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{{redirect|Conservative Party of Quebec (20th century)|the 1982—1989 party|Progressive Conservative Party of Quebec}}
{{redirect|Conservative Party of Quebec (20th century)|the 1982—1989 party|Progressive Conservative Party of Quebec|the 2009—present party|Conservative Party of Quebec}}{{More citations needed|date=February 2024}}{{Infobox political party
| name = Conservative Party of Quebec
{{Infobox political party
| native_name = {{lang|fr|Parti conservateur du Québec}}
|name = Conservative Party of Quebec
| colorcode = blue
|native_name = Parti conservateur du Québec
| leader =
|colorcode = blue
| leader1_title =
|leader =
| slogan =
|leader1_title =
| founded = {{start date and age|1867}}
|slogan =
| dissolved = {{end date and age|1936}}
|founded = 1867
| merged = {{lang|fr|[[Union Nationale (Quebec)|Union Nationale]]|italic=no}}
|dissolved = 1936
| split =
|merged = [[Union Nationale (Quebec)|Union Nationale]]
| predecessor = {{lang|fr|[[Parti bleu]]}}
|split =
| successor =
|predecessor = [[Parti bleu]]
| headquarters =
|successor =
| newspaper =
|headquarters =
| student_wing =
|newspaper =
| youth_wing =
|student_wing =
| wing1_title =
|youth_wing =
| wing1 =
|wing1_title =
| wing2_title =
|wing1 =
| wing2 =
|wing2_title =
| wing3_title =
|wing2 =
| wing3 =
|wing3_title =
| membership_year =
|wing3 =
| membership =
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| ideology = [[Conservatism]]<br>[[Ultramontanism]]
|membership =
| position = [[Right-wing]]
|ideology = [[Conservatism]], [[Ultramontanism]]
| religion = [[Roman Catholic|Catholic]]
|position = [[Right-wing]]
| colors = <!-- use "colours" for British English -->
|religion = [[Roman Catholic|Catholic]]
| seats1 = <!-- {{Infobox political party/seats|seats_won|total_seats|hex=#ff0000}} -->
|colors = <!-- use "colours" for British English -->
| symbol =
|seats1 = <!-- {{Infobox political party/seats|seats_won|total_seats|hex=#ff0000}} -->
| website =
|symbol =
| country = Canada
|website =
| country2 =
|country = Canada
| state = Quebec
|country2 =
| footnotes =
|state = Quebec
|footnotes =
}}
}}
The '''Conservative Party of Quebec''' ({{langx|fr|Parti conservateur du Québec}}) was a [[political party]] in [[Quebec]], Canada, from 1867 until 1936, when it merged with members of the [[Action libérale nationale]] to form the {{lang|fr|[[Union Nationale (Quebec)|Union Nationale]]|italic=no}}.

The historical '''Parti conservateur du Québec''' (in [[English language|English]]: ''Conservative Party of Quebec'') was a [[political party]] in [[Quebec]], [[Canada]] from the 19th century until 1936 when it merged with members of the [[Action libérale nationale]] to form the [[Union Nationale (Quebec)|Union Nationale]].


==Origins==
==Origins==
The party originated as the ''[[Parti bleu]]'' which was formed around 1850 by the followers of [[Louis-Hippolyte Lafontaine]]. The ''parti bleu'' opposed the [[anti-clericalism]] and radicalism of its rival, the ''[[parti rouge]]'' of [[Louis-Joseph Papineau]].
The party originated as the {{lang|fr|[[Parti bleu]]}} which was formed around 1850. The ''parti bleu'' opposed the [[anti-clericalism]] of its rival, the ''[[parti rouge]]''.


The ''parti bleu'' supported the role of the [[clergy]] in Quebec society. Members of the ''parti bleu'', led by [[George-Étienne Cartier]] from [[Canada East]], joined with the followers of Sir [[John A. Macdonald]] in [[Canada West]] to form a [[coalition government]] with Cartier as co-premier from 1857 to 1862. It was out of this coalition that the [[Conservative Party of Canada (historical)|Conservative Party]] was formed (then known as the ''[[Liberal-Conservative Party]]''), laying the basis for [[Confederation]] in 1867.
The ''parti bleu'' supported the role of the [[clergy]] in Quebec society. Members of the ''parti bleu'', led by [[George-Étienne Cartier]] from [[Canada East]], joined with the followers of Sir [[John A. Macdonald]] in [[Canada West]] to form a [[coalition government]] with Cartier as co-premier from 1857 to 1862. It was out of this coalition that the [[Conservative Party of Canada (historical)|Conservative Party]] was formed (then known as the ''[[Liberal-Conservative Party]]''), laying the basis for [[Confederation]] in 1867.


