A Walk Through Time: A Conversation with Samuel de Champlain in Quebec City
Dan Blanchard (DB): Bonjour, Monsieur de Champlain! Quebec City is one of the most unique cities in North America, surrounded by fortified walls. From your perspective as its founder, what makes it stand out?
Samuel de Champlain (SC): Bonjour, Dan! When I chose this place in 1608, I saw both strength and beauty. The cliffs rising over the St. Lawrence River offered natural defenses, while the waters opened pathways for trade and exploration. Quebec became not just a settlement, but a fortress, a gateway, and a vision of a new France in the New World. Its European charm you admire today is rooted in the stone and soil we laid down over four centuries ago.
DB: You had an impressive career as an explorer, leader, and builder. Can you highlight a few key moments in Quebec’s history that connect back to your vision?
SC: Certainly. When I first established the habitation here, it was small and fragile, but it endured. I built alliances with the Huron and Algonquin, believing cooperation was as essential as walls and cannons. Later, this city became the stage for great struggles—the Seven Years’ War, when the English wrested it from France; the American attempt during their Revolution, when even Benedict Arnold of Connecticut marched on these very walls. Each moment tested Quebec, yet each left it stronger, layering resilience upon resilience.
DB: Chateau Frontenac is so iconic today. How do you see it in the story of Quebec?
SC: Ah, the Chateau Frontenac—though it rose long after my time, I recognize in it the spirit of endurance. It sits where forts once stood, a castle upon castles. To me, it shows how Quebec continually reinvents itself without losing its soul. From wooden palisades to stone fortresses to a grand hotel, the city has always adapted while standing tall over the St. Lawrence.
DB: Beyond history, what do you think visitors should experience in Quebec?
SC: They should walk the narrow streets where carriages once rolled, touch the stones of the old fortifications, and gaze upon the river that carried so many hopes and perils. They should taste the foods that blend French tradition with Canadian ingenuity—poutine, maple, and fare from the land. And, in winter, they should marvel at the ice palaces, a reminder that even cold and hardship can be turned into celebration.
DB: What leadership lessons can people take from your story and from Quebec’s journey?
SC: Two lessons above all: endurance and adaptability. Endurance is in the walls that withstood cannon fire; adaptability is in the way French and English cultures intertwined, each shaping the city. A leader must preserve identity while adjusting to forces beyond his control. That is how one survives the storms of war, politics, and time itself.
DB: Any final thoughts for travelers who come to Quebec?
SC: Walk both the Upper Town and the Lower Town, and you will feel the centuries beneath your feet. Remember that every cobblestone was placed by hands that believed in a future here. To visit Quebec is to see the story of resilience and ambition—an enduring dream of New France, still alive today.
DB: Merci, Samuel de Champlain! Quebec City truly reflects your vision—where history, culture, and resilience live on to guide us even now.
