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GENERAL  WOLFE 


From  the  painting  by  Shaak  in  the  National  Portrait  Gallery 

GENERAL    WOLFE 


General  Wolfe 


BY 

EDWARD    SALMON 

AUTHOR    OF    "  THE    STORY    OF    THE    EMPIRE,"    ETC. 


CASSELL  &  COMPANY,   LIMITED 
42  ADELAIDE    STREET   WEST,   TORONTO 


F 

50(^5 
W853 


MAKERS    OF 
NATIONAL   HISTORY 

It  is  intended  in  this  series  to  commemorate  im- 
portant men  whose  share  in  the  making  of  national 
history  seems  to  need  a  more  complete  record  than 
it  has  yet  received.  In  some  cases  the  character, 
the  achievements,  or  the  life,  have  been  neglected 
till  modern  times  ;  in  most  cases  new  evidence  has 
recently  become  available  ;  in  all  cases  a  new  estimate 
according  to  the  historical  standards  of  to-day  seems 
to  be  called  for.  The  aim  of  the  series  is  to  illustrate 
the  importance  of  individual  contributions  to  national 
development,  in  action  and  in  thought.  The  foreign 
relations  of  the  country  are  illustrated,  the  ecclesias- 
tical position,  the  evolution  of  party,  the  meaning 
and  influence  of  causes  which  never  succeeded.  No 
narrow  limits  are  assigned.  It  is  hoped  to  throw 
light  upon  English  history  at  many  different  periods, 
and  perhaps  to  extend  the  view  to  peoples  other  than 
our  own.  It  will  be  attempted  to  show  the  value  in 
national  life  of  the  many  different  interests  that  have 
employed  the  service  of  man. 

The  authors  of  the  lives  are  writers  who  have  a 
special  knowledge  of  the  periods  to  which  the  subjects 
of  their  memoirs  belonged. 

W.   H.   HUTTON. 

S.  John's  College,  Oxford. 


AUTHOR'S    PREFACE 

On  the  13th  September  will  be  commemorated  the 
150th  anniversary  of  the  death  of  General  James 
Wolfe  on  the  heights  of  Abraham.  Of  all  the  lives 
indelibly  associated  with  the  history  of  the  Empire, 
certainly  of  the  heroes  of  the  eighteenth  century,  none 
has  perhaps  been  so  little  "  done  "  as  that  of  the 
Conqueror  of  Quebec.  The  romance  of  Quebec  has 
been  described  till  it  is  almost  a  nursery  tale,  but 
among  biographies  of  Wolfe  there  are  only  two  that 
claim  special  attention — one,  Wright's,  which 
appeared  more  than  sixty  years  ago  and  is  necessarily 
out-of-date  ;  the  other,  Mr.  A.  G.  Bradley's,  which 
appeared  fourteen  years  ago  and  consequently  could 
not  include  valuable  material  made  more  readily 
available  in  the  interval.  Francis  Parkman,  most 
indefatigable  of  searchers  after  hidden  records,  in 
his  Montcalm  and  Wolfe  added  much  to  Wright  on 
the  Canadian  side,  and  in  his  turn  has  been  supple- 
mented by  Mr.  A.  G.  Doughty,  the  Canadian  archivist 
who  has  given  us  six  big  volumes,  The  Siege  of  Quebec. 
The  Military  Life  of  the  First  Marquess  Townshend, 
by  Col.  C.  F.  V.  Townshend,  alone  would  seem 
to  justify  a  new  "  life  "  of  Wolfe  ;  it  revived  old 
controversy  and  misled  many.  Miss  Kimball's 
Correspondence  of  Pitt  with  Colonial  Governors  and 
Naval  and  Military  Commissioners  in  America  has 
placed  many  of  the  treasures  of  the  Archives  at  the 
command  of  the  student  who  cannot  go  to  them  for 
himself.     But    it    is    extraordinary    that    from    the 


PREFACE 


Gentleman's  Magazine  of  1759  down  to  Miss  Kimball 
and  Mr.  Doughty,  frequently  though  Wolfe's  mar- 
vellous despatch  of  the  2nd  September  to  Pitt  has 
been  published  apparently  at  length,  it  has  never  been 
given   in   England   without   some   qualification.     In 
Canada  it  was  given,  I  believe,  in  extenso,  by  Brymner 
in  his  Report  on  the  Canadian  Archives  for   1898. 
Miss  Kimball  omits  two  passages — for  no  obvious 
reason — and    three    words,    the    absence    of    which 
makes  a  material  difference.     To   the   best  of  my 
opportunities  I  have  gone  to  the  originals  and  the 
despatch  is  now  printed  in   an   appendix,   exactly 
as  Wolfe  sent  it  off.     Among  more  general  histories, 
the  most  important,  from  the  point  of  view  of  Wolfe's 
work,    is   Mr.    Julian   Corbett's   masterly   study   of 
"  amphibious  "  strategy — combined  naval  and  mili- 
tary  operations — in    England   in   the   Seven    Years' 
War.     Mr.   Corbett,  in    his   study  of  the  Stopford- 
Sackville  MSS.,  seized  upon  a  very  interesting  and 
material  fact  in  the  record  of  Wolfe  which  no  bio- 
graphy has  contained  hitherto.     It  has  sometimes 
struck  me   as   remarkable   that   Macaulay   did   not 
find  in  Wolfe's  life  the  motif  of  at  least  one  glowing 
passage  in  his   Essays,   if  not  of   an   Essay   itself. 
He  only  mentions  him  twice,  so  far  as  I  am  aware. 
Disraeli  did  not  even  mention  him  in  that  striking 
speech  of  the  stranger  in  the  forest  inn  to  Coningsby 
which  ends,  "  The  history  of  Heroes  is  the  history  of 
youth."     Wolfe  was  more  a  case  in  point  than  either 
Nelson  or  Clive. 

I  cannot  return  thanks  individually  to  the  many 
friends  who  have  acted  for  me  almost  as  so  many 
skirmishers  in  attacking  the  subject.  From  those 
near  at  home  to  others  who  could  have  no  personal 


PREFACE  XI 

interest  in  myself,  I  have  received  invaluable  assis- 
tance. My  good  friend,  Mr.  J.  R.  Boose,  the  Librarian 
of  the  Royal  Colonial  Institute,  devoted  much  precious 
time  to  assisting  me  in  clearing  up  points  of  difficulty  ; 
to  Messrs.  Pearson  &  Co.,  the  dealers  in  Rare  Books 
and  Manuscripts,  I  owe  a  special  debt  for  their 
generosity  in  permitting  me  to  make  use  of  the 
hitherto  unpublished  letters  of  Wolfe  to  Miss  Lacey. 
Most  of  Wolfe's  letters  are  in  the  possession  of  the 
descendants  of  his  friend  Warde,  who  still  occupy 
Squerryes  Court ;  Wright  made  use  of  them,  but  did 
not  wholly  exhaust  their  interest  as  Mr.  Beckles 
Willson,  the  Canadian  writer  who  to-day  lives  in  the 
house  which  the  Wolfes  occupied  at  Westerham,  has 
shown.  To  handle  the  two  Lacey  letters  was  a  rare 
privilege. 

I  have  pointed  out  some  mistakes  in  the  various 
accounts  of  Wolfe,  and  can  only  hope  I  have  avoided 
pitfalls  myself.  My  object  has  been  to  tell  Wolfe's 
life  story,  to  set  that  story  in  the  framework  of 
national  history,  and  to  place  facts  beyond  dispute  so 
far  as  my  individual  limitations  permit.  Mistakes  in 
regard  to  the  events  of  Wolfe's  career  seem  inevitable. 
Even  the  inscription  on  Schaak's  picture  of  him  in  the 
National  Portrait  Gallery  is  wrong  I  It  says  he  fought 
at  Fontenoy — a  mistake  which  J.  R.  Green  in  his 
History  of  the  English  People  (vol.  iv,  p.  188)  endorses. 
Green,  in  the  one  page  he  devotes  to  the  conquest  of 
Canada,  has  two  misapprehension?  and  three  distinct 
errors  in  his  references  to  Wolfe.  That  such  things 
can  be,  makes  one  wonder  sometimes  whether  Truth 
is  the  sovereign  passion  of  the  historian,  as  Disraeli 
said  it  was  of  mankind. 


CONTENTS 

CHAP.  PAGE 

I.      BIRTH,  SCHOOL,  AND  FIRST  COMMISSION    .  1 

II.      WOLFE   IN   FLANDERS      .  .  .  12 

III.  FALKIRK,   CULLODEN,   AND   LAFFELDT        .         25 

IV.  WOLFE,  THE  SCOTTISH  PEOPLE,  AND  SOME 

REFLECTIONS  .  .  .  .42 

V.      IRELAND,     PARIS,     AND     THE     SOUTH     OF 

ENGLAND    .  .  .  .  .59 

VI.      BEGINNING  OF  THE  SEVEN  YEARS'  WAR  71 

VII.      THE   FAILURES   OF    1757        .  .  .90 

VIII.      THE   SIEGE  OF  LOUISBOURG       .  .  106 

IX.      PREPARING  FOR  THE   ST.   LAWRENCE  .       127 

X.      FROM  CHAMPLAIN   TO   MONTCALM  .  145 

XI.      BEFORE  QUEBEC        .  .  .  .157 

XII.      THE  MONTMORENCY  REVERSE  .  178 

'xin)     THE   PLAINS   OF  ABRAHAM  .  .  .196 

XIV.       WOLFE'S    ACHIEVEMENTS   AND   CHARACTER     221 

APPENDIX    I    .  .  .  .  .       233 

APPENDIX   II  .  .  .  241 

APPENDIX   III  ....       243 

BIBLIOGRAPHY      ....  244 

INDEX  .....         245 


map        .  .  between  pp.  160  &  161 

xiii 


GENERAL  WOLFE 


GENERAL  WOLFE 


CHAPTER   I 

BIRTH,   SCHOOL,    AND   FIRST  COMMISSION 

No  surer  proof  of  a  man's  greatness  is  needed  than  The  Claim 
the  rival  claims  of  localities  to  the  distinction  of  his  of  York- 
birthplace.  In  the  case  of  James  Wolfe  the  city  of 
York  and  the  town  of  Westerham,  separated  as  they 
are  by  two-thirds  of  the  length  of  England,  have  been 
unequal  contestants  for  the  reflected  glory.  How 
York  ever  came  to  imagine  that  it  had  any  more  than 
the  remotest  connection  with  an  event  which  was  to 
mean  so  much  to  British  Imperial  history,  it  is 
impossible  to  say.  The  tradition  was  long  since 
disposed  of.  Yet  last  year,  when  Quebec  was 
celebrating  not  merely  the  exploits  of  Cartier  and 
Champlain  and  Frontenac,  but  of  Montcalm  and 
Wolfe,  York  reasserted  its  claim  and  gave  illustrated 
accounts  of  the  house,  now  an  inn,  where  Wolfe  was 
born.1  General  Wolfe's  mother  was  a  Yorkshire  lady, 
a  daughter  of  Edward  Thompson  of  Marsden,  and  at 
the  date  of  Wolfe's  birth,  his  grandfather  apparently 
was  living  in  the  house  in  York  which  some  men  of 
that  city  to  this  day  point  out  as  Wolfe's  birthplace. 

Fortunately  the  wisdom  of  Solomon  has  not  to  be  Westerham 
invoked  to  determine  the  truth.     The  evidence  as  to 
Westerham  is  complete. 2     James  Wolfe  was  born  in 

1  The    Yorkshire  Herald,   18th  July,   1908. 

2  Only  recently  it  was  stated  that  Wolfe  was  born  at 
Ferneaux  Abbey,  Kildare,  so  that  Ireland  as  well  as  Yorkshire 
claims  him. 

1 

3 (221?) 


2  GENERAL  WOLFE 

that  picturesque,  even  to-day  rather-out-of-the-world, 
Kentish  village,  on  the  22nd  December,  1726,  Old 
Style,  or  the  2nd  January,  1727,  New  Style.  As 
tradition  has  endeavoured  to  give  him  two  birthplaces, 
so  his  early  biographers  were  prepared  to  give  him 
two  birthdays.  The  Rev.  G.  R.  Gleig  fixed  the  date 
at  the  6th  November,  1726.  Nor  can  the  mistake  be 
attributed  to  the  confusion  wrought  by  the  New 
Style  of  reckoning  time,  introduced  in  1752.  James 
Wolfe  was  baptized  in  the  parish  church,  according  to 
the  register,  on  the  11th  January,  1726,  which  appears 
to  be  nearly  twelve  months  before  he  was  born,  until 
we  remember  that  the  new  calendar  dispensed  with 
eleven  days  and  made  the  year  begin  with  the  1st 
January  instead  of  three  months  later.  The  date  of 
baptism  therefore  in  the  New  Style,  would  be  22nd 
January,  1727. 

On  yet  another  point  biographers  are  not  quite 
agreed.  He  was  not  born,  as  some  have  stated,  in 
the  old  Tudor  house,  which  his  father  had  taken  at 
Westerham,  then  called  Spiers,  now  familiar  as  Quebec 
House.  He  was  born  at  the  Vicarage.  His  earliest 
biographer,  Robert  Wright,  who  published  the  fullest 
account  of  Wolfe's  antecedents  and  career  that  we 
have,  said  that  Lieutenant-Colonel  and  Mrs.  Wolfe 
were  living  at  the  Vicarage,  which  they  had  rented 
from  the  Rev.  George  Lewis. x  Mr.  Beckles  Willson 
tells  a  circumstantial  story  which  shows  that  the  birth 
at  the  Vicarage  was  more  or  less  inadvertent.  Colonel 
Wolfe  was  away  on  duty  with  his  regiment  and  Mrs. 
Wolfe  living  alone  for  the  moment  at  Westerham  had 
made  an  afternoon  call.  She  was  taken  ill,  the 
good  Vicar  and  his  wife  insisted  that  she   should 

»  Wright :  Life  of  Wolfe,  p.  6. 


FATHER  AND  SON  3 

remain,1  and  the  Vicarage  in  consequence  enjoyed 
the  distinction  of  hearing  the  first  sound  uttered 
by  lips  whose  words  of  command  in  the  days  to  come 
were  to  carry  with  them  the  fate  of  peoples. 

James  Wolfe  came  of  venturesome  stock.  His  Wolfe '« 
genealogical  record  is  unfortunately  incomplete.  His  ancestr7« 
great-grandfather — who  is  variously  described  as 
George  and  Edward — was  the  descendant  of  the 
Woulfes  who  settled  in  the  south-west  of  Ireland  at 
the  end  of  the  sixteenth  century.  In  1650  the 
Woulfes  roused,  or  assisted  to  rouse,  the  citizens  of 
Limerick  to  oppose  the  Duke  of  Ormond  when  he 
wished  to  enter  in  order  to  defend  the  city  against 
Cromwell's  forces.  One  of  the  Woulfes  was  a  Francis- 
can friar,  the  other  an  army  captain.  Both  were 
proscribed,  but  whilst  the  friar  was  executed,  the 
captain  escaped  to  the  North  of  England,  dropped  the 
"  u  "  from  his  name,  became  a  good  Protestant,  and 
married.  Of  his  son  we  know  nothing,  but  his 
grandson — the  relationship  has  never  been  called  in 
question — was  Edward  Wolfe  the  father  of  the  hero 
of  Quebec.  Edward  Wolfe  was  gazetted  second 
lieutenant  of  marines  when  he  was  fifteen,  became  a 
captain  in  Temple's  Regiment  of  foot  at  eighteen,  and 
was  one  of  Marlborough's  brigade  majors  in  the  Low 
Countries  at  twenty-three.  He  served  with  Wade 
in  Scotland  in  the  rebellion  of  '15,  and  two  years  later, 
when  he  was  thirty-two — the  age  at  which  his  son 
James  died — received  his  commission  as  Lieutenant- 
Colonel.  The  professional  opportunities  which  came 
to  James  Wolfe  were  denied  to  his  father,  but  there 
were  resemblances  in  the  two  careers  up  to  a  point. 
Without  social  influence,  both  father  and  son  rose 

1  Westminster   Gazette,  23rd  July,  1908. 


4  GENERAL  WOLFE 

rapidly  in  a  profession  where  wealth  and  family 
connection  were  a  surer  road  to  preferment  than  zeal 
and  ability  ;  both  fought  in  Flanders  and  assisted  to 
put  down  rebellion  in  Scotland  ;  both  made  their 
mark  by  devotion  to  duty,  their  courage  and  resource 
in  warfare,  their  efforts  to  improve  in  the  hour  of  peace 
the  instrument  to  which  there  must  be  appeal  in  any 
national  crisis.  The  elder  Wolfe's  opportunities  for 
distinction  were  sharply  denned  by  Walpole  and  his 
policy  of  peace  ;  the  younger  Wolfe  got  his  chance 
when  Pitt  determined  that  war,  war  at  any  cost  of 
life  and  treasure,  war  in  any  part  of  the  world  where 
the  French  could  be  found,  was  essential  to  the 
security  and  the  future  of  the  British  people. 

Not  a  great  deal  is  recorded  of  James  Wolfe's  years 
at  Westerham.  He  probably  only  saw  his  father  at 
intervals  ;  the  Lieutenant-Colonel  would  naturally 
have  to  spend  much  of  his  time  away  on  duty,  but  in 
those  intervals  how  the  lad  would  absorb  every 
parental  reminiscence  of  service  beyond  the  seas  or 
across  the  border.  The  martial  influence  of  the 
father,  indelible  as  it  was,  was  qualified  and  toned  by 
the  sweet  and  tender  influence  of  the  mother.  If  good 
mothers  make  good  sons,  Mrs.  Wolfe  must  have  been 
a  veritable  angel  in  the  house.  Father  and  mother, 
in  their  respective  ways,  are  the  shining  lights  of 
Wolfe's  life  as  soldier  and  as  man.  Other  influences 
which  came  to  him  at  Westerham  were  his  brother 
Edward,  less  than  a  year  his  junior,  and  his  lifelong 
friend,  George  Warde,  the  youngest  son  of  the  owner 
of  the  neighbouring  estate  of  Squerryes  Court.  James 
Wolfe  possibly  had  something  to  do  with  Warde 's 
choice  of  the  profession  of  arms.  In  their  hours 
together  in  the  woods  and  fields  of  Squerryes,  the 


A  STORY  DISPROVED  5 

Wolfes  and  the  Wardes  played  soldiers  with  all  the 
earnestness  of  pretence. 

For  a  while  James  and  his  brother  went  to  a  school 
kept  by  one  Lawrence,  of  whom  nothing  is  known 
beyond  his  name.  James  was  eleven  years  of  age 
when  the  home  at  Westerham  was  exchanged  for  one 
at  Greenwich,  and  a  more  advanced  tutor  was  found 
in  the  Rev.  S.  F.  Swinden,  whom  James  and  Edward 
Wolfe  held  in  affectionate  memory  after  their 
schooldays.  It  was  at  Mr.  Swinden's  that  Wolfe  is 
said  to  have  met  a  youngster  destined  like  himself  to 
leave  his  mark  on  British  history.  That  was  John 
Jervis,  who  was  intended  for  the  law,  but  ran  away 
to  sea,  to  become  in  time  the  great  admiral  Lord 
St.  Vincent.  As  Wolfe  in  the  days  to  come  on  the  St. 
Lawrence  was  to  entrust  Jervis  with  a  sacred  com- 
mission, it  is  a  pity  this  story  of  their  school-days  is 
not  true.  Wolfe  had  been  five  years  in  the  Army 
when  the  Jervis  family  moved  from  Staffordshire  to 
the  banks  of  the  Thames. 1 

Greenwich  brought  young  Wolfe  into  touch  with  Walpole. 
some  of  the  forces  that  went  to  make  up  the  larger 
national  life.  The  river  not  only  carried  much  of  the 
commerce  which  was  the  very  life-blood  of  the  people, 
but  bore  to  and  fro  the  men  who  would  be  loudest  in 
their  clamour  against  the  tyranny  of  the  foreigner  in 
his  efforts  to  maintain  a  monopoly  of  over-the-sea 
markets.  Walpole  had  preserved  the  peace  for  England 
during    more    than   twenty  years  in    circumstances 

1  Wright  tells  the  story  and  Mr.  Bradley  and  Mr.  Doughty 
both  repeat  it.  Wright's  mistake  on  this  point  is  amazing. 
He  actually  quotes  Brenton's  Life  of  St.  Vincent,  which 
contains  the  Admiral's  own  words  that  he  was  born  9th  Jan., 
1734  (O.S.),  and  at  the  age  of  twelve  went  to  a  school  at 
Greenwich  kept  by  a  Mr.  Swinden. 


6  GENERAL  WOLFE 

that  demanded  a  very  gymnast  in  diplomacy. 
He  found  kindred  spirits  in  Cardinal  Fleury  in  France 
and  in  Queen  Caroline  at  home  ;  his  motives  were  not 
always  either  unchallenged  or  unchallengeable  ;  his 
methods  were  not  always  compatible  with  dignity 
and  honour,  though  their  courage  was  superb.  The 
people  grew  tired  of  a  peace  which  gave  no  security, 
and  George  II,  with  an  eye  mainly  to  his  Hanoverian 
interests,  would  have  welcomed  a  pretext  for  the 
drawing  of  the  sword  which  his  Minister  sedulously 
defeated.  Whilst  the  King  was  concerned  with  the 
dynastic  difficulties  and  ambitions  of  Europe,  his 
people,  seeking  to  enjoy  the  benefits  of  colonial  and 
commercial  enterprise,  were  incensed  against  Spain 
as  later  they  were  to  be  incensed  against  France,  who 
now  was  England's  ally.  English  merchants  found 
the  restrictions  of  the  Treaty  of  Utrecht  intolerable. 
One  British  ship  per  year  of  all  the  British  mercantile 
marine  was  permitted  to  trade  with  Spanish  America. 
It  was  a  positive  invitation  to  the  descendants  of 
Hawkins  and  Drake  to  turn  themselves  into  smugglers. 
The  Spaniards,  with  the  letter  of  the  law  on  their  side, 
punished  any  luckless  runner  of  illicit  cargoes  whom 
they  might  capture  with  truly  Spanish  severity. 
English  national  pride  and  commercial  ambition 
combined  with  considerations  of  humanity  to  make 
idle  all  talk  about  words  and  forms  even  though  they 
involved  legality  and  international  right. * 

Politicians  with  party  and  personal  axes  to  grind 
strenuously  encouraged  the  popular  clamour,  and 
when  war  was  declared  against  Spain,  on  13th  October, 

1  Morley:  Walpole,  p.  216.  Chap,  x  of  Lord  Morley's 
Walpole  is  a  masterly  summary,  analysis  and  estimate  of 
Walpole's  foreign  policy. 


PREPARING  FOR  CARTAGENA  7 

1739,  the  day  was  one  not  of  national  apprehension 
or  regret,  but  of  national  rejoicing.  Horace  Walpole's 
suggestion  that  the  people  who  were  ringing  their 
bells  then  would  before  long  be  wringing  their  hands 
was  justified  to  the  letter.  To  James  Wolfe  the 
war  fever  would  be  an  exhilaration  such  as  he  had 
not  known  in  his  thirteen  years  of  life.  The  martial 
spirit  was  part  of  his  nature,  and  the  call  to  arms 
set  every  nerve  in  the  boy's  body  tense.  Fleets  sailed  ; 
troops  were  under  orders  for  service  beyond  the  seas  ; 
and  every  roll  of  the  drum  stirred  the  national 
consciousness  to  energetic  action.  The  things  of 
which  his  father  had  told  him  were  now  to  happen 
again,  and  they  came  nearer  home  than  ever  when  a 
big  camp  was  formed  a  few  miles  away  on  Blackheath, 
and  his  father  was  appointed  Adjutant-General  of 
the  force,  10,000  strong,  collecting  on  the  Isle  of 
Wight  for  the  Cartagena  expedition. 

The  mere  idea  that  any  lad  of  James  Wolfe's  tender  A  volun- 
years,  a  lad  moreover  who  was  far  from  strong,  should  t£er  at 
be  allowed  to  take  part  in  an  expedition  that  must  try 
the  fortitude  of  the  most  robust  strikes  us  to-day  as 
ludicrous.  What  arguments  James  brought  to  bear 
on  the  father  who  surely  did  not  want  the  responsi- 
bility, and  the  mother  who  used  every  appeal  to  heart 
and  parental  authority  to  keep  the  boy  with  her,  we 
must  evolve  for  ourselves.  It  was  agreed  that  he 
should  go  with  the  expedition  as  a  volunteer.  His 
triumph  here  is  not  insignificant.  It  was  admittedly 
a  tribute  to  the  energy  and  force  of  will  that  distin- 
guished him  through  life  ; x  it  was  to  supply  the  occa- 
sion of  the  first  of  that  long  and  profoundly  interesting 
series  of  letters  which  gave  Wolfe  a  title  to  be  regarded 

1  Bradley  :    Wolfe,  p.  10. 


8  GENERAL  WOLFE 

as  the  literary  soldier ;  it  was  also  to  throw  into 
sharp  relief  at  the  outset  the  physical  conditions 
against  which  he  battled  stoically  in  nearly  all  he 
undertook. 

Thus  the  boy,  barely  in  his  teens,  was  with  his  father 
at  Newport  prepared,  in  his  own  mind,  to  draw  the 
sword  manfully  against  the  hated  Spaniard.  He  was 
vastly  impressed  by  the  sight  of  the  ships  that  went 
to  make  up  his  Majesty's  "  mighty  navy,"  and  he 
was  not  yet  quite  capable  of  detecting  the  defects  in 
army  organisation  which  the  long  peace  had  accentu- 
ated. The  whole  thing  was  more  than  a  spectacle, 
because  the  lad  had  in  him  the  intention,  the  genius 
of  the  soldier.  In  the  midst  of  his  excitements  he 
remembered  his  "  dearest  mamma  "  ;  there  were 
little  twinges  of  conscience  that  he  should  not  have 
heeded  her  protests  ;  and  he  was  much  moved  that 
she  should  doubt  his  love.  He  wrote  a  letter  which 
was  at  least  as  far  beyond  his  years  as  was  his  military 
ardour.  He  assured  his  mother  that  his  love  was 
"  as  sincere  as  ever  any  son's  was  to  his  mother," 
and  begged  her  if  she  loved  him  not  to  give  herself 
up  to  fears.  "  I  will  certainly  write  to  you  by  every 
ship  I  meet  because  I  know  it  is  my  duty.  Besides, 
if  it  were  not,  I  would  do  it  out  of  love  with  pleasure." 
Here  we  have  a  note  which  a  thoughtful  man  might 
have  been  pardoned  for  omitting,  which  many  a  man 
has  omitted  who  had  no  intention  to  hurt.  Duty 
done  because  it  is  duty  and  not  reinforced  by  love 
must  be  a  mechanical  virtue  ;  and  Wolfe,  boy  as  he 
was,  saw  that  his  mother's  sense  of  injury  might  only 
be  aggravated  if  he  did  not  hasten  to  affirm  an 
impulse  stronger  than  duty.  It  was  no  ordinary  mind 
of  thirteen,  no  ordinary  character  that  anticipated 


nate 
illness. 


WASHINGTON  AND  WOLFE  9 

the    interpretation    which    might    be    put    upon    a 
conventional  phrase. 

Wolfe  told  his  mother  that  he  was  in  very  good  A  fortu- 
health  and  likely  to  continue  so,  but  the  statement 
was  wanting  in  that  nice  accuracy  too  often  sacrificed 
to  optimism.  He  was  taken  ill  before  the  Cartagena 
force  could  embark,  and  his  father  wisely  at  the 
eleventh  hour  decided  that  home  was  the  lad's  more 
fitting  place.  Wolfe  could  hardly  have  survived 
the  disease,  the  distress,  and  the  incompetent  or 
inadequate  medical  accommodation  which  attended 
this  ill-starred  enterprise.  There  is  a  fine  chance  here 
for  those  who  love  to  speculate  on  the  might-have- 
beens.  Would  the  history  of  the  British  Empire  not 
have  been  radically  different  if  Wolfe  had  found  an 
early  grave  in  Caribbean  waters  ?  Among  those  who 
took  part  in  the  Cartagena  expedition  and  succumbed 
to  its  disorders,  was  a  volunteer  from  Virginia — 
Washington's  elder  brother.  His  death  changed  the 
whole  outlook  for  George  Washington.  "  If,"  says 
Mr.  Bradley,  "  George  Washington  had  remained  a 
younger  son,  it  is  most  unlikely  he  would  have  been 
available  in  1775  to  have  stepped  into  the  chief 
command  "  of  the  revolting  colonies.  "  And  without 
George  Washington  the  very  struggle  itself  in  which 
he  triumphed  seems  an  inconceivable  thing." J  If  the 
death  of  a  member  of  the  Washington  family  in  that 
expedition  affected  the  history  of  America,  the  sparing 
of  young  Wolfe  from  a  similar  fate  may  equally  be 
said  to  have  contributed  to  the  same  end.  It  was 
the  capture  of  Quebec  by  Wolfe  which  made  the 
American  revolt  possible,  and  we  may  therefore  take 
it  that  without  Wolfe  there  would  not  have  been  the 

1  Bradley:    Wolfe,  p.  12. 


10  GENERAL  WOLFE 

Washington  we  know.     Laurence  Washington  died, 

and  Wolfe  was  spared,  to  some  purpose  ! 