==Post-Confederation==
==Post-Confederation==
With Confederation and Quebec's entry as a province, what had been the ''parti bleu'' became the Quebec wing of Macdonald's Conservative Party. It formed the government in the province, with [[Pierre-Joseph-Olivier Chauveau]] as Quebec's first [[premier]]. Cartier acted as Macdonald's [[Quebec lieutenant]] in the federal [[Canadian House of Commons|House of Commons]]. The Conservatives dominated Quebec politics at both the federal and provincial level for the next 30 years. The Conservatives held power in Quebec City for 25 out of 30 years, providing eight of the province's ten premiers in that period.
With Confederation and Quebec's entry as a province, what had been the ''parti bleu'' became the Quebec wing of Macdonald's Conservative Party. It formed the government in the province, with [[Pierre-Joseph-Olivier Chauveau]] as Quebec's first [[premier]]. Cartier acted as Macdonald's [[Quebec lieutenant]] in the federal [[House of Commons of Canada|House of Commons]]. The Conservatives dominated Quebec politics at both the federal and provincial level for the next 30 years. The Conservatives held power in Quebec for 25 out of 30 years, providing eight of the province's ten premiers in that period.


However, the party became increasingly divided between a moderate wing and an [[Ultramontane]] wing of [[Catholic]] fundamentalists. As well, the party's links with the federal [[Conservative Party of Canada (historical)|Conservatives]] harmed the party as the [[Tories]] in English Canada became increasingly identified as hostile to French Canadians and Quebec. The execution of [[Louis Riel]] in 1885 outraged French Canadians and hurt the Macdonald Conservatives at the polls.
However, the party became increasingly divided between a moderate wing and an [[Ultramontane]] wing of [[Catholic]] fundamentalists. As well, the party's links with the federal [[Conservative Party of Canada (historical)|Conservatives]] harmed the party as the Tories in English Canada became increasingly identified as hostile to French Canadians and Quebec. The execution of [[Louis Riel]] in 1885 outraged French Canadians and hurt the Macdonald Conservatives at the polls.


After Macdonald's death in 1891, the coalition that formed the national Conservatives unravelled, particularly around the [[Manitoba Schools Question]] that pitted English-Canadian Protestants against French-Canadian Catholics. This issue essentially ended the possibility of a significant French-Canadian presence in western Canada.
After Macdonald's death in 1891, the coalition that formed the national Conservatives unravelled, particularly around the [[Manitoba Schools Question]] that pitted English-Canadian Protestants against French-Canadian Catholics. This issue essentially ended the possibility of a significant French-Canadian presence in western Canada.


The federal Conservatives lost the [[Canadian federal election, 1896|1896 federal election]], largely due to the collapse of their support in Quebec. The provincial Conservative government of [[Edmund James Flynn]] lost the [[Quebec general election, 1897|1897 Quebec election]].
The federal Conservatives lost the [[1896 Canadian federal election|1896 federal election]], largely due to the collapse of their support in Quebec. The provincial Conservative government of [[Edmund James Flynn]] lost the [[1897 Quebec general election|1897 Quebec election]].


With the defeats of 1896 and 1897, the Conservatives became a minority party in Quebec at both levels of government. The Conservative Party of Quebec never formed another provincial government. The [[Parti libéral du Québec|Quebec Liberal Party]] held power without interruption for the next 38 years.
With the defeats of 1896 and 1897, the Conservatives became a minority party in Quebec at both levels of government. The Conservative Party of Quebec never formed another provincial government. The [[Parti libéral du Québec|Quebec Liberal Party]] held power without interruption for the next 38 years.
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Conservative fortunes were further hurt by the [[Conscription Crisis of 1917]] when the federal Conservative government of Sir [[Robert Borden]] invoked conscription against the opposition of Quebec. This led to riots in the province.
Conservative fortunes were further hurt by the [[Conscription Crisis of 1917]] when the federal Conservative government of Sir [[Robert Borden]] invoked conscription against the opposition of Quebec. This led to riots in the province.


