Place D'Youville, Public square in Old Quebec, Canada
Place D'Youville is a public square on rue Saint-Jean, one of Quebec City's oldest roads, marking the boundary between Parliament Hill and Old Quebec. It is backed by the fortifications, with the Saint-Jean gate pierced through them, and is surrounded by the Palais Montcalm, the Théâtre Capitole, Le Diamant and the 21-storey 800 d'Youville office building completed in 1972. The central area holds benches and stairways leading up to the Palais Montcalm.
The site was occupied since the 1730s as part of the faubourg Saint-Jean. Buildings were demolished in 1815 to create a glacis before the fortifications, which was levelled in 1871 for the Montcalm market that opened in 1878. Rebuilt after an 1881 fire, the market closed and the area became a grassy square around 1932 with the construction of the Palais Montcalm.
The name honours Marie-Marguerite d'Youville, founder of the Grey Nuns; rue d'Youville was named in 1876 because it led to the chapel of her community. The square hosts activities and shows of the Quebec Winter Carnival and the Festival d'été de Québec every year.
The square sits on rue Saint-Jean at the boundary between Old Quebec and Parliament Hill, with the D'Youville bus terminal of the Réseau de transport de la Capitale on site. Stairs lead up to the Palais Montcalm. Part of the square becomes a skating rink in winter; in summer it hosts Festival d'été and Carnaval activities. The kiosk that once stood here was demolished in 2016.
West of the square stands Les Muses, a bronze group by Alfred Laliberté given by the Government of Quebec for the city's 375th anniversary in 1983. Two standing figures represent music and eloquence; the seated ones, from left to right, architecture, sculpture, painting and lyric poetry.
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