WI Quebec Premier Maurice Duplessis lived?

Who would succeed Maurice Duplessis as Premier

  • Daniel Johnson Sr.

    Votes: 5 100.0%
  • Paul Sauve

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • Total voters
    5
If he hadn't died of a stroke in Sept 1959, how would this affect QC politics? Would this have butterflies on Trudeau or Levesque? He'd obviously run in 1960. All criticism is welcome. Also who'd succeed him, Sauve or Johnson (the only two plausible ones).
 
I personnally think that he might of lasted another term or two, but that the révolution tranquil would have gotten him out in the near future, and Trudeau would still probably be in politics.
 

Tellus

Banned
His death being a major trigger of the revolution tranquille, it could have been delayed somewhat.

As long as Duplessis is there, he is granting the Church such widespread power and influence across Quebec that most of the population will never dare raise it's voice against the dictates of the clergy. Thats how much influence the clergy had under Duplessis. If you skipped Mass, your neighbors would be afraid to even talk to you. The priests paid back the favor largely. Every week, my father heard at mass during the sermons that "Remember, the sky is blue and Hell is red!" (Blue was Duplessis' party's color, and red was the color of the Liberals, who were the nationalist, separation-of-church-and-state party)

I suspect that if he lasted a couple more terms, society would react even more powerfully to his eventual departure.
 
What effect would this have on the Unionist party after his death? Johnson kept it alive by basically turning it into a conservative version of the PQ. After his death, it fell to Levesque and the Bourassa juggernaut.
 

MacCaulay

Banned
Being one of the resident Canuckophiles, I'm kind of embarrassed I don't know more about this. I'm going to have to research. Any books or links folks could drop?
 
I don't know too much about pre-60s Quebec, but I do know that Duplessis was damn-near on par with McCarthy (the commie-hating one, in case there's more than one). From what people have said during beer drinking sessions, shooting-the-shit, and TV, Quebec really sounded like a bit of a fascist regime. I could be overexaggerating, though. I just know this from hearsay.
 
He was quite socially conservative, and felt that attracting foreign investments by branch plant would be good economics. To be fair, the Liberals were unelectable because of the consensus around the status quo, and up till 1950 had the "Ottawa tag" and the "bleu à Québec, rouge à Ottawa" problem. In 1939, Mackenzie King gave Godbout help like Daley helped HHH in 1968. The 1958 Tory sweep in QC was managed, Daley style, in revenge for that 20 year old slight. He wasn't a fascist, but indulged in anti-Semitic populism and was a corporatist similar to Marcos (without the organized robbery). Manipulated folk memories to kindle nationalism, although he wasn't above using prejudice to strengthen his position. Sort of like Enoch Powell circa 68. Close ties with the Anglos, who bankrolled the party, which was distributed as charity to the poor at election time.
 
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MacAulay,

the Black bio of Duplessis basically describes Quebec politics throughout his career. Though a bit friendly towards him, it should give you an excellent picture. Robert Rumilly histoire du Québec is good for the nationalist point of view. I know he's quite biased and a propagandist :mad:, but the best French backgrounder :rolleyes:.
 
Bump.

The key to his power was the Church, which was his major ally, moral and political. Also very little ideological difference between Duplessis and Taschereau, except actively courting the Church as an ally. Why ditch the status quo? Also he would demonize Ottawa at every opportunity, like Bourassa did. Closest parallel would be Marcos post 1972 with Church business.
 
His death being a major trigger of the revolution tranquille, it could have been delayed somewhat.

And probably have a bit more of an intensity as well.

If Le Chef lived longer, nothing much would change - unless Radio-Canada decided to become more critical of him - if not overtly through the news (due to the news using exclusively Parisian French), than maybe covertly through its téléromans. Hmm, could the Plouffe family be re-interpreted as being anti-Duplessis?
 
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