In 1929, mayor of Montreal [[Camillien Houde]] succeeded [[Arthur Sauvé]] as leader of the Conservative Party, which went on to lose four by-elections.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Paulin |first=Marguerite |title=Maurice Duplessis: Powerbroker, Politician |date=2005 |publisher=XYZ Pub |isbn=9781894852173 |location=Montréal |pages=215}}</ref>
In 1933, [[Maurice Duplessis]] became leader of the Quebec Conservatives. The next year, the ruling Liberal party split when a group of nationalist Liberals dissatisfied with the government of [[Louis-Alexandre Taschereau]] bolted from the party to form the [[Action libérale nationale]] or ALN. Duplessis wooed the dissident party and, two weeks before the [[Quebec general election, 1935|1935 election]], the Conservatives and ALN formed a "Union Nationale" alliance to contest the election. On June 20, 1936 the Quebec Conservative Party dissolved when the alliance became a formal merger into a single political party, the Union Nationale.


In 1933, [[Maurice Duplessis]] became leader of the Quebec Conservatives. The next year, the ruling Liberal party split when a group of nationalist Liberals dissatisfied with the government of [[Louis-Alexandre Taschereau]] bolted from the party to form the [[Action libérale nationale]] or ALN. Duplessis wooed the dissident party and, two weeks before the [[1935 Quebec general election|1935 election]], the Conservatives and ALN formed a "{{lang|fr|Union Nationale|italic=no}}" alliance to contest the election. On June 20, 1936 the Quebec Conservative Party dissolved when the alliance became a formal merger into a single political party, the {{lang|fr|[[Union Nationale (Quebec)|Union Nationale]]|italic=no}}.
Two months later, the UN took power in the [[Quebec general election, 1936|1936 election]] under the leadership of Duplessis. The party was unexpectedly defeated in 1939, but went on to dominate Quebec politics from 1944 until Duplessis died in 1959. In the [[Canadian federal election, 1958|1958 federal election]], Duplessis lent the UN's electoral machine to [[John Diefenbaker]]'s [[Progressive Conservative Party of Canada|Progressive Conservatives]], helping them to win the majority of ridings there.


Two months later, the UN took power in the [[1936 Quebec general election|1936 election]] under the leadership of Duplessis. The party was unexpectedly defeated in 1939, but went on to dominate Quebec politics from 1944 until Duplessis died in 1959.
The Union Nationale formed the government again from 1966-1970 and afterwards went into rapid decline, being supplanted by the [[Parti Québécois]] as the main opposition to the Liberals.

The Union Nationale formed the government again from 1966&ndash;1970 and afterwards went into rapid decline, being supplanted by the [[Parti Québécois]] as the main opposition to the Liberals.


==Federal Tories and Quebec after the Union Nationale==
==Federal Tories and Quebec after the Union Nationale==
Since the late 1960s, the main divide in Quebec politics was between supporters of [[Quebec separatism]] and [[Quebec federalist ideology|federalism]], rather than the traditional conservatism and liberalism. This resulted in a reorientation of Quebec politics with the conservative [[Union Nationale (Quebec)|Union Nationale]] collapsing in the early 1970s and the new polarization in Quebec politics being between the separatist [[Parti Quebecois]] and the federalist Quebec Liberal Party.
Since the late 1960s, the main divide in Quebec politics was between supporters of [[Quebec separatism]] and [[Quebec federalist ideology|federalism]], rather than the traditional conservatism and liberalism. This resulted in a reorientation of Quebec politics with the conservative {{lang|fr|[[Union Nationale (Quebec)|Union Nationale]]|italic=no}} collapsing in the early 1970s and the new polarization in Quebec politics being between the separatist [[Parti Québécois]] and the federalist Quebec Liberal Party.


