Mr. Speaker, 2015 is the 350th anniversary of the arrival of the very first French regiment, the Carignan-Salières regiment, in New France.
When Captain Jacques de Chambly and his soldiers built a wooden fort in 1665, they laid the foundations of our great story. Some months later, Henri Chastelard de Salières built Fort Sainte-Thérèse on the banks of the Richelieu River where the town of Carignan now sits.
Paul-Henri Hudon, president of the historical society of the seigneury of Chambly, described it like this:
The seigneury of Chambly was born 350 years ago, and along with two parishes, it would become what we now know as the municipalities of Carignan, Chambly, Richelieu, Saint-Basile-le-Grand and Saint-Mathias-sur-Richelieu.
We have a duty to remember. I invite all of my colleagues and constituents to join me this summer at the festivities celebrating this 350th anniversary and the 50th anniversary of the town of Carignan.