Description
Quebec Sir Louis Hippolyte Lafontaine 110.6mm x 58.45mm bronze plaque 271 grams by J.B. Legacé awarded to Mgr. Paul Bruchési
Obverse: LA FONTAINE REVENDIQUE LES DROITS DE LA LANGUE FRANCAISE AU PARLEMENT DU CANADA 1842 (Trans: LAFONTAINE CLAIMS THE RIGHTS OF THE FRENCH LANGUAGE IN THE PARLIAMENT OF CANADA 1842)
Reverse: SIR LOUIS HIPPOLYTE LAFONTAINE 1807 - 1864 / PERE DU GOUVERNEMENT RESPONSABLE DEFENSEUR DE LA LANGUE FRANCAISE AU PARLEMENT DU CANADA MAGISTRAT ET HISTORIEN (Trans: FATHER OF THE RESPONSIBLE GOVERNMENT DEFENDER OF THE FRENCH LANGUAGE IN THE PARLIAMENT OF CANADA MAGISTRATE AND HISTORIAN) MGR PAUL BRUCHESI
Edge: Triangular mintmark of Arthus-Betrand - Paris BRONZE
Louis Joseph Napoléon Paul Bruchési (October 29, 1855 – September 20, 1939) was a Canadian prelate. Leroux 1175a Cathedrale de Montreal references Mgr. Paul Bruchési.
Bruchési was born on October 29, 1855 in Montreal, Quebec, the son of Paul and Caroline Aubry Bruchési. He attended the Collège de Montréal before studying at seminaries in Issy and St. Sulpice in Paris. Bruchési continued his studies at the Roman College. He ordained as a priest in 1878 by Cardinal La Valletta.
Bruchési served as secretary to Archbishop Fabre. He taught dogma for four years at the Université Laval in Quebec, served as a parish priest, and from 1878 to 1887 as a professor at the Université de Laval à Montréal. He became a canon in 1891, and vice-rector of Laval, Montreal. He was the ecclesiastical superior of the Sisters of Saint Anne and archdeacon for the parochial affairs of the archdiocese. He served on the Commission representing Canada at the Chicago World's Fair in 1893.
Bruchési was appointed archbishop in 1897. He completed the Home for Incurables and Saint-Jacques Cathedral (Montreal). He established St. John's Union for poor and infirm priests, and erected twenty-three parishes. Archbishop Bruchési directed the 21st International Eucharistic Congress held in Montreal in 1910. He was a member of the Royal Society of Canada, and a contributor to Semaine Religieuse and the Catholic Encyclopedia.
In all, Paul Bruchési was a priest for over 60 years and a bishop for 40 years. He succeeded Archbishop Édouard-Charles Fabre and was followed by Archbishop Georges Gauthier.