Federalists, whether conservative or liberal, generally supported the Liberals with federalist former Union Nationale members joining that party in the 1970s while more nationalist UN members joined the PQ. This reorientation could be seen in the family of former Union Nationale premier [[Daniel Johnson, Sr.]] whose son, [[Daniel Johnson, Jr.]] joined and eventually became leader of the Quebec Liberals while his brother, [[Pierre-Marc Johnson]], joined and eventually led the PQ.
Federalists, whether conservative or liberal, generally supported the Liberals with federalist former {{lang|fr|Union Nationale|italic=no}} members joining that party in the 1970s while more nationalist UN members joined the PQ. This reorientation could be seen in the family of former {{lang|fr|Union Nationale|italic=no}} premier [[Daniel Johnson, Sr.]] whose son, [[Daniel Johnson, Jr.]] joined and eventually became leader of the Quebec Liberals while his brother, [[Pierre-Marc Johnson]], joined and eventually led the PQ.


[[Claude Wagner]], a judge and a prominent Quebec Liberal cabinet minister who departed provincial politics in 1970, ran successfully as a [[Progressive Conservative Party of Canada|Progressive Conservative]] in the 1972 federal election, and was the front-runner in the [[Progressive Conservative leadership election, 1976|party leadership convention]] in 1976 before losing on the final ballot to [[Joe Clark]]. When Bourassa returned to politics in the 1980s, he worked closely with the federal [[Progressive Conservative Party of Canada|Progressive Conservatives]] led by [[Brian Mulroney]]. During that decade, the Liberals won the majority of Quebec's seats in 1985 and 1989, while the PCs did so at the federal level in 1984 and 1988. Some Quebec Progressive Conservatives attempted formed a provincial party, the [[Progressive Conservative Party of Quebec]], in the 1980s but this effort was not supported by the federal party and failed to win any seats.
[[Claude Wagner]], a judge and a prominent Quebec Liberal cabinet minister who departed provincial politics in 1970, ran successfully as a [[Progressive Conservative Party of Canada|Progressive Conservative]] in the 1972 federal election, and was the front-runner in the [[1976 Progressive Conservative leadership election|party leadership convention]] in 1976 before losing on the final ballot to [[Joe Clark]]. When Bourassa returned to politics in the 1980s, he worked closely with the federal [[Progressive Conservative Party of Canada|Progressive Conservatives]] led by [[Brian Mulroney]]. During that decade, the Liberals won the majority of Quebec's seats in 1985 and 1989, while the PCs did so at the federal level in 1984 and 1988. Some Quebec Progressive Conservatives attempted to form a provincial party, the [[Progressive Conservative Party of Quebec]], in the 1980s but this effort was not supported by the federal party and failed to win any seats.


In 1998, federal PC leader [[Jean Charest]] moved to provincial politics as the leader of the [[Parti libéral du Québec|Quebec Liberals]].
In 1998, federal PC leader [[Jean Charest]] moved to provincial politics as the leader of the [[Parti libéral du Québec|Quebec Liberals]].


With the decline of support for separatism in the early twenty-first century there are indications that Quebec politics is returning to a right/left divide and there have been several attempts to create centre-right parties, with varying success. The [[Action démocratique du Québec]] was formed in 1994 and attracted support from a number of federal Conservatives due to its neoliberal economic program and populist conservative social positions. In the years following the ADQ's collapse following the [[Quebec general election, 2008|2008 Quebec election]] a new nationalist party was formed, the [[Coalition Avenir Québec]], which absorbed the ADQ in 2012. Conservative Quebec federalists have attempted to create a new [[Conservative Party of Quebec (modern)|Quebec Conservative Party]] under the leadership of former [[Conservative Party of Canada]] MP [[Luc Harvey]].
With the decline of support for separatism in the early twenty-first century there are indications that Quebec politics is returning to a right/left divide and there have been several attempts to create centre-right parties, with varying success. The [[Action démocratique du Québec]] was formed in 1994 and attracted support from a number of federal Conservatives due to its neoliberal economic program and populist conservative social positions. In the years following the ADQ's collapse following the [[2008 Quebec general election|2008 Quebec election]] a new nationalist party was formed, the [[Coalition Avenir Québec]], which absorbed the ADQ in 2012. Conservative Quebec federalists have created a new [[Conservative Party of Quebec (2009–present)|Quebec Conservative Party]] under the leadership of former [[Conservative Party of Canada]] MP [[Luc Harvey]].