Another  year  passed  under  Mr.  Swinden's  tutelage, 

and  James  Wolfe  went  to  spend  his  Christmas  holidays 

with  his  friend  George  Warde  at  Squerryes.     The 

boys  were   amusing  themselves    at  a  spot    in  the 

grounds   which   is  now  historic,   when   Mr.    Warde 

brought  his  young  guest  an  envelope  bearing  the 

magic  symbol,  "  On  His  Majesty's  Service."    The  lad 

tore  it  open  with  none  the  less  excitement  because  he 

probably  anticipated  the  nature  of  its  contents.     His 

first  commission  !     It  was  dated  November  3rd,  1741, 

and  appointed  him  second  lieutenant  in  his  father's 

old  regiment  of  marines.     That  was  a  memorable 

moment  for  Wolfe  and  for  his  country,  and  on  the 

spot  where  he  broke  the  seal  of  His  Majesty's  envelope 

his  friends  at  Squerryes  less  than  a  couple  of  decades 

later  erected  a  stone  cenotaph  bearing  an  inscription 

admirable    in    intent    but    not    wholly    devoid    of 

imagination — 

"Here  first  was  Wolfe  with  martial  ardour  fixed. 
Here  first  with  glory's  brightest  flame  inspired  ; 
This  spot  so  sacred  will  for  ever  claim 
A  proud  alliance  with  its  hero's  name." 

Wolfe's  martial  ardour  was  not  so  much  fired  as 
confirmed  by  the  receipt  of  his  commission.  He  was 
now  fifteen,  a  tall,  spare,  effeminate-looking  youth, 
with  red  hair  and  features  that  were  little  indicative 
of  the  iron  will  behind  them.  If  there  be  any  truth 
to  nature  in  the  pictures  of  him  which  were  painted 
after  his  death,  he  was  not  at  any  time  the  con- 
ventional hero  in  appearance.  But  there  must  have 
been  something  more  attractive  about  him  facially 
than  the  artists  succeeded  in  discovering  or  rendering. 


WOLFE'S  PORTRAITS  11 

One  historian  dismisses  Wolfe,  no  doubt  after  a  due 
study  of  certain  pictures,  as  a  remarkably  ugly  boy 
with  a  shock  of  red  hair  and  a  turned-up  nose  ; l 
another  speaks  of  him  as  "  the  red-haired,  unattrac- 
tive soldier  whose  cold  and  almost  repellent  manner 
concealed  some  of  the  highest  qualities."2  It  is 
agreed  that  Wolfe  had  a  fine  eye,  "  that  searching, 
burning  eye  which  carried  all  the  distinction  and 
greatness  denied  him  elsewhere,"  says  Sir  Gilbert 
Parker. 3  Wolfe's  face  must  have  conveyed  to  those 
who  knew  him  in  the  flesh  a  very  different  impression 
from  that  to  be  gleaned  from  most  of  his  portraits. 
No  character  such  as  his  could  have  failed  to  assert 
itself  sooner  or  later  in  his  physiognomy,  and  the  love 
he  won  from  so  many  people  in  different  walks  in  life 
would  not  have  gone  to  one  who  was  unprepossessing. 
Some  faces  cannot  be  adequately  interpreted  by 
the  brush  any  more  than  character  is  necessarily 
revealed  by  the  camera.  There  is  an  infinite  but  not 
charming  variety  of  so-called  Wolfe  portraits,4  and 
none,  even  though  it  be  authentic,  seems  to  me  to 
embody  a  character  at  once  sweet  and  firm,  sympa- 
thetic and  resolute,  serious  with  a  qualifying  vein  of 
humour,  eager  to  advance  the  right,  quick  to  scorn 
the  unworthy,  resourceful,  self-reliant,  capable,  and 
withal  modest. 

1  Fortescue  :  A  History  of  the  British  Army.    vol.  ii,  p.  53. 

2  McCarthy  :    History  of  the  Four  Georges,  vol.  ii,  p.  375. 

3  The  Seats  of  the  Mighty,  chap,  xxiii. 

4  See  an  admirable  article  on  the  subject  by  Mr.  Beckles 
Willson  in  the  Connoisseur,  January,   1909. 


CHAPTER   II 

WOLFE   IN   FLANDERS 

?rom  The  last  thing  in  the  world  that  Wolfe  courted  was 

viarine  to  the  sea,  and  his  enthusiasm  on  the  receipt  of  his 
commission  was  qualified  by  the  character  of  the 
arm  to  which  he  was  appointed.  He  soon  found  a 
means  of  transfer  and  became  an  ensign  of  Colonel 
Duroure's  Regiment  of  Foot,  then  known  as  the 
Twelfth.  The  regiment  was  under  orders  for  Flanders, 
where  England  was  again  to  take  a  hand  in  a 
continental  conflict, 
rhe  Army  Not  international  politics  but  the  army  was  Wolfe's 
n  I74I-  concern  ;  in  all  probability  he  knew  little  and  cared 
less  what  the  war  was  about.  It  sufficed  that  he  was 
to  take  part  in  a  real  campaign  and  on  ground  of 
which  he  had  heard  his  father — not  yet  returned  from 
the  West  Indies — talk  much.  England's  army  in 
1741  amounted  to  less  than  20,000  men.  That  she 
had  an  army  at  all  was  almost  matter  for  wonder. 
Every  conceivable  means  was  adopted  to  make  the 
ranks  unpopular  not  only  with  the  men  but  with  the 
people.  There  were  no  barracks,  the  soldiers  were 
quartered  in  places  which  made  them  a  nuisance,  so 
that  the  populace  might  be  sensible  of  the  fetters  a 
standing  army  would  forge,  and  after  a  war  regiments 
which  had  begun  to  understand  their  business  were 
too  frequently  disbanded ;  officers  who  were  not 
retired  on  inadequate  half-pay,  generally  elected  to 
swell  the  more  easily  recruited  army  of  men  about 
town,  aimless  save  in  dissipation,  efficient  only  in 

12 


THE  DUEL  WITH  FRANCE  13 

unprofitable  pursuits.  The  men  were  neglected 
whether  they  served  at  home  or  abroad,  and  in 
emergencies  their  numbers  were  augmented  by  the 
gaol-bird  and  the  ne'er-do-weel.  To  prepare  for  war 
in  time  of  peace  was  not  the  tenet  of  national  safety 
in  the  early  part  of  the  eighteenth  century,  and  the 
example  set  by  Government  was  in  the  main  faith- 
fully followed  by  the  officers  who  might  at  any  time 
be  called  upon  to  direct  the  movements  of  men  in  the 
field.  The  Civil  War,  the  struggle  with  France 
maintained  by  William  III,  the  achievements  of 
Marlborough  confirmed  the  English  people  in  their 
dislike  of  militarism  and  its  cost  in  blood  and  treasure. 
Hence  the  army,  with  notable  exceptions,  was  a  poor 
machine  badly  looked  after,  and  when  we  read  its 
history  and  note  its  victories  we  can  only  conclude 
either  that  it  enjoyed  extraordinary  good  fortune  or 
that  the  exceptions  were  of  incomparably  sterling 
stuff. 

For  England  the  whole  of  the  eighteenth  century  Inter- 
was  an  intermittent  duel  with  France  for  supremacy.  "^^T  . 
It  was  a  duel  which  began  in  Europe,  was  fought  to  tions. 
a  finish  throughout  the  world,  and  ended  only  with 
Trafalgar  and  Waterloo.     International  relations  at 
the  time  that  Wolfe  was  called  upon  to  play  his  small 
part  in  their  settlement  by  the  arbitrament  of  the 
sword,  were  what  Seeley  calls  an  "  immense  complex 
medley."1     The   royal  houses   of   Austria,    Prussia, 
France,  Spain,  Poland,  Bavaria,  and  England  were 
all  concerned  in  an  universal  game  of  grab  in  which 
they  changed  their  parts  as  circumstances  dictated. 
Honesty  was  at  a  heavier  discount  than  any  mere 
Machiavel  would  ever  have  dared  to  encourage,  and 

1   The  Expansion  of  England,  p.  28  (1886  ed.). 


14  GENERAL  WOLFE 

England  and  Austria  alone  came  out  of  the  dynastic 
milee  with  approximate  credit.  "  Congresses  without 
issue,  campaigns  without  visible  objective,  open 
treaties,  secret  treaties,  public  alliances,  private 
combinations,  the  destruction  to-day  of  the  web 
laboriously  woven  yesterday,  the  union  of  four  powers 
against  one,  of  three  against  two,  and  so  on  in  every 
variety  of  permutation  and  combination  make  a  vast 
chaos,"  which  even  Lord  Morley1  does  not  try  to 
reduce  to  order.  The  really  visible  objectives  were, 
on  the  one  hand,  the  satisfaction  of  the  greed  and 
aggrandisement  of  princes,  and,  on  the  other,  the 
preservation  of  ancestral  and  solemnly  secured  rights 
against  that  satisfaction.  The  Emperor  Charles  VI, 
in  order  to  save  dispute  and  bloodshed  over  the 
succession  to  his  enormous  heritage,  negotiated  with 
the  various  powers  the  Pragmatic  Sanction.  His 
daughter,  Maria  Theresa,  was  to  ascend  the  throne 
not  merely  by  right  but  by  the  guarantee  of  all 
Europe.  Charles  VI  provided  for  every  contingency 
save  one — ambitious  unreadiness  to  observe  a  sacred 
compact  when  observance  meant  the  sacrifice  of  an 
opportunity  for  the  advancement  of  self-interest. 
George  II  Of  all  the  rulers  who  pledged  their  honour,  one 

and  Maria  only,  George  II,  was  true  to  his  bond.  Frederick  of 
Prussia — surnamed  the  Great  on  account  of  his 
marvellous  achievements  in  war,  rather  than  on 
account  of  qualities  which  should  alone  justify 
the  title — promptly  attempted  to  appropriate  Silesia  ; 
France,  Bavaria,  Saxony,  Spain,  Poland,  Sardinia 
all  discovered  claims  and  began  to  swarm  about 
Austria  like  ravening  wolves  about  the  carcase  of 
a  lion.      But  they  found  the    lioness  in  the  person 

1  Walpole,  p.  200. 


TO  ASSIST  MARIA  THERESA  15 

of  Maria  Theresa  prepared  to  dispute  every  inch  of 
ground.  Europe  proclaimed  the  Elector  of  Bavaria 
Emperor,  and  as  Charles  VII  he  donned  the  Imperial 
mantle.  Maria  Theresa,  strong  in  her  own  character, 
strong  with  the  strength  of  a  woman's  weakness, 
appealed  to  her  people  to  save  for  her  son  her  father's 
dominions,  and  her  people  rallied  round  her  to  a  man. 
They  rose  nobly  to  the  occasion,  the  French  who  had 
invaded  Austria  were  driven  out,  and  the  Austrians 
overran  Bavaria.  Frederick  defeated  the  Austrians 
at  Mollwitz,  but  Maria  Theresa  was  undismayed,  and 
the  intervention  of  England  in  Flanders  relieved  the 
pressure  of  the  French  on  her  forces  to  the  south. 
It  was  on  behalf  of  Maria  Theresa  that  some  sixteen 
thousand  English  troops  were  to  be  despatched  to  the 
Continent. 

Duroure's  Regiment  formed  part  of  the  flower  of  Wolfe  In 
the  English  army  assembled  towards  the  end  of  April,  Belgium- 
1742,  on  Blackheath  to  be  reviewed  by  George  II. 
The  Prince  of  Wales,  the  Duke  of  Cumberland,  and 
Field-Marshal  the  Earl  of  Stair  were  in  attendance. 
The  spectacle  was  more  brilliant  than  any  England 
had  witnessed  for  a  good  long  time.  There  was,  of 
course,  a  crowd  of  spectators.  A  proud  day  that  for 
Ensign  Wolfe  carrying  the  colours  of  his  regiment. 
His  mother  and  brother  were  present  with  other 
friends,  and  some  hearts  beat  faster  as  the  gaily 
uniformed  stripling  marched  past.  The  regiment 
was  to  embark  at  Deptford  for  Ostend.  It  was  a 
trying  little  voyage.  In  these  days  of  more  or  less 
comfortable,  rapidly  moving  steamers  which  cover 
the  distance  from  the  Thames  to  the  Belgian  coast 
in  a  few  hours,  there  are  sufficient  terrors  in  contrary 
winds  for  passengers  who  are  poor  sailors.     Wolfe's 


16  GENERAL  WOLFE 

boat  was  kept  several  days  at  sea  before  the  sand 
dunes  came  in  sight  and  Ostend  could  be  made.  That 
trip  was  certainly  torture  to  Wolfe,  but  whatever  his 
sufferings,  whatever  his  sense  of  loss  of  dignity  from 
sea-sickness,  this  son  of  Mars  faced  Father  Neptune 
in  all  his  moods  with  the  same  indomitable  spirit 
he  presented  to  every  enemy.  In  Belgium,  Duroure's 
men  marched  straight  away  to  Bruges  and  Ghent. 
What  the  country  hereabouts  lacks  in  physical 
beauty  it  more  than  makes  good  in  the  romance  of 
its  history,  of  its  alternating  struggles  for  freedom 
and  its  commercial  and  manufacturing  achievements. 
Wolfe's  thoughts  would  be  more  of  Marlborough  and 
his  father  than  of  Charles  the  Bold,  Maximilian  or 
Charles  V  ;  more  still  of  the  protagonists  in  the 
present  struggle,  Frederick  II  and  Louis  XV  and 
Maria  Theresa,  Prince  Charles  of  Lorraine,  Due  de 
Noailles,  and  the  Earl  of  Stair  who  was  in  command 
of  the  British  troops  ;  but  the  appeal  of  the  past  is 
the  animating  force  of  the  most  commonplace  present, 
and  the  present  with  which  Wolfe  was  now  directly 
interested  was  far  from  commonplace. 
Nine       .  The  reception  of  Wolfe   and  his  companions  in 

Ghent.  Ghent  where  he  was  quartered,  was  anything  but 

pleasing.  There  was  no  enthusiasm  for  the  cause  of 
Maria  Theresa,  and  the  people,  hating  to  be  dragged 
into  a  dispute  from  which,  whoever  else  might  gain, 
they  would  derive  no  sort  of  benefit,  were  often 
openly  hostile  to  the  British.  English  soldiers  and 
the  Ghentois  came  to  blows  on  the  smallest  provo- 
cation, and  the  magistrates  threatened  with  whipping, 
burning  in  the  back  and  expulsion  anyone  who 
should  affront  the  British.  Wolfe,  eager  to  get 
away  to  the  front,  had  to  possess  his  spirit  in  patience. 


NINE  MONTHS   IN   GHENT  17 

Ready  to  march  at  a  couple  of  hours'  notice,  he  was 
not  called  upon  to  move  throughout  that  summer  and 
winter.  Nine  months  were  spent  in  Ghent.  Wolfe 
beguiled  himself  with  professional  studies,  which  the 
fortifications  of  the  quaint  old  Belgian  town  assisted  ; 
with  the  flute,  on  which  he  performed  like  another 
ardent  soldier,  Frederick  the  Great  himself  ;  and 
with  visits  to  the  grand  new  play-house  which  had 
within  recent  years  been  started  in  the  town.  There 
were  plenty  of  officers  in  the  place,  including  his 
friend,  George  Warde,  so  that  "  we  never  want 
company,"  and  he  conversed  "  a  little  with  the  ladies 
who  are  very  civil  and  talk  French."  He  looked 
forward  soon  to  seeing  his  brother  Edward  in  Flanders, 
and  "  in  all  probability,"  he  said,  "  before  next  year 
is  over  we  may  know  something  of  our  trade." 
Edward  Wolfe  apparently  reached  Ghent  in  the  first 
weeks  of  1743.  He  was  lucky  in  being  able  to  join 
his  brother's  regiment.  His  ambition  was  strictly 
fraternal.  He  wished  to  follow  in  James's  footsteps, 
but  his  constitution  was  even  more  delicate  than  his 
brother's  and  the  spirit  was  martial  beyond  the 
capabilities  of  the  body. 

In  February  a  move  was  at  last  made  from  Ghent.  Adjutant 
On  the  way  to  Germany — "  at  St.  Tron  in  the  Bishop-  at  sixteen- 
ric  of  Liege  " — Wolfe  wrote  home  that  they  had  had 
bad  weather  on  the  march,  that  his  strength  was  not 
so  great  as  he  imagined — "  I  never  come  into  quarters 
without  aching  hips  and  knees  " — that  the  road 
ahead  was  trying  and  that  he  intended  to  hire  a  horse. 
He  would  march  on  foot  one  day  and  ride  the  next — 
sharing  the  horse  probably  with  Edward.  Never- 
theless, he  said,  "  I'm  in  the  greatest  spirits  in  the 
world. "     The  language  of  the  country  was  a  difficulty. 

3— (2213) 


18  GENERAL  WOLFE 

Useful  as  French  was,  Edward  said  he  would  once 
have  gone  without  his  dinner  if  he  had  not  been  able 
to  ask  for  it  in  Latin.  On  the  9th  June  the  British- 
Hanoverian  forces  arrived  at  an  awkward  bend 
of  the  Main,  near  Aschaffenburg,  and  were  joined 
by  an  Austrian  force  under  the  Duke  d'Arenberg. 
There  were  repeated  alarms  that  the  Due  de  Noailles, 
who  was  on  the  other  side  of  the  river  with  60,000 
men,  was  about  to  attack.  Edward  was  actually  in 
a  skirmish  and  received  his  baptism  of  fire  on  the  night 
of  the  20th.  James  was  called  upon  to  face  another 
ordeal.  He  was  given  the  position  of  adjutant.  How 
it  happened  that  this  boy  of  sixteen  was  entrusted 
with  so  important  a  post  is  not  clear.  On  the  21st 
June  he  wrote  from  Aschaffenburg  that  King  George 
had  joined  the  army,  and  they  would  soon  know  what 
they  were  going  to  do.  The  situation  was  critical. 
The  King  found  the  forces  under  the  Earl  of  Stair 
in  something  very  like  a  trap,  from  which  they  could 
hope  to  escape  only  with  heavy  loss,  if  they  escaped 
at  all.  They  could  not  go  forward  ;  to  stay  where 
they  were  meant  that  their  supplies  were  cut  off  and 
the  French  from  across  the  river  could  make  so  many 
targets  of  them  ;  in  retreat  lay  the  one  slender  chance 
and  that  only  if  it  could  be  accomplished  before  the 
enemy  were  alive  to  the  movement.  The  King 
ordered  the  retreat.  Such  was  the  desperate  plight 
in  which  incompetence  had  involved  the  British  and 
their  allies  at  the  time  when  Wolfe  was  to  fight  his 
first  grim  battle.  And  the  duties  of  an  adjutant, 
in  any  case  severe,  but  more  severe  in  these 
circumstances  than  usual,  devolved  on  him. 
Sthjune  Silently  on  the  morning  of  the  27th  June  the  allies 
1743.  began  to  retrace  their  steps  in  the  direction  of  Hanau. 


AT  DETTINGEN  19 

The  movement  was  observed  by  de  Noailles,  who 

instantly  sent  a  strong  force  across  the  river  to  cut 

them  up  or  secure  their  surrender.     Happily  British 

commanders  are  not  alone  in  their  mistakes.     The 

Due  de  Grammont,  who  was  entrusted  with  this  vital 

manoeuvre,  instead  of  waiting  for  the  retreating  army 

at  a  defile,  advanced  to  meet  it  on  equal  terms,  and 

actually  exposed  his  men   to   the   fire  of  his   own 

batteries  across  the  river.     The  battle  of  Dettingen 

has    been    variously   described.     Military    authority 

tells  us   that  the  honour  which   the   generals  had 

compromised  was  saved  once  again  by  "  the  fine  old 

quality  of  British  doggedness," x  and   endorses   the 

contemptuous  description  of  George   II — for  which 

Thackeray  seems  mainly  responsible2 — standing  in 

front  of  his  troops  "  in  the  preposterous  position  of 

a  fencing-master."     George  II  has  to  bear  the  burden 

of  many  failings,  but  prejudice  seems  a  little  hard  on 

his   doings   at   Dettingen.     His   courage   was   never 

questioned,  and  at  Dettingen  he  was  only  doing  his 

best,  and  a  fine  best  it  was,  to  get  the  army  out  of  the 

hole  which  others  had  made  for  it.     James  Wolfe's 

long  letter  to  his  father  written  from  Hochst,  on  the 

4th  July,  is  so  interesting  from  both  the  military  and 

the  personal  point  of  view,  written  as  it  was  by  a  boy, 

that  I  cannot  refrain  from  quoting  it  at  some  length. 

After  explaining  that  the  fatigues  of  the  day  put  him 

very  much  "  out  of  order,"  Wolfe  says — 

"  The  army  was  drawn  out  this  day  se'nnight  between  a  wood    Wolfe 's 
and  the  river  Main,  near  a  little  village,  called  Dettingen,  in    description, 
five  lines — two  of  foot  and  three  of  horse.     The  cannon  on 
both  sides  began  to  play  about  nine  o'clock  in  the  morning, 
and  we  were  exposed  to  the  fires  of  theirs  (said  to  be  above 

1  Col.  C.  B.  Brackenbury  :    Frederick  the  Great,  p.  91. 
*  The  Four   Georges,  Oxford  Edition,  p.  735. 


20  GENERAL  WOLFE 

fifty  pieces)  for  near  three  hours,  a  great  part  of  which  flanked 
us  terribly  from  the  other  side  the  water.  The  French  were 
all  the  while  drawn  up  in  sight  of  us  on  this  side.  About 
twelve  o'clock  we  marched  towards  them  ;  they  advanced 
likewise,  and,  as  near  as  I  can  guess,  the  fight  began  about 
one.  The  Gens  d'Armes,  or  M ousquetaires  Gris,  attacked 
the  first  line,  composed  of  nine  regiments  of  English  foot, 
and  four  or  five  of  Austrians,  and  some  Hanoverians.  They 
broke  through  the  Scotch  Fusileers,  who  they  began  the  attack 
upon  ;  but  before  they  got  to  the  second  line,  out  of  two 
hundred  there  were  not  forty  living,  so  they  wheeled,  and 
came  between  the  first  and  second  line  (except  an  officer 
with  a  standard,  and  four  or  five  men,  who  broke  through  the 
second  line  and  were  taken  by  some  of  Hawley's  regiment 
of  Dragoons),  and  about  twenty  of  them  escaped  to  their 
army,  riding  through  an  interval  that  was  made  for  our  Horse 
to  advance.  These  unhappy  men  were  of  the  first  families 
in  France.  Nothing,  I  believe,  could  be  more  rash  than  their 
undertaking." 

Wolfe  then  briefly  describes  the  second  attack  on 
the  left  by  the  Horse,  and  enlarges  on  the  third  and 
last  attack  by  the  Foot — 

"We  advanced  towards  one  another  ;  our  men  in  high  spirits 
and  very  impatient  for  fighting,  being  elated  with  beating 
the  French  Horse,  part  of  which  advanced  towards  us  ;  while 
the  rest  attacked  our  Horse,  but  were  soon  driven  back  by  the 
great  fire  we  gave  them.  The  Major  and  I  (for  we  had  neither 
Colonel  nor  Lieutenant-Colonel),  before  they  came  near, 
were  employed  in  begging  and  ordering  the  men  not  to  fire 
at  too  great  a  distance,  but  to  keep  it  till  the  enemy  should 
come  near  us  ;  but  to  little  purpose.  The  whole  fired  when 
they  thought  they  could  reach  them,  which  had  like  to  have 
ruined  us.  We  did  very  little  execution  with  it.  So  soon 
as  the  French  saw  we  presented  they  all  fell  down,  and  when 
we  had  fired  they  got  up,  and  marched  close  to  us  in  tolerable 
good  order,  and  gave  us  a  brisk  fire,  which  put  us  into  some 
disorder  and  made  us  give  way  a  little,  particularly  ours  and 
two  or  three  more  regiments,  who  were  in  the  hottest  of  it. 
However,  we  soon  rallied  again,  and  attacked  them  with 
great  fury,  which  gained  us  a  complete  victory,  and  forced 
the  enemy  to  retire  in  great  haste.  'Twas  luck  that  we  did 
give  way  a  little,  for  our  men  were  loading  all  the  while,  and 
it  gave  room  for  an  Austrian  regiment  to  move  into  an 
interval,  rather  too  little  before,  who  charged  the  enemy  with 


THE  EFFECT  OF  DETTINGEN  21 

great  bravery  and  resolution.  So  soon  as  the  French  re- 
treated, the  line  halted,  and  we  got  the  sad  news  of  the  death 
of  as  good  and  brave  a  man  as  any  amongst  us,  General 
Clayton,  who  was  killed  by  a  musquet  ball  in  the  last  attack. 
His  death  gave  us  all  sorrow,  so  great  was  the  opinion  we  had 
of  him,  and  was  the  hindrance  of  anything  further  being  done 
that  day.  He  had,  'tis  said,  orders  for  pursueing  the  enemy, 
and  if  we  had  followed  them,  as  was  expected,  it  is  the  opinion 
of  most  people,  that  of  27,000  men  they  brought  over  the 
Main,  they  would  not  have  repassed  with  half  that  number. 
A  great  number  of  their  officers  and  men  were  taken  prisoners. 
Their  loss  is  computed  to  be  between  six  and  seven  thousand 
men,  and  ours  three  thousand. 

"  His  Majesty  was  in  the  midst  of  the  fight ;  and  the  Duke 
behaved  as  bravely  as  a  man  could  do.  He  had  a  musquet- 
shot  through  the  calf  of  his  leg.  I  had  several  times  the 
honour  of  speaking  with  him  just  as  the  battle  began,  and 
was  often  afraid  of  his  being  dash'd  to  pieces  by  the  cannon- 
balls.  He  gave  his  orders  with  a  great  deal  of  calmness,  and 
seemed  quite  unconcerned.  The  soldiers  were  in  high  delight 
to  have  him  so  near  them.  I  sometimes  thought  I  had  lost 
poor  Ned,  when  I  saw  arms,  legs,  and  heads  beat  off  close  by 
him.  He  is  called  '  The  Old  Soldier,'  and  very  deservedly. 
A  horse  I  rid  of  the  Colonel's,  at  the  first  attack  was  shot  in 
one  of  his  hinder  legs,  and  threw  me  ;  so  I  was  obliged  to 
do  the  duty  of  an  adjutant  all  that  and  the  next  day  on  foot, 
in  a  pair  of  heavy  boots.  I  lost  with  the  horse,  furniture  and 
pistols  which  cost  me  ten  ducats  ;  but  three  days  after  the 
battle,  got  the  horse  again,  with  the  ball  in  him, — and  he  is 
now  almost  well  again, — but  without  furniture  and  pistols." 

Dettingen  had  its  effect  on  the  fortunes  both  of  A  marked 
the  war  and  of  James  Wolfe.  The  French,  pressed  man- 
elsewhere  by  Prince  Charles,  withdrew  to  their  own 
frontier  ;  the  allies,  after  their  retreat  to  Hanau,  made 
Worms  their  headquarters,  and  were  neither  molested 
nor  in  a  mood  to  attempt  to  follow  up  their  advantage. 
As  for  Wolfe,  his  services  were  recognized  not  only  by 
his  official  appointment  as  adjutant  but  within  a  week 
or  two  by  promotion  to  a  lieutenancy.  England 
rejoiced  inordinately  over  the  victory ;  Handel 
composed  his  finest  Te  Deum,  and  George  II  was  a 


22  GENERAL  WOLFE 

popular  hero  when  he  returned  to  London.     The 

campaign  of  1743  was  over,  and  Wolfe  went  into 

winter  quarters  with  his  regiment  at  Ostend.     He 

would  have  liked  to  take  a  trip  home,  but  was  refused 

permission,  though  it  was  granted  to  Edward.   James 

was  clearly  a  marked  man.     His  presence  with  the 

troops  was  indispensable,  and  in  the  following  June 

he  was  advanced  a  step  further.     He  became  captain 

in   Barrell's    Regiment,    and   curiously   enough    the 

promotion  and  transfer,  whilst  an  official  mark  of  his 

worth,  kept  him  for  the  rest  of  his  stay  in  Belgium 

from   further  participation   in  serious   fighting.     In 

the  spring  of  1744  Marshal  Saxe,  in  command  of  the 

French,  opened  the  campaign  with  a  powerful  army 

which  scared  the  Dutch  into  surrendering  Ypres,  and 

was  soon  overrunning  half  Belgium.     Wolfe,  under 

General  Wade's  command,  was  on  the  banks  of  the 

Scheldt,  where  the  allies  awaited  attack,  but  Prince 

Charles  with  60,000  Austrians,  crossed  the  Rhine  and 

half  the  French  forces  were  precipitately  withdrawn 

to  protect  France  itself  from  invasion. 

The  death         October  came,   and  Wolfe  was  again  taking  up 
of  Edward.  ~x  ,  ,      ° 

winter  quarters  in  Ghent,  when  a  heavy  sorrow  came 

to  him  and   to  his   family.     His  brother   Edward, 

much  loved  and  affectionately  known  as  the  Old 

Soldier — he  was  not  seventeen, — was  taken  ill  and  died. 

James,  near  at  hand  but  not  understanding  that  the 

illness  might  terminate  fatally,  was  not  with  him  at 

the  last,  and  the  thought  of  the  lad  dying  with  no 

special  friend,  save  his  faithful  servant,  to  watch  over 

him,  was  a  bitter  one  to  his  brother  for  many  a  day. 

