and the legs. but in several cases i saw policemen hit people on the shoulders and across the chest.”

among those clubbed by quebec city police were canadian and british reporters and photographers. dozens were arrested in the dark episode, which became known as the samedi de la matraque (truncheon saturday).

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back in london, headlines deemed the reception insulting, humiliating and shameful.
outraged by the paltry crowds, the daily mail reported: “it was without doubt the most massive, the most grievous insult ever offered the monarch.”
the protests were too much for the daily express. it called quebec city “a city of shame,” adding: “this was a city that had let itself be bullied, bulldozed and blackmailed by a handful of thugs. the reception was silent, glum, glacial.”
the queen and prince philip returned to quebec on their next two trips to canada, but stuck to montreal.

in 1967, they attended expo 67. the queen, who was fluent in french, delivered a bilingual speech . “expo 67 is a fitting climax to canada’s 100 years of progress and development, and montreal, where the two main streams of canada’s culture meet and mingle, is in every way an appropriate setting for this fantastic creation,” she said.

in 1976, the queen opened the montreal olympics . the royal couple attended some competitions; their daughter, princess anne, competed in equestrian events.

prince philip gives princess anne a few words of advice while queen elizabeth, prince charles and prince andrew listen in before princess anne competes in the olympic cross-country equestrian event at bromont, on july 24, 1976.
prince philip gives princess anne a few words of advice while queen elizabeth, prince charles and prince andrew listen in before princess anne competes in the olympic cross-country equestrian event at bromont, on july 24, 1976. chuck mitchell / the canadian press
the queen’s 1987 trip to quebec included her only return visit to quebec city after the 1964 debacle.
she and prince philip were greeted at quebec city airport by an invitation-only welcoming party of 300, described by the montreal gazette as “subdued but enthusiastic — and largely english-speaking.”

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security was extraordinarily tight. provincial police were stationed at every overpass along the 200-km route between quebec city and rivière-du-loup. “sharpshooters watched from rooftops and helicopters skimmed over farmers’ fields near the trans-canada highway,” the montreal gazette reported.
the crowds were small. the largest was in rivière-du-loup, a city the queen had briefly visited 36 years earlier as a princess. there, 3,500 people welcomed the royals by waving mini fleur de lys and singing gens du pays.
in quebec city, there were protests, though far smaller than those of 1964.
queen elizabeth and prince philip on oct. 25, 1987 during their trip to the province of quebec.“a smiling queen elizabeth and prince philip managed to appear blithely unaware of the protesters and of the giant cardboard crown emblazoned with the words “le canada, non merci,” the montreal gazette reported. other placards bore slogans: “god, keep the queen” and “elizabeth who?”
only about 200 people were on hand to see the royals off at the airport.
the queen made two more brief side trips to quebec, crossing a bridge from ottawa to gatineau for events at the canadian museum of civilization in 1992 and 2002. at the latter, she was greeted by about 100 separatist protesters heckling, shouting obscenities and waving fleur de lys.
aislin, sept. 8, 2022
aislin, sept. 8, 2022 aislin / montreal gazette

timeline: the queen and quebec

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queen elizabeth visited quebec 10 times.

1951 . three months before being crowned queen, princess elizabeth and prince philip undertake a coast-to-coast tour of canada. at montreal’s dorval airport, they are met with a 21-gun salute, mayor camillien houde and “a crowd of 20,000 pressing tightly against the wire fence facing the plane.” thousands line montreal streets as the couple take in the city by car and visit the chalet atop mount royal. the couple leave by train for the maritimes, but not before whistle stops in st-hyacinthe, drummondville, lévis, rivière-du-loup, rimouski and mont-joli.

1957 . the royal couple drive through crowd-lined streets from ottawa to gatineau.

montreal canadiens star maurice (rocket) richard shakes hands with queen elizabeth at a state dinner at government house in july 1959.
montreal canadiens star maurice (rocket) richard shakes hands with queen elizabeth at a state dinner at government house in july 1959. montreal gazette
in a ceremony on the plains of abraham, queen elizabeth presents new colours to the royal 22nd regiment in june 1959.
in a ceremony on the plains of abraham, queen elizabeth presents new colours to the royal 22nd regiment in june 1959. montreal gazette

1959 . queen elizabeth and u.s. president dwight eisenhower officially open the st. lawrence seaway in a ceremony near the lock in st-lambert before a crowd of 20,000. the royal couple then board the royal yacht britannia and set sail for chicago.

1964 . small crowds and separatist protesters greet the queen and prince philip in quebec city.

1967 . in canada to celebrate the country’s centenary, queen elizabeth and prince philip attend expo 67, staying at the queen elizabeth hotel. their visit to expo includes an unscheduled 50-minute ride around the grounds on the minirail with prime minister lester pearson, reportedly because prince philip complained security was too extreme at ground level.

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1976 . queen elizabeth opens the montreal olympics . security is so rigid, the army refuses to allow a provincial police honour guard onto the st-hubert airport tarmac because the police officers don’t have the necessary credentials. the royals stay on the royal yacht britannia, moored in montreal harbour.

queen elizabeth at the olympic pool in montreal in july 1976.
queen elizabeth at the olympic pool in montreal in july 1976. tedd church / montreal gazette
queen elizabeth at the opening of the olympic games in montreal on july 17, 1976.
queen elizabeth at the opening of the olympic games in montreal on july 17, 1976. michel dugas / montreal gazette

1987 . the queen and prince philip return to quebec city. they visit the cathedral of the holy trinity, the oldest anglican cathedral outside the british isles. they are guests of honour at a state dinner in the national assembly restaurant hosted by premier robert bourassa, and at a banquet hosted by prime minister brian mulroney at the château frontenac. the couple do not visit montreal, but a small group of sovereignists holds a demonstration in victoria square, led by convicted flq terrorist raymond villeneuve. they shout “la reine aux anglais, le québec aux québécois!”

fans and detractors greet queen elizabeth and prince philip on oct. 25, 1987 during their trip to quebec.
fans and detractors greet queen elizabeth and prince philip on oct. 25, 1987 during their trip to quebec. pierre obendrauf / montreal gazette
queen elizabeth inspects the 2nd battalion of the royal 22nd regiment’s guard of honour with maj. dominique james on oct 21, 1987.
queen elizabeth inspects the 2nd battalion of the royal 22nd regiment’s guard of honour with maj. dominique james on oct 21, 1987. john mahoney / montreal gazette

1990 . with a royal trip to gatineau for canada day festivities in the works, parti québécois leader jacques parizeau, an anglophile despite his fervent nationalism, urges separatists not to demonstrate, admitting he has a “soft spot” for the queen that “goes back a long way.” but nationalist protesters show up nonetheless, turning their backs on the queen’s motorcade as it drives by.

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1992 . the queen is guest of honour at a canada day concert at the canadian museum of civilization in gatineau to celebrate the country’s 125th birthday. the montreal jubilation gospel choir opens the show.

2002. flag-waving nationalists shout obscenities as the queen arrives at a gala dinner at the canadian museum of civilization in gatineau.

ariga@postmedia.com
andy riga
andy riga

andy riga has moved around since starting at the gazette in 1991. business reporter. technology columnist. national assembly correspondent. transport reporter. producer for the ipad edition. covid live blogger and newsletter writer. today, he’s a reporter/feature writer who covers a bit of everything.

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