Thursday 4 December 2008

Sir William Phips' 1690 attack on Quebec

Although they got there more through luck than judgement Phips' attack on Quebec was a defining moment in Anglo-French warfare. This clip tells the tale of the famous response from Frontenac (French Language) "I have no reply to make to your general other than from the mouth of my cannons and muskets." .


New Englanders from the National Geographic magazine by Francis Back - based on wreck finds - for more on the shipwreck and is discovery go here. The map is worth seeing full scale too.


2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Thanks Ralph for your information on New France! In Fort Carillon, you were truly in "my neck of the woods". I love old maps and illustrations and this one of Phips attack is really nice... I love the legend P: "coureurs des bois, officiers et sauvages acourant au bois"... coureurs des bois, officers and sauvages running to the woods... And for your US readers, if you are in Washington DC before January 2, go and see the "Champlain's Dream" exhibit at the Canadian embassy on Pennsylvania Avenue. It has a number of very nice old maps, illustrations and books on New France. There are several things on attacks to Quebec... which were several in the history of New France... they even discussed the American attack of 1775 (not New France anymore)... and I believe some of what they had there was indeed on this 1690 attack... Ralph, I'll be happy to write a short, short article on the exhibit as a guest blogger for some visibility if you would like... if you want to send me an email.

Anonymous said...

Nice video, but there's some weird revisionism going on in it. The narrator talks about "les Américains" attacking Quebec when it should have been "les Britanniques." Given the year (1690), I wonder if it was really an honest mistake by the Canadians who put that clip together or something else...