Oliver Warner
With Wolfe to Quebec
The Path to Glory
London 1972
Stron 224, format: 15x22 cm
76 ilustracji
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In 1759 the great War Minister, William Pitt, decided to strike at France through her Canadian possessions and the key to these was Quebec - an imposing and almost impregnable citadel standing at the fork of the St. Lawrence and Charles rivers. To storm and take Quebec he chose thrity-two year old James Wolfe, the soldier so much admired by Nelson. Only a few months earlier Wolfe had become secretly engaged, but as a professional soldier he embarked for North America with the utmost enthusiasm.
His task was not made easier by the facts that he was opposed by the Marquis de Montcalm, outstanding for his courage and chivalry; the French had recently been reinforced and were making skilful use of savage Red Indian auxiliaries; and Wolfe's three brigadiers were highly critical and jealous of his promotion over their heads. Finally, the approach up the St. Lawrence was extraordinarily difficult owing to its complex shoals. On the other hand, Wolfe had been chosen for his superb handling of men; his expedition included one of the great navigators of history, James Cook; and help from Admiral Saunders proved a landmark in the development of combined operations. The advantages were therefore more or less equally divided between the opposing armies.
With absorbing skill Oliver Warner, the distinguished naval historian, recounts the fluctuations of the action which led to Wolfe's brilliant victory, death and apotheosis. To follow each stage of the engagement through the accounts of the men who were there - and through the remarkable illustrations collected in this book - is to experience personally one of the three great victories of the annus mirabilis.
CONTENTS
I JAMES WOLFE 1
II BEFORE QUEBEC 53
III THE FIRST ATTEMPT 99
IV THE PATH TO GLORY 139
V APOTHEOSIS 183
APPENDICES
Post-scnpt: Havana and Manila 201
Regiments at Quebec 208
Select Bibliography 209
Acknowledgments 210
A Note on the Illustrations 211
List of Illustrations 219
INDEX 221
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