==Leaders of the Parti conservateur du Québec==
==Leaders of the Parti conservateur du Québec==
{{main|Conservative Party of Quebec leadership elections}}
{{see also|Conservative Party of Quebec (historical) leadership elections}}
*[[Pierre-Joseph-Olivier Chauveau]] 1867-1873 (Premier 1867-1873)
*[[Pierre-Joseph-Olivier Chauveau]] 1867-1873 (Premier 1867-1873)
*[[Gédéon Ouimet]] 1873-1874 (Premier 1873-1874)
*[[Gédéon Ouimet]] 1873-1874 (Premier 1873-1874)
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*[[Louis-Olivier Taillon]] 1887-1896 (Premier 1887, 1892-1896)
*[[Louis-Olivier Taillon]] 1887-1896 (Premier 1887, 1892-1896)
*[[Edmund James Flynn]] 1896-1904 (Premier 1896-1897)
*[[Edmund James Flynn]] 1896-1904 (Premier 1896-1897)
*[[Pierre-Évariste Leblanc]] 1905-1908
*[[Pierre-Évariste Leblanc]] 1904-1908
*[[Joseph-Mathias Tellier]] 1909-1915
*[[Joseph-Mathias Tellier]] 1908-1915
*[[Philémon Cousineau]] 1915-1916
*[[Philémon Cousineau]] 1915-1916
*[[Arthur Sauvé]] 1916-1929
*[[Arthur Sauvé]] 1916-1929
*[[Camillien Houde]] 1929-1932
*[[Camillien Houde]] 1929-1932
*[[Maurice Duplessis]] 1933-1936 (later, Premier as leader of [[Union Nationale (Quebec)|Union Nationale]])
*[[Charles Ernest Gault]] 1932-1933 (acting)
*[[Maurice Duplessis]] 1933-1936 (later, Premier as leader of {{lang|fr|[[Union Nationale (Quebec)|Union Nationale]]|italic=no}})


