Notre-Dame-de-Bon-Secours Chapel
Encyclopedia
The Notre-Dame-de-Bon-Secours Chapel (chapelle Notre-Dame-de-Bon-Secours, "Our Lady of Good Help") is a church in the district of Old Montreal
in Montreal
, Quebec
. One of the oldest churches in Montreal, it was built in 1771 over the ruins of an earlier chapel.
St. Marguerite Bourgeoys
, the first teacher in the colony of Ville-Marie and the founder of the Congregation of Notre Dame
, rallied the colonists to build a chapel in 1655. In 1673, returning from France
, Bourgeoys brought a wooden image of Our Lady of Good Help; the stone church was completed in 1678. It burned in 1754, the reliquary and statue being rescued.
After Montreal was conquered by British forces during the French and Indian War
, the church was attended by Irish and Scottish troops and families, and saw fundraising to build Saint Patrick's Church, Montreal's first anglophone Catholic parish.
In the 19th century, the chapel came to be a pilgrimage site for the sailors who arrived in the Old Port of Montreal
; they would make offerings to the Virgin in gratitude for her "good help" for safe sea voyages. In 1849, Mgr. Ignace Bourget
, Bishop of Montreal, gave the chapel a statue of the Virgin as Star of the Sea, which was placed atop the church overlooking the harbour. Emphasizing the connection of the chapel and the port, the chapel is often called the Sailors' Church.
The chapel now also houses the Marguerite Bourgeoys Museum
, dedicated to the life of St. Marguerite Bourgeoys and to the early history of Montreal and the chapel site. Below the chapel, the crypt is being excavated as an archeological site, which visitors can see. First Nations
and French colonial
artifacts have been discovered, along with the foundations of the first chapel and the fortifications of the colony. The church's prominent spire can also be climbed, offering views of the Old Port and Saint Lawrence River
. In 2005, Marguerite Bourgeoys's mortal remains were brought back to the church, where she now lies in the sanctuary.
The church is located at 400 Saint Paul Street East at Bonsecours Street, just north of the Bonsecours Market
in the borough of Ville-Marie (Champ-de-Mars
metro station).
Old Montreal
Old Montreal is the oldest area in the city of Montreal, Quebec, Canada, dating back to New France. Located in the borough of Ville-Marie, the area is bordered on the west by McGill St., on the north by Ruelle des Fortifications, on the east by Berri St. and on the south by the Saint Lawrence River...
in Montreal
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
, Quebec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
. One of the oldest churches in Montreal, it was built in 1771 over the ruins of an earlier chapel.
St. Marguerite Bourgeoys
Marguerite Bourgeoys
Saint Marguerite Bourgeoys was the founder of the Congregation of Notre Dame.- Biography :...
, the first teacher in the colony of Ville-Marie and the founder of the Congregation of Notre Dame
Congregation of Notre Dame
The Congregation of Notre Dame was founded in 1653 by Marguerite Bourgeoys in Montreal, Canada. This was one of the first non-cloistered communities. The community's motherhouse has continued to be based in Montreal...
, rallied the colonists to build a chapel in 1655. In 1673, returning from France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, Bourgeoys brought a wooden image of Our Lady of Good Help; the stone church was completed in 1678. It burned in 1754, the reliquary and statue being rescued.
After Montreal was conquered by British forces during the French and Indian War
French and Indian War
The French and Indian War is the common American name for the war between Great Britain and France in North America from 1754 to 1763. In 1756, the war erupted into the world-wide conflict known as the Seven Years' War and thus came to be regarded as the North American theater of that war...
, the church was attended by Irish and Scottish troops and families, and saw fundraising to build Saint Patrick's Church, Montreal's first anglophone Catholic parish.
In the 19th century, the chapel came to be a pilgrimage site for the sailors who arrived in the Old Port of Montreal
Old Port of Montreal
Stretching for over two kilometres along the St-Lawrence River in Old Montreal, the Old Port Of Montreal has been the social, economic and cultural soul of Montreal ever since early French fur traders used it as a trading post in 1611...
; they would make offerings to the Virgin in gratitude for her "good help" for safe sea voyages. In 1849, Mgr. Ignace Bourget
Ignace Bourget
Ignace Bourget was a French-Canadian Roman Catholic priest who held the title of Bishop of Montreal from 1840 to 1876. Born in Lévis, Quebec in 1799, Bourget entered the clergy at an early age, undertook several courses of religious study, and in 1837 was named co-adjutor bishop of the newly...
, Bishop of Montreal, gave the chapel a statue of the Virgin as Star of the Sea, which was placed atop the church overlooking the harbour. Emphasizing the connection of the chapel and the port, the chapel is often called the Sailors' Church.
The chapel now also houses the Marguerite Bourgeoys Museum
Marguerite Bourgeoys Museum (Montreal)
Opened on May 24, 1998, the Marguerite Bourgeoys Museum is located on the shores of the Saint Lawrence River in the historic centre of Old Montreal. Exhibits focus on Marguerite Bourgeoys, Montreal's first teacher and founder of the Notre-Dame-de-Bon-Secours Chapel, who lived during the 17th century...
, dedicated to the life of St. Marguerite Bourgeoys and to the early history of Montreal and the chapel site. Below the chapel, the crypt is being excavated as an archeological site, which visitors can see. First Nations
First Nations
First Nations is a term that collectively refers to various Aboriginal peoples in Canada who are neither Inuit nor Métis. There are currently over 630 recognised First Nations governments or bands spread across Canada, roughly half of which are in the provinces of Ontario and British Columbia. The...
and French colonial
New France
New France was the area colonized by France in North America during a period beginning with the exploration of the Saint Lawrence River by Jacques Cartier in 1534 and ending with the cession of New France to Spain and Great Britain in 1763...
artifacts have been discovered, along with the foundations of the first chapel and the fortifications of the colony. The church's prominent spire can also be climbed, offering views of the Old Port and Saint Lawrence River
Saint Lawrence River
The Saint Lawrence is a large river flowing approximately from southwest to northeast in the middle latitudes of North America, connecting the Great Lakes with the Atlantic Ocean. It is the primary drainage conveyor of the Great Lakes Basin...
. In 2005, Marguerite Bourgeoys's mortal remains were brought back to the church, where she now lies in the sanctuary.
The church is located at 400 Saint Paul Street East at Bonsecours Street, just north of the Bonsecours Market
Bonsecours Market
Bonsecours Market , at 350 rue Saint-Paul in Old Montreal, is a two-story domed public market. For more than 100 years, it was the main public market in the Montreal area. It also briefly accommodated the Parliament of United Canada for one session in 1849....
in the borough of Ville-Marie (Champ-de-Mars
Champ-de-Mars (Montreal Metro)
Champ-de-Mars is a station on the Orange Line of the Montreal Metro rapid transit system, operated by the Société de transport de Montréal . It is located in Old Montreal in the borough of Ville-Marie in Montreal, Quebec, Canada...
metro station).