Through a Howling Wilderness: Benedict Arnold's March to Quebec, 1775 » (First Edition)

THOMAS DESJARDIN is the Historic Site Specialist for the State of Maine. He is the author of Stand Firm, Ye Boys from Maine: The 20th Maine and the Gettysburg Campaign and These Honored Dead: How the Story of Gettysburg Shaped American Memory.

A gripping account of Benedict Arnold's tragic march on Fort Quebec.

Publishers Weekly

In June 1775, Benedict Arnold-having not yet turned traitor, and, indeed, lionized as one of the 13 colonies' great military hopes-proposed an invasion of Quebec. He thought a successful attack might dispose King George to redress the colonists' grievances. With General Washington's approval, Arnold gathered together a group of soldiers and headed north. Desjardin (These Honored Dead: How the Story of Gettysburg Shaped American Memory) describes the grueling expedition. The soldiers quickly ran low on food, and, among other disasters, a canoe was ripped apart by a tree branch, almost costing half the men their lives. Eventually, some of the troops made it to Canada, and after backup arrived, they attacked Quebec Though the attempt was unsuccessful and Arnold was wounded, he was praised for simply having made it from Maine to Canada. Desjardin's account is able, though at times melodramatic ("Thousands of issues must have weighed heavily upon Arnold's mind") and cute (two centuries before Dr. Atkins, Arnold's men "discovered the weight-loss capacities" of low-carb eating). Perhaps the most important section is the epilogue, in which Desjardin suggests that a successful attack on Quebec might actually have hampered the fight for American independence. (Jan. 8) Copyright 2005 Reed Business Information.

Introduction     IX
The Fourteenth Colony     1
To Quebec and Victory!     15
Scouting Party     28
Challenging the Kennebec     50
The River Dead     66
The King of Terrors     83
The Quebecois     103
Quebec at Last     119
The Fortress City     133
Suffering and Waiting     151
Storming the Walls     170
Epilogue: America's Hannibal     187
Notes     209
Bibliography     227
Index     231