| Breakneck Stairs Escalier casse-cou | |
|---|---|
| Stairway | |
| Breakneck Steps | |
| Former name(s): escalier Champlain ("Champlain Stairs") escalier du Quêteux ("Beggars' Stairs") escalier de la Basse-Ville ("Lower Town Stairs") | |
 The steps in 2007, viewed from Rue Sous-le-Fort | |
| Completion | 1635 (389 years ago) (1635) |
| Steps | 59 |
| Location | Quebec City, Quebec, Canada |
Click on the map to see marker | |
| Coordinates: 46°48′46″N 71°12′13″W / 46.8127975303°N 71.203554234°W / 46.8127975303; -71.203554234 | |
The Breakneck Stairs, or Breakneck Steps (French: Escalier casse-cou), is Quebec City's oldest stairway, built in 1635. Originally called escalier Champlain ("Champlain Stairs"), escalier du Quêteux ("Beggars' Stairs"), or escalier de la Basse-Ville ("Lower Town Stairs"), they were given their current name in the mid-19th century, because of their steepness. The stairs, which connect Côte de la Montagne in the "Upper Town" to the corner of Rue du Petit-Champlain and Rue Sous-le-Fort in the "Lower Town"), have been restored several times, including an 1889 renovation by Charles Baillargé, which converted the steps from a single flight into three parallel ones.
Several businesses are located on the western side of the steps at each of its four flights.
The steps through the years
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1870
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1892
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1900
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2010
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References
- Breakneck Steps – Quebec-Cite.com
- "Québec City and Area - Stairways". Québec City Tourism. 2011. Archived from the original on February 9, 2011. Retrieved February 15, 2011.