Louis-Michel Viger
Louis-Michel Viger | |
|---|---|
| Born | Template:Birth date Montreal, Province of Quebec |
| Died | May 27, 1855 (aged 69) |
| Occupation(s) | Lawyer, banker, entrepreneur, seigneur, political leader |
| Known for | Political leadership in Lower Canada and Canada East; co-founder of La Banque du Peuple; supporter of the Parti canadien and Patriote movement |
Louis-Michel Viger (; September 28, 1785 – May 27, 1855) was a multifaceted professional serving as a lawyer, banker, entrepreneur, seigneur, and political leader in Lower Canada and subsequently Canada East within the Province of Canada.
Family and early life
Born in 1785 in Montreal, then part of the Province of Quebec, Viger came from a family embedded in the emerging professional middle class influential in Lower Canada's political arena. His parents were Louis Viger and Marie-Agnès Papineau.
Although his grandfather worked as a shoemaker, his father Louis progressed from blacksmith to ironmaster. His uncles—Denis Viger, a potash trader; Joseph Viger, involved in the lumber business; and Jacques Viger, an artisan—all held seats in the Legislative Assembly of Lower Canada.
On his maternal side, Marie-Agnès was sister to Joseph Papineau, who transitioned from surveyor to notary and also served in the Legislative Assembly.
Several relatives played prominent roles in politics: Louis-Joseph Papineau led the Parti canadien (later renamed Parti patriote) and presided over the Legislative Assembly; Denis-Benjamin Papineau and Denis-Benjamin Viger jointly held the premiership of the Province of Canada; Jacques Viger became Montreal’s inaugural mayor; and Côme-Séraphin Cherrier was a notable lawyer active within the Patriote movement.
Viger received his education at Collège Saint-Raphaël, studying alongside his cousin Louis-Joseph Papineau. He completed his legal apprenticeship under Denis-Benjamin Viger and was admitted to the bar in 1807. Establishing a reputable legal practice in Montreal known for its thoroughness and skill, he later formed a partnership with cousin Côme-Séraphin Cherrier. By 1825, his investments in Montreal real estate yielded an annual income between £100 and £200.
In 1824, he wed Marie-Ermine Turgeon, daughter of Louis Turgeon—a seigneur of Beaumont and Legislative Council member aligned with the Parti canadien. Her uncle was Pierre-Flavien Turgeon, who would become Archbishop of Quebec.
Militia service
Amid concerns over a possible U.S. invasion in 1807, Viger enlisted in the Lower Canada militia, receiving an ensign commission in 1808. During the War of 1812, he rose to the rank of lieutenant within Montreal’s 2nd Militia Battalion by 1812 and was promoted to captain in 1814. Additionally, he served as a lieutenant in the 5th Select Embodied Militia Battalion of Lower Canada, demonstrating allegiance to British colonial authority.
Lower Canada politics
Around the time he was called to the bar, Viger became involved in Lower Canadian politics, aligning with burgeoning French-Canadian nationalism that emphasized self-governance. His cousins Louis-Joseph Papineau and Denis-Benjamin Viger began their political careers in 1809 and were both re-elected in 1810 amid escalating tensions with Governor Craig. Although not initially seeking office himself, Louis-Michel Viger engaged actively with Parti canadien politics—most notably by refusing to endorse a pro-Craig letter circulated among Montreal merchants and encouraging others to follow suit. This stance led to accusations questioning his loyalty, though no formal charges were brought against him.
His political involvement deepened over time, resulting in his militia commission being revoked in 1824 after he publicly criticized Governor Dalhousie’s fiscal policies. In 1830, at Papineau’s urging, Viger won election to the Legislative Assembly representing the two-member district of Chambly, succeeding Denis-Benjamin Viger. He served alongside Frédéric-Auguste Quesnel, both affiliated with the Parti canadien.
Within the assembly, Viger remained a loyal supporter of Papineau’s leadership. He endorsed the 1834 Ninety-Two Resolutions, which called for extensive constitutional reforms including an elected Legislative Council. The Parti canadien campaigned on these demands and achieved a substantial majority that year; Viger retained his seat while Quesnel—who opposed the resolutions—was defeated.
La Banque du Peuple
After being elected, Viger discontinued his legal career due to his political obligations and in 1835 collaborated with Montreal entrepreneur Jacob De Witt to venture into banking. At the time, the Bank of Montreal held a dominant position in the province’s financial sector, largely controlled by English-Canadian interests. Viger sought to create a financial institution that would extend credit specifically to French-Canadian merchants and farmers, thereby offering an alternative to this English dominance. Together, they established a private bank initially called Viger, De Witt et Compagnie, later renamed La Banque du Peuple, with twelve partners pooling £75,000 in capital, most of which came from De Witt.
Papineau was initially skeptical about the bank’s viability, concerned it might damage Viger’s reputation and dedication to the patriot cause. However, he gradually acknowledged its significance in opposing English control over business financing and encouraged French-Canadian entrepreneurs to rely on it. Under the stewardship of Viger and De Witt, the bank flourished.