==Election results==
==Election results==
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
<table border=1>
|-
<tr>
<td align=center>'''General election'''</td>
! General election
<td align=center>'''# of candidates'''</td>
! # of candidates
<td align=center>'''# of seats won'''</td>
! # of seats won
<td align=center>'''% of popular vote'''</td>
! % of popular vote
|-
</tr>
| '''[[1867 Quebec general election|1867]]'''
<tr>
| 69
<td align=center>'''[[Quebec general election, 1867|1867]]'''</td>
| '''51'''
<td align=center>69</td>
| 53.48%
<td align=center>'''51'''</td>
|-
<td align=center>53.48%</td>
| '''[[1871 Quebec general election|1871]]'''
</tr>
| 67
<tr>
| '''46'''
<td align=center>'''[[Quebec general election, 1871|1871]]'''</td>
| 51.72%
<td align=center>67</td>
|-
<td align=center>'''46'''</td>
| '''[[1875 Quebec general election|1875]]'''
<td align=center>51.72%</td>
| 68
</tr>
| '''43'''
<tr>
| 50.67%
<td align=center>'''[[Quebec general election, 1875|1875]]'''</td>
|-
<td align=center>68</td>
| '''[[1878 Quebec general election|1878]]'''
<td align=center>'''43'''</td>
| 66
<td align=center>50.67%</td>
| 32
</tr>
| 49.49%
<tr>
|-
<td align=center>'''[[Quebec general election, 1878|1878]]'''</td>
| '''[[1881 Quebec general election|1881]]'''
<td align=center>66</td>
| 62
<td align=center>32</td>
| '''49'''
<td align=center>49.49%</td>
| 50.38%
</tr>
|-
<tr>
<td align=center>'''[[Quebec general election, 1881|1881]]'''</td>
| '''[[1886 Quebec general election|1886]]'''
| 63
<td align=center>62</td>
| 26
<td align=center>'''49'''</td>
| 46.19%
<td align=center>50.38%</td>
|-
</tr>
| '''[[1890 Quebec general election|1890]]'''
<tr>
| 62
<td align=center>'''[[Quebec general election, 1886|1886]]'''</td>
| 23
<td align=center>63</td>
| 45.39%
<td align=center>26</td>
|-
<td align=center>46.19%</td>
| '''[[1892 Quebec general election|1892]]'''
</tr>
| 71
<tr>
| '''51'''
<td align=center>'''[[Quebec general election, 1890|1890]]'''</td>
| 52.41%
<td align=center>62</td>
|-
<td align=center>23</td>
| '''[[1897 Quebec general election|1897]]'''
<td align=center>45.39%</td>
| 67
</tr>
| 23
<tr>
| 43.82%
<td align=center>'''[[Quebec general election, 1892|1892]]'''</td>
|-
<td align=center>71</td>
| '''[[1900 Quebec general election|1900]]'''
<td align=center>'''51'''</td>
| 34
<td align=center>52.41%</td>
| 7
</tr>
| 41.85%
<tr>
|-
<td align=center>'''[[Quebec general election, 1897|1897]]'''</td>
| '''[[1904 Quebec general election|1904]]'''
<td align=center>67</td>
| 24
<td align=center>23</td>
| 7
<td align=center>43.82%</td>
| 26.73%
</tr>
|-
<tr>
<td align=center>'''[[Quebec general election, 1900|1900]]'''</td>
| '''[[1908 Quebec general election|1908]]'''
| 62
<td align=center>34</td>
| 14
<td align=center>7</td>
| 39.92%
<td align=center>41.85%</td>
|-
</tr>
| '''[[1912 Quebec general election|1912]]'''
<tr>
| 75
<td align=center>'''[[Quebec general election, 1904|1904]]'''</td>
| 16
<td align=center>24</td>
| 43.01%
<td align=center>7</td>
|-
<td align=center>26.73%</td>
| '''[[1916 Quebec general election|1916]]'''
</tr>
| 55
<tr>
| 6
<td align=center>'''[[Quebec general election, 1908|1908]]'''</td>
| 35.09%
<td align=center>62</td>
|-
<td align=center>14</td>
| '''[[1919 Quebec general election|1919]]'''
<td align=center>39.92%</td>
| 22
</tr>
| 5
<tr>
| 16.96%
<td align=center>'''[[Quebec general election, 1912|1912]]'''</td>
|-
<td align=center>75</td>
| '''[[1923 Quebec general election|1923]]'''
<td align=center>16</td>
| 71
<td align=center>43.01%</td>
| 20
</tr>
| 39.32%
<tr>
|-
<td align=center>'''[[Quebec general election, 1916|1916]]'''</td>
| '''[[1927 Quebec general election|1927]]'''
<td align=center>55</td>
| 69
<td align=center>6</td>
| 9
<td align=center>35.09%</td>
| 34.31%
</tr>
|-
<tr>
<td align=center>'''[[Quebec general election, 1919|1919]]'''</td>
| '''[[1931 Quebec general election|1931]]'''
| 89
<td align=center>22</td>
| 11
<td align=center>5</td>
| 43.54%
<td align=center>16.96%</td>
|-
</tr>
| '''[[1935 Quebec general election|1935]]'''
<tr>
| 34
<td align=center>'''[[Quebec general election, 1923|1923]]'''</td>
| 17
<td align=center>71</td>
| 18.93%
<td align=center>20</td>
|-
<td align=center>39.32%</td>
| '''[[1939 Quebec general election|1939]]'''
</tr>
| 3
<tr>
| 0
<td align=center>'''[[Quebec general election, 1927|1927]]'''</td>
| 0.3%
<td align=center>69</td>
|-
<td align=center>9</td>
|}
<td align=center>34.31%</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align=center>'''[[Quebec general election, 1931|1931]]'''</td>
<td align=center>89</td>
<td align=center>11</td>
<td align=center>43.54%</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align=center>'''[[Quebec general election, 1935|1935]]'''</td>
<td align=center>34</td>
<td align=center>17</td>
<td align=center>18.93%</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align=center>'''[[Quebec general election, 1939|1939]]'''</td>
<td align=center>3</td>
<td align=center>0</td>
<td align=center>0.3%</td>
</tr>
<tr>
</table>


==See also==
==See also==
{{portal|Conservatism}}
*[[Progressive Conservative Party of Quebec]], an attempt to revive the party in the 1980s
*[[Progressive Conservative Party of Quebec]], an attempt to revive the party in the 1980s
*[[Conservative Party of Quebec (modern)]], the current revival
*[[Conservative Party of Quebec (2009—present)]], the current revival
*[[Union Nationale (Quebec)|Union Nationale]]
*[[Union Nationale (Quebec)|Union Nationale]]
*[[Politics of Quebec]]
*[[Politics of Quebec]]
Line 241: Line 222:


