Île d'Orléans (; en, Island of Orleans) is an island located in the

Saint Lawrence River The St. Lawrence River (french: Fleuve Saint-Laurent, ) is a large river in the middle latitudes of North America. Its headwaters begin flowing from Lake Ontario in a (roughly) northeasterly direction, into the Gulf of St. Lawrence, connecting ...

about east of downtown

Quebec City, Quebec Quebec City ( or ; french: Ville de Québec), officially Québec (), is the capital city of the Canadian province of Quebec. As of July 2021, the city had a population of 549,459, and the metropolitan area had a population of 839,311. It is the ...

, Canada. It was one of the first parts of the province to be colonized by the French, and a large percentage of

French Canadian French Canadians (referred to as Canadiens mainly before the twentieth century; french: Canadiens français, ; feminine form: , ), or Franco-Canadians (french: Franco-Canadiens), refers to either an ethnic group who trace their ancestry to Fre ...

s can trace ancestry to early residents of the island. The island has been described as the "microcosm of traditional Quebec and as the birthplace of

francophone French became an international language in the Middle Ages, when the power of the Kingdom of France made it the second international language, alongside Latin. This status continued to grow into the 18th century, by which time French was the l ...

s in North America." It has about 7,000 inhabitants, spread over 6 villages. The island is accessible from the mainland via the Île d'Orléans Bridge from Beauport. Route 368 is the sole provincial route on the island, which crosses the bridge and circles the perimeter of the island. At the village of Sainte-Pétronille toward the western end of the island, a viewpoint overlooks the impressive ''Chute Montmorency'' (

Montmorency Falls The Montmorency Falls (french: Chute Montmorency) is a large waterfall on the Montmorency River in Quebec, Canada. Location The falls are located on the boundary between the borough of Beauport, and Boischatel, about from the heart of old Q ...

), as well as a panorama of the St. Lawrence River and Quebec City. Île d'Orléans is twinned with ''

Île de Ré Île de Ré (; variously spelled Rhé or Rhéa; Poitevin: ''ile de Rét''; en, Isle of Ré, ) is an island off the Atlantic coast of France near La Rochelle, Charente-Maritime, on the northern side of the Pertuis d'Antioche strait. Its high ...

'' in France.

Geography

The Island of Orleans is situated between the

Laurentian Plateau The Canadian Shield (french: Bouclier canadien ), also called the Laurentian Plateau, is a geologic shield, a large area of exposed Precambrian igneous and high-grade metamorphic rocks. It forms the North American Craton (or Laurentia), the ...

Canadian Shield The Canadian Shield (french: Bouclier canadien ), also called the Laurentian Plateau, is a geologic shield, a large area of exposed Precambrian igneous and high-grade metamorphic rocks. It forms the North American Craton (or Laurentia), the anc ...

to the north and the

Appalachian Mountains The Appalachian Mountains, often called the Appalachians, (french: Appalaches), are a system of mountains in eastern to northeastern North America. The Appalachians first formed roughly 480 million years ago during the Ordovician Period. The ...

to the south. Its north-eastern point marks the boundary between the St. Lawrence River and its estuary (the largest in the world), where fresh water begins to mix with salt water. The island is separated from the mainland by 2 channels; to the north-west is the Île d'Orléans Channel and to the south-east is the Grands Voiliers Channel. Of irregular form with jagged coves and capes, the Island of Orleans is long and wide at the widest point. It is in circumference, with a total surface area of . It has a hilly relief, small valleys, and gradual crests that reach a maximum height of about at Sainte-Pétronille and Saint-Laurent in the south. The main streams of Île d'Orléans are:Poirier, J. (1962)
La toponymie de l'Ile d'Orléans
''Cahiers de géographie du Québec'', 6(12), 183–199S. * Chenal des Grands Voiliers (SE side of the island) * Chenal de l'Île d'Orléans (NW side of the island) * Rivière Dauphine (Saint-Jean) * Rivière Lafleur (Saint-Jean) * Rivière Maheu (Saint-Laurent) * Ruisseau du Moulin (Saint-François) * Rivière du Moulin (Saint-Laurent) * Rivière du Moulin (Saint-Pierre) * Rivière Pot au Beurre (Sainte-Famille) * Rivière de la Savane Administratively, the island is within Quebec's Capitale-Nationale region, and constitutes the

L'Île-d'Orléans Regional County Municipality L'Île-d'Orléans is a regional county municipality in central Quebec, Canada, in the Capitale-Nationale region. Its seat is Sainte-Famille-de-l'Île-d'Orléans. The population in the 2016 census was 7,082 people. The RCM consists solely of t ...

