Walter R. Borneman - The French and Indian War: Deciding the Fate of North America

My inclination after writing 1812: The War That Forged a Nation was to look westwardboth geographically and chronologically. Yet as I pondered my next project, I found myself drawn to events a generation before the American Revolution with the same fascination that I had just written about events a generation after it. Here was a period that decided the fate of the entire North American continentnot just between England and France, but among the Spanish and Native Americans as well. My goal became to present the triumphs and tragedies of this struggle; place them in the context of France and Great Britains greater global conflict; essentially the first truly world war; and emphasize that from seeds of discord sown here grew the American Revolution.

With another book in hand, my high esteem and great appreciation only deepen for my editor, Hugh Van Dusen; and my agent, Alexander Hoyt. On the research side, it is always a pleasure to work in the Penrose Library of the University of Denver, and I must also thank the Van Pelt Library of the University of Pennsylvania, the Norlin Library of the University of Colorado, and the Denver Public Library. Additionally, I greatly appreciate the research assistance of Fadra Whyte at the University of Pennsylvania and Christopher Fleitas at the University of Notre Dame. David Lambert at National Geographic Maps contributed his cartographic skills.

In addition to colonial newspaperswhich sometimes must be taken with a grain of saltmany primary sources from this period are increasingly available in published form. These include the personal papers and correspondence of such key figures as Amherst, Bougainville, Bouquet, Forbes, Franklin, Johnson, Pitt, Shirley, Wolfe, and of course the young George Washington. In quoting from contemporary accounts, I have taken the liberty to edit spelling, grammar, and capitalization, thereby avoiding the ubiquitous use of sic .

James Fenimore Cooper and Kenneth Roberts aside, there have been many scholarly histories of the French and Indian War over the years. Despite their heavy Anglophile biases, Francis Parkmans Montcalm and Wolfe remains a reference point and Lawrence Henry Gipsons epic fourteen-volume account of The British Empire Before the American Revolution an essential building block. To these long-established icons must be added Fred Andersons recent Crucible of War , the most informative and best-written one-volume study of the period.

Other valuable secondary sources include Guy Frgaults Canada: The War of the Conquest, telling the story from the Canadian perspective; and Francis Jenningss Empire of Fortune, emphasizing the roles of Native Americans. More recent studies of Native Americans interaction include Timothy Shannons Indians and Colonists at the Crossroads of Empire , Tom Hatleys The Dividing Paths , and Matthew Wards Breaking the Backcountry . For assistance in placing the North American campaigns in a global context, I found Walter L. Dorns Competition for Empire and Alfred Thayer Mahans The Influence of Sea Power upon History to have stood the test of time.

My favorite part of writing remains walking the ground where these events took place. Thus, my wife, Marlene, and I traveled Braddocks road, shivered in a cold wind on the ramparts at Fort Ticonderoga, sought out Rogers Rock, and pondered Pitts moves in the Caribbean. Where to next, Marlene?