James  put  his  feelings  into  a  letter  to  his  mother, 

full   of  manly  grief  and   of  the  philosophy  which 

usually  comes  of  a  much  more  intimate  experience  of 


A  BROTHER'S  SORROW  23 

the  world.  It  hardly  strikes  one  as  characteristic 
of  seventeen  years  of  age.  Were  there  ever  two  more 
precocious  warriors  than  James  and  Edward  Wolfe  ? 
The  letter  is   dated   "Ghent,   29th   October,    1744 

as."— 

"  Poor  Ned  wanted  nothing  but  the  satisfaction  of  seeing 
his  deafest  friends  to  leave  the  world  with  the  greatest 
tranquillity.  He  often  called  on  us.  It  gives  me  many 
uneasy  hours  when  I  reflect  on  the  possibility  there  was  of 
my  being  with  him  some  time  before  he  died.  God  knows  it 
was  being  too  exact,  and  not  apprehending  the  danger  the 
poor  fellow  was  in  ;  and  even  that  would  not  have  hindered  it 
had  I  received  the  physician's  first  letter.  I  know  you  won't 
be  able  to  read  this  paragraph  without  shedding  tears,  as 
I  do  writing  it  ;  but  there  is  a  satisfaction  even  in  giving  way 
to  grief  now  and  then.  'Tis  what  we  owe  the  memory  of 
a  dear  friend. 

"  He  was  an  honest  and  a  good  lad,  had  lived  very  well, 
and  always  discharged  his  duty  with  the  cheerfulness  becom- 
ing a  good  officer.  He  lived  and  died  as  a  son  of  you  two 
should,  which,  I  think,  is  saying  all  I  can.  I  have  the  melan- 
choly satisfaction  to  find  him  regretted  by  his  friends  and 
acquaintances.  His  Colonel  is  particularly  concerned  for 
him,  and  desired  I  would  assure  you  of  it.  There  was  in  him 
the  prospect  (when  ripened  with  experience)  of  good  under- 
standing and  judgement,  and  an  excellent  soldier.  You'll 
excuse  my  dwelling  so  long  on  this  cruel  subject,  but  in  relating 
this  to  you,  vanity  and  partiality  are  banished.  A  strong 
desire  to  do  justice  to  his  memory  occasions  it. 

' '  There  was  no  part  of  his  life  that  makes  him  dearer  to  me 
than  that  where  you  have  often  mentioned — he  pined  after  me. 
It  often  makes  me  angry  that  any  hour  of  my  life  should  pass 
without  thinking  of  him  ;  and  when  I  do  think  of  him,  that 
though  all  the  reasons  I  have  to  lament  his  loss  are  now  as 
forcible  as  at  the  moment  of  his  departure,  I  don't  find  my 
heart  swell  with  the  same  sorrow  as  it  did  at  that  time. 
Nature  is  ever  too  good  in  blotting  out  the  violence  of  affliction. 
For  all  tempers  (as  mine  is)  too  much  given  to  mirth,  it  is 
often  necessary  to  revive  grief  in  one's  memory." 

James  Wolfe  was  indeed  too  completely  absorbed  1745— the 
in  his  profession  to  admit  of  sorrow  having  more  than  ^f?L 
a    momentarily    recurrent     sway     when    the    first 


24  GENERAL  WOLFE 

poignancy  was  over.      He  had  already  grasped  the 
fact  that  British  poverty  in  soldierly  attainment  was 
his  opportunity  ;    preferment  came  to  him,  contrary 
to  the  usual  practice,  as  the  reward  of  merit,  and  he 
was  prepared  to  take  any  post  which  might  be  denied 
to    nepotism,    wealth,    or    social    influence.     Whilst 
Wolfe  in  1744-5  was  busy  in  the  cause  of  self-efficiency, 
France,  against  whom  that  efficiency  was  one  day  to 
be  used  with  crushing  effect,  was  employing  every 
weapon  at  command  to  paralyse  the  arm  of  England. 
From  the  time  when  Louis  XIV  pledged  his  word  to 
James  II  on  his  death-bed  to  assist  his  son  to  the 
British  throne, — a  pledge  explained  away  on  the  very 
morrow  when   its   consequences  were  realised — the 
French  had  always  the  Stuart  card  to  play.     In  1744 
Louis  XV  encouraged  Charles  Edward  to  attempt 
the   invasion   of  England.     In    1745  the   Pretender 
managed  to  do  on  the  Scottish  coast  what  he  had 
failed  to  do  on  the  English.     It  was  a  black  year  for 
England.     The  Duke  of  Cumberland  had  succeeded 
to  the  command  of  the  allies  in  Flanders,  had  been 
badly  beaten  by  Marshal  Saxe  at  Fontenoy  on  11th 
May,  and  had  been  unable  to  stay  the  advance  of  the 
victorious  French  at  any  point.     Wolfe's  old  regiment 
(Duroure's)  was  among  those  that  suffered  most  at 
Fontenoy  ;   his  own,  of  which  he  was  made  brigade- 
major  on  June   12th,  was  not  present  ;    he  was  at 
Lessines  when  Ghent  was  taken  by  the  French  ;   and 
a  couple  of  months  later  he  and  the  rest  of  the  British 
forces  were  recalled  to  England  to  deal  with  the 
Pretender. 


CHAPTER   III 

FALKIRK,    CULLODEN,    AND   LAFFELDT 

When  Wolfe  landed  in  England  after  an  absence  of  France  and 

three  and  a  half  years  he  found  the  country  already  the  Stuarts. 

in  a  state  of  rapidly  growing  alarm  at  the  news  from 

Scotland.     Men  had  not  forgotten  the  misery  which 

the  rising  in  '15  had  occasioned  on  both  sides  of  the 

Tweed,  and  the  movements  of  the  Young  Pretender, 

as   Charles   Edward   was   called,    soon   showed   the 

necessity   for   energetic   measures.     They   were   not 

forthcoming.     The  Government  and  the  nation  had 

been  taken  completely  by  surprise.     They  seem  to 

have  thought  that  the  abortive  effort  of  the  previous 

year,  when  a  French  fleet  intended  for  the  invasion 

of  England  in  Stuart  as  well  as  Bourbon  interests, 

was  stopped  by  Sir  John  Norris,  and  scattered  by  a 

storm,  had  disposed  of  the  peril  of  invasion.     As  a 

fact  Louis  XV  in  1745  did  refuse  to  grant  Charles 

Edward's  request  that  a  new  expedition  should  be 

fitted  out.     The  Prince,  however,  was  determined  to 

strike  a  blow  on  his  father's  behalf,  and  told  King 

Louis  that  he  would  make  the  attempt  even  though 

he  had  to  go  with  a  solitary  footman. 

Towards  the  end  of  July  he  landed  at  Arisaig,  in  Charles 
Moidart,  at  the  south-west  corner  of  Inverness-shire,  Edward  in 
with  seven  followers,  "  The  Seven  Men  of  Moidart."  Scotland. 
His   presence   in   Scotland   was  not   known   to   the 
Government  for  nearly  three  weeks.     On  the  19th 
August  he  raised  his  red  and  white-silk  standard  at 
Glenfinnan. x     Supporters  rallied  round  him  apace  ; 

1  P.  Hume  Brown  :    A  Short  History  of  Scotland,  p.  539. 

25 


26  GENERAL  WOLFE 

the  character  of  the  adventure  fired  the  Highland 
imagination,  and  Sir  John  Cope  had  only  a  small  force 
at  Edinburgh  with  which  to  challenge  him.  If  the 
French  had  backed  up  Charles  Edward  in  July,  1745, 
as  they  were  prepared  to  back  him  in  1744  and  con- 
templated doing  three  months  later  when  he  was  as 
far  south  as  Derby,  England's  chances  of  escape  from 
a  second  Stuart  restoration  might  have  been  slender. 
The  French  marshal,  Belleisle,  while  a  prisoner  in 
England,  said  that  he  would  "  engage  with  5,000 
scullions  of  the  French  army  to  conquer  England,"1 
and  Henry  Fox  on  the  5th  September,  1745,  wrote : 
"  England,  Wade  says  (and  I  believe),  is  for  the  first 
comer,  and  if  you  can  tell  whether  the  6,000  Dutch 
and  the  ten  battalions  of  English  or  5,000  French  or 
Spaniards  will  be  here  first,  you  know  our  fate."2 
Cope  instead  of  trying  to  bar  the  Pretender's  way 
south,  and  not  feeling  himself  strong  enough  to  pro- 
ceed against  him,  adopted  the  extraordinary  course 
of  marching  to  Inverness.  If  he  had  been  a  traitor 
he  could  not  have  done  more  precisely  what  the  rebels 
wished.  He  left  the  way  to  Edinburgh  and  England 
open.  By  the  time  Cope  got  back  Prince  Charles 
had  proclaimed  his  father  King  James  VIII  in  the 
Palace  of  Holyrood,  and  was  ready  to  meet  the  English 
force  not  merely  with  vastly  superior  numbers,  but 
with  the  sympathies,  tacit  or  avowed,  of  the  larger 
proportion  of  the  Scottish  people.  At  Prestonpans 
on  the  21st  September  Cope's  army  was  surprised  as 
the  dawn  broke — it  was  Charles  Edward's  favourite 
method  of  attack — and  in  ten  minutes  it  had  ceased 
to  exist.     For  a  month  the  Prince  unmolested  held 

1  Horace  Walpole  to  Sir  Horace  Mann,  July   26th,   1745. 
a  Coxe  :  Memoirs  of  Lord  Walpole,  p.  284. 


THE  INVASION   OF  ENGLAND  27 

royal  Court  at  Holyrood  ;  it  was  precious  time  wasted 
from  his  point  of  view.  Then  he  decided  to  try  his 
fortunes  in  England. 

Wolfe  comes  upon  the  scene  about  this  time.     He  With  Wade 
was  with  General  Wade,  who  had  ten  thousand  men  f* 

Ncwcflstlc 

at  Newcastle.  Wolfe's  father,  now  Major-General, 
who  was  so  far  worn  with  his  services,  especially  in  the 
West  Indies,  that  he  was  more  fit  for  the  fireside  than 
the  field,  was  there  also.  As  usual,  Wolfe  was  called 
upon  to  discharge  duties  beyond  his  official  station. 
Judging  from  an  order  dated  the  2nd  November, 
1745,  that  £930  was  to  be  paid  to  him  "  for  allowance 
of  93  baggage  horses  to  the  seven  battalions  lately 
come  from  Flanders,"  he  was  acting  Deputy-Quarter- 
master-General. A  letter  to  his  mother,  in  which 
he  seeks  to  remove  her  fears  for  his  father's  safety, 
is  chiefly  interesting  for  the  hint  it  affords  of  the  views 
held  as  to  the  rebel  forces.  She  need  not  be  concerned 
he  wrote,  "  for  'tis  the  opinion  of  most  men  that  these 
rebels  won't  stand  against  the  King's  troops."  The 
annihilation  of  Cope's  little  force,  mainly  if  not  wholly 
composed  of  men  who  had  never  seen  service,  did  not 
weigh  seriously  with  the  veterans  of  Dettingen  and 
Fontenoy.  They  who  had  learned  their  "  trade  "  in 
conflict  with  Noailles'  and  Saxe's  trained  and  seasoned 
battalions  would  know  how  to  dispose  of  a  horde  of 
wild  Highlanders. 

Wade  heard  that  the  Prince  was  near  Carlisle.  The 
He  tried  to  get  across  country  to  intercept  him.  Bad  southern 
weather  and  boggy  land  baffled  his  efforts.  He 
moved  ten  miles  in  fifteen  hours.  On  the  second  day 
news  came  that  Carlisle  had  surrendered,  and  Wade 
returned  to  Newcastle.  The  rebels  continued  their 
southern  march  light-heartedly.     What  a  march  that 


28  GENERAL  WOLFE 

must  have  been.  They  came  within  120  miles  of  the 
capital.  London  wondered  what  was  going  to 
happen,  and  trembled.  How  one  can  picture  the 
kilted  and  tartaned  hillmen  tramping  with  the  Prince 
at  their  head,  and  breaking  the  monotony  of  the 
march  with  skirl  of  bagpipe  and  snatch  of  Highland 
song  or  some  old  Jacobite  refrain  such  as — 

"Then  look  for  no  peace 

For  the  war  will  never  cease 

Till  the  King  shall  enjoy  his  own  again." 

At  Derby  the  Prince's  officers  seem  suddenly  to 
have  lost  their  nerve  ;  or  they  were  disheartened 
by  lack  of  serious  demonstration  in  favour  of  the 
Stuarts.  They  decided  that  they  must  turn  back. 
The  Prince  protested  vigorously  and  the  men  rent  the 
air  with  cries  of  indignation. 1  If  they  had  suffered  a 
check  from  superior  forces  there  might  be  some 
reason  for  retreat,  but  to  retreat  without  striking  a 
blow  was  sheer  humiliation.  The  Prince  would  have 
protested  more  stoutly  still,  possibly  with  more 
effect,  if  he  had  known  that  Louis  XV,  impressed  by 
his  progress,  was  assembling  troops  at  Calais  and 
Boulogne  to  assist  him.  But  the  protests  of  Prince 
and  clansmen  alike  were  vain  :  the  officers  insisted. 
Back  they  went,  all  the  spirit  gone  out  of  the  march, 
the  Prince  the  most  dejected  member  of  his  army  ; 
back  again  through  the  northern  counties,  pillaging 
and  destroying  with  all  the  ruthless  disregard  which 
the  Lowlander  associated  with  the  very  name  of 
Highlander.  Whatever  sympathy  there  may  have 
been  for  the  Stuart  cause  when  the  Pretender  went 
south  was  dissipated  by  his  followers  on  the  return. 

1  Mackintosh  :    Story  of  the  Nations  :    Scotland,  p.  268. 


A  DRAWN   BATTLE  29 

Back  in  Scotland,  the  Prince  visited  Glasr  w,  Falkirk, 
which  was  then  already  enjoying  the  prosperity.  di)£t  x7th  Jan-> 
came  to  it  from  the  Act  of  Union  ;  he  requisi.  m — 1  x'4  * 
supplies  of  boots  and  clothes  which  his  men  sadly 
needed,  and  then  made  for  Stirling.  Wade  was 
superseded  in  his  command  by  Hawley — "  Hangman" 
Hawley,  as  he  was  called.  Hawley,  who  had  moved 
up  to  Edinburgh,  went  to  the  relief  of  Stirling,  and 
the  armies  met  at  Falkirk,  where  Hawley  was  nearly 
surprised.  It  was  the  morning  of  the  17th  January  ; 
a  bleak  sleet-laden  wind  blew  full  in  the  faces  of  the 
King's  troops  ;  the  men  were  half  frozen,  and  the 
wet  which  found  its  way  to  their  very  skins  found  its 
way  also  to  their  ammunition.  The  conditions  were 
all  against  the  King's  men,  and  Wolfe,  frail  in  con- 
stitution, must  have  suffered  keenly  from  the  expo- 
sure. But  there  was  little  time  to  think  of  personal 
discomforts.  Wolfe  and  his  comrades  were  to  undergo 
a  new  experience.  Hawley  began  the  fight  by  a 
cavalry  charge  ;  the  Highlanders  reserved  their  fire 
and  met  the  charge  by  a  point-blank  volley,  which 
threw  the  horses  and  men  who  were  not  killed  on  the 
spot,  into  hopeless  disorder.  Remnants  came  back 
to  scatter  confusion  in  their  own  lines,  and  a  few 
reformed  to  charge  again.  Whilst  the  pitiless  sleet 
nearly  blinded  the  waiting  infantry,  the  Highlanders 
rushed  upon  them  with  a  fury  and  a  yell  such  as 
no  soldier  in  the  Continental  wars  had  known. 
They  bore  down  the  first  line  and  apparently  were 
only  checked  by  the  men  with  whom  Wolfe  was 
fighting.  To  this  day  no  one  knows  precisely  what 
happened.  Chaos  reigned,  and  was  not  relieved  till 
both  armies  took  to  their  heels,  or  something  very 
like    it.     The     Highlanders    bolted,     and    Hawley 


30  GENERAL  WOLFE 

abandoned  his  camp  and  his  guns,  falling  back  on 

Ep'.nburgh. 

Ap 

',  v7olfe   makes   light   of   the   encounter ;     he   said 

"  'twas  not  a  battle  as  neither  side  would  light,"  and 

he  anticipated  that  it  would  be  "  told  in  a  much  worse 

light  than  it  really  is  " ;   he  attributed  the  loss  of  the 

guns  to  the  drivers  who  ran  off  with  the  horses — a 

version  which  is  at  variance  with  the  accusation  of 

misconduct  brought  against  an  officer  who  committed 

suicide    rather    than    face    court-martial.     Anyway 

the  result  of  the  fight  was  sufficiently  inconclusive 

to  give  the  Jacobites,  as  one  chronicler  put  it,  "a 

handle  to  vaunt."     Some  students  of  the  battle  are 

strong  in  their  censure  of  Charles  Edward  and  his 

officers   because   they   did   not   follow   Hawley   and 

destroy  him  as  completely  as  they  destroyed  Cope, 

the  truth  probably  being  that  they  did  not  because 

they  could  not.     Hawley  attributed  the  reverse  or 

whatever  it  was  to  the  misleading  accounts  of  the 

numbers  and  discipline  of  the  enemy  supplied  by  the 

Intelligence  Department  in  Edinburgh  :    "  You  see 

and  I  feel  the  effect  of  it.     I  never  saw  troops  fire  in 

platoons  more   regularly,   make  their  motions   and 

evolutions  quicker,  or  attack  with  more  bravery  or 

in  better  order  than  those  Highlanders  did  at  the 

battle  of  Falkirk.     And  these  are  the  very  men  that 

you  represented  as  a  parcel  of  raw  and  undisciplined 

vagabonds.     No  Jacobite  could  have  done  more  hurt 

to  the  King's  faithful  friends,  or  done  more  service  to 

his  inveterate  enemies."1 


1  Quoted  by  A.  C.  Ewald  (  Life  and  Times  of  Prince  Charles 
Edward  Stuart)  from  a  pamphlet  among  the  Scottish  State 
papers. 


THE  DUKE  OF  CUMBERLAND  31 

History  does  not  accord  a  high  place  among  Preparing 
generals  to  the  Duke  of  Cumberland,  but  we  know  decisive 
that  Wolfe  held  his  abilities  in  considerable  esteem —  encounter, 
an  esteem  which  would  hardly  have  survived  his  later 
campaigns — and  it  is  quite  certain  that  new  confidence 
was  inspired  in  the  British  ranks  when  the  Duke  with 
reinforcements  reached  Edinburgh  in  hot  haste  to 
take  over  the  command.  Edinburgh  received  him 
with  every  possible  demonstration  of  joy,  and  he 
proceeded  to  deal  with  the  situation  in  a  spirit  which 
hitherto  had  been  lacking.  Falkirk  convinced  the 
sceptical  and  confirmed  the  pessimistic  that  the  rising 
was  no  mere  holiday  adventure.  The  Prince  after 
Falkirk  resumed  his  attentions  to  Stirling,  but  with 
the  coming  of  the  Duke  he  retired  to  the  north  and 
took  up  his  head-quarters  at  Inverness.  The  Duke 
endeavoured  to  follow  him  up,  but  with  all  the  energy 
possible  thrown  into  the  pursuit,  physical  difficulties 
augmented  by  meteorological,  could  only  be  overcome 
by  patience.  It  was  decided  to  go  into  quarters  at 
Aberdeen  till  the  weather  improved  and  to  utilise 
the  interval  in  preparing  the  King's  forces  for  the 
decisive  encounter,  more  particularly  by  exercises 
which  might  fit  them  the  better  to  meet  the  peculiar 
tactics  of  the  Highlanders.  It  was  an  interval  which 
was  not  favourable  to  the  Jacobites.  Their  provisions 
ran  short,  and  there  was  much  suffering  and 
discontent. 

In  the  second  week  of  April  the  British  were  on  the  The  eve  of 
move    across    country.     The    Prince    with    a    force  Culloden« 
variously  estimated  at  eight  or  nine  thousand,  took 
up  his  position  on  Drummossie — or  Culloden-moor, 
with  Culloden  House  on  his  left ;  it  was  the  15th,  the 
Duke's  birthday,  and  the  hungry  Highlanders  were 


32  GENERAL  WOLFE 

informed  that  the  event  was  being  celebrated  with 
feasting  and  revelry.  Here  was  another  opportunity 
for  a  surprise.  A  night  march  and  an  attack  in  the 
early  morning  before  the  effects  of  the  day's  indulgence 
had  worn  off  might  add  Culloden  to  Charles  Edward's 
victories,  provide  his  men  with  food,  and  bring  him 
one  step  nearer  the  British  throne.  Fortune  did  not 
favour  him  this  time  ;  morning  broke  before  his  army 
got  in  touch  with  the  British  outposts,  and  there  was 
nothing  for  it  but  retreat.  Wolfe  thought  the  failure 
was  due  to  "  some  unforeseen  accident,  together  with 
a  great  deal  of  superstition."  A  few  hours  later  and 
the  English,  ten  thousand  strong,  in  three  lines 
battle-arrayed,  confronted  the  Stuart  forces  on  the 
moor.  Wolfe  was  on  the  left  of  the  first  line.  Before 
the  battle  began  the  Duke  addressed  his  men,  remind- 
ing them  of  what  depended  on  their  success,  bidding 
them  forget  Prestonpans  and  Falkirk,  and  warning 
The  them  that  no  quarter  would  be  given  by  the  High- 

m°«Hn!?er  landers — "  a  statement  which,  though  quite  justified 
by  the  traditional  practice  of  the  Highlanders,  was," 
says  Mr.  Bradley,  "  untrue  so  far  as  this  particular 
campaign  had  gone."1  It  is  a  question  whether 
before  Culloden  orders  were  or  were  not  issued  by 
Lord  George  Murray,  who  was  in  command  of  the 
Prince's  army,  that  no  quarter  was  to  be  given  to  the 
Elector's  troops  "  on  any  account  whatever." 
Mr.  Andrew  Lang  says  Lord  George's  general  orders, 
of  which  two  copies  are  in  possession  of  the  Duke  of 
Athole,  do  not  contain  the  words. 2  That  there  was 
a   belief  in   the   genuineness  of  the   "  no-quarter  " 

1  Wolfe,  p.  42. 

2  History  of  Scotland,  vol.  iv,  p.  517. 


question. 


THE   PRETENDER'S   DEFEAT  33 

orders  is  undoubted,  and  that  belief  illustrates  the 
character  of  the  fight.  It  meant  that  one  army  or 
the  other  was,  for  all  practical  purposes,  to  be 
annihilated. 

The  battle  opened  with  an  artillery  duel,  in  which  Culloden, 
the  English  had  much  the  best  of  it.  Lord  George  l6th  APril- 
Murray  hoped  that  the  Duke  of  Cumberland  might  I74 
hurl  his  men  at  the  Highlanders  after  the  manner  of 
Hawley,  but  the  Duke  had  quite  other  views.  His 
guns  played  on  the  clansmen  with  precision,  driving 
them  to  desperation  and  placing  them  beyond  the 
control  of  their  officers.  When  at  last  they  could 
stand  it  no  longer,  the  Macintoshes  set  the  example 
by  a  rush  upon  the  English  front  line  of  Foot,  which, 
says  Wolfe  in  a  letter  to  his  Uncle  Walter,  "  they  did 
with  more  fury  than  prudence,  throwing  down  their 
firearms  and  advancing  with  drawn  swords."  By 
reserving  their  fire  the  English  did  deadly  musketry 
work,  but  nothing  could  wholly  withstand  the  mad 
onslaught.  The  Highlanders  broke  down  the  centre 
of  the  first  English  line,  and  of  Wolfe's  regiment  120 
officers  and  men  were  killed  and  wounded.  But 
Wolfe  had  the  remnant  well  in  hand,  the  second  line 
stood  firm  and  when  Cumberland's  cavalry  began  to 
move  the  Highlanders  lost  their  nerve.  They  were 
cut  down  as  they  attempted  to  get  away,  and  in  a 
quarter  of  an  hour  from  the  time  the  battle  began 
the  fugitives  who  managed  to  escape  the  dragoons 
were  all  that  was  left  of  Charles  Edward's  army.  That 
was  the  end  of  the  Young  Pretender  and  of  the  Jacob- 
ites so  far  as  fighting  went.  The  Prince  after  months 
of  hiding  and  adventures  which  have  added  to  the 
romance  of  his  name,  found  himself  safe  once  more 
on  the  Continent,  and  the  Duke  of  Cumberland  set 

4— (2213) 


34 


GENERAL  WOLFE 


Crushing 

the 

Clansmea 


about  the  task  of  crushing  the  Highlanders  who  had 
in  any  way  supported  the  Stuart  cause,  by  methods 
which  secured  for  him  the  title  of  Butcher. 

Wolfe  was  called  upon  to  take  his  share  in  the 
unpleasant  business.  Never  again  were  the  clansmen 
to  be  in  a  position  to  challenge  the  right  of  the  House 
of  Hanover  to  the  British  crown.  The  story  of  course 
loses  nothing  from  the  fact  that  it  is  told  chiefly  by 
Stuart  sympathisers.  Before  the  action  of  Cumber- 
land is  condemned  out  of  hand  we  must  remember 
that  this  was  not  the  first  occasion  on  which  the 
Highlanders  had  carried  fire  and  slaughter  into 
innocent  homes  in  the  interest  of  the  Stuarts,  and 
a  Scotch  historian  has  reminded  us  that  the  barbarities 
of  Cumberland's  army  were  no  worse  than  those  of 
most  other  armies  in  similar  circumstances.  It  is  not 
quite  reasonable  to  judge  it  by  modern  standards. 
Nor  were  the  English  soldiers  the  sole  offenders.  The 
clansmen  in  the  Duke's  army  were  at  least  as  brutal 
in  their  treatment  of  the  vanquished. 1  However 
uncongenial  compliance  might  be,  Wolfe  would 
certainly  not  have  been  backward  in  enforcing  the 
orders  of  his  chief.  A  certain  story  told  of  him  and 
the  Duke  is  probably  entitled  to  no  sort  of  credence. 
Wolfe,  it  is  said,  was  with  the  commander-in-chief 
after  the  battle  when  they  came  across  a  wounded 
Highlander,  whose  glance  of  hatred  the  Duke  resented. 
"  Wolfe,"  said  his  Royal  Highness,  "  shoot  me  that 
Highland  scoundrel  who  dares  to  show  us  such 
insolence."  "  My  commission,"  said  Wolfe,  "is  at 
your  royal  highness's  disposal,  but  I  never  can 
consent  to  become  an  executioner."     The  story,  it 


1  Macrae  :    Scotland  Since  the  Union,  p.  73. 


THE  FORT  OF   INVERSNAID  35 

strikes  one,  is  told  not  to  illustrate  the  humanity  of 
Wolfe  so  much  as  the  brutality  of  the  Duke. 

Culloden  was  one  of  the  battles  that  have  decided  An  interval 
the  fate  of  countries.  Wolfe  played  his  part  with  and  fresh 
a  soldierly  distinction  which  ever  after  ensured  for  orders- 
him  the  favour  of  his  chief.  It  was  near  the  end  of 
July  when  the  Duke  left  Scotland  to  receive  an  ovation 
in  London  and  a  pension  of  £25,000  a  year.  What 
Wolfe  did  throughout  that  summer  can  only  be 
surmised  from  such  incidental  allusion  as  is  to  be 
found  in  local  guide-books  and  Scott's  introduction 
to  Rob  Roy.  He  is  said  to  have  commanded  the 
Fort  of  Inversnaid  in  the  gorge  not  far  from  Loch 
Lomond.  "  When  we  find  the  celebrated  General 
Wolfe  commanding  in  it,"  says  Sir  Walter,  "  the 
imagination  is  strongly  affected  by  the  variety  of 
time  and  events  which  the  circumstance  brings 
simultaneously  to  the  recollection."  Wright  is, 
however,  of  opinion  that  as  the  fort  was  in  ruins  in 
1746,  there  must  be  some  confusion  with  Wolfe's 
later  doings  in  Scotland. x  Sir  Walter  states  that  the 
fort  was  "  a  third  time  repaired  after  the  extinction 
of  civil  discord,"  and  that  would  probably  be  a  year 
or  two  later.  We  must  therefore  take  up  the  thread 
of  Wolfe's  career  after  he  left  Scotland  in  the  winter 
of  1746  under  orders  again  for  Flanders.  For  the  first 
time  for  more  than  four  years  he  was  to  have  a  short 
holiday  which  he  spent  with  his  father  and  mother 
in  London.  They  had  shifted  their  home  to  Old 
Burlington  Street.  How  delightful  would  be  a  glimpse 
of  this  young  veteran  with  his  parents  ;  the  wonder  of 
friends  who  hardly  knew  whether  to  treat  him  as  boy 
or  man.     He  disposed  of  his  fortnight  or  so  between 

1  Life  of  Wolfe,  p.  92. 


36  GENERAL  WOLFE 

the  domestic  hearth  and  the  attractions  and  distrac- 
tions of  London,  the  London  of  Johnson  and  Hogarth, 
of  Garrick  and  Fielding.  And  then  he  was  off  once 
more  to  join  the  Austrians  and  the  Dutch  in  their 
efforts  to  withstand  the  redoubtable  Saxe.  France 
had  not  failed  to  take  full  advantage  of  the  diversion 
caused  by  the  troubles  of  England.  Flanders  was 
practically  in  possession  of  her  troops.  Her  objective 
now  was  Maestricht.  The  English  threw  themselves 
into  the  new  campaign  with  all  the  greater  zeal  in  the 
hope  of  punishing  Louis  XV  for  his  support  of  the 
Stuart  cause.  The  Duke  of  Cumberland  resumed 
command  of  the  Austro-Dutch-British  forces,  now 
120,000  strong.  There  was  some  delay  in  taking 
the  field,  thanks  to  the  inadequate  commissariat 
arrangements  made  by  the  Dutch  and  Austrian 
commanders. 
Two  rare  Wolfe's  letters  at  this  time,  judging  from  the  rare 

letters.  specimens  that  have  survived,  were  a  delightful  blend 

of  youthful  gossip  and  soldierly  appreciation  of  the 
situation.  In  one,  written  on  the  1st  June,  1747,  to 
Miss  Lacey, 1  the  tone  of  which  shows  her  to  have  been 
a  very  special  friend  and  confidante,  if  not  something 
closer,  he  talked  of  certain  "  dear  girls  "  and  the 
injustice  of  any  doubts  as  to  their  constancy.  But 
his  thoughts  were  not  only  for  the  "  dear  girls." 
"  We  are  here,"  he  said,  "  the  guardians  of  the 
Republick  and  since  their  reformation  I  begin  to  think 
them  worth  our  care."  In  another  letter  dated  "  the 
camp  at  Westerloo,  June  22nd,"  he  referred  to 
Maestricht,  which  the  Duke  was  presently  to  make 

1  Miss  Lacey  according  to  an  endorsement  on  this  letter 
became  Mrs.  Pool ;  she  was  probably  a  relative  of  the  famous 
General  Lacey  in  the  Russian  service. 


