Timothée Franchère (c. 1791 – October 5, 1849) was a

Canadien French Canadians, referred to as Canadiens mainly before the nineteenth century, are an ethnic group descended from French colonists first arriving in France's colony of Canada in 1608. The vast majority of French Canadians live in the provi ...

businessman and political figure in

Lower Canada The Province of Lower Canada () was a British colonization of the Americas, British colony on the lower Saint Lawrence River and the shores of the Gulf of Saint Lawrence established in 1791 and abolished in 1841. It covered the southern portion o ...

and then the

Province of Canada The Province of Canada (or the United Province of Canada or the United Canadas) was a British colony in British North America from 1841 to 1867. Its formation reflected recommendations made by John Lambton, 1st Earl of Durham, in the Report ...

. He participated in the

Lower Canada Rebellion The Lower Canada Rebellion (), commonly referred to as the Patriots' Rebellion () in French, is the name given to the armed conflict in 1837–38 between rebels and the colonial government of Lower Canada (now southern Quebec). Together wit ...

in 1837 and fled temporarily to the United States. Later, he was twice elected to the

Legislative Assembly of the Province of Canada The Legislative Assembly of the Province of Canada was the lower house of the Parliament of the Province of Canada. The Province of Canada consisted of the former province of Lower Canada, then known as Canada East (now Quebec), and Upper Canada ...

, sitting as a member of the French-Canadian Group.

Early life and family

Franchère was born around 1790, the son of Antoine Franchère and Marie-Josette Nicolas. His older brother

Joseph Franchère Joseph Franchère (August 15, 1785 – 1824 or later) was a political figure in Lower Canada. He represented Bedford in the Legislative Assembly of Lower Canada in 1820 and from 1822 to 1824. He was born in Quebec City, the son of Antoine Fr ...

was a member of the

Legislative Assembly of Lower Canada The Legislative Assembly of Lower Canada was the lower house of the bicameral structure of provincial government in Lower Canada until 1838. The legislative assembly was created by the Constitutional Act of 1791. The lower house consisted of e ...

in the early 1820s. Their sister Marguerite married

Rémi-Séraphin Bourdages Rémi-Séraphin Bourdages (December 25, 1799 – December 24, 1832) was a physician and political figure in Lower Canada. He represented Rouville in the Legislative Assembly of Lower Canada from 1830 to 1832. He was born Jean-David Bourdages ...

who represented the Rouville area in the Lower Canada Assembly from 1830 to 1832.

Gabriel Franchère Gabriel Franchère ( 3 November 1786 – 12 April 1863) was a French Canadians, French Canadian author and explorer of the Pacific Northwest. Franchère was born in Montreal to Gabriel Franchère (4 March 1752 – 16 May 1832) and Marie-Félicit ...

, a fur trader with the

American Fur Company The American Fur Company (AFC) was a prominent American company that sold furs, skins, and buffalo robes. It was founded in 1808 by John Jacob Astor, a German Americans, German immigrant to the United States. During its heyday in the early 19th c ...

and author of a diary about the fur-trade in the Pacific North-west, was a cousin, as was the painter,

Joseph-Charles Franchère Joseph-Charles Franchère (March 4, 1866 – May 12, 1921) was a painter, illustrator and church decorator in Montreal, Quebec.A Dictionary of Canadian Artists, volumes 1-8 by Colin S. MacDonald, and volume 9 (online only), by Anne Newlands and ...

.Société d'histoire de la seigneurie de Chambly
Famille Franchère
He served in the local militia during the

War of 1812 The War of 1812 was fought by the United States and its allies against the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom and its allies in North America. It began when the United States United States declaration of war on the Uni ...

and became captain in 1821, as well as adjutant for the Rouville district. He also served as a school commissioner.

Business activities

Franchère became a merchant at Saint-Mathias, Lower Canada. In addition to a retail business, he developed a wholesale business in grains, which he sold to markets in

Quebec City Quebec City is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Quebec. As of July 2021, the city had a population of 549,459, and the Census Metropolitan Area (including surrounding communities) had a populati ...

. He was also involved in the lumber trade and saw mills, and owned a barge for transporting goods on the

Richelieu River The Richelieu River () is a river of Quebec, Canada, and a major right-bank tributary of the St. Lawrence River. It rises at Lake Champlain, from which it flows northward through Quebec and empties into the St. Lawrence. It was formerly kno ...

. He later had shares in a steam-boat. He was involved in money-lending to residents in the Saint-Mathias area, and also engaged in land speculation. He was appointed commissioner in charge of construction of the

Chambly Canal The Chambly Canal is a National Historic Site of Canada in the Province of Quebec, running along the Richelieu River past Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Carignan, and Chambly. Building commenced in 1831 and the canal opened in 1843. It served as a m ...

in 1832.

Lower Canada Rebellion

In 1837, events were moving towards rebellion against the British colonial government. Franchère was a member of the ''Patriote'' movement and a supporter of

Louis-Joseph Papineau Louis-Joseph Papineau (; October 7, 1786 – September 23, 1871), born in Montreal, Province of Quebec (1763–1791), Quebec, was a politician, lawyer, and the landlord of the ''seigneurie de la Petite-Nation''. He was the leader of the reform ...

