Today, Charlesbourg is one of Québec City’s six boroughs. However, for a long time, Charlesbourg was its own distinct village, as we can see in this 1840 painting! The origin of Charlesbourg goes back to the Trait-Carré district, founded by the Jesuits in 1665. The trapezoid-shaped area was divided into landholdings set around a central square. Trait-Carré was named a historic area in 1965 for this unusual layout.