. It is further subdivided in the municipalities of: * Sainte-Famille-de-l'Île-d'Orléans *

Saint-François-de-l'Île-d'Orléans Saint-François-de-l'Île-d'Orléans is a municipality in the Capitale-Nationale region of Quebec, Canada, part of the L'Île-d'Orléans Regional County Municipality. The village is situated on the north-eastern tip of Orléans Island, and the ...

* Saint-Jean-de-l'Île-d'Orléans *

Saint-Laurent-de-l'Île-d'Orléans Saint-Laurent-de-l'Île-d'Orléans () is a municipality in the Capitale-Nationale region of Quebec, Canada, part of the L'Île-d'Orléans Regional County Municipality. It is situated on the south side of Orléans Island. Prior to June 6, 1998 ...

* Sainte-Pétronille *

Saint-Pierre-de-l'Île-d'Orléans Saint-Pierre-de-l'Île-d'Orléans is a municipality in the Capitale-Nationale region of Quebec, Canada, part of the L'Île-d'Orléans Regional County Municipality. It is situated on the west side of Orléans Island, and accessible by Quebec Rou ...

. The entire island is part of the Montmorency—Charlevoix—Haute-Côte-Nord federal electoral riding, and the Charlevoix–Côte-de-Beaupré provincial electoral riding.

History

The island had long been inhabited by

Indigenous peoples Indigenous peoples are culturally distinct ethnic groups whose members are directly descended from the earliest known inhabitants of a particular geographic region and, to some extent, maintain the language and culture of those original people ...

. The

Huron Huron may refer to: People * Wyandot people (or Wendat), indigenous to North America * Wyandot language, spoken by them * Huron-Wendat Nation, a Huron-Wendat First Nation with a community in Wendake, Quebec * Nottawaseppi Huron Band of Potawato ...

called it ''Minigo'' (meaning "Enchantress", because of its charm). The French explorer

Jacques Cartier Jacques Cartier ( , also , , ; br, Jakez Karter; 31 December 14911 September 1557) was a French- Breton maritime explorer for France. Jacques Cartier was the first European to describe and map the Gulf of Saint Lawrence and the shores of ...

first set foot on the island in 1535 near the present-day village of Saint-François. He called it ''Île de Bascuz'' (from

Bacchus In ancient Greek religion and Greek mythology, myth, Dionysus (; grc, wikt:Διόνυσος, Διόνυσος ) is the god of the grape-harvest, winemaking, orchards and fruit, vegetation, fertility, insanity, ritual madness, religious ecstas ...

) because of the abundance of wild

grape A grape is a fruit, botanically a berry, of the deciduous woody vines of the flowering plant genus '' Vitis''. Grapes are a non- climacteric type of fruit, generally occurring in clusters. The cultivation of grapes began perhaps 8,000 years a ...

s growing on the island. Officials later changed the name to Île d'Orléans in honour of the second son of King

Francis I Francis I or Francis the First may refer to: * Francesco I Gonzaga (1366–1407) * Francis I, Duke of Brittany (1414–1450), reigned 1442–1450 * Francis I of France (1494–1547), King of France, reigned 1515–1547 * Francis I, Duke of Saxe-Lau ...

, Henri II, the

Duke of Orléans Duke of Orléans (french: Duc d'Orléans) was a French royal title usually granted by the King of France to one of his close relatives (usually a younger brother or son), or otherwise inherited through the male line. First created in 1344 by King ...

. The island was also known as ''Grande Île'', ''Sainte-Marie'', and ''Saint-Laurent'' for certain periods in the 17th and 18th centuries. Early French settlers, immigrating mostly from

Normandy Normandy (; french: link=no, Normandie ; nrf, Normaundie, Nouormandie ; from Old French , plural of ''Normant'', originally from the word for "northman" in several Scandinavian languages) is a geographical and cultural region in Northwestern ...

and other provinces in northwest France, were attracted to the island because of its fertile soil. They colonized it according to the

seigneurial system of New France The manorial system of New France, known as the seigneurial system (french: Régime seigneurial), was the semi- feudal system of land tenure used in the North American French colonial empire. Both in nominal and legal terms, all French ter ...

