Villas et villégiature / Villas and Resorts
Les Britanniques implantent au Canada une nouvelle conception de la relation au territoire, qu'ils spécialisent selon divers usages et fonctions. Le centre-ville, dorénavant institutionnel, est entouré de quartiers d'habitation constitués de rues résidentielles; le magasin apparaît sur des axes commerciaux. La périphérie de la ville, elle, est dévolue aux villas.
L'appréciation de la nature, que ces villas caractérisent, est née dans la Grande-Bretagne du XVIIIe siècle, déjà polluée par l'industrialisation. Le mouvement romantique naissant propose alors un nouveau genre esthétique : le pittoresque. À travers celui-ci, les Britanniques découvrent la somptuosité des paysages du Bas-Canada, qu'ils rendent d'ailleurs dans maints panoramas aquarellés.
Les villas, grâce auxquelles ils prennent contact avec la nature, nées d'un concept romain d'occupation du territoire, adoptent d'abord la figure de véritables palais, comme celle des vastes demeures bourgeoises qui dominaient les exploitations agricoles. Les villas des Britanniques épousent toutefois rapidement leur cadre naturel; elles s'ouvrent sur les grands
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D'abord périurbaines, les villas se déplacent, avec la villégiature, dans des régions de plus en plus éloignées des villes, comme le permet le développement des moyens de transport; certaines d'entre elles, encore aujourd'hui éloignées des centres urbains, laissent mesurer l'appel de la nature qui commanda leur répartition sur le territoire.
Puis, les volumes rigides de la villa classique s'articulent, se découpent, tandis que le décor et les couleurs empruntent au registre de la nature; bientôt, le vocabulaire gothique, jugé plus approprié au caractère pittoresque, consomme la fusion architecture-nature recherchée. Dès 1820, apparaît le cottage « orné », ainsi nommé lorsqu'un architecte le compose; on le dit plutôt « rustique » lorsque le cottage naît de la maison de l'habitant, remaniée par le citadin pour ses besoins de villégiature.
[Illustrations, dans le sens des aiguilles d'une montre à partir du centre, lire]
• Beauport. La villa Haldimand, à côté des chutes Montmorency. Aquarelle de James Peachey, 1784.
• Mont-Saint-Hilaire. Érigé entre 1850 et 1860 sur les rives du Richelieu, le manoir Rouville-Campbell est une somptueuse villa inspirée des «manor houses» britanniques; c'est aujourd'hui
• Hull. Sur les hauteurs, la villa érigée en 1862 pour Richard William Scott domine la ville.
• Sillery. Le domaine Cataraqui avec la villa construite en 1850 d'après les plans de l'architecte Edward Staveley.
• Cap-à-l'Aigle. La villa Aux Quatre Vents, encerclée des fabuleux jardins de Francis Cabot.
• Métis-sur-Mer. La « Red House », cottage orné construit en 1890.
• Chandler. Résidence estivale de l'industriel saguenéen, J.-É.-A. Dubuc, érigée vers 1910.
• Sillery. Détail du porche d'entrée de la villa Beauvoir, 1867.
• Montréal. Villa Maria, l'ancienne villa Monkland, boulevard Décarie. Maison de 1803, réaménagée en 1844 d'après les plans de George Browne.
• Saint-Roch-des-Aulnaies. La seigneurie des Aulnaies. Pavillon d'angle du manoir. Charles Baillairgé, architecte, 1850.
• Rivière-Ouelle. Manoir d'Airvault (disparu en 1910), vers 1820. Une maison traditionnelle adaptée à la villégiature.
[La légende de la grande photo du bas se lit]
Sainte-Anne-des-Monts. Maison érigée en 1871-1872 pour Théodore J. Lamontagne, un temps occupée par le Signory Club.
[La légende de la photo d'arrière-plan de la fenêtre se lit]
Pointe-au-Pic
La villa Aux Quatre Vents,
Les jardins de Francis Cabot
The British developed a new
concept of spatial relationship with the land in Canada, which was specialized according to use and function. The downtown was institutional and surrounded by residential neighborhoods full of residential streets; stores appeared at commercial axes. The urban outskirts devolved to villas.
The appreciation of nature, which these villas characterized, was born in 18th century Great Britain, already polluted by industrialization. The emerging romantic movement proposed a new aesthetic genre: the picturesque. Through it, the British discovered the sumptuous landscapes of Lower Canada, which they also commemorated in many watercolor panoramas.
