WHEN MONTREAL’S 11th governor, Claude de Ramezay, arrived in the city in 1702, he was homesick for Normandy and decided to build a residence that was reminiscent of the châteaux back home, with stone walls, dormer windows, and copper roof. The squat round towers, added in the 19th century, reinforce the effect. Many of de Ramezay’s governor successors lived here and the building also housed the West India Company.

This is one of the most impressive remnants of the French regime open to the public in Montreal. The château has been restored to its original style. Of particular interest is the Nantes Salon, with its 18th-century carved paneling by the French architect Germain Boffrand.

Uniforms, documents, and furniture on the main floor reflect the life of New France’s ruling classes, while the cellars depict the doings of humbler colonists. The scarlet automobile, made for the city’s first motorist, is an interesting sight.