As Mother Superior, Esther functioned as a diplomat, maintaining good relations with the British Governors of Québec, Amherst and Murray, as well as with France. During the negotiations for the Québec Act of 1774, her diplomacy with Governor Guy Carleton proved influential. The convent was central to the City of Québec, both in location and in relation to the British. Right after the defeat of Québec in 1759, General Murray established both a British military hospital and Québec's first Anglican church in the convent.