==External links==
==External links==
*[http://www.assnat.qc.ca/fra/patrimoine/ National Assembly historical information]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20091217055751/http://www.assnat.qc.ca/fra/patrimoine/ National Assembly historical information]
*[http://www.quebecpolitique.com/ La Politique québécoise sur le Web]
*[http://www.quebecpolitique.com/ La Politique québécoise sur le Web]
*[http://www.conservateurquebec.ca/ Website of the refounded party]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20120115041405/http://conservateurquebec.ca/ Website of the refounded party]


{{Quebec provincial political parties}}
{{Quebec provincial political parties}}
{{Canadian Conservative Parties}}
{{Canadian Conservative Parties}}


[[Category:Provincial political parties in Quebec]]
[[Category:Defunct provincial political parties in Quebec]]
[[Category:Defunct political parties in Canada]]
[[Category:Conservative parties in Canada]]
[[Category:Conservative parties in Canada]]
[[Category:1867 establishments in Quebec]]

[[Category:1936 disestablishments in Quebec]]
[[fr:Parti conservateur du Québec (1850-1935)]]
[[Category:Catholic political parties]]
[[pl:Konserwatywna Partia Quebecu]]
[[Category:Political parties established in 1867]]
[[ru:Консервативная партия Квебека]]
[[Category:Political parties disestablished in 1936]]
[[uk:Консервативна партія Квебеку]]

Latest revision as of 19:34, 22 October 2024

"Conservative Party of Quebec (20th century)" redirects here. For the 1982—1989 party, see Progressive Conservative Party of Quebec. For the 2009—present party, see Conservative Party of Quebec.
Conservative Party of Quebec
Parti conservateur du Québec
Founded1867; 157 years ago (1867)
Dissolved1936; 88 years ago (1936)
Preceded byParti bleu
Merged intoUnion Nationale
IdeologyConservatism
Ultramontanism
Political positionRight-wing
ReligionCatholic

The Conservative Party of Quebec (French: Parti conservateur du Québec) was a political party in Quebec, Canada, from 1867 until 1936, when it merged with members of the Action libérale nationale to form the Union Nationale.

Origins

[edit]

The party originated as the Parti bleu which was formed around 1850. The parti bleu opposed the anti-clericalism of its rival, the parti rouge.

The parti bleu supported the role of the clergy in Quebec society. Members of the parti bleu, led by George-Étienne Cartier from Canada East, joined with the followers of Sir John A. Macdonald in Canada West to form a coalition government with Cartier as co-premier from 1857 to 1862. It was out of this coalition that the Conservative Party was formed (then known as the Liberal-Conservative Party), laying the basis for Confederation in 1867.

Post-Confederation

[edit]

With Confederation and Quebec's entry as a province, what had been the parti bleu became the Quebec wing of Macdonald's Conservative Party. It formed the government in the province, with Pierre-Joseph-Olivier Chauveau as Quebec's first premier. Cartier acted as Macdonald's Quebec lieutenant in the federal House of Commons. The Conservatives dominated Quebec politics at both the federal and provincial level for the next 30 years. The Conservatives held power in Quebec for 25 out of 30 years, providing eight of the province's ten premiers in that period.

However, the party became increasingly divided between a moderate wing and an Ultramontane wing of Catholic fundamentalists. As well, the party's links with the federal Conservatives harmed the party as the Tories in English Canada became increasingly identified as hostile to French Canadians and Quebec. The execution of Louis Riel in 1885 outraged French Canadians and hurt the Macdonald Conservatives at the polls.

After Macdonald's death in 1891, the coalition that formed the national Conservatives unravelled, particularly around the Manitoba Schools Question that pitted English-Canadian Protestants against French-Canadian Catholics. This issue essentially ended the possibility of a significant French-Canadian presence in western Canada.

The federal Conservatives lost the 1896 federal election, largely due to the collapse of their support in Quebec. The provincial Conservative government of Edmund James Flynn lost the 1897 Quebec election.

With the defeats of 1896 and 1897, the Conservatives became a minority party in Quebec at both levels of government. The Conservative Party of Quebec never formed another provincial government. The Quebec Liberal Party held power without interruption for the next 38 years.

Decline and re-emergence as Union Nationale

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Conservative fortunes were further hurt by the Conscription Crisis of 1917 when the federal Conservative government of Sir Robert Borden invoked conscription against the opposition of Quebec. This led to riots in the province.