A  SOLDIER'S  LOVE  37 

a  supreme  effort  to  save.  "  The  implacable  enemy," 
he  said,  "  may  depend  on  their  former  success  and 
use  it  as  a  motive  to  new  enterprises."  In  that  case 
Miss  Lacey  might  be  assured  that  nothing  a  fine  army 
could  undertake  would  be  wanting.  Something  that 
she  had  told  him  or  failed  to  tell  him  was  responsible 
for  the  first  reference  we  get  to  his  relation  with  the 
fair  sex.  "  You  have,"  he  wrote,  "left  me  in  a  doubt 
that  is  hurtful  to  my  repose.  Sure  it  must  never 
happen  that  a  soldier  is  unhappy  in  his  love,"  and  he 
was  apprehensive  lest  some  unworthy  person  should 
triumph  in  "  the  frailty  of  my  countrywomen." 
He  sent  his  wishes  for  the  health  and  happiness  of 
Miss  Lacey 's  "  pretty  friends  "  and  confessed  :  '  I 
may  say  to  my  praise  that  no  man  has  a  greater 
consideration  for  the  sex  than  your  obedient  humble 
servant,  J.  W." 

Wolfe,  who  liked  to  "  catch  himself  disposed  to  Laffeldt, 
serious  thoughts,"   was  soon  to   discover  that  the  2nd  July, 
French  did  presume  on  their  previous  success.     The  x747- 
Duke  encountered  Saxe  at  Laffeldt  on  the  2nd  July. 
That  day's  battle  was  intended  to  dispose  once  and 
for  all  of  Maria  Theresa's  claims  and  to  confirm  the 
French  in  their  mastery  of  the  Netherlands.     Saxe 
had  an  army  of  150,000  men,  and  Louis  had  actually 
come  to  witness  the  triumph.     If  the   Dutch  had 
fought  with  the  same  spirit  and  stood  their  ground 
or  rallied  when  forced  to  give  way,  with  the  same 
dogged    determination    that    the    English    showed 
throughout  the  day,   the  French  might  have  been 
badly  beaten  ;    at  the  moment  when  the  fortunes 
of  the  day  seemed  to  be  in  favour  of  the  allies  the 
Dutch  threw  everything  into  confusion  by  retreating 
and  the  Duke  of  Cumberland  was  only  saved  from 


38  GENERAL  WOLFE 

capture  by  a  furious  cavalry  charge  led  by  Sir  John 
Ligonier,  who  was  himself  taken  prisoner.  The 
charge  saved  the  situation.  The  allies  were  able  to 
retire  on  Maestricht,  and  the  French,  who  had  lost 
ten  thousand  men,  abandoned  all  idea  for  the  present 
of  another  attempt  to  take  it.  The  battle  of  Laffeldt 
cost  the  allies  5,000  men  in  killed  and  wounded,  the 
British  casualties  being  disproportionately  severe, 
for  there  was  some  truth  in  Louis  XV's  remark  that 
'  The  English  not  only  paid  all  but  fought  all." 
Wolfe's  regiment  was  in  the  thick  of  the  fight,  and 
Wolfe  was  wounded,  though  happily  not  seriously  ; 
his  services  were  sufficiently  conspicuous  to  command 
the  Duke's  public  thanks.  The  ensuing  winter  Wolfe 
was  permitted  to  spend  at  home.  Hence,  the  twenty- 
first  anniversary  of  his  birth  was  celebrated  in  Old 
Burlington  Street.  No  conventional  majority  func- 
tion that !  At  an  age  when  youth  usually  begins  to 
think  of  settling  down  to  the  serious  business  of  life, 
he  had  already  put  in  six  years  in  the  hard  school  of 
professional  experience. 
Peace  and  Returning  to  Holland  in  March,  1748,  Brigade- 
profes-  Major  Wolfe  was  sent  to  join  a  detachment  of  British 

prospects,  troops  with  the  Austrians  near  Breda — a  post  which 
did  not  appeal  to  him.  Negotiations  with  a  view  to 
peace  had  been  opened  at  Aix-la-Chapelle,  but  the 
fighting  went  on.  Maestricht  was  besieged  by  Saxe, 
and  Wolfe  had  some  hope  of  assisting  "  a  fortunate 
stroke  "  which  might  prove  the  total  ruin  of  the 
besieging  army.  In  a  letter  from  Osterhout  dated 
the  12th  April  he  gave  the  purport  of  a  conversation 
with  Adjutant-General  Yorke,  who  said  some  "  civil 
things."  The  Duke,  according  to  the  Adjutant- 
General,  had  expressed  great  concern  at  not  having  it 


WOLFE'S  ASPIRATIONS  39 

in  his  power  yet  to  serve  Wolfe,  but  intimated  his 
"  just  intention  "  to  give  him  a  major's  commissio 
without  payment  so  soon  as  opportunity  served. 
Wolfe,  professing  himself  to  be  beyond  the  reach  of 
disappointment,  did  not  expect  much  to  come  of  this. 
The  negotiations  for  peace  were  so  far  advanced  that 
the  preliminaries  were  signed  and  orders  for  the 
cessation  of  fighting  were  issued,  and  Wolfe  in  the 
intervals  of  affairs  was  speculating  as  to  his  future.  J*0*?^"8 
Much  as  he  had  done,  efficient  as  he  had  made  himself  future 
according  to  the  standard  of  his  fellows,  he  was  aware 
that  in  general  education  he  was  lamentably  wanting, 
and  that  in  regard  to  military  science,  with  all  his 
experience  and  application,  he  had  mastered  but  its 
fringe.  Without  funds — and  £10,000  he  said  might 
be  "  prettily  disposed  of  " — something  more  than 
patient  merit  was  necessary  to  preferment  in  the  days 
of  purchase,  of  "  family  compacts  "  in  small  things 
as  in  large,  of  social  and  political  wire-pulling  which 
there  was  little  attempt  even  to  gloss,  certainly  not 
disguise.  His  parents  did  all  they  could  for  him 
financially,  and  his  mother  always  had  her  eye  open 
with  a  view  to  a  rich  marriage  that  should  place  her 
son  beyond  the  necessity  of  schemes  of  economy  in 
which,  as  he  humorously  put  it,  spare  diet  and  small 
beer  had  their  place.  Wolfe's  ideas  of  economy 
were  not  those  of  the  young  men  of  the  time.  He  did 
not  waste  his  substance  in  riotous  living,  fine  clothes, 
and  high  play,  and  then  appeal  to  the  paternal  purse 
on  the  ground  that  the  society  in  which  he  mixed 
made  economy  impossible.  But  "  an  unlucky  know- 
ledge of  the  immediate  necessity  of  living  well  " — in 
other  words,  his  health — made  the  practice  of  "  par- 
simonious  maxims "    unwise.     If,    said   Wolfe,    the 


40  GENERAL  WOLFE 

paymaster-general  "  knew  how  well  we  feed,  and  that 
sometimes  the  table  for  four  is  crowded,  he  would 
be  jealous  of  our  emoluments  and  censure  our  extra- 
vagance, refuse  perhaps  our  arrears,  and  cut  off  the 
non-effectives." 
Desire  to  However,  to  feed  the  brain  rather  than  the  body 

travel.  was  Wolfe's  immediate  concern.     He  ardently  desired 

to  travel  and  to  study  the  military  systems  of  other 
nations,  of  Prussia,  of  Austria,  and  of  Italy,  but  the 
opportunity  was  denied  him.  He  expressed  his 
feelings  in  strong  terms  against  the  "  settled  opinion  " 
that  an  officer  should  confine  himself  to  his  particular 
military  functions.  Why  should  men's  capacities  be 
beaten  down  so  that  "  no  man  would  ever  be  fitted 
for  a  higher  employment  than  he  is  in  ?  Tis  un- 
accountable that  who  wishes  to  see  a  good  army  can 
oppose  men's  enlarging  their  notions  or  acquiring  that 
knowledge  with  a  little  absence  which  they  can't 
possibly  meet  with  at  home,  especially  when  they  are 
supposed  masters  of  their  present  employment  and 
really  acquainted  with  it.  In  all  other  stations  in  life 
that  method  is  usually  pursued  which  best  conduces 
to  the  knowledge  every  one  naturally  wishes  to  have 
of  his  own  profession."  Another  letter  written  by 
Wolfe  when  he  was  in  camp  at  Osterhout  bears  on 
this  plaint.  He  did  not  believe  in  limiting  the  ideas 
of  men  to  their  professional  pursuits,  still  less  to  the 
narrow  grooves  which  sufficed  to  carry  them  through 
from  point  to  point.  "  We  military  men  don't 
accustom  ourselves  to  moral  topics,  or  seldom  enter- 
tain one  another  with  subjects  which  are  out  of  the 
common  role  from  the  frequent  occasion  we  have  to 
mention  our  own  affairs  which  in  time  of  war  are  of 
no  small  extent  and  concern.     Possibly  our  manner 


A  NEW  INFLUENCE  '41 

of  writing  may  proceed  in  some  measure  from  diffi- 
dence and  modesty  as  not  caring  to  attempt  things 
we  are  sensible  have  been  better  touched  upon  ;  and 
rather  choose  to  be  confined  to  that  particular  branch 
of  knowledge  with  which  we  are  supposed  to  be  well 
acquainted."1 

A  new  influence  entirely  outside  his  profession  had  Miss 
entered  Wolfe's  life.  During  his  visit  to  London  in  Lawson. 
the  winter  of  1747-8  he  very  nearly  surrendered  to  the 
charms  of  one  of  Sir  Wilfrid  Lawson's  daughters,  a 
maid  of  honour  to  the  Princess  of  Wales.  The 
capitulation  was  complete  when  he  returned  from  the 
Netherlands  for  good  in  December,  1748.  Wolfe 
might  have  a  tender  corner  in  his  heart  for  Miss  Lacey 
and  her  "  pretty  friends,"  but  the  deeper  and  more 
abiding  passion  came  to  him  only  when  he  met  Miss 
Lawson.  She  had  an  auxiliary  merit  in  the  shape 
of  a  little  fortune  of  some  £12,000 — in  Wolfe's  eyes 
probably  a  sufficient  reinforcement  of  love's  claims, 
but  not  in  his  mother's.  She  found  a  lady  worth 
£30,000  a  year,  whom  she  regarded  as  much  more 
fitted  to  be  her  son's  wife.  But  in  that  as  in  other 
matters  the  ever-dutiful  boy  had  views  of  his  own, 
and  with  every  desire  in  the  world  to  "  oblige,"  he 
was  constrained  to  obduracy.  "  Sure  it  must  never 
happen  that  a  soldier  can  be  unhappy  in  his  love  "  : 
his  desire  to  marry  Miss  Lawson  was  the  occasion  of 
much  unhappiness  to  the  author  of  that  oracular  line. 

1  Beckles  Willson  :    "  Some  Unpublished  Letters  of  Genera] 
Wolfe,"   Nineteenth   Century,  Sept.,    1908. 


CHAPTER  IV 

WOLFE,    THE   SCOTTISH   PEOPLE,    AND   SOME 
REFLECTIONS 

Major  of  With  the  signing  of  the  Treaty  of  Aix-la-Chapelle 
the  20th.  from  which,  after  seven  or  eight  years'  war,  nobody 
derived  an  atom  of  benefit,  the  restoration  of  peace 
apart,  England  once  more  found  herself  governed  by 
men  of  timorous  Imperial  outlook.  That  treaty 
made  England  feel  that  all  her  sacrifices  had  been  in 
vain.  In  America  the  surrender  of  Louisbourg,  which 
the  colonists  themselves  had  captured,  to  France  in 
return  for  Madras  was  strongly  resented.  Pelham, 
the  Prime  Minister,  was  a  petty  Walpole.  He  was 
convinced  that  England  could  not  stand  alone 
against  the  House  of  Bourbon,  and  the  mere  thought 
that  the  French  might  join  hands  with  the  Dutch 
scared  him.  Under  such  auspices,  Wolfe  could  not 
hope  that  the  army  would  provide  much  opportunity 
for  others  than  coxcombs  and  uniformed  swaggerers. 
The  exceptions  certainly  proved  the  rule.  Yet  his 
military  ardour  burned  fiercely :  he  wanted  to  know 
all  that  was  best  in  other  systems  and  was  determined 
to  secure  by  force  of  character  what  came  to  others 
by  favouritism.  The  nepotism  of  the  age  was  not 
altogether  without  leaven.  Wolfe  had  not  been  in 
London  many  days  before  he  was  gazetted  Major 
of  the  20th — his  rank  abroad  had  been  brevet  only — 
and  he  repaired  in  January,  1749,  to  Stirling,  where 
the  regiment  was  quartered.  His  colonel  was  Lord 
George  Sackville  ;    his  lieutenant-colonel  the  Hon. 

42 


IN  SCOTLAND  AGAIN  43 

Edward  Cornwallis.  The  prospect  of  Wolfe's  suc- 
ceeding to  the  position  of  lieutenant-colonel  at  an 
early  date  was  a  good  one,  always  provided  ulterior 
considerations  were  not  allowed  to  override  profes- 
sional. Cornwallis  was  appointed  Governor  of  Nova 
Scotia,  and  from  the  time  of  Major  Wolfe's  arrival 
in  Stirling  he  was  acting  lieutenant-colonel,  then  as 
always  discharging  duties  beyond  his  rank. 

In  Scotland  in  1749  Wolfe  took  up  afresh  the  task  Scottish 
of  assisting  to  reduce  the  Highlanders  to  complete  changes! 
submission  and  control.  Even  two  years  had  made 
some  impression.  After  Culloden,  Scotland  entered 
on  a  new  era  :  an  era  which  meant  not  merely  the 
destruction  of  Jacobite  power  for  harm  but  the 
disappearance  of  many  distinctive  racial  symbols. 
Tartan  and  kilt  had  to  be  abandoned,  and  the  High- 
land feudal  system,  which  made  the  chieftain  a  law 
unto  himself  and  his  followers,  had  to  go.  The  state 
of  Scotland  in  the  first  half  of  the  eighteenth  century 
was  very  different  from  what  it  became  during  the 
second  half.  The  Highlanders  were  as  wild  and 
lawless  a  lot  as  the  hillmen  of  the  Indian  north-west 
frontier  to-day,  and  some  of  Scott's  facts  in  his  pre- 
faces and  notes  convey  an  idea  totally  at  variance 
with  the  impression  left  by  the  romance  which  he 
built  up  from  them.  The  Rob  Roy  of  the  introduc- 
tion to  the  novel  which  bears  his  name  was  not 
entirely  the  Rob  Roy  of  the  story.  Efforts  at 
civilisation  tried  after  '15  had  so  far  failed  that  more 
strenuous  measures  were  instituted  after  '45.  Of 
these  measures  the  most  important  was  the  substitu- 
tion of  sheriffs  appointed  by  the  Crown  for  the 
hereditary  jurisdiction  of  the  chieftains,  who  were  no 
longer  to  hold  lands  on  condition  of  "  wardship  "  or 


44  GENERAL  WOLFE 

military  service.  To  compensate  those  heads  of  clans 
who  had  taken  no  part  in  the  rebellion  for  losses 
involved  in  their  change  of  status,  Parliament  voted 
£150,000,  and  as  invariably  happens  in  such  cases 
the  money  was  allotted  in  a  way  that  made  dissatis- 
faction inevitable.  But  Scotland  did  not  nurse  her 
grievances.  Wealth  came  from  the  industrial  activity 
encouraged  by  the  breaking  down  of  the  border  bar- 
riers and  the  opening  up  of  the  country  by  roads 
which  Wade  had  started  after  '15  and  Wolfe  and 
others  were  now  to  continue.  Scotland  placed  her- 
self as  a  matter  of  right  on  a  footing  of  equality  with 
her  powerful  neighbour  and  entered  boldly  into 
rivalry  for  whatever  prizes  or  rewards  the  British 
Empire  had  to  offer. x  How  well  she  succeeded  the 
story  of  the  British  Empire  east  and  west  amply 
proclaims. 
Glasgow  in  Wolfe's  first  care  in  Stirling  was  for  his  men.  He 
749-  instructed  his  captains  to  keep  a  sharp  personal  eye 

on  them,  not  to  be  content  with  sergeant's  reports, 
but  to  visit  the  men's  quarters  at  unaccustomed  times 
and  when  any  man  seemed  ill  or  out  of  condition  to 
ascertain  the  cause  in  order  to  find  a  remedy.  A 
couple  of  months  after  his  arrival  Wolfe's  regiment 
was  transferred  to  Glasgow.  Here  as  elsewhere  in 
Scotland  he  was  seldom  in  quite  congenial  surround- 
ings. At  times  he  felt  himself  rather  more  out  of  the 
world  of  that  civilisation  of  which  London  was  the 
centre  than  many  an  officer  to-day  who  is  serving  on 
the  confines  of  the  Empire.  Glasgow  in  1749  was  not 
an  ideal  jumping-off  place  for  ambitious  youth  keen 
for  military  preferment.  He  did  not  like  Scotland, 
and  talked  of  "  the  very  bloom  of  life  being  nipped 
1  Macrae,  p.  82. 


UNCONGENIAL  GLASGOW  45 

in  this  northern  climate."  His  health  in  Glasgow 
was  especially  bad  ;  he  felt  the  reaction  after  his 
several  campaigns,  and  the  slightest  business  was  a 
trial.  He  chafed  under  his  inability  to  prosecute  his 
suit  with  Miss  Lawson,  and  feared  that  parental 
opposition  and  long  absence  would  extinguish  the 
fire  of  his  passion.  Young  flames,  he  said,  must  be 
constantly  fed  or  "  they'll  evaporate."  He  was  short 
of  means  and  estimated  that  after  providing  for 
necessaries  he  had  Is.  Id.  per  day  for  pocket-money — 
a  condition  of  things  which  his  father  amended 
directly  he  heard  of  it.  He  did  not  care  for  the  men 
with  whom  he  worked  in  Glasgow — they  were  new 
to  him  and  many  of  them  were  of  "  low  mettle," 
and  if  there  was  any  prospect  of  an  everlasting  stay 
"  I'd  rather  be  a  major  upon  half-pay,  by  my  soul !  " 
Young  as  he  was,  he  knew  that  one  in  his  position 
of  authority  would  be  surrounded  by  either  "  flatterers 
or  spies."  "  The  men  here  are  civil,  designing,  and 
treacherous  with  their  immediate  interest  always  in 
view.  They  pursue  trade  with  warmth  and  a  neces- 
sary mercantile  spirit  arising  from  the  baseness  of 
their  other  qualifications.  The  women,  coarse,  cold 
and  cunning  for  ever  enquiring  after  men's  circum- 
stances :  they  make  that  the  standard  of  their  good 
breeding."  The  northern  nouveaux  riches  were  as 
little  to  his  taste  as  the  rich  incompetents  who  secured 
the  professional  plums. 

But  grumble  as  he  might,  Wolfe,  according  to  his  Solace  in 
lights — and  they  were  not  mere  spluttering  wicks —  books  and 
struggled   to   make   the    best   of   his   situation.     A  fnendshlP- 
professor  at  the  college  to  whom  he  had  a  letter  of 
recommendation,  introduced  him  to  a  social  evening 
when  conversation  turned  on  subjects  with  which 


46  GENERAL  WOLFE 

Wolfe  was  unfamiliar.  "  He  was  so  much  mortified 
at  not  being  able  to  bear  any  share  in  it  that  he  next 
morning  entreated  his  friend  the  professor  to  put  him 
in  the  way  of  acquiring  the  knowledge  he  found 
himself  deficient  in.  He  was  gratified  in  this  request 
and  he  became  a  most  diligent  student  while  he 
continued  in  Glasgow."1  A  tutor  taught  him 
mathematics  and  assisted  him  to  recover  his  ' '  almost 
lost  Latin."  He  found  solace  in  his  books  and  his 
correspondence.  Writing  to  his  friend,  Captain 
William  Rickson,  then  in  Dublin,  he  said  :  "  You'll 
believe  me  when  I  tell  you  that,  in  my  esteem,  few 
of  what  we  call  advantages  in  life  would  be  worth 
accepting  if  none  were  to  partake  them  with  us. 
What  a  wretch  is  he  who  lives  for  himself  alone — his 
only  aim  !  It  is  the  first  degree  of  happiness  here 
below  that  the  honest,  the  brave,  and  the  estimable 
part  of  mankind,  or  at  least  some  among  them,  share 
our  success."  But  of  course  his  real  diversion  was 
his  profession,  as  to  which  he  indulged  in  certain 
philosophic  reflections  in  a  letter  to  his  father — 

Advantages  "  That  variety  incident  to  a  military  life  gives  our  pro- 
of military  fession  some  advantages  over  those  of  a  more  even  and 
life#  constant  nature.     We  have  all  our  passions  and  affections 

roused  and  exercised,  many  of  which  must  have  wanted  their 
proper  employment  had  not  suitable  occasions  obliged  us  to 
exert  them.  Few  men  are  acquainted  with  the  degrees  of 
their  own  courage  till  dangers  prove  them,  and  are  seldom 
justly  informed  how  far  the  love  of  honour  or  dread  of  shame 
are  superior  to  the  love  of  life.  This  is  a  knowledge  to  be  best 
cquired  in  an  army  ;  our  actions  are  there  in  presence  of 
the  world,  to  be  freely  censured  or  approved.  Constancy  of 
temper,  patience,  and  all  the  virtues  necessary  to  make  us 
suffer  with  a  good  grace,  are  likewise  parts  of  our  character, 
and,  as  you  know,  frequently  called  in  to  carry  us  through 
unusual  difficulties. 

1    Gentleman' s  Magazine,  vol.  lxi,  p.  507. 


TURBULENT  TWENTY-THREE 


47 


"  What  moderation  and  humility  must  he  be  possessed  of 
that  bears  the  good  fortune  of  a  successful  war  with  tolerable 
modesty  and  humility,  and  he  is  very  excellent  in  his  nature 
who  triumphs  without  insolence.  A  battle  gained  is,  1  believe, 
the  highest  joy  mankind  is  capable  of  receiving,  to  him  who 
commands  ;  and  his  merit  must  be  equal  to  his  success  if  it 
works  no  change  to  his  disadvantage.  Lastly,  a  defeat  is 
a  trial  of  human  resolution,  and  to  labour  under  the  mortifica- 
tion of  being  surpassed,  and  live  to  see  the  fatal  consequences 
that  may  follow  to  one's  country,  is  a  situation  next  to 
damnable." 


Wolfe's  responsibilities  were  increased  by  the 
transfer  of  his  colonel,  Lord  George  Sackville,  to 
Dublin.  The  "  difficult  and  troublesome  employment 
of  a  commander  " — still  higher  duties  without  the 
rank — devolved  upon  him,  and  he  had  a  lively 
consciousness  that  to  keep  the  passions  in  bounds 
"  when  authority  and  immaturity  go  together,"  to 
do  justice  to  good  and  bad,  "  reward  and  punish  with 
unbiassed  hand,"  "  reconcile  the  severity  of  discipline 
with  the  dictates  of  humanity,"  study  tempers  and 
dispositions,  and  "  oblige  without  partiality,"  "  dis- 
couraging vice  and  recommending  the  reverse  at  the 
turbulent  age  of  twenty-three  "  was  no  mean  call 
on  one  whose  natural  propensity  might  be  opposed 
to  the  very  courses  he  upheld.  No  man,  certainly 
none  at  the  mature  age  of  twenty-three,  was  ever  more 
assured  of  the  superior  advantages  in  leadership  of 
practice  over  precept.  One  of  Wolfe's  years  would 
find  it  hard  to  preach  and  to  practice  without  becom- 
ing somewhat  of  a  prig,  at  least  in  the  eyes  of  his 
fellows,  but  the  ample  knowledge  of  his  character 
which  his  letters  supply  puts  any  such  deduction  on 
one  side.  Wolfe's  great  idea  was  to  prove  himself 
worthy  of  whatever  confidence  was  reposed  in  him 
and  to  make  the  principles  and  the  integrity  which 


Authority 
and  im- 
maturity. 


48 


GENERAL  WOLFE 


Appointed 
Lieutenant- 
Colonel. 


always  marked  his  father's  life  the  rule  of  his  own. 
In  a  letter  to  his  mother  from  Glasgow  on  2nd  October, 

1749,  he  said— 

"  Few  of  my  companions  surpass  me  in  common  knowledge 
but  most  of  them  in  vice.  This  is  a  truth  I  should  blush  to 
relate  to  one  that  had  not  all  my  confidence,  lest  it  be  thought 
to  proceed  either  from  insolence  or  vanity  ;  but  I  think  you 
don't  understand  it  so.  I  dread  their  habits  and  behaviour, 
and  am  forced  to  an  eternal  watch  upon  myself  that  I  may 
avoid  the  very  manner  which  T  most  condemn  in  them. 
Young  men  should  have  some  object  constantly  in  their  aim, 
some  shining  character  to  direct  them.  'Tis  a  disadvantage 
to  be  first  at  an  imperfect  age  ;  either  we  become  enamoured 
with  ourselves,  seeing  nothing  superior,  or  fall  into  the  degree 
of  our  associates." 

Lord  Bury  succeeded  to  the  colonelcy,  but  as 
months  elapsed  before  he  visited  the  regiment,  its 
interests  were  entirely  in  Wolfe's  charge.     In  March, 

1750,  his  hopes  were  gratified  by  his  appointment  as 
lieutenant-colonel.  His  promotion  quickened  his 
desire  to  go  abroad  in  order  not  to  sacrifice  all  his  time 
"  in  idleness  or  trifling  soldiership."  His  friend 
Rickson  was  with  Cornwallis  in  Nova  Scotia,  and 
Wolfe  outlined  to  him  a  tour  which  he  would  make 
to  Metz,  along  the  Rhine  to  Switzerland,  and  back 
through  France  and  the  Netherlands.  His  interest  in 
Rickson's  situation  in  Nova  Scotia  was  keen.  The 
colony,  hitherto  known  as  Acadie,  belonged  to  France 
down  to  the  Treaty  of  Utrecht,  and  Cornwallis  was 
now  busy  making  it  British  in  fact  as  well  as  in  name. 
Wolfe  asked  many  questions  about  the  place,  the 
people,  and  the  government,  and  spoke  enthusiasti- 
cally of  the  "  felicity  of  our  American  colonies  " 
compared  with  those  of  France  and  Spain.  What 
would  Wolfe  not  have  given  to  be  with  Rickson 
almost  within  hail  of  the  spot  which  a  few  years  hence 


FOUR  MONTHS   IN  LONDON  49 

was  to  be  the  scene  of  his  immortality  ?  But  Wolfe 
was  not  even  to  be  allowed  to  go  abroad.  Leave  of 
absence  was  granted,  but  it  was  intimated  that  he 
must  stay  in  England.  One  must  share  his  perplexity 
and  inability  to  understand  why. 