, which is still evident in its layout, featuring residences close together, with outlying long, narrow fields and a common. In 1661, the first parish of Sainte-Famille was founded, followed by another four parishes in 1679/1680. By 1685, there were 1205 mostly French inhabitants and 917 livestock. In 1744, colonists completed the ''Chemin Royal'' (Royal Road), which encircles the entire island. Jean Mauvide, a

surgeon In modern medicine, a surgeon is a medical professional who performs surgery. Although there are different traditions in different times and places, a modern surgeon usually is also a licensed physician or received the same medical training as ...

for the King of France, built the ''Manoir Mauvide-Genest'' in 1734 as his residence. In 1759 it was occupied by British

General Wolfe James Wolfe (2 January 1727 – 13 September 1759) was a British Army officer known for his training reforms and, as a major general, remembered chiefly for his victory in 1759 over the French at the Battle of the Plains of Abraham in Quebec. ...

when his forces occupied the island shortly before the

Battle of the Plains of Abraham The Battle of the Plains of Abraham, also known as the Battle of Quebec (french: Bataille des Plaines d'Abraham, Première bataille de Québec), was a pivotal battle in the Seven Years' War (referred to as the French and Indian War to describe ...

during the

Seven Years' War The Seven Years' War (1756–1763) was a global conflict that involved most of the European Great Powers, and was fought primarily in Europe, the Americas, and Asia-Pacific. Other concurrent conflicts include the French and Indian War (1754 ...

. Great Britain was victorious. In the 19th and early 20th century, several boatbuilding yards operated on the island, especially in

. Together with the thriving fishing industry of that era, it gave the Island of Orleans a maritime character. In 1935 the Pont de l'Île bridge was completed, bringing much more traffic. In spite of this, the island has maintained its pastoral image and historic character, with more than 600 buildings classified or recognized as heritage property. In 1990, the entire island was designated a

National Historic Site of Canada National Historic Sites of Canada (french: Lieux historiques nationaux du Canada) are places that have been designated by the federal Minister of the Environment on the advice of the Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada (HSMBC), as being ...

. Today the island is a mix of suburban communities and farms. It is a popular destination for day trippers and bicyclists. File:Beaupre Jean Bourdon 1641.PNG, Map of Beaupré and Île d'Orléans, drawn in 1641 by

Jean Bourdon Jean Bourdon ( – 1668) was the first engineer-in-chief and land-surveyor in the colony of New France, and the first attorney-general of the Conseil Superieur. Bourdon came to New France in 1634 and he was designated as the engineer to Gover ...

File:Carte du gouvernement de Québec levée en l'année 1709 - Isle d Orleans.jpg, Map of the government of Quebec drawn in 1709 by Gédéon de Catalogne File:Église St-Pierre (Île d'Orléans).jpg, Saint-Pierre church (1717) File:Manoir Quebec.jpg, Manoir Mauvide-Genest File:Sainte-Famille - Maison Drouin.jpg, Maison Drouin in Sainte-Famille File:Die Seigneurie Saint-Jean-de-l'Île-d'Orléans, zwei Türme.jpg, Mock-up door of make-believe l'Île-d'Orléans seigneurie

Economy

Since the days of the first French settlers, agriculture has been the main economic activity. Potatoes, strawberries, apples, blueberries, raspberries and maple syrup is produced. There is also

viticulture Viticulture (from the Latin word for '' vine'') or winegrowing (wine growing) is the cultivation and harvesting of grapes. It is a branch of the science of horticulture. While the native territory of '' Vitis vinifera'', the common grape vine, r ...

and cheese production. The island, known as the "Garden of Quebec", is still an essentially rural place famous locally for its produce, especially strawberries, apples, potatoes and

wineries A winery is a building or property that produces wine, or a business involved in the production of wine, such as a wine company. Some wine companies own many wineries. Besides wine making equipment, larger wineries may also feature warehouses, ...

