Joseph-Narcisse Cardinal

Joseph-Narcisse Cardinal was born in Saint-Constant in February 1808. He was the son of a farmer. His father enrolled him in the Petit Séminaire de Montréal, where he studied from 1817 to 1822. He then returned to his parents who, in the meantime, had settled in Châteauguay.

In 1823, he became the clerk of notary François-Georges LePailleur, a position he held for five years. He had a very good relationship with his master’s family. His older sister even married François-Maurice, his master’s son.

In 1829, Cardinal was admitted as a notary and joined his former mentor. He involved himself in his parish and became syndic of the schools in the area. In 1831, he married Eugénie Saint-Germain. Very quickly, their family grew to five children. In 1833 he was appointed adjutant-lieutenant in the Laprairie [now La Prairie] County militia and obtained the rank of captain the following year.

In 1834, Cardinal was part of the group that approved the 92 resolutions sent to the Imperial Parliament of England by the Patriot Party. At the time, he was deputy of the party for the Laprairie riding, where Châteauguay is located.

Cardinal became actively involved in the patriot cause and even became a member of the Association des Frères-Chasseurs, with whom he helped organize the uprising in the riding. In 1838, he was the leader of the Châteauguay patriots. It was in this capacity that he led a group of about 60 men to Kahnawake to seize weapons.

The group was quickly arrested and sent to the Pied-du-Courant prison in Montréal. Cardinal was tried for high treason alongside his friend François-Maurice LePailleur and young Joseph Duquette. Cardinal and Duquette were sentenced to death and hanged on December 21, 1838.

Translated transcript:

October 14, 1834.

Transport by Antoine Collet to John McDonald, Er

1st Copy

J.N. Cardinal