The Defile de la Saint-Patrick de Quebec organization was founded on June 13, 2009. Its main purpose was to bring back the annual St. Patrick’s Parade in Quebec City, which was at the end of the 19th century, the largest of its kind in Canada. From 1816, thousands of Irish fled their homeland devastated by famine to immigrate to Canada. Many of those who survived to the perilous trip settled in Quebec. The first St. Patrick’s Parade appeared in 1837. The parade gathered large crowds and immediately became an important event of the City’s annual festivities. In 1916, for unknown reasons, the event was canceled. It was relaunched from 1921 to 1926, then disapeared once more, but it was not forgotten.