Alexandre-Antonin Taché

Alexandre-Antonin Taché (; 23 July 1823 – 22 June 1894) was a Canadian Catholic priest, missionary of the Oblate order, author, and the first Archbishop of Saint Boniface in Manitoba, Canada.

Early life

Alexandre-Antonin Taché was born in Fraserville, Lower Canada (now Rivière-du-Loup, Quebec), on 23 July 1823, to a merchant named Charles Taché, and Louise-Henriette de Labroquerie, a descendant of the famed explorers Louis Jolliet and Gaultier de Varennes. When his father died in January 1826, the widowed Louise-Henriette was forced to return to her family home in Boucherville.

In September 1871, the Holy See raised the status of the diocese to that of archdiocese, and Taché became the first Archbishop of St. Boniface. He was keen to encourage Catholic families to settle in the North West and from 1872 used Fr Albert Lacombe and Fr Doucet as a recruiter of families from Eastern Canada and the United States including; Vingt Années de Missions Dans le Nord-Ouest de L'Amérique (1866) Écoles Séparées: Partie des Négociations A Ottawa en (1870) Sketch of the North West of America (1870) L’amnistie (1874) A Page of the History of the Schools in Manitoba During 75 Years, (1893) The "Good Fight" and the Illusive Vision