Sugar maple ''Acer saccharum'', the sugar maple, is a species of flowering plant in the soapberry and lychee family Sapindaceae. It is native to the hardwood forests of eastern Canada and eastern United States. Sugar maple is best known for being the prim ...

stands produce

maple syrup Maple syrup is a syrup made from the sap of maple trees. In cold climates, these trees store starch in their trunks and roots before winter; the starch is then converted to sugar that rises in the sap in late winter and early spring. Maple tr ...

and other products. While the old trades of fishing and boat building have been abandoned, the island's rich cultural heritage and pastoral scenery has led to a flourishing tourism industry. It attracts more than 600,000 visitors each year. Numerous bed-and-breakfast inns, regional cuisine restaurants, roadside fruit stands, art galleries and craft shops also attract visitors: * Sainte-Famille-de-l'Île-d'Orléans the church of the Sainte-Famille from 1743 and the interpretation centers Maison de nos Aïeux and Maison Drouin; *

the observation tower, the beach and the chocolate factory on Île d'Orléans; * Saint-Jean-de-l'Île-d'Orléans the café "La Boulange", the Catholic church, the promenade on the shore of the St. Lawrence and the Mauvide-Genest Manor (National Historic Site of the Canada); *

the "La Chalouperie" museum at the maritime park and the Île d'Orléans marina; * Sainte-Pétronille the island's chocolate factory and the painter's house

Horatio Walker Horatio Walker LL.D. (May 12, 1858 – September 27, 1938) was a Canadian painter. He worked in oils and watercolours, often depicting scenes of rural life in Canada. He was influenced by the Barbizon school. Life and work Early life ...

; *

the Félix Leclerc space and the Bellevue with the giant sculpture of

Félix Leclerc Félix Leclerc, (August 2, 1914 – August 8, 1988) was a French-Canadian singer-songwriter, poet, writer, actor and '' Québécois'' political activist. He was made an Officer of the Order of Canada on December 20, 1968. Leclerc was posth ...

. Also for years there has been a strong movement of the inhabitants of

city of Quebec Quebec City ( or ; french: Ville de Québec), officially Québec (), is the capital city of the Canadian province of Quebec. As of July 2021, the city had a population of 549,459, and the metropolitan area had a population of 839,311. It is the ...

, who own second homes around the periphery of the island of Orleans.

Notable people

is buried in Saint-Pierre. There is the Espace Félix Leclerc, today a museum and performance hall, in his honor.

In art and culture

Several chansonniers have made reference to Île d'Orléans in their songs, in particular: * Yves Duteil refers to the island in his song ''La langue de chez nous'' (Our language). *

will make a song of it : ''Le Tour de l'île'' (The Island Tour). * Jean-Pierre Ferland refers to the island in ''Chanson pour Félix'' (Song for Félix) *

Sylvain Lelièvre Sylvain is the French form of Silvanus. It may refer to: People *Sylvain Archambault, Canadian director * Sylvain Bied (1965–2011), French footballer and manager * Sylvain Cappell (born 1946), American mathematician * Sylvain Chavanel (born 19 ...

refers to the island in his song ''Le fleuve'' (The river) *

Monique Leyrac Monique Leyrac, (26 February 1928 – 15 December 2019) was a Canadian singer and actress who popularized many songs by French-Canadian composers. Early life Leyrac was born Monique Tremblay in Montreal, Quebec.Alexis Luko, Rachelle Taylor ...

refers to the island in her song ''La fille de l'île'' (The Island Girl) * Tire le Coyote refers to the island in his song ''Calfeutrer les failles'' (Caulk faults)

Gallery

File:Pont Ile d'Orléans fleuve st Laurent.jpg, Panoramic view of the North shore, Saint-Laurent river, Île d'Orléans bridge File:Parc nautique (Île d'Orléans).jpg, Île d'Orléans Marina File:Chalouperie (Île d'Orléans).jpg, Museum ''La Chalouperie'' at "Parc maritime de Saint-Laurent" (English: Saint-Laurent Maritime Park) File:IleOrleans.JPG, View of the north shore of the St. Lawrence River File:Saint-Laurent-Québec.JPG, The frozen St. Lawrence River at the Île d'Orléans bridge

References

External links

* *
Official Tourist Website of Île d'Orléans
{{DEFAULTSORT:Orleans, Ile D' Landforms of Capitale-Nationale Islands of the Saint Lawrence River River islands of Quebec Heritage sites in Quebec (Cultural Heritage Act) National Historic Sites in Quebec