Description of Historic Place

The Cap Redoubt of the Quebec Citadel National Historic Site of Canada sits on a manicured landscape with lawns and paved paths leading to the entrance, with spectacular views of the city and the St. Lawrence River. It is a small, compact, one-storey, stone masonry structure with a sloping wall facing northeast and a flat roof surmounted by a parapet. The designation is confined to the footprint of the building.

Heritage Value

The Cap Redoubt is a Classified Federal Heritage Building because of its historical associations, and its architectural and environmental value.

Historical Value
The Cap Redoubt building serves as one of the best illustrations of the period from the 17th to 19th centuries when Québec was a fortified town and it is one of the best examples of the influence that the presence of military forces and increasing activities related to defensive works played on socioeconomic life during this period. The walls played a major role in the city’s future development, as they often limited expansion and influenced growth patterns.

Architectural Value
The Cap Redoubt is a very good example of a defensive military structure that projects an image of strength and is characterized by its irregular shape, its sloping wall facing northeast, and almost blank walls. The small defensive structure is one of the rare vestiges of the original Québec fortifications, and the oldest military extant, which was erected during the French Regime in Canada. It is also among the oldest military buildings in Canada.

The Environmental Value
Standing on the King’s Bastion in the Citadel in the City of Québec, the Cap Redoubt is located on landscaped grounds near the Governor General’s summer residence in the Citadel, one of the most popular tourist attractions in the City of Québec. In 1986, the Historic District of Québec received world recognition when UNESCO declared it a World Heritage Site as the only fortified city in North America; the Redoubt as a key component of those fortifications reinforces the historical military character of the World Heritage and National Historic Site.

Sources: Rhona Godspeed, Cap-aux-Diamants Redoubt, The Citadel, Québec, Québec, Federal Heritage Building Report 89-163; Cap-aux-Diamants Redoubt, The Citadel, Québec, Québec, Heritage Character Statement, 89-163.

Character-Defining Elements

The character-defining elements of the Cap Redoubt should be respected.

Its defensive military design and high quality craftsmanship and materials such as;
-its massing consisting of a small, compact, one-storey, stone masonry structure with a flat roof (except for the sloping portion) surmounted by a parapet and containing a pivoting platform for mounting an artillery piece;
-its sloping rampart-like wall facing northeast;
-its limited decorative elements with almost blank walls save for the entrance, a few gargoyles and narrow ventilation slits;
-its interior fireplace, walls and vaults of bare masonry and brick lined vault over the main room.

The manner in which the Cap Redoubt reinforces the historical defensive military character of its fort setting located in the Québec Citadel.