If  Wolfe  had  been  allowed  to  take  a  run  abroad  a  period 
he  would  have  been  spared  an  experience  which  of  folly« 
was  a  cause  of  regret  to  him  for  months.  What 
he  resisted  successfully  in  Scotland  he  succumbed  t 
in  London,  where  he  arrived  on  14th  November,  1750, 
to  stay  with  his  parents  in  Old  Burlington  Street. 
His  lapse  into  the  depravity  of  the  age,  when  it 
was  "the  vogue  of  the  best  society"1  to  drink, 
gamble,  swear,  and  scoff  at  religion  and  morality, 
may  have  been  due  to  reaction  after  the  severity 
of  his  self-discipline  in  the  north  ;  it  may  have 
been  due  to  disgust  that  he  was  not  permitted 
to  turn  his  holiday  to  account  profitably  abroad  as 
he  believed  he  could  ;  it  may  have  been  due  to  the 
veto  of  his  parents  on  his  "  senseless  passion  "  for 
Miss  Lawson,  who,  moreover,  seems  to  have  endorsed 
their  views  by  rejecting  his  advances  ;  or  it  may  have 
been  the  cumulative  effect  of  all  three.  Whatever 
the  explanation  he  plunged  recklessly  into  the  coarse 
pleasures  of  London  life,  to  the  intense  pain  of  his 
father  and  mother  and  his  own  physical  undoing 
He  made  himself  ill,  and  had  barely  recovered  when 
he  rejoined  his  regiment  at  Banff  in  the  middle  of 
April,  1751.  During  his  four  months  in  London,  he 
told  Rickson  he  committed  more  imprudent  acts  than 
in  all  his  life  before,  living  an  idle,  dissolute, 
abandoned  life,  "  and  that  not  out  of  vice,  which  is 
the  most  extraordinary  part  of  it.     I  have  escaped 

1  Wright,  p.  161. 
5— (2213) 


50  GENERAL  WOLFE 

at  length  and  am  once  again  master  of  my  reason,  and 
hereafter  it  shall  rule  my  conduct."  His  letters  to 
his  father  were  charged  with  manly  apologies  :  his 
father  had  evidently  upbraided  him  sharply.  He 
talked  of  those  "  seeds  of  such  imperfections  in  me 
that  perhaps  only  wanted  nourishment  and  proper 
occasion  to  break  forth,"  and  he  begged  his  father  not 
to  think  it  troublesome  to  him  to  read  any  paternal 
letter  though  it  should  be  the  mirror  of  his  follies. 
Nova  On  his  return  to  Banff,  Wolfe  still  showed  a  lively 

Scotia.  interest  in  Nova  Scotian  affairs — an  interest  that  has 

a  certain  piquancy  in  view  of  events  of  which  Wolfe 
perhaps  never  dreamed  in  his  flightiest  moment  of 
ambition.  He  wrote  to  Rickson  that  he  imagined 
certain  works  would  be  undertaken  "  in  expectation 
of  future  wars  with  France  when  I  foresee  great 
attempts  to  be  made  in  your  neighbourhood."  Did 
he  foresee  that  the  fortress  of  Louisbourg,  which  had 
been  taken  by  the  New  England  levies  from  the 
French  in  1744,  would  have  to  be  taken  again  before 
the  position  of  the  British  colonies  would  be  tolerable  ? 
He  found  "  the  present  schemes  of  economy " 
favoured  by  the  ministry  destructive  of  all  patriotic 
enterprise,  and  was  disgusted  with  Pelham  and 
his  colleagues  that  they  refused  to  strengthen  the 
garrison  of  Nova  Scotia.  But  Pelham  was  afraid 
of  taking  any  step  which  might  afford  a  new  occasion 
of  quarrel  with  "  our  everlasting  and  irreconcilable 
adversary " — "  a  bad  prognostic,"  as  Wolfe  put 
it.  The  Acadians  made  things  so  impossible  for 
the  British  that  it  was  later  deemed  necessary 
forcibly  to  transplant  them  to  other  colonies.  It 
was  a  harsh  proceeding,  but  not  quite  so  barbarous 
as  the  poet's  pathetic  frenzy  would  have  us  believe. 


DISLOYALTY  OF  THE  ACADIANS  51 

Wolfe  was  sorry  for  the  position  in  which  Rickson 
found  himself,  with  no  hope  of  ending  the  hostility 
of  the  French  by  a  decisive  blow  and  in  constant 
danger  from  assassination.  "  These  circumstances 
discourage  the  bravest  minds.  Brave  men  when  they 
see  the  least  room  for  conquest,  think  it  easy  and 
generally  make  it  so  ;  but  they  grow  impatient  with 
perpetual  disadvantages."  Could  the  nerveless 
statesmanship  of  the  period  from  which  Pitt  a  very 
few  years  hence  with  the  aid  of  a  few  indomitable 
spirits  like  James  Wolfe  and  Robert  Clive,  of 
Boscawen  and  Hawke  and  Saunders,  was  to  rescue 
the  country  as  if  by  magic,  be  illustrated  more  simply  ? 
Wolfe  would  have  made  short  work  of  some  of  the 
troubles  of  the  British  in  Nova  Scotia  and  by  an 
almost  dramatic  stroke — "  prognostic  "  here  at  any 
rate — he  suggested  that  the  Highlanders,  so  recently 
at  war  with  England,  so  soon  to  add  new  laurels  to 
British  arms,  would  be  the  people  for  the  unpleasant 
work.  "  I  should  imagine  that  two  or  three  inde- 
pendent Highland  companies  might  be  of  use  ;  they 
are  hardy,  intrepid,  accustomed  to  a  rough  country, 
and  no  great  mischief  if  they  fall.  How  can  you 
better  employ  a  secret  enemy  than  by  making  his  end 
conducive  to  the  common  good  ?  If  this  sentiment 
should  take  wind,  what  an  execrable  and  bloody 
being  should  I  be  considered  here  in  the  midst  of 
Popery  and  Jacobitism." 

Wolfe's  sentiments  concerning  his  friend's  position  Inverness 
in  Nova  Scotia  and  his  own  in  Scotland  if  analysed  in  r75'« 
would   have    been   found   to   be   curiously   similar. 
Though  he  made  some  good  friends  in  Scotland,  he 
always  looked  upon  himself   "as  an  exile  :     with 
respect  to  the  inhabitants  I  am  so,  for  I  dislike  'em 


52  GENERAL  WOLFE 

much."     So,  when  in  Banff,  he  told  Rickson  ;    so 
when,  in  the  autumn  of  1751,  he  was  transferred  to 
Inverness,  the  very  head  centre  of  Jacobitism,  he 
told  his  father  :    "A  little  while  serves  to  discover 
the  villainous  nature  of  the  inhabitants  and  brutality 
of  the  people  of  its  neighbourhood.     Those,  too,  who 
pretend  the  greatest  attachment  to  the  Government, 
and  who  every  day  feed  upon  the  public  purse,  seem 
to  distinguish  themselves  for  greater  rudeness  than 
the   open   and   professed   Jacobites."     Inverness   in 
those  days  was  not  the  sort  of  place  to  make  less 
querulous   a   temperament   so   impatient   for  larger 
things,  which  "  fretted  at  trifles  and  quarrelled  with 
Disuse  of     toothpicks."      Wolfe   for   a   time   liked   nothing   in 
Inverness,  and  he  had  "  the  additional  mortification  " 
that  the  country  round  about  afforded  no  relief  in  the 
shape  of  hunting  and  shooting.     He  wondered  how 
long  such  a  place  would  take  to  wear  out  the  love  of 
arms  "  in  a  man  moderately  inclined  that  way."     He 
derived  some  satisfaction  in  surveying  the  field  of 
Culloden  "  with  great  exactness,"  and  reporting  to 
his  father  that  he  found  room  for  "  military  criticism 
as  well  as  for  a  little  ridicule  upon  some  famous 
transactions   of   that   memorable   day.     The   actors 
shone  in  the  world  too  high  and  bright  to  be  eclipsed  ; 
but  it  is  plain  they  don't  borrow  much  of  their  glory 
from  their  performance  on  that  occasion,  however  they 
may  have  distinguished  themselves  in  later  events." 
He  did  not  reflect  on  the  Head  but  on  the  lower 
agents.     His  censure,  he  said,  was  made  not  to  exer- 
cise his  ill-nature   but   to  "  exercise  the  faculty  of 
judging,"  to  learn  from  the  false  steps  of  others  what 
to    avoid    and    from    "  the    examples    worthiest    of 
imitation  "  what  should  never  be  lost  sight  of.     With 


FEMALE   REBELS  53 

many  of  the  families  against  whose  fathers  and  sons 
he  had  fought  he  was  necessarily  brought  in  contact. 
"  We  have  an  assembly  of  female  rebels  every  fort- 
night, entirely  composed  of  Macdonalds,  Frazers,  and 
M'Intoshes."  He  danced  with  the  daughter  of  a 
famous  chieftain  who  fell  at  Culloden.  These  "  female 
rebels  "  were  "  perfectly  wild  as  the  hills  that  breed 
them,  but  they  lay  aside  their  principles  for  the  sake 
of  sound  and  movement." 

In  a  flash  of  sardonic  humour  Wolfe  assured  his  Serious 
mother  that  "  an  easy  stupidity  and  insensibility  thoughts  at 
seems  to  have  crept  into  me  and  does  the  part  of 
reason  in  keeping  the  vessel  steady  with  prodigious 
success.  It  is  so  pleasing  a  state  that  I  prefer  it  to 
any  conceit  that  the  fancy  can  produce,  any  whirl- 
wind of  the  brain  or  violent  chase  after  nothing." 
He  had  reached  the  end  of  his  twenty-fifth  year,  and 
in  a  letter  home  indulged  in  some  reflections  on  the 
wearing  away  of  life.  Written  in  the  dead  of  night, 
the  note  was  pessimistic.  "  It  matters  little  where 
a  man  passes  his  days  and  what  station  he  fills,  or 
whether  he  be  great  or  considerable,  but  it  imports 
him  something  to  look  to  his  manner  of  life.  This 
day  I  am  five  and  twenty  years  of  age,  and  all  that 
time  is  as  nothing.  When  I  am  fifty  (if  it  so  happens) 
and  look  back  it  will  be  the  same  ;  and  so  on  to  the 
last  hour."  Life's  uncertainty  induced  the  feeling 
that  "  the  little  time  taken  in  for  meditation  is  the 
best  employed."  All  seemed  vanity.  Yet  serious 
as  his  thoughts  and  good  intentions  may  be  on  retiring 
to  bed,  so  strangely  "  mixed  and  compounded  "  is 
human  nature  that  "it  is  likely  I  may  rise  with  my 
old  nature  or  perhaps  with  the  addition  of  some  new 
impertinence  and  be  the  same  wandering  lump  of  idle 


54  GENERAL   WOLFE 

errors  that  I  have  ever  been."     "  Our  natural  weak- 
ness "  made  him  fearful  of  being  drawn  by  the  herd 
into  "  the  worst  degree  of  our  iniquities."     Work 
was  salvation  :    "  Most  employment  and  least  vice." 
He  tried  to  be  patient  under  "  the  little  inconve- 
niences "  to  which  he  was  subject,  and  held  in  con- 
tempt those  who  could  only  be  happy  in  luxury  and 
idleness.     "  There  are  young  men  amongst  us  that 
have  great  revenues  and  high  military  stations,  that 
repine  at  three  months'  service  with  their  regiments 
if  they  go  fifty  miles  from  home.     Soup  and  venaison 
and  turtle  are  their  supreme  delight  and  joy — an 
effeminate  race  of  coxcombs,  the  future  leaders  of  our 
armies,  defenders  and  protectors  of  our  great  and  free 
nation  !  "     He   did   not   strive   to   avoid   the   vices 
affected  by  most  army  officers  of  the  period  merely 
because  he  feared  contamination.     Nor  did  he  seek 
from  mere  impatience  alone  to  get  into  touch  with 
the  world  outside  his  shifting  but  hardly  varying 
Scottish  society.     He  had  a  fear  that  "  the  tyrannical 
principles  of  an  absolute  commander  "  "  the  tempta- 
tions of  power  "  might  make  him  "  proud,  insolent, 
and    intolerable."     "  By    frequenting    men    above 
myself  I  may  know  my  true  condition  and  by  discours- 
ing with  the  other  sex  may  learn  some  civility  and 
mi  dness  of  carriage,  but  never  pay  the  price  of  the 
last  improvement  with  the  loss  of  reason.     Better 
be  a  savage  of  some  use  than  a  gentle  amorous  puppy 
obnoxious  to  all  the  world.     One  of  the  wildest  of  wild 
clans  is  a  worthier  being  than  a  mere  philander." 
The  effect.        "  Mere    philander  "    Wolfe   could   never   be.     He 
of  study        kept  fog  studies  going  and  read  mathematics  until 
he   had  "  grown   perfectly    stupid,"  he    said,  "  and 
algebraically   worked    away   the    little    portion    of 


WORDS   AND  ACTIONS  55 

understanding  that  was  allowed  to  me.  They  have 
not  even  left  me  the  qualities  of  a  coxcomb  ;  for  I  can 
neither  laugh  nor  sing,  nor  talk  for  an  hour  upon 
nothing."  This  was  "  a  sensible  loss,"  but  he 
consoled  himself  with  the  reflection  that  "  a  man  may 
make  a  neighbourlike  appearance  in  this  cold  region 
with  a  moderate  competency  of  knowledge,  and  with 
a  degree  of  gravity  that  may  supply  the  deficiency. 
And  whoever  goes  to  kirk  (as  I  do)  once  a  week,  and 
there  comforts  himself  with  more  reverence  to  the 
priest  than  consideration  for  the  nature  of  the  business 
— herein  I  sometimes  fail — will  most  assuredly  obtain 
the  reputation  of  great  wisdom  and  discretion."  A 
cynical  vein  is  touched  by  the  allowance  that  he  and 
his  companions  are  "  the  most  religious  foot  officers  " 
seen  in  the  north  for  many  a  day,  whereas  in  other 
quarters  they  had  been  regarded  as  no  better  than 
the  sons  of  darkness. 

Wolfe's  little  disquisitions  on  morals  are  a  fine 
tribute  to  the  abiding  influence  of  parental  example.  measure 
Nor  were  they  a  verbal  cloak  for  inconsistency  of  of  worth, 
conduct.  He  was  no  saint  ;  he  could  even  be  a  rebel 
at  times,  but  he  always  longed  to  be  able  to  show  the 
superiority  of  action  over  words.  "  A  number  of 
words  and  sentences  ever  so  well  put  together  cannot 
equal  a  good  action,"  he  wrote  from  Glasgow  in 
July,  1749  ;  "  it  is  evident  that  our  words  are  not 
proof  of  good  conduct,"  he  wrote  from  Inverness  in 
February,  1752,  "  they  don't  always  express  our 
thoughts,  but  what  a  man  does  may  be  depended 
upon  and  is  the  true  measure  of  his  worth."  With 
his  trouble  over  his  love  affair,  his  resentment  and 
ultimate  surrender,  and  his  standard  of  the  relative 
value  of  words  and  action,  in  mind,  many  things  may 


56  GENERAL  WOLFE 

be  read  into  another  passage  from  this  letter  of  Febru- 
ary, 1752.  His  parents  could  not  have  mistaken  its 
fairly  plain  significance  :  "  We  are  not  enough 
acquainted  with  ourselves  to  determine  our  future 
conduct,  ror  can  any  man  foresee  what  shall  happen  ; 
but  as  far  as  one  may  hazard  a  conjecture  there  is  a 
great  possibility  that  I  shall  never  marry.  I  should 
hardly  engage  in  an  affair  of  that  nature  purely  for 
money,  nor  do  I  believe  that  my  infatuation  will  ever 
be  strong  enough  to  persuade  me  that  people  can  live 
without  it  ;  besides,  unless  there  be  violence  done  to 
my  inclinations  by  the  power  of  some  gentle  nymph. 
I  had  much  rather  listen  to  the  drum  and  trumpet 
than  any  softer  sound  whatever." 

The  stoic  in  him  finds  further  expression  a  month 
later  when  he  says  that  "  perhaps  there  is  a  possibility 
of  going  through  the  business  of  the  world  without 
any  strong  connection  or  attachment  to  anything 
that  is  in  it  and  with  a  kind  of  indifference  as  to  what 
happens."  And  by  way  of  commentary,  unwitting 
or  designed,  we  have  this  delightfully  naive 
confession — 

"  I  have  lately  fallen  into  the  acquaintance  (by  mere 
chance)  of  two  young  Scotch  ladies,  with  whose  conversation 
I  am  infinitely  delighted,  They  are  birds  of  a  fine  feather, 
and  very  rare  in  this  country.  One  of  them  is  a  wife,  ( x)  the 
ther  a  maid.  The  former  has  the  strongest  understanding, 
the  other  has  the  prettiest  face  ;  but  as  I  am  not  disposed 
to  become  the  slave  of  either,  the  matron  stands  first.  I 
mention  this  circumstance  to  clear  up  all  doubt  that  might 
rise  from  the  subject  ;  and  I  speak  of  these  ladies  to  show 
that  we  should  not  despair,  and  that  some  satisfaction  may 
be  found  even  where  it  is  least  expected." 

( x)  Wright  says  there  is  good  reason  to  conclude  that  the 
elder  lady  was  Mrs.  Forbes,  wife  of  John,  only  son  of  the 
famous  Lord  President, 


INVERNESS   AND   THE   DUKE  57 

Two  years  had  elapsed  since  Lord  Bury's  appoint-  Lord  Bury 
ment  as  colonel  ;  he  was  expected  to  visit  the  regi- 
ment in  April.  His  lieutenant-colonel's  reflections  are 
amusing :  "  He'll  stay  six  weeks,  and  then  swear 
there's  no  enduring  it  any  longer,  and  beg  leave  to 
return.  '  Wolfe,  you'll  stay  in  the  Highlands  ;  you 
can't,  with  any  face,  ask  to  quit  the  regiment  so 
dispersed  ;  and  when  you  have  clothed  and  sent  them 
to  their  different  quarters,  towards  the  end  of  Novem- 
ber you  shall  come  to  London,  my  dear  friend,  for 
three  months.'  This  will  be  his  discourse,  and  I  must 
say,  '  My  Lord,  you  are  very  kind  !  '  "  Lord  Bury 
proved  more  kind  in  one  respect  than  Wolfe  antici- 
pated :  in  another  he  proved  himself  less  than  kind — 
in  some  ways  a  worthy  successor  of  the  victor  of 
Culloden,  assuming,  that  is,  any  of  the  stories  of  the 
Duke  of  Cumberland  to  be  true.  The  colonel  took  a 
sympathetic  view  of  Wolfe's  desire  to  escape  from  his 
"  long  confinement,"  and  leave  of  absence  was 
granted  in  May.  But  if  Lord  Bury  showed  himself 
sensible  of  Wolfe's  claim  to  consideration,  he  was 
guilty  of  an  act  which  went  far  to  undo  any  good 
that  Wolfe's  attitude  towards  the  inhabitants  might 
have  accomplished,  for  though  Wolfe  did  not  like 
them  he  seems  to  have  treated  them  as  human  beings. 
When  his  Lordship  reached  Inverness  it  was  proposed 
to  entertain  him  on  the  Duke  of  Cumberland's 
birthday  as  a  mark  of  loyalty  to  his  Royal  Highness  : 
an  idea  which  it  is  hard  to  reconcile  with  the  reputa- 
tion of  the  Butcher.  Lord  Bury  suggested  that  it 
would  be  a  better  compliment  to  the  Duke  to  celebrate 
the  following  day,  that  of  course  being  the  anniversary 
of  Culloden.  Confronted  by  a  proposal  which  was 
an   outrage   to   half   the   locality,   the   embarrassed 


58  GENERAL  WOLFE 

officials  after  taking  time  to  consider  regretted  that 
it  was  impossible  to  comply  with  the  suggestion,  and 
Lord  Bury  coerced  them  by  saying  that  he  had  told 
his  men  of  the  forthcoming  celebration,  and  would 
not  answer  for  the  consequences  if  it  did  not  take 
place.  It  is  a  pity  we  have  no  letter  from  Wolfe 
giving  his  view  of  a  proceeding  which  was  as  inane 
as  it  was  cruel. 


CHAPTER  V 

IRELAND,    PARIS,    AND   THE  SOUTH   OF   ENGLAND 

Lieut.-Col.    Wolfe's    nine    months    in    Inverness  Leaving 
gave  him  a  sense  of  cramp,  professional  and  mental,  Scotland, 
if  not  physical.     On  a  bright  May  morning  he  set  out 
with  certain  companies  of  his  regiment  along  the  road 
by  Loch  Ness  to  Fort  Augustus  at  its  south-west 
corner — "  a  grandly  wild  "  long  summer  day's  march, 
as  Wright  calls  it.     Fort  Augustus  was  among  the 
strategic  points  selected  after  the  rising  of  '15  and 
strengthened  after  '45.     It  was  one  of  the  radiating 
centres   of   the   military   posts   established   for   the 
purpose  of  disarming  and  cowing  the  recalcitrant, 
and    policing    the    Highlands    generally.     At    Fort 
Augustus,  Wolfe  received  his  furlough  permit,  and 
with  the  eagerness  of  the  schoolboy  gathering  up  his 
belongings  for  the  summer  holidays,  made  arrange- 
ments to  get  away  at  once.     His  plans  were  to  visit 
Ireland,  London,  and  Paris.     From  Fort  Augustus 
he  went  to  Perth,  Glasgow,  and  Portpatrick.    During 
his  journey  he  called  at  many  of  the  out-of-the-way 
military  posts  and  saw  a  good  deal  of  the  method  by 
which  outlaws  were  hunted  down,  and,  it  is  to  be 
feared,  by  which   in  some  cases  outlaws  were  made. 
Whole  pages  of  Scottish  history  at  this  period  seem 
to  be  lifted  bodily,  with  names  and  locale  changed, 
out  of  Ireland's  record ;    there  was  the  same  bitter, 
often    bloody,    conflict    between    large    sections    of 
peasantry  and  the  representatives  of  the  Crown  ;  and 
the  factor  on  a  confiscated  Scottish  estate  carried  his 

59 


60 


GENERAL  WOLFE 


anecdote. 


Ireland  in 
1752. 


life  in  his  hands  just  as  the  agents  of  unpopular 
landlords  in  Ireland  have  always  done  in  times  of 
agrarian  agitation.  It  is  a  gloomy  picture,  though 
one  which  we  know  was  destined  to  brighten  with 
each  succeeding  generation. 

Wolfe  had  much  to  say  from  time  to  time  in 
criticism  of  the  common  soldier,  but  he  looked  upon 
the  wearer  of  the  King's  uniform  as  a  superior  person 
in  the  class  to  which  he  belonged.  One  day  during 
this  Scottish  journey  Wolfe  left  his  servant  in  charge 
of  his  horse,  and  on  his  return  found  a  grenadier 
holding  both  his  own  and  the  servants'  animals. 
Wolfe  was  very  angry.  "  Sirrah,"  he  said  when  the 
groom  appeared,  "  what  do  you  mean  by  thus 
deserting  your  post  and  taking  up  the  time  of  this 
soldier  ?  Had  I  employed  him,  as  you  have,  it  would 
have  been  proper  enough,  but  can  you  be  such  a  fool 
as  to  think  that  a  man  who  has  the  honour  to  wear 
the  King's  uniform  and  is  engaged  in  the  service  of 
his  country,  ought  to  supply  the  place  of  an  idle 
servant  ?  Know  that  it  is  your  duty  and  my  com- 
mand that  you  wait  upon  the  soldiers  and  not  the 
soldiers  upon  you  !  "  It  might  be  an  extract  from 
Fielding  or  Smollett ;  the  note  of  over-emphasis  is 
characteristic. 

Wolfe's  uncle,  Major  Walter,  was  living  in  Dublin  ; 
the  veterans,  young  and  old,  looked  forward  to 
meeting  with  keen  interest,  the  keener  perhaps 
because  they  differed  on  many  points  of  military 
economy.  Walter  Wolfe  was  of  the  school  which 
thought  bull-dog  courage  of  more  importance  than 
training ;  his  nephew  was  certainly  not  indifferent 
to  the  claims  of  the  bull-dog,  but  if  he  had  had  to  make 
a    choice    would    have    favoured    discipline    before 


MID-EIGHTEENTH-CENTURY  IRELAND       61 

reckless  devotion.  From  Portpatrick  to  Donaghadee 
in  a  primitive  flat-bottomed  boat,  and  through  the 
north-eastern  counties  of  Ireland  by  still  more 
primitive  and  ricketty  post-chaise,  was  an  ordeal, 
unaccustomed  though  the  traveller  was  to  anything 
approaching  luxury  in  locomotion.  Wolfe  was 
charmed  with  Irish  scenery,  though  his  quick  eye 
detected  plenty  of  room  for  improvements  particularly 
in  planting  and  the  draining  of  boggy  grounds.  He 
was  told  that  the  best  estates  were  "  involved  deeply 
in  debt,  the  tenants  racked  and  plundered,  and 
consequently  industry  and  good  husbandry  dis- 
appointed or  destroyed." x  The  Irish  problem  was 
then  becoming,  if  it  had  not  already  become,  pretty 
much  what  it  has  been  throughout  the  intervening 
century  and  a  half,  with  the  difference  that  Ireland 
had  its  Parliament  to  assist  the  ventilation  of  its 
grievances.  The  Freeman's  Journal  was  hammering 
away  at  British  interference  in  Irish  affairs,  and  when 
Wolfe  was  in  Dublin  its  proprietor,  Charles  Lucas, 
was  hiding  in  England  from  a  warrant  out  for  his 
arrest.  2  Lords-lieutenant  themselves  were  absentees 
for  three-fourths  of  their  term,  one  part  of  Dublin 
was  pretentiously  gay  on  the  proceeds  of  rack  rents 
while  the  other  was  in  a  state  of  squalid  wretched- 
ness, 3  and  Irish  distress  was  gradually  working  up  to 
a  point  which  was  to  give  the  oratory  of  Flood  and 
Grattan  its  dynamic  force.     It  was  an  Ireland  steeped 

1  Lecky  (England  in  the  Eighteenth  Century,  vol.  ii,  p.  317) 
seeks  to  correct  the  common  view  that  Irish  life  in  the  first 
half  of  the  eighteenth  century  was  "  altogether  corrupt,  frivo- 
lous, grotesque  and  barbarous  :  among  many  and  glaring 
vices  some  real  public  spirit  and  intellectual  energy  may  be 
discovered." 

2  Lawless  :    Story  of  the  Nations  :    Ireland,  p.  322. 

3  Lecky  :    England  in  the  Eighteenth   Century,  vol.  ii,  p.  318. 


62  GENERAL  WOLFE 

in  ignorance  and  superstition  on  the  one  hand  ;  poor, 
shabby-genteel,  and  trying  to  keep  up  appearances 
on  the  other  ;  the  Ireland  of  whose  homes  Goldsmith 
said  with  a  fine  native  touch — 

Some  Irish  houses  where  things  are  so  so 

A  gammon  of  bacon  hangs  up  for  a  show, 

But  as  to  think  of  eating  the  thing  they  take  pride  in 

They'd  as  soon  think  of  eating  the  pan  it  is  fried  in. 

The  Boyne.  As  to  Wolfe's  doings  and  impressions  in  Ireland 
we  have  scanty  information.  He  took  the  oppor- 
tunity of  visiting  the  scene  of  the  battle  of  the  Boyne  ; 
his  reflections  would  not  be  confined  to  the  military 
side ;  he  stood  upon  the  historic  ground  where 
"  Dutch  William "  had  scared  the  pusillanimous 
James  II  to  flight  and  asylum  in  France  ;  and  he  had 
only  a  few  weeks  before  left  the  neighbourhood  of 
Culloden  where  he  had  taken  part  in  what  would 
probably  be  the  last  effort  of  the  Stuarts  to  recover 
the  throne  James  had  forfeited.  If  James  had 
possessed  the  personality,  the  chivalry,  and  the  pluck 
of  his  grandson,  Ireland  might  have  preserved  what 
Scotland  was  unable  to  restore,  and  if  there  had  been 
no  Hanoverian  succession  how  different  would  have 
been  British  history,  how  different  Wolfe's  own  life. 
Sight  of  the  monument  erected  to  the  memory  of 
Schomberg  gave  Wolfe  more  satisfaction  than  "  all 
the  variety"  of  other  spots  he  had  visited,  "and 
perhaps  there  is  not  another  piece  of  ground  in  the 
world  that  I  could  take  so  much  pleasure  to  observe." 
After  a  week  in  Dublin,  which  appeared  to  him  to  be 
"  a    prodigious    city :  x    the    streets    crowded    with 

1  Lecky  says,  "  In  the  middle  of  the  eighteenth  century 
Dublin  was  in  dimensions  and  population  the  second  city  in 
the  Empire." 


