Matthew P. Dziennik

Having finished this monograph up I come away wondering just who it was written for. While the subtitle is an accurate enough explanation of the topics the author is dealing with, Dziennik writes with the assumption that you already have a good handle on the history of the British army, Anglo-Scottish relations, and Colonial America, so this is not the first book you should read on the subject. What Dziennik really wants to examine is the mentality of the Highland soldier post-Culloden, show more particularly as it relates to North America, between the gentry trying to bolster their social & economic status, and the enlisted men who were prepared to put life & limb on the line to win an imperial land grant, and secure their own personal position. While I'm highly impressed with Dziennik's scholarship there is no denying that there are points where this book is a slog. show less