Biography
François-Xavier Garneau was a nineteenth century French Canadian notary, poet, civil servant and liberal who wrote a three-volume history of the French Canadian nation entitled Histoire du Canada between 1845 and 1848.
Born in Quebec City, Garneau argued that Conquest was a tragedy, the consequence of which was a perpetual struggle against the forces of English Canada for the French Canadian nation; this struggle would continue into the future as long as French Canadians were under the oppressive reign of the British. The book was originally written as a response to the Durham report, which claimed that French Canadian culture was stagnant and that it would be best served through Anglophone assimilation. Garneau died on February 2 or February 3, 1866.Canadian actor Donald Sutherland narrated the following quote from one of his poems at the opening ceremonies of the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver.
François-Xavier Garneau Medal
The François-Xavier Garneau Medal is the highest award given by the Canadian Historical Association and is given once every five years for an outstanding Canadian contribution to historical research. Recipients were: Louise Dechêne (1980), Michael Bliss (1985), John M. Beattie (1990), Joy Parr (1995), Gérard Bouchard (2000), Timothy Brook (2005), John C. Weaver (2010) ..