In 1929, mayor of Montreal Camillien Houde succeeded Arthur Sauvé as leader of the Conservative Party, which went on to lose four by-elections.[1]

In 1933, Maurice Duplessis became leader of the Quebec Conservatives. The next year, the ruling Liberal party split when a group of nationalist Liberals dissatisfied with the government of Louis-Alexandre Taschereau bolted from the party to form the Action libérale nationale or ALN. Duplessis wooed the dissident party and, two weeks before the 1935 election, the Conservatives and ALN formed a "Union Nationale" alliance to contest the election. On June 20, 1936 the Quebec Conservative Party dissolved when the alliance became a formal merger into a single political party, the Union Nationale.

Two months later, the UN took power in the 1936 election under the leadership of Duplessis. The party was unexpectedly defeated in 1939, but went on to dominate Quebec politics from 1944 until Duplessis died in 1959.

The Union Nationale formed the government again from 1966–1970 and afterwards went into rapid decline, being supplanted by the Parti Québécois as the main opposition to the Liberals.

Federal Tories and Quebec after the Union Nationale

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Since the late 1960s, the main divide in Quebec politics was between supporters of Quebec separatism and federalism, rather than the traditional conservatism and liberalism. This resulted in a reorientation of Quebec politics with the conservative Union Nationale collapsing in the early 1970s and the new polarization in Quebec politics being between the separatist Parti Québécois and the federalist Quebec Liberal Party.

Federalists, whether conservative or liberal, generally supported the Liberals with federalist former Union Nationale members joining that party in the 1970s while more nationalist UN members joined the PQ. This reorientation could be seen in the family of former Union Nationale premier Daniel Johnson, Sr. whose son, Daniel Johnson, Jr. joined and eventually became leader of the Quebec Liberals while his brother, Pierre-Marc Johnson, joined and eventually led the PQ.

Claude Wagner, a judge and a prominent Quebec Liberal cabinet minister who departed provincial politics in 1970, ran successfully as a Progressive Conservative in the 1972 federal election, and was the front-runner in the party leadership convention in 1976 before losing on the final ballot to Joe Clark. When Bourassa returned to politics in the 1980s, he worked closely with the federal Progressive Conservatives led by Brian Mulroney. During that decade, the Liberals won the majority of Quebec's seats in 1985 and 1989, while the PCs did so at the federal level in 1984 and 1988. Some Quebec Progressive Conservatives attempted to form a provincial party, the Progressive Conservative Party of Quebec, in the 1980s but this effort was not supported by the federal party and failed to win any seats.

In 1998, federal PC leader Jean Charest moved to provincial politics as the leader of the Quebec Liberals.

With the decline of support for separatism in the early twenty-first century there are indications that Quebec politics is returning to a right/left divide and there have been several attempts to create centre-right parties, with varying success. The Action démocratique du Québec was formed in 1994 and attracted support from a number of federal Conservatives due to its neoliberal economic program and populist conservative social positions. In the years following the ADQ's collapse following the 2008 Quebec election a new nationalist party was formed, the Coalition Avenir Québec, which absorbed the ADQ in 2012. Conservative Quebec federalists have created a new Quebec Conservative Party under the leadership of former Conservative Party of Canada MP Luc Harvey.

Leaders of the Parti conservateur du Québec

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See also: Conservative Party of Quebec (historical) leadership elections

Election results

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General election # of candidates # of seats won % of popular vote
1867 69 51 53.48%
1871 67 46 51.72%
1875 68 43 50.67%
1878 66 32 49.49%
1881 62 49 50.38%
1886 63 26 46.19%
1890 62 23 45.39%
1892 71 51 52.41%
1897 67 23 43.82%
1900 34 7 41.85%
1904 24 7 26.73%
1908 62 14 39.92%
1912 75 16 43.01%
1916 55 6 35.09%
1919 22 5 16.96%
1923 71 20 39.32%
1927 69 9 34.31%
1931 89 11 43.54%
1935 34 17 18.93%
1939 3 0 0.3%

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Paulin, Marguerite (2005). Maurice Duplessis: Powerbroker, Politician. Montréal: XYZ Pub. p. 215. ISBN 9781894852173.
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