Montcalm and Wolfe

I didn't read this cover to cover--focused on the sections having to do with Fort Ticonderoga, but also read the chapter introducing Montcalm, and also the one on the Siege of Quebec. The writing was beautiful--it was written in 1884, and the language is just wonderful. Even though 1884 is more than 100 years after the French and Indian War, there are still so many close connections between Francis Parkman (author) and the events of the war: he speaks to descendants of the people involved, gets quotes from people who heard stories from people involved, etc. The appendices include the legend of Duncan Campbell, whose murdered cousin appeared to him as a ghost and told him he'd die at Ticonderoga. His troops--who knew about the ghost's show more warning--tried to keep from him that they were approaching the fort--but eventually it comes out, and of course, he does die there. The appendices also have the French texts of the letters Montcalm wrote his wife--so intimate! Francis Parkman didn't think much of the Indians, so we have lots of downputting remarks about savages, which is pretty depressing, but even there, sometimes you can see through the prejudice to discover interesting things (like the amount of time taken putting on war paint). Anyway, I loved the book. show less

I didn't read this cover to cover--focused on the sections having to do with Fort Ticonderoga, but also read the chapter introducing Montcalm, and also the one on the Siege of Quebec. The writing was beautiful--it was written in 1884, and the language is just wonderful. Even though 1884 is more than 100 years after the French and Indian War, there are still so many close connections between Francis Parkman (author) and the events of the war: he speaks to descendants of the people involved, gets quotes from people who heard stories from people involved, etc. The appendices include the legend of Duncan Campbell, whose murdered cousin appeared to him as a ghost and told him he'd die at Ticonderoga. His troops--who knew about the ghost's show more warning--tried to keep from him that they were approaching the fort--but eventually it comes out, and of course, he does die there. The appendices also have the French texts of the letters Montcalm wrote his wife--so intimate! Francis Parkman didn't think much of the Indians, so we have lots of downputting remarks about savages, which is pretty depressing, but even there, sometimes you can see through the prejudice to discover interesting things (like the amount of time taken putting on war paint). Anyway, I loved the book. show less

Montcalm and Wolfe was published in 1880, midway between the French and Indian War and today. Parkman conveys an immediacy of the events with a strong, clear narrative. There are heroes (Montcalm and Wolfe, Rogers Rangers and Pitt) and villains (the corrupt civil administration of Canada, particularly Vaudreuil and Bigot, and Pitt’s rival Newcastle) and “Indians” are portrayed as merciless savages. Although Parkman’s approach to history is dated, this is a book well worth reading.

I was struck by the portrait of Pitt, a strong war leader, seen as a war monger by his opponents. He sounds a lot like Churchill who almost certainly would have read this book as a young man. Parkman writes about “the gathering storm” around Pitt show more and I wonder whether this was the inspiration for the title of Churchill’s first volume of his WWII history.

The French and Indian War was part of the first true World War (Seven Years War) and set the stage for the American Revolution which followed less than a generation later. The removal of France as a force in North America made the colonies much less dependent upon England for military protection. The colonies learned the importance of military co-operation and developed the leaders (e.g., Washington) of the Revolution. England “won” the French and Indian War but the seeds were sown for American independence. show less

I approached this book with some trepidation, given that it had been written in the 1880s. Boy, was I wrong -- Montcalm & Wolfe is one of those timeless treasures. It is extremely well-written, not dry at all, and the lessons imparted in the course of the story are still valid today. Parkman is the recognized authority on pre-Revolution America, and he describes the wild North America of the 18th century with true verve. I highly recommend this book to any student of American history.

A lively, but out of date account of the fall of Quebec and Montreal. Published originally in 1884.