. He attended the major revolutionary meeting of the

Assembly of the Six Counties The Assembly of the Six Counties () was an assembly of Patriote leaders and approximately 6,000 followers held in Saint-Charles, Lower Canada (present-day Quebec) on October 23 and October 23, 1837, despite the June 15 Proclamation of the g ...

in October 1837. The Assembly passed a very strong resolution condemning the British colonial government. Franchère later said that he had remonstrated with Papineau over the wording of the resolution, arguing that it went too far. When the

broke out in November 1837, an arrest warrant issued against him, with a reward of £500. Franchère fled to the United States with two other merchants from Saint-Mathias,

Louis Marchand Louis Marchand (2 February 1669 – 17 February 1732) was a French organist, harpsichordist and composer. Born into an organist's family, Marchand was a child prodigy and quickly established himself as one of the best known French virtuosos of ...

and Eustache Soupras. He was granted a pardon by the Governor late in 1837. He was a director of La Banque du Peuple, which was suspected of having financed arms for the Rebellion.

Province of Canada politics

Following the rebellion in Lower Canada, and the similar rebellion in 1837 in

Upper Canada The Province of Upper Canada () was a Province, part of The Canadas, British Canada established in 1791 by the Kingdom of Great Britain, to govern the central third of the lands in British North America, formerly part of the Province of Queb ...

(now

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

), the British government decided to merge the two provinces into a single province, as recommended by

Lord Durham Earl of Durham is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1833 for the Whig politician and colonial official John Lambton, 1st Baron Durham. Known as "Radical Jack", he played a leading role in the passing of the Refo ...

in the

Durham Report The ''Report on the Affairs of British North America'', (, 1839) commonly known as the ''Durham Report'' or ''Lord Durham's Report'', is an important document in the history of Quebec, Ontario, Canada and the British Empire. The notable Briti ...

. The ''Union Act, 1840'', passed by the

British Parliament The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body of the United Kingdom, and may also legislate for the Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories. It meets at the Palace of ...

, abolished the two provinces and their separate parliaments. It created the

, with a single Parliament for the entire province, composed of an elected Legislative Assembly and an appointed

Legislative Council A legislative council is the legislature, or one of the legislative chambers, of a nation, colony, or subnational division such as a province or state. It was commonly used to label unicameral or upper house legislative bodies in the Brit ...

. The

Governor General Governor-general (plural governors-general), or governor general (plural governors general), is the title of an official, most prominently associated with the British Empire. In the context of the governors-general and former British colonies, ...

initially retained a strong position in the government. The first general elections for the

were held in 1841. Franchère stood for election in the Rouville constituency, and campaigned against the union. He was narrowly defeated by Melchior-Alphonse de Salaberry, who supported the union. The election was marred by violence, with one person killed. In 1843, there was a vacancy in the Rouville constituency. Franchère was a candidate in the

by-election A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, or a bypoll in India, is an election used to fill an office that has become vacant between general elections. A vacancy may arise as a result of an incumben ...

, and this time was elected. In the Assembly, he joined the French-Canadian Group of reformers, led by

Louis-Hippolyte LaFontaine Sir Louis-Hippolyte Ménard '' dit'' La Fontaine, 1st Baronet, KCMG (October 4, 1807 – February 26, 1864) was a Canadian politician who served as the first Premier of the United Province of Canada and the first head of a responsible governme ...

. He was re-elected in the 1844 general elections. He did not stand for election in the 1848 general elections.Cornell
''Alignment of Political Groups''
pp. 11, 15, 97–99.

Later life and death

Franchère was reinstated as commissioner for the Chambly Canal in 1840. He was appointed a justice of the peace in 1843, and elected the first mayor of Saint-Mathias in 1845. He continued his business activities. Franchère died at Saint-Mathias in 1849. He left a large estate for his widow and five surviving children. The inventory of his property included two pianos and three portraits, of Pope

Pius IX Pope Pius IX (; born Giovanni Maria Battista Pietro Pellegrino Isidoro Mastai-Ferretti; 13 May 1792 – 7 February 1878) was head of the Catholic Church from 1846 to 1878. His reign of nearly 32 years is the longest verified of any pope in hist ...

Jacques Cartier Jacques Cartier (; 31 December 14911 September 1557) was a French maritime explorer from Brittany. Jacques Cartier was the first Europeans, European to describe and map the Gulf of Saint Lawrence and the shores of the Saint Lawrence River, wh ...

, and Bishop

Joseph-Octave Plessis Joseph-Octave Plessis (March 3, 1763 – December 4, 1825) was a Canadians, Canadian Catholic Church, Roman Catholic clergyman from Quebec. He was the first archbishop of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Quebec after the diocese was elevated to ...

. His widow reported that he had claimed £1,300 in compensation from the government for losses suffered during the Rebellion, and had received £837.

References