Lower Canada Rebellion, 1837–1838
In March 1837, the British House of Commons dismissed the Ninety-Two Resolutions and enacted the Russell Resolutions, which increased the Governor’s authority over provincial finances and diminished the power of the elected Assembly. This decision heightened tensions in Lower Canada and intensified calls for rebellion.
Viger amplified his backing of the Patriote movement by actively participating in demonstrations and supporting Papineau’s boycott of British goods. At significant gatherings such as the October 1837 Assembly of the Six Counties, he spoke alongside Papineau. Speculation arose that La Banque du Peuple was funding arms purchases for the Patriotes, fueled by Viger’s prominent role in the bank, its financial achievements, and his familial connection to Papineau.
When armed conflict broke out in November 1837, Viger was detained on charges of treason amid rumors that British authorities aimed to undermine the bank. Director Édouard-Raymond Fabre met with Papineau before the Battle of Saint Denis; following the Patriote victory there, remaining directors publicly denied any financial support for the rebellion.
Viger spent nearly a year imprisoned without trial; his legal counsel submitted several habeas corpus petitions. He was released on £2,000 bail in August 1838 but was re-arrested during the November uprising and freed again in December.
After the rebellion, Britain suspended Lower Canada’s constitution and replaced Parliament with a Special Council appointed by the Governor, dominated by British-Canadians and elite French-Canadians. As a result, Viger lost his seat in the Assembly.
Following his release—and likely exhausted from imprisonment and grieving his wife Marie-Ermine’s passing in June 1839—Viger retreated from public affairs for two years to manage personal matters and support exiled Papineau until 1845.
Province of Canada politics
In response to rebellions in both Lower and Upper Canada (now Ontario), the British government united these provinces under the Union Act, 1840. This legislation dissolved their separate legislatures and established a single Parliament comprised of an elected Legislative Assembly and an appointed Legislative Council. Initially, substantial authority remained with the Governor General.
Opposing this union, Viger re-entered political life by joining protests and signing petitions against it in 1840. During that year’s general election for Chambly, he was narrowly defeated by John Yule, a union advocate supported by Governor Lord Sydenham. Electoral violence influenced this outcome; however, attempts to contest it through petitions were dismissed on procedural grounds.
In 1842, Viger won a by-election representing Nicolet and allied himself with the French-Canadian Group alongside his cousin Denis-Benjamin Viger and LaFontaine. During a major confrontation in 1843 over Governor General Metcalfe’s authority, LaFontaine and most Executive Council members resigned as a form of protest; Louis-Michel Viger sided with this faction while Denis-Benjamin supported Metcalfe. By the 1844 elections, LaFontaine had resumed leadership of the French-Canadian Group; Louis-Michel chose not to run again.
The decisive elections of 1848 saw LaFontaine’s French-Canadian Group secure a majority in Canada East while Robert Baldwin’s Reform faction prevailed in Canada West. Embracing responsible government principles, Governor General Lord Elgin invited LaFontaine and Baldwin to form a government. Despite his earlier opposition to union policies—and after losing in Leinster—Viger was appointed receiver general by LaFontaine following a successful by-election win in Terrebonne. Papineau criticized Viger for joining this administration.
During Montreal’s 1849 parliamentary session, Viger and his associates endorsed the Rebellion Losses Bill aimed at compensating Lower Canadians for property damages sustained during the Rebellion—a landmark step reflecting responsible government addressing French-Canadian concerns. Despite fierce Tory opposition that triggered riots and arson at Parliament after Governor Elgin granted royal assent against pressure to withhold it, Viger opposed relocating Parliament from Montreal and resigned from the executive council in protest but maintained his role as an assembly backbencher.
Re-elected in Leinster in 1851 without holding executive office thereafter, Viger retired from politics prior to the 1854 elections.
Later years and passing
In 1843, Viger entered into a second marriage with Aurélie, the daughter of Joseph-Édouard Faribault and the seigneur of Saint-Ours in L'Assomption, a title she had inherited from her previous spouse. By 1848, Viger's purchase of the seigneury of Repentigny demonstrated his solid financial standing.
In addition to his political endeavors, Viger sustained considerable commercial ventures. The Banque du Peuple prospered under the leadership of Viger and De Witt, obtaining a £200,000 charter granted by the provincial Parliament in 1844. He assumed the presidency in 1845 and retained this position until his passing, with De Witt serving as vice-president. Furthermore, in 1846, Viger was appointed honorary director of the Montreal City and District Savings Bank—an institution founded to support French-Canadian depositors—which remains active today as the Laurentian Bank of Canada.
Louis-Michel Viger passed away from a paralytic stroke in L'Assomption in 1855 and was interred in Repentigny. He left the seigneury of Repentigny along with other estates to his surviving wife.
On receiving news of Viger's death, fellow Patriote veteran Louis-Joseph Papineau wrote to Jean-Joseph Girouard: