Montreal
is a city with a lot of history; Europeans
have been living at the site since the
1500s and First Nations Canadians have
been living there a lot longer! Officially
settled by the French in 1642 and named
“Ville Marie de Montréal”,
it served as an outpost and trade center
for many of the newly landed immigrants
from across the Atlantic.
As the centuries passed it became an important
center of the fur trade and an important
place to stop for supplies if you felt
like exploring Canada’s massive
interior. Montreal was fortified in 1725
and remained in French possession until
1760, when Vaudreuil de Cavagnal surrendered
it to British. It was also the capital
of what was then known as “United
Canada” 1(844 to 1849) until the
capital was moved to Ottawa.
As
the modern age dawned the city began to
boom the Canadian Pacific Railway established
its headquarters in Montreal in the 1880s.
It once again grew to be an important
transport hub and economic center until
after WWII, at which point the city began
to fall into something a decline. By the
1960s things were swinging again and Montreal
hosted not only Expo '67 but also the
Olympics.
Today Montreal is the second largest city
in Canada, coming in just behind Toronto.
It is one of the largest French-speaking
cities in the world, though most of its
inhabitants also speak English. It contains
many important establishments, such as
several universities, many museums, and
large botanical gardens.
|
|
