Saint-Eustache Church National Historic Site of Canada

Saint-Eustache Church was designated a National Historic Site of Canada in 2014. It is recognized because:

• it played a central role in the decisive Battle of Saint-Eustache, which was fought on 14 December 1837 and marked the end of the 1837 Lower Canada Rebellion. Its silhouette, its location and the scars of artillery fire in the masonry continue as a testament of this fateful event;
• over the years, it has come to be a powerful symbol of the history of the Patriotes, the rebellions of 1837, and came to occupy an important place in the popular imagination;
• many times altered and significantly repaired after the battle, its architecture mirrors the trends in vernacular religious architecture in Quebec through the 18th, 19th and 20th centuries.

The heritage value of Saint-Eustache Church lies in its historical associations, its location, and its architecture. During the Battle of Saint-Eustache on 14 December 1837 the church played a key role in the end of the Lower Canada Rebellion when the Patriotes used it as a defensive position. Many Patriotes also took positions in the nearby presbytery, convent and neighbouring houses. Having withstood cannonballs and musket fire, the church was destroyed by the fire that ended the battle, apart from the façade and base of the side walls. The attached sacristy was also destroyed by fire as were the presbytery and convent on either side of the church. The product of several transformations, Saint-Eustache Church mirrors the development of vernacular architecture in Quebec through the 18th, 19th and early 20th centuries. Built in 1780-83 on a Latin cross plan with semi-circular apse, the church was extended forward when the present façade was added in 1831-33. The church was reconstructed following the 1837 fire with slightly higher walls and windows. Between 1842 and 1845 the facade and towers were repaired and new bells fitted. 1905-07 saw many changes, the aisles extended, the sacristy rebuilt, a chapel built behind the church, and the roof replaced. New bell towers were constructed and a small pediment surmounted by a statue of St. Eustace screened the new roof peak.