FROM   DUBLIN   TO   PARIS  63 

people  of  a  large  size  and  well  limbed,  and  the  women 
very  handsome,"  he  went  south,  then  crossed  to 
Bristol,  spent  some  time  in  the  West  of  England,  and 
arrived  at  Blackheath  about  the  time  that  England 
brought  her  calendar  into  conformity  with  the 
Gregorian.  Wolfe  probably  reached  home  only  to 
lose  eleven  days  of  reckoning,  for  those  who  went  to 
bed  on  the  night  of  Wednesday,  2nd  September, 
1752,  did  not  get  up  till  the  morning  of  the  14th, 
"  and  found  themselves  no  more  refreshed  than  after 
an  ordinary  night's  rest."  1 

Wolfe's  anxiety  was  now  to  know  whether  he  was  Wolfe  in 
to  be  allowed  to  go  abroad.  He  had  thrown  out  Paris« 
hints  more  than  once  that  if  there  were  no  chance  of 
active  service  at  home  he  would  join  a  foreign  army 
where  further  enlightenment  would  be  possible. 
However,  his  anxiety  was  soon  relieved.  Permission 
came  and  he  set  out  for  Paris  early  in  October  ;  Lord 
Bury's  father,  the  Earl  of  Albemarle,  was  then  British 
Minister  in  France,  and  to  him  Wolfe  carried  an 
introduction  from  the  colonel  himself.  It  had  its 
advantages  of  course,  though  Wolfe  soon  found  that 
this  rather  remarkable  specimen  of  an  ambassador, 
who  frequently,  according  to  Horace  Walpole,  did 
not  grace  his  own  banquet  table  when  guests  were 
present,  was  not  of  all  the  service  that  might  have 
been  expected.  It  was  at  a  peculiarly  tense  moment 
in  the  history  of  France  that  Wolfe  set  foot  in  Paris. 
Forces  were  gathering  that  were  to  have  immediate 
effect  on  French  fortunes  at  home  and  abroad,  and 
forty  years  later  were  to  sweep  the  Bourbons  from 
the  throne.     Louis  XV  was  King,  but  Madame  de 

1  Wright,  p.  231. 


64  GENERAL  WOLFE 

Pompadour  was  ruler  ;  her  influence  in  the  councils 
of  State  was  supreme  ; 1  she  wielded  the  imperial 
sceptre  in  return  for  the  amusement  of  the  monarch. 
"  She  gained  and  long  kept  the  power  that  she 
coveted  ;  filled  the  Bastille  with  her  enemies  ;  made 
and  unmade  ministers ;  appointed  and  removed 
generals.  Great  questions  of  policy  were  at  the 
mercy  of  her  caprices.  Through  her  frivolous  vanity, 
her  personal  likes  and  dislikes,  all  the  great  depart- 
ments of  Government — army,  navy,  war,  foreign 
affairs,  justice,  finance — changed  from  hand  to  hand 
incessantly,  and  this  at  a  time  of  crisis  when  the 
kingdom  needed  the  steadiest  and  surest  guidance."  2 
Only  one  person  near  the  throne  dared  to  show  his 
disgust  that  Madame  de  Pompadour  should  be 
allowed  to  stand  not  only  between  King  and  Queen, 
but  between  the  King  and  his  duty  to  the  nation. 
That  person  was  the  Dauphin,  and  for  his  indepen- 
dence he  was  humiliated  before  the  whole  Court.  Wolfe 
had  not  been  long  in  Paris  before,  apparently  at  the 
play,  he  came  near  Madame  ;  he  described  her  as 
"  a  very  agreeable  woman."  In  January  he  was  pre- 
sented with  others  to  the  King  and  the  Royal  Family, 
and  to  Madame  de  Pompadour.  She  entertained 
them  at  her  toilette,  it  being  her  habit  to  receive 
visitors  in  her  dressing-room.  "  We  found  her  curling 
her  hair.  She  is  extremely  handsome,  and  by  her 
conversation  with  the  ambassador  and  others  that 
were  present,  I  judge  she  must  have  a  great  deal  of 
wit  and  understanding."  That  meeting  stirs  one's 
imagination.     To  Madame  de   Pompadour,   history 

1  Waddington  :     La   Guerre  de    Sept  Ans,  vol.   ii,  p.   193. 

2  Parkman  :     Montcalm   and    Wolfe,    vol.    i,    p.     17,    Ed. 
1899. 


THE  HUMOURS   OF   HISTORY  65 

traces  many  of  the  disasters  of  France  in  the  third 
quarter  of  the  eighteenth  century ;  to  gratify  her 
European  vanities,  New  France  suffered  ;  and  a  prin- 
cipal instrument  in  the  undoing  of  French  empire 
beyond  the  Atlantic  was  to  be  the  tall,  bright-eyed, 
and  not  too  healthy-looking  young  English  officer 
who  now  deemed  it  a  privilege  to  observe  the  mighty 
dame  curl  her  hair.  History  has  its  humours  as  well 
as  its  romance  ! 

Paris  must  have  been  a  hot-bed  of  temptation  in  How  he 
that  winter  of  1752-3  to  our  young  lieutenant-colonel  spent  his 
fresh  from  the  almost  Spartan  severity  of  Inverness.  ime* 
He  had  not  gone  to  France,  however,  to  frivol  away 
his  time  in  social  dissipation.  Up  every  morning  not 
later  than  seven,  he  worked  till  twelve,  then  dressed 
and  visited,  dined  at  two,  attended  some  entertain- 
ment about  five,  and  went  to  bed  at  eleven.  "  This 
way  of  living  is  directly  opposite  to  the  practice  of 
the  place  ;  but  I  find  it  impossible  to  pursue  the 
business  I  came  upon  and  to  comply  with  the  customs 
and  manners  of  the  inhabitants."  The  business  he 
came  upon  was  to  study  foreign  armies  at  first  hand, 
to  see  something  of  polite  society  abroad,  and  to  learn 
to  speak  French,  to  dance  and  to  fence.  Among  the 
friends  he  either  found  or  made  in  Paris  were  Philip 
Stanhope,  Lord  Chesterfield's  son,  who  was  an  attache 
at  the  Embassy,  the  young  Duke  of  Richmond,  and 
Guy  Carleton,  the  man  who  was  one  day  successfully 
to  defend  against  the  Americans  the  city  on  the 
St.  Lawrence  which  Wolfe  was  to  take  from  France 
in  the  interests  of  America.  The  Duke  of  Richmond 
wanted  a  military  tutor ;  Wolfe  was  consulted, 
possibly  with  the  idea  that  he  might  offer  himself  for 
the  post ;  he  recommended  his  friend  Carleton.     His 

6—  (221  ?) 


66  GENERAL  WOLFE 

parents  thought  he  should  have  put  himself  forward.  x 
Wolfe's  answer  was  that  he  did  not  always  prefer  his 
own  interest  to  that  of  his  friends,  that  apart  from  his 
liking  for  Carleton  he  did  not  feel  equal  to  the  task 
— assuredly  it  would  not  have  been  acceptable  to 
one  so  eager  to  learn,  to  be  called  upon  to  teach — 
and  that  "as  for  the  pension  that  might  follow  it  is 
very  certain  it  would  not  become  me  to  accept  it. 
I  can't  take  money  from  any  one  but  the  King,  my 
master,  or  from  some  of  his  blood."  Wolfe  wanted 
money  but  not  at  the  expense  of  his  pride.  His 
correspondence  while  in  Paris  brought  him  news  of 
Miss  Lawson.  He  admitted  that  he  had  not  yet 
recovered  from  the  "  disorder  "  into  which  he  was 
thrown  by  his  great  love  for  her.  He  could  not  hear 
her  name  mentioned  without  "  twitching."  "  My 
amour  has  not  been  without  its  use.  It  has  defended 
me  against  other  women,  introduced  a  great  deal  of 
philosophy  and  tranquillity  as  to  all  objects  of  our 
strongest  affection,  and  something  softened  the 
disposition  to  severity  and  rigour  that  I  had  con- 
tracted in  the  camp,  trained  up  as  I  was,  from  infancy 
to  the  conclusion  of  the  Peace,  in  war  and  tumult." 
He  told  his  mother  he  should  probably  never  marry, 
but  in  a  letter  to  his  father  from  Paris  he  suggests  that 
he  rather  dreads  the  possibility  of  a  life  of  single 
blessedness.  He  reflects  that  "  with  us  soldiers " 
marriage  must  be  late  for  various  reasons,  among  them 
prudence.  "  We  are  not  able  to  feed  our  wives  and 
children  till  we  begin  to  decline.     It  must  be  a  solitary 

1  Mr.  Bradley  {Wolfe,  p.  71)  says  Wolfe  "  was  offered  the 
position  of  governor  to  the  young  Duke  of  Richmond,  but 
refused  it."  This  is  clearly  a  mistake,  as  we  may  see  from 
Wolfe's  letter  to  hjs  mother  given  by  Wright,  pp.  252-3. 


ORDERED  HOME  67 

kind  of  latter  life  to  leave  no  relations  nor  objects  to 
take  up  our  thoughts  and  affections — to  be  as  it  were 
alone  in  the  world  without  any  connection  with 
mankind  but  the  tie  of  common  friendships  which 
are  at  best  as  you  have  experienced  but  loose  and 
precarious." 

Wolfe  had  been  in  Paris  four  months  when  it  a  disap- 
seemed  that  at  last  the  purpose  of  which  he  had  often  pointment. 
talked  in  Scotland  and  for  which  in  large  measure 
he  had  left  England,  was  to  be  attained.  Lord 
Albemarle  told  him  that  the  French  King  would 
encamp  a  great  part  of  his  army  in  the  summer,  and 
proposed,  to  Wolfe's  infinite  satisfaction,  that  the 
Duke  should  command  him  to  attend  as  a  represen- 
tative of  the  British  army.  "  The  French  are  to  have 
three  or  four  different  camps  ;  the  Austrians  and 
Prussians  will  probably  assemble  some  corps,  so  that 
I  may  before  the  summer  have  seen  half  the  armies 
in  Europe  at  least."  The  Duke's  response  was  a 
command  which,  though  half  anticipated,  was  none 
the  less  keenly  disappointing.  It  was  that  Wolfe 
should  return  to  his  regiment  at  once.  Wolfe  was 
inclined  to  rebel,  and  was  sarcastic  at  the  expense  of 
"  a  major  and  an  adjutant  (if  the  colonel  is  to  be 
indulged  himself)  "  who  were  "  not  to  be  considered 
equal  to  the  great  task  of  exercising  in  our  frivolous 
fashion  a  battalion  or  two  of  soldiers."  Fears — if 
they  existed — that  Wolfe  might,  by  too  close  contact 
with  foreign  armies,  be  induced  to  abandon  his  own 
were  not  the  only  cause  of  this  sudden  recall :  the 
Major  of  the  20th  had  been  incapacitated  by  a  fit 
of  apoplexy,  and  as  Lord  Bury,  its  colonel,  was 
not  prepared  to  sacrifice  himself  for  the  sake  of  the 
regiment,  Wolfe's  presence  in  Scotland  was  essential, 


68  GENERAL  WOLFE 

Return  to         Disgusted  and  disappointed,  Wolfe  had  to  return. 

Glasgow.  He  took  Blackheath  for  a  few  days  on  his  way,  and 
then  started  on  a  journey  north  which  cost  him  much 
discomfort — discomfort  of  the  body  which  vexation 
of  spirit  aggravated.  A  new  sort  of  close  post-chaise 
had  been  put  on  the  roads  about  this  time, 
"  machines,"  said  Wolfe,  "  purposely  constructed  to 
torture  the  unhappy  carcases  that  are  placed  in 
them."  He  had  recourse  to  post-horses,  and  fared 
little  better,  having  two  spills  at  the  hazard  of  his 
neck.  His  troubles  did  not  end  with  his  arrival  in 
Glasgow.  The  regiment  was  in  melancholy  circum- 
stances ;  officers  "  ruined,  desperate  and  without 
hopes  of  preferment,"  the  major  dead,  one  ensign 
had  been  in  convulsions,  and  another  was  seized  with 
palsy,  and  Wolfe  was  so  affected  by  the  prevailing 
distress  that  he  nearly  fainted.  To  what  all  these 
things  were  due  we  are  not  told,  but  they  were 
enough  in  all  conscience,  apart  from  his  dislike  of 
Scotland,  to  make  Wolfe  look  forward  to  August, 
when  the  regiment  was  to  march  out  of  "  this  dark 
and  dismal  country."  Three  weeks  later  he  wrote, 
"  We  are  all  sick,  officers  and  soldiers  :  I  am  amongst 
the  best  and  not  quite  well."  The  weather  was  in 
large  measure  responsible,  and  Wolfe  attributed  his 
immunity  to  the  "  store  of  health "  amassed  in 
France,  which  he  hoped  would  last  out  his  stay  in 
Scotland,  "  though  the  consumption  will  be  very 
considerable."  Gloomy  as  his  reports  were,  there  was 
diversion  in  the  granite  city  in  the  shape  of  plays, 
concerts,  balls,  dinners  and  suppers.  The  food,  he 
said,  was  execrable,  and  the  wines  "  approached  to 
poison."  The  men  drank  excessively,  and  the  ladies 
were  cold  to  everything  but  a  bagpipe — "  I  wrong 


LEAVING  SCOTLAND  69 

them ;  there  is  not  one  that  does  not  melt  away  at 
the  sound  of  an  estate  ;  there's  the  weak  side  of  this 
soft  sex."  He  dined  one  day  with  the  Duchess  of 
Hamilton,  the  famous  Elizabeth  Gunning,  who  had 
been  married  rather  more  than  a  year  and  lived  within 
ten  miles  of  Glasgow.  A  little  grumble  at  the  condi- 
tion of  things  in  the  army  that  made  "  the  doing  of 
one's  duty  well,  and  not  talking  of  it,  the  roundabout 
way  to  preferment "  ;  a  complaint  that  he  had 
"  hardly  passion  enough  of  any  kind  to  find  present 
pleasure  or  feed  future  hope  "  ;  an  apology  to  his 
mother  for  an  exhibition  of  ill-temper  and  a  plea  that 
if  she  thought  he  had  any  good  qualities  they  might 
be  set  in  opposition  to  the  bad  ones  ;  and  we  come  to 
September  9th,  1753.  On  that  date  Wolfe  with  his 
regiment  left  Scotland  for  the  south. 

When  he  crossed  the  Esk  he  saluted  the  soil  of  A  long 
England  with  almost  effusive  gladness,  and  the  whole  marcn- 
regiment  had  a  feeling  that  it  was  going  home  from 
some  foreign  land.  Wolfe  at  once  perceived  a 
welcome  change  in  many  respects.  "The  English  are 
clean  and  laborious,  and  the  Scotch  excessively  dirty 
and  lazy,  though  far  short  indeed  of  what  we  found 
at  a  greater  distance  from  the  borders."  The  men's 
health  improved  with  the  march  ;  they  were  so  active 
that  they  wore  their  clothes  threadbare,  and  Wolfe 
believed  that  by  the  time  they  arrived  at  Warwick 
"  they  would  be  the  most  dirty,  ragged  regiment  that 
the  Duke  has  seen  for  years."  Though  every  day  he 
moved  further  south  the  country  appeared  richer  and 
more  delightful — and  he  found  the  Lancashire  women 
surprisingly  handsome  after  "  the  hard-favoured 
Scotch  lasses  " — he  grew  heartily  sick  of  the  slow 
movement  of  the  march.     It  was  not  agreeable  to  his 


70  GENERAL  WOLFE 

"  disposition  of  mind."  At  Warwick  he  had  some 
hunting,  and  he  enjoyed  the  "  extremely  beautiful 
country."  The  regiment  moved  on  to  Reading  with 
Dover  as  its  objective.  At  Reading  he  once  more 
complained  of  the  state  of  morals  among  both  officers 
and  men  :  "  If  I  stay  much  longer  with  the  regiment 
I  shall  be  perfectly  corrupt ;  the  officers  are  loose 
and  profligate,  and  soldiers  are  very  devils."  Healthy 
as  he  had  described  the  men  to  be  at  Warrington  in 
September,  at  Reading  in  November  he  said  they 
were  subject  to  exercises  which  were  too  much  for 
their  constitutions.  "  Our  debaucheries  enervate 
and  unman  us."  Wolfe's  own  standard  of  conduct 
was  so  high  that  it  would  be  natural  for  him  to 
exaggerate  shortcomings  in  others,  and  his  views 
always  tended  to  extremes  ;  but  there  can  be  little 
question  as  to  the  reasonableness  of  his  strictures. 
Contemporary  records  bear  him  out.  If  Wolfe  could 
say  so  much  of  his  own  men  what  was  his  opinion  of 
others  ?  The  20th,  it  was  conceded,  was  the  best 
disciplined  regiment  in  the  British  army, 1  and  one 
would  fain  believe  that  Wolfe's  sharp  condemnation 
meant  no  more  than  that  his  officers  and  men  fell  far 
short  of  his  ideal — an  impossible  one  in  the 
circumstances  of  the  time. 

1  Bradley  :    Wolfe,  p.  83. 


CHAPTER  VI 

BEGINNING  OF  THE   SEVEN   YEARS'   WAR 

England  has  never  passed  through  a  more  uncertain  Irregular 
and  inglorious  time  than  in  the  eight  years  between  warfare, 
the  signing  of  the  Treaty  of  Aix-la-Chapelle  and  the 
beginning   of   the   Seven   Years'    War.     She  lacked 
leaders,  and  a  corrupt  system  strangled  the  efforts 
of  individual  patriots.     Fortunately  for  her,  venality 
abroad  left  her  great  opponent  unable  to  seize  oppor- 
tunities which  party  prejudices  and  personal  pique 
supplied   in   ample   measure.     It   was   a   period   of 
pretence  in  Europe  ;    of  irregular  and  scarcely  inter- 
mittent warfare  beyond  the  seas.     The  Treaty  of 
1748  involved  suspension  of  hostilities  between  the 
great  powers  :    in  India  and  in  America  the  conflict 
between  French  and  English  was  abandoned  in  one 
place  only  to  break  out  in  another.     In  the  East  the 
French  intrigued  and  fought  for  their  own  hand  by 
fighting  for  one  or  other  of  the  native  princes  or 
pretenders  :  the  English  did  the  same.     It  was  a  fore- 
gone conclusion  that  if  the  French  took  one  side  in 
a  local  quarrel  the  English  took  the  other.     Across  the 
Atlantic  the  conditions  varied  only  with  the  character 
of  the  country  and  of  the  people.     In  the  East  the 
struggle  was  to  command  political  influence  and  trade 
privileges  by  alliance  with  or  control  of  the  natives  ; 
in  the  West  to  build  up  empire,  to  promote  commerce, 
and  to  establish  strong  offshoots  of  the  motherland  by 
settlement,  by  exploration,  by  alliance  with  Iroquois 
and  Huron,  and  by  the  appropriation  of  forest  and 

71 


72  GENERAL   WOLFE 

river  and  vast  expanses  of  territory  whose  very  limits 
were  unknown.     In   India  it  was   a  duel  between 
Dupleix  and  Give  ;  in  America  between  New  France 
and  New  England. 
Anglo-  From  the  time  that  John  Smith  founded  James- 

rivalry,  town  in  1607  and  Champlain  Quebec  in  1608,  England 

and  France  had  been  in  competition  for  the  riches  of 
North  America,  but  their  methods  differed  essentially. 
English  settlements  had  been  planted  down  the  coast 
for  hundreds  of  miles,  and  agriculture  and  trade  were 
their  principal  objects.     The  French,   with  a  view 
partly  to  the  empire  of  the   West,   partly  to  the 
monopoly  of  the  fur  trade,  had  taken  possession  of 
the  St.  Lawrence,  and  so  much  of  the  great  river-and- 
lake   system   north,    south,    and   west   as   bands   of 
intrepid  explorers  succeeded  in  traversing.    La  Salle's 
voyage  from  the  St.  Lawrence  to  the  Mississippi  and 
the  Gulf  of  Mexico  led  to  the  claim  of  France  to  the 
whole  of  America  west  of  the  Alleghanies  and  to  the 
erection  of  a  chain  of  forts  which  were  intended  to 
confine  the  English  to  the  coast  strip  from  Canada 
to  Louisiana.     In  pursuance  of  this  great  ambition 
the  French  were  active  on  the  Ohio  during   1753. 
Washington — then    twenty-one    years    of    age — was 
chosen  by  Governor  Dinwiddie  to  carry  his  message 
of  protest  to  the  aggressors,  and  the  following  year 
it  was  intended  to  build  a  fort  at  the  junction  of  the 
Alleghany  and  Monongahela  rivers,  where  Pittsburg 
stands  to-day.     Whilst  the  building  was  in  progress 
the  French  appeared,  demolished  the  works,  and  put 
up  Fort  Duquesne  in  their  place.     Washington  was 
on  his  way  with  a  force  intended  to  garrison  the  new 
fort  when  news  reached  him  that  the  French  were 
in    possession.     His    expedition    ended    in    disaster. 


\ 


UNDECLARED   WAR  73 

Things   were    now   almost    desperate.     The    French 
were  masters,  many  of  the  Indian  tribes  drew  their 
scalping-knives  on  behalf  of  the  winning  side,  and 
not  an  English  flag  waved  beyond  the  Alleghanies. x 
Braddock  was  sent  out  in  1755  with  a  considerable 
force,   to  which  Wolfe's  regiment  contributed  one 
hundred  men  ;   a  person  worse  fitted  for  the  task  in 
hand,    says    Parkman,    could    scarcely    have    been 
found  : 2  the  French  were  to  be  attacked  at  four  points 
at  once,  and  Braddock  was  to  lead  the  attack  on  Fort 
Duquesne.    An  officer  of  the  old  school,  he  was  "  a 
bigot  to  military  rules,"  and  his  inability  to  adapt 
himself  to  unaccustomed  conditions  cost  the  empire 
and  the  colonies  dear.     In  the  year  of  his  defeat, 
Admirals  Boscawen,  Hawke,  and  others  were  engaged 
in  endeavouring  to  prevent  French  reinforcements 
from  crossing  the  Atlantic.     Yet  there  was  no  declara- 
tion of  war.    It  was  in  the  middle  of  1755  that  Wolfe 
declared  "  all  notions  of  peace  are  now  at  an  end." 
He  pointed  to  "  the  embargo  laid  upon  shipping,  the 
violent  press  for  seamen,  and  the  putting  soldiers  on 
board   our   fleet "    as   evidence   that    the   maritime 
strength  of  the  enemy  was  "by  no  means  contemp- 
tible."     Vigorous   assaults   were   expected  both  in 
Europe  and  in  America.    During  the  last  year  or  two 
it  seemed  as  though  France  and  England  had  decided 
to  give  themselves  breathing  time  whilst  allowing 
their  children  over-seas  to  keep  the  quarrel  going 
and  furtively  supporting,  if  not  openly  encouraging 
them,    to    fight.      France    gave    what    seemed    like 
tangible  proof  of  peaceful  aims  when  she  recalled 
Dupleix  in    1754,   especially  as   Dupleix  had   done 

1  Parkman  :  Montcalm  and  Wolfe,  vol.  i,  pp.  132-167. 
1    Conspiracy  of  Pontiac,  vol.  i,  p.  110 


74  GENERAL  WOLFE 

nothing  more  than  serve  her  almost  as  brilliantly 
as  Clive  was  serving  England.  Dupleix  was  a  knight 
sacrificed  on  the  Imperial  chess-board.  The  real 
spirit  of  the  time  is  seen  in  the  orders  issued 
from  Paris  to  the  Governor  of  Canada  that  he  was 
to  invite  the  Red  Man  to  destroy  English  trading 
stations,  but  on  no  account  was  his  complicity  to 
be  discovered,  because  the  two  nations  were  not  at 
war  ! 1 
War  It  was  not  till  May,  1756,  that  war  was  formally 

declared.  declared.  By  that  time  England,  to  secure  her  own 
safety,  had  imported  a  large  number  of  Hessians, 
and  in  order  to  protect  the  interests  of  Hanover,  had 
entered  into  alliance  with  Prussia.  George  II  con- 
sidered— or  pretended  to  consider — that  Maria  Theresa 
had  not  kept  faith  with  him,  and  she,  hating  Frederick 
more  than  ever  now  that  her  old  supporter  had  joined 
hands  with  him,  turned  to  France — in  other  words,  to 
Madame  de  Pompadour,  who  on  her  part  hated 
Frederick  because  he  had  made  her  the  butt  of  his 
sarcasm.  A  woman  of  high  moral  character  herself, 
Maria  Theresa  addressed  the  Pompadour  as  her  "  dear 
cousin,"  and  the  flattery  of  the  mistress  secured  the 
adhesion  of  Louis  XV  and  his  ministers.  The  task 
was  the  easier  because  Louis  XV  had  also  changed 
his  view  ;  he  now  favoured  an  alliance  with  Austria. 2 
The  year  was  a  bad  one  for  England.  Admiral 
Byng  ignominiously  failed  to  relieve  Minorca  ;  the 
whole  country  was  horrified  by  the  news  of  the  Black 
Hole  of  Calcutta,  and  Montcalm,  the  brilliant  soldier 
against  whom  Wolfe  was  to  be  matched  at  Quebec, 

1  G.  Le  M.  Bretton  :    Social  England,  vol.  v.      Parkman : 
Montcalm  and  Wolfe,  vol.  i,  p.  190. 

8  Hassall:    Balance  of  Power,  1715-1789,  p.  249. 


PITT  IN   POWER  75 

captured  Fort  Oswego.  Shame,  horror,  and  indig- 
nation took  possession  of  the  public  as  reverse  after 
reverse  became  known,  and  with  a  weak  ministry  at 
home  little  or  nothing  was  done.  Pitt  had  offended 
both  the  King  and  Newcastle  by  his  fearless  resump- 
tion of  freelance  criticism,  and  was  not  in  the  Govern- 
ment. He  became  Secretary  of  State  under  the  Duke 
of  Devonshire  in  December,  but  the  ministry  did  not 
last  long ;  there  was  an  interval  during  which  the 
country,  at  war,  was  without  a  ministry.  In  the 
interests  of  the  commonwealth,  Newcastle  and  Pitt 
had  to  compose  their  differences,  and  it  was  not  till 
Newcastle  in  June,  1757,  agreed  to  become  the  figure- 
head of  a  Government  in  which  Pitt  supplied  the 
brains,  the  character,  the  controlling  force  that 
the  British  star  once  more  began  to  rise,  slowly, 
occasionally  clouded,  but  surely,  until  it  shone 
all-unchallenged  in  the  very  meridian. 

During  the  years  when  England  was  labouring  Wolfe's 
under  the  dead  weight  of  incompetence  alike  in  the  movements 
Council  Chamber  and  the  services,  Wolfe  was  watch- 
ing events  from  various  stations  in  the  South  of 
England.  His  letters  to  his  mother  and  father 
continue  to  reflect  at  once  his  own  striking  individual- 
ity and  the  local  conditions  as  they  were  affected  by 
the  movements  of  the  world  at  large.  We  will  run 
through  them  as  rapidly  as  may  be.  Dover  Castle 
did  not  please  him  :  it  was  not  as  snug  as  he  would 
have  liked,  and  he  could  not  help  wishing  that  the 
moderns  who  destroyed  some  of  its  "  antiquity  "  had 
demolished  it  altogether.  Before  he  left  it  he  had 
come  to  consider  it  as  "  a  vile  dungeon,"  "  a  melan- 
choly, dreadful  winter  station."  The  castle  was 
haunted,     of    course,     but     the    presence    of    the 


76 


GENERAL  WOLFE 


Among  the 

Jacobites 

again. 


supernatural  does  not  seem  to  have  affected  him 
much,  whilst  the  tediousness  of  the  time  not  devoted 
to  routine  duties  affected  him  a  good  deal.  He  rode 
on  the  downs  and  did  some  shooting,  bagging  an 
occasional  pheasant  or  partridge,  which  he  dare  not 
send  home,  "as  we  are  not  authorised  by  law  to  kill 
them,  and  as  they  examine  strictly  upon  the  great 
roads  I  should  be  unwilling  to  be  reputed  a  smuggler." 
Dover  Castle,  he  says,  "  would  be  a  prison  to  a  man 
of  pleasure,  but  an  officer  may  put  up  with  it."  The 
ladies  of  Dover  complained  through  his  mother  that 
Wolfe's  officers  were  lacking  in  gallantry.  He  replied 
in  a  spirit  of  banter  that  dancing  and  all  its  light  train 
of  amusements  had  their  risks,  and  to  those  whose 
years  were  creeping  on  might  appear  vain  or 
contemptible. 

"  Notwithstanding  this,  I  always  encourage  our  young 
people  to  frequent  balls  and  assemblies.  It  softens  their 
manners  and  makes  them  civil  ;  and  commonly  I  go  along 
with  them,  to  see  how  they  conduct  themselves.  I  am  only 
afraid  they  shall  fall  in  love  and  marry.  Whenever  I  perceive 
the  symptoms,  or  anybody  else  makes  the  discovery,  we  fall 
upon  the  delinquent  without  mercy  till  he  grows  out  of 
conceit  with  his  new  passion.  By  this  method  we  have 
broke  through  many  an  amorous  alliance,  and  dissolved  many 
ties  of  eternal  love  and  affection.  My  experience  in  these 
matters  help  me  to  find  out  my  neighbour's  weakness,  and 
furnishes  me  with  arms  to  oppose  his  folly.  I  am  not,  how- 
ever, always  so  successful  as  could  be  wished.  Two  or  three 
of  the  most  simple  and  insensible  in  other  respects  have 
triumphed  over  my  endeavours,  but  are  seated  upon  the  stool 
of  repentance  for  the  rest  of  their  days." 

In  February,  1754,  he  had  some  idea  that  his 
regiment  might  be  selected  for  East  Indian  service. 
But  as  Lord  Bury  was  exempted  from  such  service  by 
his  position  as  aide-de-camp  to  the  King,  "  I  do  not 
suppose   he    would    think   it    consistent    to    let    his 


THE  DANCE   OF   PEACE  77 

regiment  embark  without  him.  So  we  are  reserved  for 
more  brilliant  service."1  At  the  end  of  March  the 
regiment  left  Dover  to  be  reviewed  at  Guildford  by 
the  colonel,  and  Wolfe  got  leave  of  absence,  part  of 
which  he  spent  with  Sir  John  Mordaunt,  the  uncle  of 
Miss  Lawson.  The  sight  of  her  picture  upon  the 
dining-room  walls  upset  him  for  a  day  or  two,  "  but 
time,  the  never-failing  aid  to  distressed  lovers,  has 
made  the  semblance  of  her  a  pleasing  but  not  a 
dangerous  object.  However,  I  find  it  best  not  to  trust 
myself  to  the  lady's  eyes,  or  put  confidence  in  any 
resolutions  of  my  own."2  When  he  returned  to  his 
regiment  early  in  October,  it  had  gone  into  winter 
quarters  at  Exeter,  and  almost  his  first  business  was 
to  provide  the  contingent  for  Braddock's  "  Ohio 
party."  It  was  fortunate  Wolfe  did  not  join  the 
party  himself. 

