Thousands of people had attended their brief passage, according to the newspapers of the time. The couple then had a full agenda during the visit which lasted only four and a half hours.
This visit was part of Elizabeth II’s second official trip to Canada, which lasted 45 days across the country, when the sovereign, who died on Thursday, was 33 years old.
Elizabeth II and Prince Philip had arrived in the middle of the afternoon aboard the royal yacht Britannia in Port-Alfred, in the pouring rain. Many journalists and photographers were waiting for him when he arrived.
The royal yacht Britannia, during the arrival of Elizabeth II and Prince Philippe, in Port-Alfred. This photo was published in Le Progrès du Saguenay on June 23, 1959, the day after the royal visit.
Photo: Image taken from Progrès du Saguenay, via Bibliothèque et Archives Nationales du Québec
After briefly visiting the Port-Alfred and Bagotville sectors, the royal procession then headed for Chicoutimi City Hall to meet several dignitaries.
More than a hundred personalities were presented to the visitors that our city welcomed for the first time
then reports The Progress of Saguenaythe day after the royal visit.
Minister Antonio Talbot and the mayor of Chicoutimi, Rosaire Gauthier, are among them.
Of the thousands of people
were able to witness the visit of the Queen of England during impressive ceremonies
held in Saguenay, can we also read in the regional newspaper.
Industrial visit to Arvida
The highlight of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip’s visit to the region, however, took place in Arvida, where the royal limo then went in milder weather.
The couple visited Alcan’s Arvida plant and even witnessed the casting of a giant aluminum ingot.
The royal visit to the city of aluminum was Alcan’s pride at the time. The Saguenay conquered by a royal smile
title in one The Ingot, Alcan’s corporate newspaper, in its edition that follows the royal couple’s trip to Saguenay soil. The newspaper devotes several pages and photographs to the visit.
Several Alcan workers attended the visit of Queen Elizabeth II during her industrial visit to Arvida on June 22, 1959.
Photo: Image taken from the Lingot, via Library and National Archives of Quebec
The big bosses of Alcan receive the Queen during this visit which had been carefully prepared within the facilities which had just known an unprecedented expansion in the 1940s to support the production of aluminum intended for the allies, and in particular for the England during the Second World War.
The workers are also numerous to welcome the royal couple on their way. Alcan workers gave Her Majesty one of the warmest welcomes in the region
writing The Ingotwho does not fail to point out that workers from different departments applauded the couple during their visit.
The front page of Le Lingot, Alcan’s corporate newspaper, on June 25, 1959, following the visit of Queen Elizabeth II to Arvida.
Photo: Image taken from the Lingot, via Library and National Archives of Quebec
After the industrial visit, Elizabeth II and Prince Philippe head to the Manoir du Saguenay, which was then called the Saguenay Inn. A crowd of citizens is then on the grounds of the Saguenay Inn.
The queen also takes advantage of her visit to present decorations to young girls from Arvida.
On the way back, at the end of the afternoon, in the direction of Port-Alfred, the procession visited Kénogami, Jonquière and the village of the base of Bagotville.
This is the only visit to the region by Queen Elizabeth II, who made 22 official visits to Canada during her reign.
Saguenay lowers its flags
In addition, Saguenay lowered, Thursday afternoon, the flags located in front of the town hall of the municipality, in Chicoutimi, in order to pay tribute to Queen Elizabeth II, indicated the mayor of Saguenay, Julie Dufour, by press release.
” This symbolic gesture is made in order to honor this woman who marked history, after a little more than 70 years of reign. With the presence of the Canadian Forces Base in Bagotville on our territory, we have a special bond and we had to highlight this moment when a historical page is turned. »
A memorable encounter for Benoît Bouchard
The former Conservative minister, Benoît Bouchard, who was MP for Roberval under Brian Mulroney, has pleasant memories of his meetings with Queen Elizabeth II.
He had the opportunity to meet the queen twice, he explained to Radio-Canada during a telephone interview.
Its first meeting took place in 1984, after the swearing in of the Council of Ministers, within a formal framework.
However, he remembers with pleasure the second time he was able to meet Elizabeth II, during her visit to Quebec in 1987.
Benoît Bouchard lives his retirement in Roberval with his wife, Jeannine (archives).
Photo: Radio-Canada / Roger Lemay
Benoît Bouchard was then Secretary of State. He had the opportunity to speak privately with the queen for about fifteen minutes, in the company of his wife Jeannine Lavoie, in a small room while waiting for an official reception.
He remembers a charming woman, who spoke excellent French, and who even showed humor. An image, he specifies, which differs from the more reserved image that we knew of the queen in public.