The villas, through which their occupants made contact with nature, was born of a Roman concept of territorial occupation, first adopting the figure of true palaces, like that of the vast bourgeois houses which dominated the adjacent farmlands. The British villas, however, were quickly married to their natural setting through their large French windows; they opened onto the large parks and gardens that surrounded them and, first under the warm climate of the southern [American] colonies, were surrounded by galleries and verandas.
At first peri-urban, as the means of transportation developed and allowed, the villas, along with the resort, moved to regions more and more distant from the cities. Some of them still remain remote today, as the call of nature ordered their distribution across the land.
There, the rigid form of the articulated classical villa was removed, while the decor and the colors were taken from nature's register. Soon, the Gothic vocabulary, considered more appropriate to the picturesque character, consumed the fusion that architecture and nature sought. From 1820, the "cottage ornate" appeared, so named when an architect composed it. It was considered "rustic" when the cottage was born from the early settler house, remodeled by the city dweller for his holiday needs.
[Illustrations, clockwise from top center, read]
• Mont-Saint-Hilaire. Built between 1850 and 1860 on the banks of the Richelieu River, the Rouville-Campbell Manor is a sumptuous villa inspired by British manor houses; it is today a luxury hotel.
• Hull. On the heights, the villa built in 1862 for Richard William Scott dominates the city.
• Sillery. The Cataraqui estate with the villa built in 1850 according to the plans of the architect Edward Staveley.
• Cap-à-l'Aigle. The villa Aux Quatre Vents [Four Winds], encircled by the fabulous gardens of Francis Cabot.
• Métis-sur-Mer. The Red House, an ornate cottage built in 1890.
• Chandler. Summer residence of the Saguenay industrialist, J.-É-A. Dubuc, erected around 1910.
• Sillery. Detail of the Villa Beauvoir entrance porch, 1867.
• Montreal. Villa Maria, the former Monkland villa, on Boulevard Decarie. House built 1803, refitted in 1844 according to the plans of George Browne.
• Saint-Roch-des-Aulnaies. The lordship of the Aulnaies. Corner pavilion of the manor. Charles Baillairgé, architect, 1850.
• Rivière-Ouelle. Manoir d'Airvault (disappeared in 1910), around 1820. A traditional house adapted as a resort.
[Large bottom photo caption reads]
[Window background photo caption reads]
• Beauport. The villa Haldimand, next to Montmorency Falls. Watercolor by James Peachey, 1784.
Sainte-Anne-des-Monts. House erected in 1871-1872 for Théodore J. Lamontagne. For a time occupied by the Signory Club.
Pointe-au-Pic
The villa Aux Quatre Vents [Four Winds],
The gardens of Francis Cabot
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Architecture • Parks & Recreational Areas • Settlements & Settlers. A significant historical year for this entry is 1784.
Location. 48° 29.061′ N, 68° 29.751′ W. Marker is in Rimouski, Québec, in Rimouski-Neigette. Marker is on boulevard du Rivage (Québec Route 132), on the right when traveling north. Marker is on the grounds of Maison Lamontagne House Historic Site. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 707 boulevard du Rivage, Rimouski QC G5L 7L3, Canada. Touch for directions.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. La maison rurale du Bas-Canada / The Rural House of Lower Canada (here, next to this marker); La maison Londonienne / The London house (here, next to this marker); Maisons des faubourgs / Suburban Houses (a few steps from this marker); L'habitat ouvrier urbain / Urban Worker Housing (a few steps from this marker); La maison urbaine en Nouvelle-France / The Urban House in New France (a few steps from this marker); Les maisons de notables / Noteworthy Houses (a few steps from this marker); La maison rurale en Nouvelle-France / The Rural House in New France (a few steps from this marker); Les maisons de colonisation / Settlement Houses (a few steps from this marker). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Rimouski.
Also see . . .
1. Traditional French-Canadian (Quebec) Architecture. (Submitted on April 10, 2019, by William Fischer, Jr. of Scranton, Pennsylvania.)
2. Canadian Architecture: 1867-1914, with further readings. (Submitted on April 10, 2019, by William Fischer, Jr. of Scranton, Pennsylvania.)
3. Maison Lamontagne House Historic Site. (Submitted on April 10, 2019, by William Fischer, Jr. of Scranton, Pennsylvania.)
Credits. This page was last revised on January 20, 2020. It was originally submitted on April 10, 2019, by William Fischer, Jr. of Scranton, Pennsylvania. This page has been viewed 144 times since then and 5 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on April 12, 2019, by William Fischer, Jr. of Scranton, Pennsylvania.
