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Contrecœur, Quebec (Canada)

Municipalité de Contrecœur

Last modified: 2022-02-26 by rob raeside
Keywords: contrecœur | quebec | lion: rampant | griffin: rampant | hearts: 3 per bend |
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[Contrecoeur flag] image by Ivan Sache, 28 June 2012

See also:


City

The Town of Contrecœur (6,354 inhabitants in 2012; 6,156 ha) is located in Montérégie, 40 km east of Montreal. on the south bank of river St. Lawrence.

Contrecœur was founded in 1667 by Antoine Pécaudy de Contrecœur (1596-1688), Captain in the Carignan-Salières Regiment and first lord of Contrecœur. The parish register was inaugurated in 1668, this year being proclaimed in 1968 the foundation year of the town. On 29 October 1672, Intendant Jean Talon, representing the King of France, granted Antoine Pécaudy de Contrecœur a two square league domain; according to the 1681 census, the domain had 69 settlers and 80 acres of productive land. In 1688, the domain of Contrecœur was inherited by the founder's son, François-Antoine Pécaudy de Contrecœur (c. 1676-1743), a brilliant officer made Knight of the Order of Saint-Louis on 25 March 1738; the number of inhabitants rise to 138 in 1706 and 283 in 1739. His son Claude-Pierre Pécaudy de Contrecœur (1705-1775), also an officer, secured the French position in Ohio and was appointed a member of the Legislative Council short before his death, attending only one meeting; in 1765, the domain of Contrecœur counted 371 persons, 6,640 acres under cultivation, and 973 animals.
The Sainte-Trinité parish was established in November 1832; the local tradition says that the parish was named for Barbe Denys de la Trinité, Pécaudy's wife and first Dame of Contrecœur. The Municipality of the Parish of Sainte-Trinité de Contrecœur was founded in 1845, its territory matching the religious parish's territory. The Municipality of the Village of Contrecœur was eventually founded on 30 April 1902. The two municipalities merged in 1976, being subsequently incorporated in the MRC Marguerite-D'Youville, founded on 1 January 1982. Contrecœur was granted the status of Town in May 1997.
- http://www.ville.contrecoeur.qc.ca/cgi-bin/index.cgi?page=c4_1&langue=fra - Municipal website
Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online:
http://www.biographi.ca/009004-119.01-e.php?&id_nbr=538 - Antoine Pécaudy de Contrecœur
http://www.biographi.ca/009004-119.01-e.php?id_nbr=1609 - François-Antoine Pécaudy de Contrecœur
http://www.biographi.ca/009004-119.01-e.php?&id_nbr=2131 - Claude-Pierre Pécaudy de Contrecœur

Ivan Sache, 28 July 2012


City flag

The town uses two flags, one with the municipal coat of arms and one with the municipal logo, on a white field in both flags. They are prescribed in the regulation on the use of the symbols of Contrecœur, adopted on 18 August 1986.

The flag with the logo shall be used on flags hoisted in the municipal parks and outside the multifunction center. The logo is shaped like a house, recalling the group of houses that form Contrecœur's early downtown. The white stripe recalls river St. Lawrence, the main source of economical and social expansion of the town. The heart (in French, "cœur") is the symbol of the pride of the town. The logo also includes letter "C", the initial of the name of the town and its "heart". Garnet red is a reference to the history of Contrecœur and to the valiant heart of its workers, merchants and inhabitants. Steel gray is a reference to the once and still significant contribution of steel industry* to the development of the town.
- https://www.ville.contrecoeur.qc.ca/ville/symboles-identitaires/armoiries - Municipal website

* The steel factories Sidbec-Docso (today, Mittal) and Stelco (today, Norambar) are among the main employers in the town, once also known for shoe industry.
Ivan Sache, 28 July 2012

This logo flag may be obsolete, as the city is now using a different logo.
Dave Fowler 16 February 2022


Prior Flag

[Contrecoeur flag] image by Luc Baronian

The flag with the municipal arms shall be hoisted in front of the Town Hall and inside the meeting room of the Municipal Council. The arms of Contrecœur are "Gules a bend or charged by three hearts gules cantonned by two bunches of grapes or leaved of the same. The shield supported dexter by a lion or and sinister by a griffin of the same."

The arms recall the feudal domain of Contrecoeur, whose first lord was Antoine Pécaudy de Contrecoeur.
The arms of Pécaudy were "Gules a bend vert charged with three hearts or". The two bunches of grapes were added as a tribute for Barbe Denys de la Trinité, first Dame of Contrecoeur. The lion comes from the arms of the Pécaudy family while the griffin come from those of the Denys family.

Antoine Pécaudy de Contrecoeur (1596-1688) was born in Dauphiné (France) as Picoud / Pécoud. Contrecoeur (French, "Reluctant, lit. "Counterheart")is the nickname he earned as an officer in the Regiment of Carignan-Salières. Little is known about his biography until he came to Nouvelle-France. he nobility lettres he was granted by Louis XIV in 1661 and that he had registered in Quebec only in 1687, are considered as forged by some historians.
Pécaudy landed on 17 August 1665 in Quebec, commanding one of the 24 companies of the Regiment of Carignan-Salières. Aged 71, he married in 1667 Barbe Denys, who was 15 years old, daughter of Simon Denys de la Trinité, a member of the Sovereign Council. When his regiment was disbanded, Pécaudy stayed in Canada and was granted on 29 October 1672 a domain by Intendant Jean Talon. His name is often quoted in official document but he does not appear to have been involved in any significant event. His descendants used to say that he died "to the service of the king", maybe during an expedition against the Iroquois.

http://www.biographi.ca/fr/bio/pecaudy_de_contrecoeur_antoine_1F.html
Dictionnaire biographique du Canada.
Ivan Sache, 28 June 2012, 17 February 2022

Sometimes after June 2007, reports Le Sorel-Tracy Magazine, the Mayor of Contrecœur offered the municipal flag to two soldiers living in the town on their leave to Afghanistan. A colour photo of the ceremony shows the flag as white in proportions 1:2 with the city's coat of arms in the middle and the writing "Municipalité de Contrecoeur" in black "Gothic" letters placed below the arms. Both the motto on the scroll beyond the shield and the aforementioned writing are faultive, with "Contrecoeur" instead of "Contrecœur". On the motto, moreover, the grave accent on the "A" is missing, too (it should be "À").
Ivan Sache
, 16 April 2009

A flag similar to, but not exactly like the former coat of arms flag, appears to be in use as of December 2021.
It appears to have 'Ville de Contrecoeur' in a stylized font at the base.
Dave Fowler 16 February 2022


Logo

[Contrecoeur flag] image located by Dave Fowler 16 February 2022

The logo, adopted on 3 October 2016, was designed by Agence OZ.
The "C" represents Contrecoeur, while its grey color symbolizes steel industry. The opening of the "C" represents the entrance gate.
The blue disk, in graduated shades, represents the Saint-Lawrence, at the heart of the development of Contrecoeur.
The industrial boat (left) represents economic development connected to port activity. The leisure boat (right) represents tourism development. The two figures that surmount them represent citizens.

https://www.ville.contrecoeur.qc.ca/ville/symboles-identitaires/logo/
Town website
Ivan Sache, 17 February 2022