In  Exeter  he  was  in  the  heart  of  a  Jacobite  com-  The 
munity.  "  I  begin  to  flatter  myself  that  we  shall  Devonshire 
soften  the  rigorous  proceedings  of  our  adversaries 
here  and  live  with  them  on  better  terms  than  hitherto. 
It  is  not  our  interest  to  quarrel  with  any  but  the 
French."  Among  the  means  he  took  to  "  soften  the 
rigorous  "  was  the  dance.  "  Would  you  believe  it 
that  no  Devonshire  squire  dances  more  than  I  do  ? 
What  no  consideration  of  pleasure  or  complaisance 
for  the  sex  could  effect  the  love  of  peace  and  harmony 
has  brought  about.  I  have  danced  the  officers  into 
the  good  graces  of  the  Jacobite  women  hereabouts, 
who  were  prejudiced  against  them.  It  falls  hard 
upon  me  because  of  my  indolence  and  indifference 

1  Beckles  Willson  :    Nineteenth   Century,   Sept.,    1908. 
1  Wright  mentions  that  Miss  Lawson,  who  meant  so  much 
to  Wolfe,  died  unmarried  in  March,   1759. 


78  GENERAL  WOLFE 

about  it."  All  the  same  it  is  on  record  that  he  showed 
much  "  talent  in  the  science  "  and  that  he  was  gener- 
ally "  ambitious  to  gain  a  tall  graceful  woman  to  be 
his  partner,  as  well  as  a  good  dancer."  The  sort  of 
barrier  he  had  to  break  down  is  shown  by  the  fact 
that  at  a  ball  to  celebrate  the  King's  birthday  every 
man  save  one  was  wearing  the  King's  uniform. 
"  The  female  branches  of  the  Tory  families  came 
readily  enough,  but  not  one  man  would  accept  the 
invitation.  If  it  had  not  fallen  my  way  to  see  such 
an  instance  of  folly  I  should  not  readily  be  brought 
to  conceive  it."  Wolfe  found  himself  "  hand  and 
glove  with  the  Right  Worshipful  the  Mayor  "  and 
reported  that  "  the  people  seem  tolerably  well  disposed 
towards  us  at  present  " — a  condition  of  things  which 
he  hoped  would  last  his  time,  "  for,  as  the  town 
has  nothing  in  it  either  inviting  or  entertaining, 
the  circumstances  of  a  civil  war  would  make  it 
intolerable."  Wolfe's  diversions,  it  is  interesting  to 
note,  did  not  include  cards.  He  had  no  grave  objec- 
tion to  them,  especially  in  people  of  a  certain  age, 
but  he  thought  that  young  folks  might  be  led  into 
excesses  and  sacrifice  the  hours  which  should  be  given 
to  improvement.  In  the  beginning  of  January,  1755, 
he  had  to  attend  a  court-martial  in  Bristol — a  duty  he 
always  disliked. 
Premom-  From  Bristol  he  wrote  home  :  "  Folks  are  surprised 

to  see  the  meagre,  consumptive,  decaying  figure  of  the 
son,  when  the  father  and  mother  preserve  such  good 
looks.  The  campaigns  of  1743,  '4,  '5,  '6,  and  7 
stripped  me  of  my  bloom  and  the  winters  in  Scotland 
and  at  Dover  have  brought  me  almost  to  old  age  and 
infirmity,  and  this  without  any  remarkable  intem- 
perance.    A  few  years  more  or  less  are  of  very  little 


THE  NEED  OF  FUNDS  79 

consequence  to  the  common  run  of  men,  and  therefore 
I  need  not  lament  that  I  am  perhaps  somewhat  nearer 
my  end  than  others  of  my  time.  I  think  and  write 
upon  these  points  without  being  at  all  moved." 
Wolfe's  trouble,  his  health  apart,  was  always  about 
funds,  and  he  loathed  the  necessity  of  calling  upon  his 
father's  ever-ready  purse.  "  I  am  eight-and-twenty 
years  of  age,  a  lieutenant-colonel  of  Foot,  and  I  cannot 
say  that  I  am  master  of  fifty  pounds."  The  only 
ground  on  which,  when  hard  pressed,  he  felt  justified 
in  turning  to  the  parental  exchequer  was  that  to  be 
cramped  and  tied  down  by  circumstances  when  his 
thoughts  should  be  free  and  at  large  took  his  attention 
off  the  most  important  parts  of  his  duty.  "  That 
spirit  will  guide  others  but  indifferently  which  bends 
under  its  own  wants."  He  longed  for  advancement 
with  a  longing  which  in  a  less  brilliant  man  would 
have  been  wholly  unreasonable.  His  ambition  was 
encouraged  by  his  friend,  Sir  John  Mordaunt,  by  his 
uncle,  and  by  his  father.  His  uncle  wished  him  to 
make  a  considerable  figure  in  the  profession,  and  he 
was  prepared  to  serve  even  at  sea  if  he  could  only  get 
the  chance,  great  though  he  knew  his  agony  from 
sickness  would  be.  With  the  prospect  of  war  in  his 
mind  throughout  the  year  1755,  he  sometimes 
thought  he  might  be  sent  to  Virginia,  sometimes  that 
he  might  be  called  upon  to  go  to  Holland.  "  It  is  no 
time  to  think  of  what  is  convenient  or  agreeable,"  he 
wrote  in  February,  "  that  service  is  the  best  in  which 
we  are  the  most  useful.  For  my  part  I  am  determined 
never  to  give  myself  a  moment's  concern  about  the 
nature  of  the  duty  His  Majesty  is  pleased  to  order  us 
upon.  It  will  be  sufficient  comfort  to  you  two,  as  far  as 
my  person  is  concerned  at  least  it  will  be  a  reasonable 


80  GENERAL  WOLFE 

consolation,  to  reflect  that  the  Power  which  has 
hitherto  preserved  me  may,  if  it  be  His  pleasure, 
continue  to  do  so  ;  if  not,  that  it  is  but  a  few  days  or  a 
few  years  more  or  less  and  that  those  who  perish  in 
their  duty,  and  in  the  service  of  their  country  die 
honourably.  I  hope  I  shall  have  resolution  and 
firmness  enough  to  meet  every  appearance  of  danger 
without  great  concern  and  not  be  over-solicitous  about 
the  event."  In  all  his  letters  Wolfe  seemed  to  have 
a  premonition  that  his  life  was  to  be  a  short  one. 
When  he  wrote  those  words  he  was,  as  he  said  a  week 
or  ten  days  before,  twenty-eight,  and  he  had  four 
and  a  half  years  to  live. 
New  From  March,    1755,   to  March,    1757,   Wolfe  was 

colonels.  shifted  from  Exeter  to  Winchester,  Southampton, 
Canterbury,  Devizes,  Stroud,  Cirencester  and  other 
places.  It  is  not  necessary  to  follow  his  marchings 
and  counter-marchings  in  detail.  In  1755  he  suffered 
a  serious  disappointment.  His  colonel  became  Earl 
of  Albemarle  by  the  death  of  his  father  at  the  end  of 
the  previous  year,  and  Wolfe  was  on  tenter-hooks  to 
learn  whether  he  was  to  succeed  to  the  official  com- 
mand of  the  regiment  which  in  fact  he  had  com- 
manded for  so  long.  Three  months  of  expectancy, 
and  he  was  informed  that  Colonel  Honeywood  had 
been  appointed.  Wolfe  was  hurt,  and  declared  he 
would  not  serve  one  moment  longer  than  honour 
demanded  even  if  he  should  starve.  He  got  over  his 
vexation  sooner  than  might  be  expected,  and  assured 
his  mother  that  "  if  you  arm  yourself  with  philosophy 
you  are  mistress  of  all  events."  War  might  come  to 
his  aid,  but  he  dreaded  the  distress  war  might  mean 
to  the  country  generally  and  to  his  mother  in  partic- 
ular.    Whatever  happened  he  was  solicitous  for  his 


MUSKETRY  PRACTICE  81 

mother's  comfort,  and  when  it  was  proposed  that 
his  father  might  resign  his  colonelcy  in  his  favour, 
the  son  settling  an  annuity  upon  him,  he  refused  on 
the  ground  that  "  a  soldier's  life  in  war  is  too  great 
an  uncertainty  for  you  to  hazard  a  necessary  part  of 
your  income  upon."  If  war  did  not  come  then  Wolfe 
would  "  jog  on  in  the  easiest  position  in  the  army,  and 
sleep  and  grow  fat."  A  good  deal  more  philosophy 
was  required  a  year  later  when  Honeywood  was 
transferred  and  his  place  was  taken  by  Colonel  William 
Kingsley. 

Events,  however,  gave  Wolfe  plenty  to  think  about  Hints  to 
besides  his  own  personal  fortunes.  He  speculated  Rickson. 
incessantly  on  the  needs  of  the  country,  and  in  a 
remarkable  letter  to  Rickson,  who  was  now  in  Scot- 
land, written  in  view  of  the  possibility  that  the  French 
would  again  find  allies  among  the  Highlanders,  he 
outlined  the  plan — it  was  sufficiently  drastic — by 
which  he  would  deal  with  the  first  outbreak  in  order 
to  avoid  "  a  succession  of  errors  and  a  train  of  ill- 
behaviour,"  which  made  "  the  last  Scotch  war,"  he 
said,  difficult  to  match  in  history.  He  recommended 
Rickson  to  practice  musketry  firing  with  balls : 
"  Firing  balls  at  objects  teaches  the  soldiers  to  level 
incomparably,  makes  the  recruits  steady,  and 
removes  the  foolish  apprehension  that  seizes  young 
soldiers  when  they  first  load  their  arms  with  bullets. 
We  fire  first  singly,  then  by  files,  one,  two,  three  or 
more,  then  by  ranks,  and  lastly  by  platoons  ;  and  the 
soldiers  see  the  effects  of  their  shots,  especially  at  a 
mark  or  upon  water.  We  shoot  obliquely  and  in 
different  situations  on  ground,  from  heights  down- 
wards and  contrariwise."  Wolfe  apologised  for 
suggesting  so  much  on  the  ground  that  possibly  it 

7— (2213) 


generally. 


82  GENERAL  WOLFE 

might  not  have  been  thought  of  by  Rickson's  com- 
mander— a  casual  remark  which  goes  some  way  to 
explain   wherein   Wolfe   himself   was   ahead   of   his 
fellows. 
Army  It  may  sound  invidious,  but  it  is  not  unreasonable 

officers  to  say  that  if  Braddock  had  been  as  ready  as  Wolfe 

would  have  been  to  adapt  himself  to  the  military 
conditions  which  confronted  him  on  his  advance  to 
Fort  Duquesne,  the  disgrace  of  that  9th  of  July,  1755, 
in  the  wooded  defiles  beyond  the  Monongahela  would 
have  been  avoided.  Wolfe  would  not  have  rejected 
the  representations  of  Washington  nor  flouted  the 
Indian  chiefs  who  placed  their  unrivalled  knowledge 
of  forest  warfare  at  his  disposal.  Braddock,  with  all 
his  courage,  his  strength  of  character,  his  unques- 
tioned ability  and  patriotism,  was  simply  incapable 
of  rising  superior  to  the  teachings  of  the  school  in 
which  he  had  learnt  his  business.  He  ought  never 
to  have  fallen  into  the  ambush  laid  for  him  :  and 
when  he  was  in  it  he  destroyed  a  slender  chance  of 
escape  by  treating  men  who  endeavoured  to  save 
themselves  without  running  away,  as  so  many 
cowardly  curs.  It  was  the  tragedy  of  cast-iron 
system.  When  the  news  reached  England  in  August 
Wolfe  was  not  in  a  position  to  deliver  serious  judg- 
ment. From  the  accounts  to  hand,  he  said  :  "  I  do 
believe  that  the  cowardice  and  ill-behaviour  of  the 
men  far  exceeded  the  ignorance  of  the  chief,  who, 
though  not  a  master  of  the  difficult  art  of  war,  was 
yet  a  man  of  sense  and  courage.  I  have  but  a  very 
mean  opinion  of  the  Infantry  in  general.  I  know 
their  discipline  to  be  bad  and  their  valour  precarious. 
They  are  easily  put  into  disorder  and  hard  to  recover 
out  of  it.     They  frequently  kill  their  officers  through 


BRITISH  MILITARY   EDUCATION  83 

fear  and  murder  one  another  in  their  confusion." 
In  that  view  Wolfe  was  not  quite  judicial.  The  fault 
lay  not  with  the  men  but  with  the  masters,  the 
Government  and  the  officers,  to  whom  they  should 
look  for  guidance.  A  foreign  critic  of  the  time  said 
that  the  British  troops  were  "  an  army  of  lions  led 
by  asses  "  ;  that  there  were  lions  among  the  asses 
and  curs  among  the  lions  does  not  rob  the  description 
of  its  brute  force,  and  Wolfe  himself  qualified  his 
angry  outburst  by  admitting  that  the  method  of 
training  and  instructing  British  troops  was  "  ex- 
tremely defective.  We  are  lazy  in  time  of  peace  and 
of  course  want  vigilance  and  activity  in  war.  Our 
military  education  is  by  far  the  worst  in  Europe,  and 
all  our  concerns  are  treated  with  contempt  or  totally 
neglected.  It  will  cost  us  very  dear  some  time 
hence."  In  a  passage  full  of  significance,  he  wrote 
to  his  mother  in  October,  1755,  at  a  time  when  the 
French  were  busy  with  their  fleet  and  every  hour 
brought  new  fears  of  invasion,  though  war  had  not 
yet  been  declared  :  "  The  officers  of  the  army  in 
general  are  persons  of  so  little  application  to  business 
and  have  been  so  ill  educated  that  it  must  not  surprise 
you  to  hear  that  a  man  of  common  industry  is  in 
reputation  amongst  them.  I  reckon  it  a  very  great 
misfortune  to  this  country  that  I,  your  son,  who  have 
I  know  but  a  very  moderate  capacity  and  some  degree 
of  diligence  a  little  above  the  ordinary  run,  should 
be  thought,  as  I  am,  one  of  the  best  officers  of  my 
rank  in  the  service.  I  am  not  at  all  vain  of  the 
distinction."  Such  a  comparison  he  thought  would 
do  even  a  man  of  genius  very  little  honour.  "  The 
consequence  will  be  very  fatal  to  me  in  the  end  for 
as  I  rise  in  rank  people  will  expect  some  considerable 


84  GENERAL  WOLFE 

performances,  and  I  shall  be  induced,  in  support  of 
an  ill-got  reputation,  to  be  lavish  of  my  life  and  shall 
probably  meet  that  fate  which  is  the  ordinary  effect 
of  such  conduct."     A  prophetic  instinct  surely ! 
Our  Despite  his  criticisms  Wolfe  believed    the    army 

mighty  would  give  an  excellent  account  of  itself  if  the  French 

avy*  should  succeed  in  what  every  one  believed  to  be  their 

designs.     Was  he  putting  his  trust  in  the  Hessians, 
whose  presence  was  the  sharpest  of  all  reflections  on 
the  state  of  the  army  ?     Wolfe  had  confidence  in  the 
fleet  which  was  more  formidable  than  any  England 
had  ever  had,  and  he  took  a  run  to  Portsmouth 
specially  "  to  enjoy  the  dreadful  though  pleasing  sight 
of  our  mighty  navy."     He  was  among  the  first  to 
recognise  what  the  sea  meant  to  England's  safety, 
and  there  was  in  him  none  of  that  petty  jealousy 
which  too  long  made  the  navy  the  rival  rather  than 
the  sister  service.     Admiral  Smith  was  so  posted,  said 
Wolfe  in  December,  as  to  make  any  attempt  on  the 
part  of  the  French  to  land  "  a  little  dangerous,"  and 
he  regretted  that  they  did  not  "  discover  the  same 
degree  of  respect  for  us  " — that  is,  for  the  army. 
"  They  wish  for  nothing  so  much  as  to  be  quietly 
ashore  and  then  to  make  trial  of  our  force,"  but  we 
have  "  some  incomparable  battalions,  the  like  of  which 
cannot,  I'll  venture  to  say,  be  found  in  any  army." 
Which,  one  wonders,  were  the  incomparable  batta- 
lions ?     Wolfe's   general   criticisms   were   so   severe 
that  an  incomparable  battalion  in  his  eyes  must  have 
been  a  very  fine  body  indeed. 
1756.  No  relief  to  the  tension  came  with  the  new  year.     A 

Admiral        supine  ministry  shared  Wolfe's  gloomier  views  as  to 
yng"  the  army,  but  did  nothing  during  all  these  months  to 

improve  its  morale  and  fighting  capacity.    Recruiting 


MINORCA  85 

went  on  with  some  vigour,  but  the  raw  material 
was  not  worked  up  with  the  energy  demanded  by  the 
critical  character  of  the  situation.  Troops  were 
moved  from  place  to  place,  and  the  Guards  were  sent 
to  Dover  much  against  their  inclination,  judging 
from  some  remarks  which  Wolfe  made.  "  Would 
you  believe  that  there  are  many  who  call  themselves 
soldiers,  who,  to  excuse  their  shameful  idleness,  cry 
out  that  they  believe  there  will  be  no  war — no  invasion 
— and  so  act  as  if  they  were  persuaded  of  the  truth  of 
it  ?  "  Dread  of  invasion  made  the  Government 1 
unwilling  to  move  sufficiently  early  or  in  sufficient 
strength  to  save  Minorca.  Instructions  that  Byng's 
force  should  be  supplemented  from  the  Gibraltar 
garrison  were  disobeyed  because  an  attack  by  the 
Spaniards  was  feared.  Byng  gave  battle  to  La 
Galissoniere  off  Port  Mahon,  but  instead  of  pressing 
home  the  advantage  he  gained,  he  retired  to  Gibraltar. 
The  Minorca  garrison  was  doomed,  and  Blakeney,  its 
brave  general,  surrendered  with  the  honours  of  war. 
Byng  was  denounced  as  a  traitor  :  he  was  really  an 
ordinary  individual,  who  could  not  rise  superior  to  the 
official  atmosphere,  and  Wolfe  summed  the  matter  up 
in  a  simple  question  :  "  Are  the  measures  taken  for 
the  relief  of  Minorca  or  the  proceedings  of  our  admiral 
to  be  most  admired  ?  "  "  The  project  of  succouring 
Minorca  and  the  execution  of  the  great  design,"  he 
wrote  to  his  father,  June  27th,  1756,  "  went  hand 
in  hand  successfully  and  may  probably  end  in 
a  disgraceful  peace.  You  are  happy  in  your  infir- 
mity for  'tis  a  disgrace  to  act  in  these  dishonourable 
times."     • 

1  The  Newcastle  Papers  (Add.  MSS.  British  Museum)  are 
full  of  warnings  sent  over  by  the  Government's  secret  agents. 


86  GENERAL  WOLFE 

Wolfe's  Wolfe    grew   so    impatient    under   the    ordeal    of 

tionSna"  national  humiliation  that  whilst  writing  "  the  King 
of  Prussia  (God  bless  him  !)  is  our  only  ally,"  he  added 
fiercely,"  I  am  sorry  that  they  don't  all  unite  against 
us  that  our  strength  might  be  fully  exerted  and  our 
force  known.  I  myself  believe  that  we  are  a  match 
for  the  combined  fleets  of  Europe,  especially  if  our 
admirals  and  generals  were  all  of  the  same  spirit." 
Against  Byng  he  was  as  bitter  as  the  ministers  who 
sheltered  themselves  behind  the  obloquy  which  over- 
whelmed their  servants.  Wolfe,  "  an  eye-witness  of 
the  consequences  of  his  fatal  conduct,"  condemned 
him  on  every  ground  :  "  If  he  did  not  personally 
engage  through  fear  or  declined  it  through  treachery  ; 
or  if  he  went  out  with  instructions  not  to  be  too 
forward  in  relieving  Minorca,  he  deserves  ten  thousand 
deaths.  An  English  admiral  who  accepts  such 
instructions  should  lose  his  head,  but,  alas  !  our 
affairs  are  falling  down  apace."  He  saw  the  country 
going  fast  upon  its  ruin  as  the  result  of  "  paltry 
projects  "  and  the  more  ridiculous  behaviour  of  those 
who  were  entrusted  with  its  government.  Wolfe's 
suggestion  that  the  ministry  by  their  instructions 
might  have  induced  slackness  on  the  part  of  the 
admiral  was  not  justified.  The  suggestion  reflects 
the  state  to  which  the  minds  of  men  had  been  reduced 
by  invertebrate  administration.  The  demoralisation 
was  epidemic  and  few  escaped.  Courts-martial  were 
held  to  condemn  the  past  when  every  nerve  and  every 
muscle  was  wanted  to  assist  the  present.  Byng  was 
shot,  "  pour  encourager  les  mitres,"  as  Voltaire  said, 
and  the  King,  who  refused  to  give  him  the  benefit  of 
mercy  recommended  by  the  court,  inflicted  no 
punishment  on  the  ministers  who  would  have  reaped 


CORNWALLIS   INVOLVED  87 

the  glory  if  he  had  triumphed.  The  Governor  of 
Gibraltar,  Lieut. -Gen.  Fowke,  was  also  court- 
martialled,  and  sentenced  to  dismissal  from  the 
service.  Wolfe  was  one  of  the  court,  and  was  much 
exercised  by  the  fact  that  Cornwallis  had  been  a  party 
to  the  refusal  to  assist  Byng.  Cornwallis  had  caught 
the  general  complaint.  "lam  heartily  sorry  to  find 
him  involved  with  the  rest,  of  whose  abilities  or 
inclinations  nobody  has  any  very  high  notions  ;  but 
Cornwallis  is  a  man  of  approved  courage  and  fidelity. 
He  has  unhappily  been  misled  upon  this  occasion  by 
people  of  not  half  his  value." 

In  the  midst  of  the  excitement  incident  to  the  A  course 
developments  of  a  great  war  Wolfe  found  time  to  pen  of  study, 
a  long  letter  in  response  to  an  appeal  for  advice  as  to 
the  best  course  of  study  for  a  young  officer — Henry 
Townshend.  The  letter  affords  a  clue  to  Wolfe's 
own  studies.  Assuming  that  young  Townshend  was 
master  of  the  Latin  and  French  languages,  and  had 
some  knowledge  of  mathematics,  the  study  of  which 
"  will  greatly  facilitate  his  progress  in  military 
matters,"  Wolfe  continues — 

"As  to  the  books  that  are  fittest  for  his  purpose,  he  may 
begin  with  King  of  Prussia's  Regulations  for  his  Horse  and 
Foot,  where  the  economy  and  good  order  of  an  army  in  the 
lower  branches  are  extremely  well  established.  Then  there 
are  the  Memoirs  of  the  Marquis  de  Santa  Cruz,  Feuquieres, 
and  Montecucculi  ;  Folard's  Commentaries  upon  Polybius, 
the  Projet  de  Tactique,  L'Attaque  et  la  Defense  des  Places, 
par  le  Marechal  de  Vauban,  Les  Mimoires  de  Goulon, 
V Ingenieur  de  Campagne,  le  Sieur  Renie  for  all  that  concerns 
artillery.  Of  the  ancients,  Vegetius,  Caesar,  Thucydides, 
Xenophon's  Life  of  Cyrus  and  Retreat  of  the  Ten  Thousand 
Greeks.  I  do  not  mention  Polybius,  because  the  Commen- 
taries and  the  History  naturally  go  together.  Of  later  days, 
Davila,  Guicciardini,  Strada,  and  the  Memoirs  of  the  Due  de 
Sully.  There  is  an  abundance  of  military  knowledge  to  be 
picked  out  of  the  lives  of  Gustavus  Adolphus,  and  Charles  XII, 


88  GENERAL  WOLFE 

King  of  Sweden,  and  of  Zisca  the  Bohemian,  and  if  a  tolerable 
account  could  be  got  of  the  exploits  of  Scanderbeg,  it  would  be 
inestimable  ;  for  he  excels  all  the  officers,  ancient  and  modern, 
in  the  conduct  of  a  small  defensive  army.  I  met  with  him  in 
the  Turkish  History,  but  nowhere  else.  The  Life  of 
Suetonius,  too,  contains  many  fine  things  in  this  way.  There 
is  a  book  lately  published  that  I  have  heard  commended, 
V Art  de  la  Guerre  Pratique, — I  suppose  it  is  collected  from 
all  the  best  authors  that  treat  of  war  ;  and  there  is  a  little 
volume,  entitled  Traitt  de  la  Petite  Guerre  that  your  brother 
should  take  in  his  pocket  when  he  goes  upon  out-duty  and 
detachments.  The  Marechal  de  Puysequr's  book,  too,  is  in 
esteem. 

"I  believe  Mr.  Townshend  will  think  this  catalogue  long 
enough  ;  and  if  he  has  patience  to  read,  and  desire  to  apply 
(as  I  am  persuaded  he  has),  the  knowledge  contained  in  them, 
there  is  also  wherewithal  to  make  him  a  considerable  person 
in  his  profession,  and  of  course  very  useful  and  serviceable 
to  his  country.  In  general,  the  lives  of  all  great  commanders, 
and  all  good  histories  of  warlike  nations,  will  be  instructive, 
and  lead  him  naturally  to  endeavour  to  imitate  what  he 
must  necessarily  approve  of.  In  these  days  of  scarcity,  and 
in  these  unlucky  times,  it  is  much  to  be  wished  that  all  our 
young  soldiers  of  birth  and  education  would  follow  your 
brother's  steps,  and,  as  they  will  have  their  turn  to  command, 
that  they  would  try  to  make  themselves  fit  for  that  important 
trust  ;  without  it,  we  must  sink  under  the  superior  abilities 
and  indefatigable  industry  of  our  restless  neighbours.  In 
what  a  strange  manner  have  we  conducted  our  affairs  in  the 
Mediterranean.     Quelle  belle  occasion  manque" e  !  " 

Wolfe  watched  the  course  of  events  with  eager 
expectancy,  his  anxieties  being  at  once  professional 
and  patriotic.  Changes,  additions  to,  and  movements 
in  the  army  naturally  were  the  order  of  the  day.  He 
kept  a  sharp  eye  on  appointments  going.  "  If  any 
soldier  is  preferred  when  my  time  comes  I  shall 
acquaint  the  Secretary  of  War  that  I  am  sensible  of  the 
injury  that  is  done  me,  and  will  take  the  earliest 
opportunity  to  put  it  out  of  his  or  any  man's  power 
to  repeat  it.  Not  while  the  war  lasts  ;  for  if  500 
younger  officers  one  after  another  were  to  rise  before 


WOLFE'S  TEMPTATION  89 

me  I  should  continue  to  move  with  the  utmost  dili- 
gence, to  acquit  myself  to  the  country,  and  to  show 
the  ministers  that  they  had  acted  unjustly.  But 
I  flatter  myself  that  I  shall  never  be  forced  to  these 
disagreeable  measures."  What  Mr.  Bradley  calls 
"  a  great  temptation  "  came  Wolfe's  way  within  a 
few  weeks  of  writing  the  words  just  quoted.  His 
friends'  exertions  to  secure  him  some  more  profitable 
post  than  that  of  lieutenant-colonel  of  Foot  brought 
an  offer  from  the  Duke  of  Bedford,  Lord-Lieutenant 
of  Ireland,  of  the  offices  of  Barrackmaster-General 
and  Quartermaster-General  of  Ireland.  Highly 
sensible  of  the  honour  done  him,  Wolfe  accepted  on 
one  condition — that  he  was  made  colonel.  If  the 
rank  of  colonel  were  not  given  him  he  would  return  to 
his  battalion  immediately,  or  prefer  to  take  service 
with  the  King  of  Prussia  in  the  great  war  in  which 
British  troops  apparently  were  not  to  be  employed. 
The  King  thought  Wolfe's  "  short  service  "  would 
not  justify  his  promotion  ;  fresh  efforts  were,  how- 
ever, to  be  made  to  induce  His  Majesty  to  grant 
Wolfe's  claim,  and  in  the  delay  the  chance  of  service 
came.  His  pretension  had  saved  him  from  being 
side-tracked  at  a  critical  moment  ;  his  acceptance  of 
the  Irish  appointment  unconditionally  might  have 
changed  the  history  of  the  British  Empire.  So  much 
may  depend  on  the  ear  man  lends  to  the  call  to  greater 
things  ;    so  is  ambition  justified. 


CHAPTER  VII 

THE   FAILURES   OF    1757 

When  Pitt  came  back  to  office  in  1757  he  came  to 
power  also.  For  the  first  time  he  found  himself  able 
to  put  a  policy  into  force  without  serious  opposition. 
He  had  England  at  his  back.  He  was  restored  in 
response  to  the  people's  emphatic  demand  ;  it  was 
said  of  him  that  he  was  a  minister  given  by  the  people 
to  the  nation.  Chesterfield's  despondent  view  "  We 
are  no  longer  a  nation  "  was  disproved.  The  people, 
as  opposed  to  the  King,  the  place-hunters,  the 
Parliamentarians,  at  least  showed  themselves  a  nation 
in  their  insistence  that  they  should  be  led  by  one  who 
was  self-reliant  and  purposeful  as  he  was  fearless  and 
incorruptible.  After  a  period  of  intrigue  and  recrimi- 
nation which  make  the  domestic  political  record 
almost  as  complicated  a  tangle  as  European  diplo- 
macy after  the  death  of  Charles  VI,  England,  so  long 
in  labour,  as  the  King  of  Prussia  put  it,  had  at  last 
brought  forth  a  man.  Pitt  was  the  very  antipodes 
of  Walpole  in  conviction  and  temperament,  as  both 
were  head  and  shoulders  above  their  contemporaries 
in  their  own  lines  of  statesmanship.  Pitt,  to  adapt 
Johnson's  gibe  about  Chesterfield,  was  a  man  among 
kings  and  a  king  among  men.  His  insight,  as  Mr. 
Fortescue  says,  pierced  the  heart  of  things ;  he 
compassed  great  designs  ;  his  enthusiasm  kindled 
the  energy  of  subordinates,  broke  down  the  opposition 
of  permanent  officials,  and  carried  his  country  forward 
on  "  an  irresistible  wave  of  patriotic  sentiment."1 

1  A  History  of  the  British  Army,  vol.  iii,  p.  248. 

90 


HIGHLANDERS  AS  BRITISH  SOLDIERS      91 

Pitt  dared  where  other  men  hesitated.  Indecision,  Decisive 
the  bane  of  empire,  was  as  unknown  to  him  as  action. 
physical  fear  to  James  Wolfe,  one  of  the  instruments 
by  which  he  ultimately  lifted  the  whole  English  race 
to  the  proudest  pitch  of  self-consciousness.  During 
his  few  months  in  office  with  the  Duke  of  Devonshire 
he  set  the  chords  vibrating.  He  sent  back  to  Ger- 
many the  foreign  mercenaries  who  were  an  hourly 
reminder  to  the  Briton  of  his  inability  to  defend 
hearth  and  home,  and  undertook  to  raise  a  national 
militia  which,  without  doing  violence  to  prejudices 
against  a  standing  army,  should  provide  a  ready  and 
reputable  means  of  self-defence.  He  took  a  more 
courageous  step.  He  gave  instructions  that  a  couple 
of  battalions  of  Highlanders  should  be  formed  for 
Imperial  service.  It  would  be  interesting  to  know 
with  whom  originated  the  idea  of  turning  the  gallant 
Scots  so  recently  England's  bitter  enemies,  into 
British  soldiers.  Duncan  Forbes  of  Culloden  some 
years  before  the  '45,  urged  Walpole  to  make  the 
experiment ; x  Wolfe  we  know  proposed  it  in  his 
letter  to  Rickson  in  1751  ;  the  plan  was  laid  before 
Pitt  by  Lord  Albemarle,  Wolfe's  late  colonel,  who 
received  it  from  the  Duke  of  Cumberland  ; 2  not 
impossibly,  therefore,  its  authorship  might  be  traced 
to  Wolfe  himself,  as  Wright  believes.  The  impor- 
tance of  the  departure,  the  very  greatness  of  the  idea, 
is  emphasised  by  the  disapproval  of  the  Duke  of 
Newcastle,  Pitt's  nominal  chief.  To  crown  all  in  this 
scheme   for   creating  loyal   soldiers   out   of   broken 

1  G.  M.  Wrong  :    A   Canadian  Manor  and  its  Seigneurs, 
p.  23. 

3  Almon  :    Anecdotes   of  the  Earl   of  Chatham,   3rd  Ed., 
vol.  i,  p.  299. 


tunes. 


92  GENERAL  WOLFE 

enemies,  Simon  Fraser,  Master  of  Lovat,  the  son  of 
the  Simon  Fraser  whose  treachery  cost  him  his 
head,  was  entrusted  with  the  raising  of  a  regiment. 
The  timorous  quaked  ;  the  over-cautious  shook  their 
heads  ;  and  the  experiment  was  soon  to  prove  that 
neither  fear  nor  prejudice  but  downright  solid 
conviction,  directed  to  an  end  which  is  as  a  fixed 
target,  provides  the  pillars  of  success. 
A  series  of  When  Pitt  said  there  was  only  one  man  who  could 
™nl°r"  save  England  and  that  man  was  himself  he  made  no 
idle  boast  ;  he  gauged  his  own  powers  as  surely  as  he 
gauged  the  powers  of  others.  In  his  efforts  to  work 
with  the  men  immediately  available  he  failed  to 
accomplish  much.  If  1756  was  a  demoralising  year, 
1757  would  have  taken  the  country  to  still  lower 
depths  but  for  the  superb  qualities  of  endurance  of 
this  one  man.  From  every  quarter  save  one  came 
the  same  story :  incompetence,  inertia,  defeat. 
Clive  alone  struck  home,  and  at  Plassey  laid  deep  the 
foundations  of  British  Empire  in  the  East.  Else- 
where British  enterprise  miscarried.  The  Duke  of 
Cumberland  was  defeated  by  the  French  at  Kloster- 
zeven ;  the  French  in  America  under  Montcalm 
captured  Fort  William  Henry  and  added  a  shocking 
chapter  to  the  story  of  the  struggle  for  empire  in 
which  the  savage  has  taken  part ;  Lord  Loudon  and 
Admiral  Holborne  set  out  bravely  to  recapture 
Louisbourg,  and  were  so  impressed  with  its  formidable 
works  and  the  fleet  in  its  splendid  harbour  that  they 
retired  without  firing  a  shot,  and  an  expedition  sent 
under  Admiral  Hawke  and  Sir  John  Mor daunt  to 
harry  the  French  coast  returned  with  one  feeble  fort 
to  its  account  instead  of  a  record  of  Rochefort  and 
Havre  and  other  places  laid  under  heavy  contribution. 


WOLFE'S  NEW  POST  93 

Who  but  Pitt  could  have  withstood  such  a  series  of 
harassing  and  contemptible  failures  ? 

Wolfe  was  with  the  abortive  Rochefort  expedition,  The 
and  it  happens  that  it  serves  as  a  fine  example  alike  R°chefort 
of  the  methods  then  thought  adequate  to  the  mainte- 
nance of  Britain's  naval  and  military  reputation,  of 
the  manner  in  which  Wolfe  stood  out  from  the 
general  rut,  and  of  the  sure  instinct  with  which  Pitt 
discovered  the  men  who  could  execute  his  high 
commands.  The  expedition  was  to  be  a  joint  naval 
and  military  affair ;  Sir  John  Mordaunt,  by  the 
King's  wish,  was  placed  at  the  head  of  ten  thousand 
men  who  were  assembled  on  the  Isle  of  Wight ;  the 
Hon.  H.  S.  Conway  and  Cornwallis  were  respectively 
second  and  third  in  command,  and  Wolfe,  who  was 
appointed  Quartermaster-General,  came  fourth. 
Horace  Walpole,  who  was  Conway's  relative  and  great 
admirer,  said  of  Wolfe  on  this  occasion,  "  The  world 
could  not  expect  more  from  him  than  he  thought 
himself  capable  of  performing.  He  looked  upon 
danger  as  the  favourable  moment  that  would  call 
forth  his  talents."  Walpole  was  more  correct  in  that 
judgment  than  in  a  good  many.  If  Pitt  proclaimed 
himself  the  one  man  to  save  the  country,  Wolfe 
conceivably  would  have  advanced  the  rider  "  And 
I  am  the  one  man  who  can  be  trusted  to  carry  out 
your  orders."  However,  Wolfe  was  quite  happy  : 
there  was  fighting  to  be  done  and  he  was  to  be  with 
his  old  friend  Mordaunt.  The  troops  were  ready 
long  before  the  transports.  Instead  of  sailing  in 
August  they  did  not  get  off  till  the  8th  of  September, 
owing  to  the  misconduct  of  certain  contractors.  No 
one  knew  the  destination  of  the  force  until  it  was 
at  sea.     When  Hawke  opened  his  sealed  orders  he 


94 


GENERAL  WOLFE 


Mordaunt's 
instruc- 
tions. 


found  that  he  was  to  make  for  Rochefort.  Informa- 
tion had  reached  Pitt  through  a  Captain  Clark  who 
had  recently  been  travelling  on  the  west  coast  of 
France  that  Rochefort  was  so  ill-prepared  for  defence 
that  it  might  be  taken  by  a  coup  de  main. 

Pitt  saw  here  an  opportunity  for  creating  a  diversion 
in  the  interests  of  Prussia  at  the  same  time  that  he  did 
something  to  cripple  the  naval  position  of  France. 
Sir  John  Mordaunt's  instructions  were  to  assist  the 
vigorous  prosecution  of  this  "  just  war  "  by  an  attack 
on  the  French  coast,  it  being  expedient  and  of  urgent 
necessity  to  cause  a  diversion  and  disturb  the  credit 
of  the  enemy  in  Europe.  The  Government  were 
persuaded  that  nothing  could  more  speedily  and 
effectually  annoy  and  distress  France  than  the 
destruction  of  docks,  shipping,  magazines,  and 
arsenals.  After  Rochefort,  if  the  condition  of  the 
fleet  permitted,  Sir  John  Mordaunt  was  to  turn  his 
attention  to  other  places  with  as  much  rapidity  as 
possible  in  order  to  create  "  a  warm  alarm  along  the 
maritime  provinces  of  France."  There  was  every 
prospect  of  five  or  six  weeks'  sharp  work  here,  but 
unfortunately  the  instructions  also  provided  for  the 
holding  of  councils  of  war,  and  councils  of  war 
invariably  mean  resolutions  embodying  cumulative 
caution  rather  than  cumulative  courage.  The  expedi- 
tion speedily  became  a  farce,  and  a  very  melancholy 
farce  for  poor  Wolfe.  In  the  Bay  of  Biscay  he 
suffered  tortures.  Arrived  off  the  Isle  of  Oleron  on 
the  20th  September,  the  expedition  spent  two  days 
in  futility  before  Captain  Howe  in  the  Magnanime 
attacked  a  fort  on  the  Isle  of  Aix,  which  he  reduced 
with  an  ease  that  should  have  been  an  encouragement 
to  other  captains.     The  force  which  took  possession 


CONTRARY  COUNCILS  95 

of  the  island  behaved  disgracefully,  to  Wolfe's  infinite 
disgust.  The  English,  knowing  little  how  to  win 
battles,  seemed  to  have  forgotten  how  to  behave 
in  the  hour  of  victory,  however  insignificant  that 
victory  might  be. 

On  the  23rd  Hawke  sent  out  a  reconnoitring  Councils  of 
party  up  the  river  with  a  view  to  a  landing  and  two  war- 
more  days  were  lost.  Wolfe  himself,  by  special 
permission  of  his  chief,  had  already  examined  the 
position  and  made  a  report  on  which  both  Hawke 
and  Mordaunt  were  prepared  to  act.  But  Conway 
had  been  interviewing  certain  prisoners,  and  their 
not  wholly  disinterested  representations  were  not  in 
accord  with  Wolfe's  ideas.  The  attempt  would  be 
full  of  hazard,  and  a  council  of  war,  at  which  Wolfe, 
of  course,  was  not  present,  declared  the  project  to  be 
impracticable  and  inadvisable  if  practicable.  Part 
of  a  naval  force  sent  to  bombard  Rochefort  got 
aground  with  some  bomb-ketches,  and  when  events 
lent  colour  to  Conway's  view,  it  was  suddenly  decided 
to  act  on  Wolfe's.  Troops  were  ordered  to  be  in 
readiness  to  land,  and  another  council  of  war  decided 
that  they  should  attempt  the  "  impracticable  "  and 
the  "  inadvisable."  On  the  28th  the  landing  was  to 
take  place  after  dark ;  the  men  were  crowded  into 
boats  which  were  tossed  about  for  hours  whilst 
waiting  for  the  order  to  go,  and  at  last  the  order  came 
— to  return  to  the  ships  ! 

If  this  were  not  well-attested  history  it  would  be  Wolfe's 
incredible.     Hawke  grew  impatient,  refused  to  attend  seyere 
any  more  councils  of  war,  and  the  whole  force  returned  cnticism" 
to  England  less  than  a  month  after  it  started,  having 
done   nothing.     It   is   pretty   certain   that   it  might 
have  done  everything  required  of  it  if  there  had  been 


96  GENERAL  WOLFE 

any  enterprise  on  the  part  of  Mordaunt,  Conway  or 
Cornwallis,  and  we  know  from  French  memoirs  of 
the  time  with  what  apprehension  even  the  smallest 
success  was  anticipated.  The  historian  who  fixes 
his  attention  on  the  military  side  only  says  that  on 
the  whole  the  troops  were  sent  on  a  fool's  errand, 
that  Pitt  was  solely  to  blame,  and  that  "  military 
opinion  was  against  the  expedition  from  the  first."  x 
The  utter  inability  of  the  great  bulk  of  contemporary 
military  opinion  to  rise  to  the  level  of  Pitt's  concep- 
tion of  the  strategic  needs  of  an  empire  based  on  the 
sea  could  not  be  more  concisely  stated.  Wolfe  took 
a  very  different  view  both  as  to  the  military  operations 
themselves  and  the  nature  of  the  errand.  2  He  told 
his  mother  that  he  was  ashamed  to  have  been  of  the 
party.  "  The  public  could  not  do  better  than 
dismiss  some  six  or  eight  of  us  from  the  service  :  no 
zeal,  no  ardour,  no  care  or  concern  for  the  good  and 
honour  of  the  country."  To  his  uncle  Walter  he 
wrote  a  full  and  particular  account  of  the  affair  in 
which  he  described  how  "  the  lucky  moment  in  war  " 
was  lost  beyond  recovery — 

"  '  Nous  avons  manqui  un  beau  coup,'  as  the  French  prisoners 
told  us,  after  we  had  loitered  away  three  or  four  days  in 
consultations,  deliberations,  and  councils  of  war.  The 
season  of  the  year  and  nature  of  the  enterprise  called  for  the 
quickest  and  most  vigorous  execution,  whereas  our  proceed- 
ings were  quite  otherwise.  We  were  in  sight  of  the  Isle  of 
Rhe  the  20th  September,  consequently  were  seen  by  the 
enemy  (as  their  signals  left  us  no  room  to  doubt),  and  it  was 
the  23rd  before  we  fired  a  gun.  That  afternoon  and  night 
slipped  through  our  hands, — the  lucky  moment  of  confusion 
and  consternation  among  our  enemies.     The  24th,  Admirals 

1  Fortescue  :   History  of  the  British  Army,  vol.  ii,  p.  38. 

a  Lord  Chesterfield  to  his  son  :  "  Your  friend  Colonel 
Wolfe  publicly  offered  to  do  the  business  with  500  men  and 
three  ships  only."     Correspondence  of  Chatham,  vol.  i,  p.  279. 


A  GREAT  CHANCE  LOST  97 

and  Generals  consult  together,  and  resolve  upon  nothing 
between  them  but  to  hold  a  council  of  war.  The  25th,  this 
famous  council  sat  from  morning  till  late  at  night,  and  the 
result  of  the  debates  was  unanimously  not  to  attack  the  place 
they  were  ordered  to  attack,  and  for  reasons  that  no  soldier 
will  allow  to  be  sufficient.  The  26th, — the  Admiral  sends  a 
message  to  the  General,  intimating  that  if  they  did  not 
determine  to  do  something  there  he  would  go  to  another 
place.  The  27th, — the  Generals  and  Admiral  view  the  land 
with  glasses,  and  agree  upon  a  second  council  of  war,  having 
by  this  time  discovered  their  mistake.  The  28th, — they 
deliberate,  and  resolve  to  land  that  night.  Orders  are  issued 
out  accordingly,  but  the  wind  springing  up  after  the  troops 
had  been  two  or  three  hours  in  the  boats,  the  officers  of  the 
navy  declare  it  difficult  and  dangerous  to  attempt  the  landing. 
The  troops  are  commanded  back  to  their  transports,  and  so 
ended  the  expedition  1  The  true  state  of  the  case  is,  that  our 
sea-officers  do  not  care  to  be  engaged  in  any  business  of  this 
sort,  where  little  is  to  be  had  but  blows  and  reputation  ;  and 
the  officers  of  the  infantry  are  so  profoundly  ignorant,  that 
an  enterprise  of  any  vigour  astonishes  them  to  that  degree 
that  they  have  not  strength  of  mind  nor  confidence  to  carry 
it  through. 

"  I  look  upon  this  as  the  greatest  design  that  the  nation  has 
engaged  in  for  many  years,  and  it  must  have  done  honour  to 
us  all  if  the  execution  had  answered  the  intentions  of  the 
projector.  The  Court  of  Versailles,  and  the  whole  French 
nation,  were  alarmed  beyond  measure.  '  Les  Anglais  onl 
attrapS  notre  foible,'  disent-ils.  Alas  !  we  have  only  discovered 
our  own.  I  see  no  remedy,  for  we  have  no  officers  from  the  The  officers 
commander-in-chief  down  to  Mr.  Webb  and  Lord  Howe  ;  responsible 
and  the  navy  list  is  not  much  better.  If  they  would  even 
blunder  on  and  fight  a  little,  making  some  amends  to  the 
public  by  their  courage  for  their  want  of  skill  ;  but  this 
excessive  degree  of  caution,  or  whatever  name  it  deserves, 
leaves  exceeding  bad  impressions  among  the  troops,  who,  to 
do  them  justice,  upon  this  occasion  showed  all  the  signs  of 
spirit  and  goodwill." 

This  last  opinion  notwithstanding,  he  could  not 
forget  the  shameful  exhibition  on  the  Isle  of  Aix. 
Caustic  at  the  expense  of  the  egregious  blunderers 
"  on  both  sides — sea  and  land,"  and  ready  to  recog- 
nise the  desire  for  employment  of  common  soldier 

8— (2213) 


98 


GENERAL  WOLFE 


Wolfe's 
"  golden 
utterance ' 


and  common  sailor  alike,  Wolfe,  writing  to  his  father, 
expressed  the  hope  that  "  these  disappointments 
won't  affect  their  courage  ;  nothing  I  think  can  affect 
their  discipline — it  is  at  its  worst.  They  shall  drink 
and  swear,  plunder  and  massacre  with  any  troops  in 
Europe,  the  Cossacks  and  Calmucks  themselves  not 
excepted  ;  with  this  difference  that  they  have  not 
quite  so  violent  an  appetite  for  blood  and  bonfires." 
For  Rickson's  benefit  he  elaborated  a  series  of 
axioms,  which  show  how  he  endeavoured  to  turn  even 
failure  to  account.  Mr.  Corbett  describes  this  letter 
as  a  "  priceless  document."  Amidst  so  much 
recrimination  there  stands  out  this  "  one  golden  utter- 
ance "  from  the  pen  of  Wolfe,  who  gathered  from  the 
failure  "  all  the  lessons  it  could  teach,  laid  them 
quietly  to  his  heart,  and  wove  from  them  to  his  lasting 
honour  the  reputation  of  being  the  greatest  master 
of  combined  warfare  the  world  had  seen  since  Drake 
took  the  art  from  its  swaddling  clothes."1  Here  is 
the  letter — 

"  One  may  always  pick  up  something  useful  from  amongst 
the  most  fatal  errors.  I  have  found  out  that  an  Admiral 
should  endeavour  to  run  into  an  enemy's  port  immediately 
after  he  appears  before  it  ;  that  he  should  anchor  the  trans- 
port-ships and  frigates  as  close  as  he  can  to  the  land  ;  that 
he  should  reconnoitre  and  observe  it  as  quick  as  possible, 
and  lose  no  time  in  getting  the  troops  on  shore  ;  that  previous 
directions  should  be  given  in  respect  to  landing  the  troops, 
and  a  proper  disposition  made  for  the  boats  of  all  sorts, 
appointing  leaders  and  fit  persons  for  conducting  the  different 
divisions.  On  the  other  hand,  experience  shows  me  that, 
in  an  affair  depending  upon  vigour  and  dispatch,  the  Generals 
should  settle  their  plan  of  operations,  so  that  no  time  may  be 
lost  in  idle  debate  and  consultations  when  the  sword  should 
be  drawn  ;  that  pushing  on  smartly  is  the  road  to  success,  and 
more  particularly  so  in  an  affair  of  this  nature  ;  that  nothing 
is  to  be  reckoned  an  obstacle  to  your  undertaking  which  is 


1   England  in  the  Seven   Years'  War,  vol.  i,  p.  221. 


THE  LESSON   WOLFE   LEARNT 


99 


not  found  really  so  upon  trial ;  that  in  war  something  must 
be  allowed  to  chance  and  fortune,  seeing  it  is  in  its  nature 
hazardous,  and  an  option  of  difficulties  ;  that  the  greatness 
of  an  object  should  come  under  consideration,  opposed  to 
the  impediments  that  lie  in  the  way  ;  that  the  honour  of 
one's  country  is  to  have  some  weight  ;  and  that,  in  particular 
circumstances  and  times,  the  loss  of  a  thousand  men  is  rather 
an  advantage  to  a  nation  than  otherwise,  seeing  that  gallant 
attempts  raise  its  reputation  and  make  it  respectable  ; 
whereas  the  contrary  appearances  sink  the  credit  of  a  country, 
ruin  the  troops,  and  create  infinite  uneasiness  and  discontent 
at  home. 

"  I  know  not  what  to  say,  my  dear  Rickson,  or  how  to 
account  for  our  proceedings,  unless  I  own  to  you  that  there 
never  was  people  collected  together  so  unfit  for  the  business 
they  were  sent  upon — dilatory,  ignorant,  irresolute,  and  some 
grains  of  a  very  unmanly  quality,  and  very  unsoldier-like 
or  unsailor-like.  I  have  already  been  too  imprudent  ;  I  have 
said  too  much,  and  people  make  me  say  ten  times  more  than 
I  ever  uttered  ;  therefore,  repeat  nothing  out  of  my  letter, 
nor  name  my  name  as  author  of  any  one  thing.  The  whole 
affair  turned  upon  the  impracticability  of  escalading  Roche- 
fort  ;  and  the  two  evidences  brought  to  prove  that  the  ditch 
was  wet  (in  opposition  to  the  assertions  of  the  chief  engineer, 
who  had  been  in  the  place),  are  persons  to  whom,  in  my  mind, 
very  little  credit  should  be  given  ;  without  these  evidences 
we  should  have  landed,  and  must  have  marched  to  Rochefort, 
and  it  is  my  opinion  that  the  place  would  have  surrendered, 
or  have  been  taken,  in  forty-eight  hours.  It  is  certain  that 
there  was  nothing  in  all  that  country  to  oppose  9,000  good 
Foot, — a  million  of  Protestants,  upon  whom  it  is  necessary 
to  keep  a  strict  eye,  so  that  the  garrison  could  not  venture 
to  assemble  against  us,  and  no  troops,  except  the  militia, 
within  any  moderate  distance  of  these  parts.  Little 
practice  in  war,  ease  and  convenience  at  home,  great  incomes, 
and  no  wants,  with  no  ambition  to  stir  to  action,  are  not  the 
instruments  to  work  a  successful  war  withal  ;  I  see  no 
prospect  of  better  deeds.  I  know  not  where  to  look  for  them, 
or  from  whom  we  may  expect  them.  Many  handsome  things 
would  have  been  done  by  the  troops  had  they  been  permitted 
to  act." 


The   wrong 
instru- 
ments. 


Quite  in  keeping  with  the  spirit  of  the  proceedings  Fixing 
before  Rochefort,  each  of  the  two  services  impartially  lMS-?£nsi" 
attempted  to  fix  responsibility  on  the  other.     An  " 


100  GENERAL  WOLFE 

official  inquiry  before  which  Wolfe  had  to  appear 
wrung  from  him  the  comment :  "  Better  and  more 
honourable  for  the  country  if  one  half  of  us  had  gone 
the  road  of  mortality  together  than  to  be  plagued 
with  inquiries  and  censures  and  the  cry  of  the  world." 
The  officers  who  held  the  inquiry  decided  that  if 
Wolfe's  plan  had  been  adopted  ''  it  must  certainly 
have  been  of  the  greatest  utility "  towards  the 
attainment  of  the  object  in  view.  General  Mordaunt 
was  then  tried  by  court-martial  ;  no  special  blame 
was  attached  to  anyone,  "  so  that  this  grand  expedi- 
tion miscarried  without  a  cause " * — a  fittingly 
illogical  conclusion  to  the  whole  business.  "  And 
there,"  to  quote  Wolfe's  own  words,  which  he 
described  as  "  insolent,"  "  ended  the  reputation  of 
three  bad  generals."  Two  people  at  least  kept 
Wolfe's  record  at  this  time  in  mind  :  one  was  Horace 
Walpole,  who  hated  him  for  the  reflections  his 
evidence  had  cast  on  Conway,  the  other  was  Pitt. 
To  make  assurance  doubly  sure  no  less  a  person  than 
Admiral  Hawke  drew  attention  to  Wolfe's  conduct. 
Within  a  fortnight  of  his  return  to  England  Wolfe 
heard  that  the  King  had  been  pleased  to  give  him 
the  rank  of  colonel.  Only  four  days  previously  he 
had  announced  his  surrender  of  the  Irish  appoint- 
ment, but  in  response  to  representations  from  influ- 
ential quarters  he  held  his  hand,  though  he  persisted 
that  he  would  not  go  to  Ireland  in  any  case  without 
his  colonelcy.  Now  that  he  had  got  the  step  he 
wanted — a  step  he  prized  all  the  more  because  it 
followed  on  the  Rochefort  fiasco — he  was  not  to  take 
up  the  Irish  post.  He  soon  learned  that  he  was  wanted 

1  John  Campbell :   Naval  History  of  Great  Britain,  vol.  iv, 
p.  373. 


THE  CAMPAIGN   OF   1758  101 

elsewhere,    and   for   a   bigger   if  less   remunerative 
enterprise. 

Pitt  was  spurred  to  greater  efforts  than  ever  by  Pitt's 
the  mishaps  of  the  past  year.  It  was  not  his  habit  Plans* 
to  bring  new  mischiefs  on  by  mourning  those  that 
were  past  and  gone.  His  plans  grew  bigger  as  the 
rebuffs  multiplied,  and  he  faced  his  country's  enemies 
in  exactly  the  same  spirit  that  he  had  faced  his 
personal  enemies  in  Parliament  for  so  many  years. 
He  set  himself  now  not  merely  to  defeat  the  French, 
but  on  and  beyond  the  seas  to  break  them  altogether. 
In  America  they  were  making  steady  headway. 
They  must  be  driven  out  and  never  again  be  allowed 
to  enter.  His  plan  of  campaign  was  triple  in  char- 
acter. He  would  send  three  expeditions,  one  to 
take  Fort  Duquesne,  one  to  Ticonderoga  and  Crown 
Point,  and  one  to  Louisbourg,  the  three  working  up 
to  the  grand  finale  at  Quebec.  He  recalled  Loudon 
and  appointed  Abercromby,  who  proved  to  be  no 
better  than  Loudon,  to  the  command  of  his  Majesty's 
forces  in  America,  giving  him  as  brigadier  Lord  Howe, 
one  of  the  best  officers  in  the  army,  from  whom  Wolfe 
expected  "  handsome  performances."  If  Howe  had 
been  appointed  to  command  the  Ticonderoga  expedi- 
tion instead  of  Abercromby  the  initial  performance 
would  have  been  very  different.  As  it  was, 
Abercromby  suffered  a  serious  reverse,  and  Lord 
Howe,  "  a  complete  model  of  military  virtue  in  all 
its  branches,"  as  Pitt  said,  was  sacrificed.  Pitt  had 
not  yet  weeded  out  all  the  incompetents  in  command. 
For  the  Duquesne  expedition  he  selected  Forbes,  a 
young  officer  whose  abilities  were  in  inverse  ratio 
to  his  health,  and  ill  as  he  was,  Forbes  drove  the 
French  from  the  fort  after  a  most  arduous  expedition. 


102 


GENERAL  WOLFE 


Preparing 

for 

Louisbourg. 


The  attack  on  Louisbourg,  the  big  job  of  the  three, 
was  to  be  led  by  Lord  Amherst,  whom  Pitt  summoned 
from  Germany.  With  Amherst,  Wolfe  was  to  go  as 
brigadier.  In  the  command  of  the  fleet  wh'ch  was 
to  co-operate,  was  placed  Admiral  the  Hon.  Edward 
Boscawen.  Preparations  were  hurried  forward,  and 
Wolfe  in  Exeter,  on  January  7th,  1758,  received  a 
letter  which  brought  him  to  town  post-haste.  Riding 
through  the  night,  he  accomplished  the  distance,  170 
miles,  in  twenty  hours.  For  the  next  fortnight  he 
was  busy  fixing  up  his  personal  and  professional 
affairs,  and  by  the  end  of  the  month  he  expected  to 
be  at  sea.  How  he  looked  forward  to  the  time  when 
possibly  he  might  be  able  to  take  a  voyage  without 
enduring  inexpressible  pain — pain  which  was  not 
lessened  by  the  consciousness  that  dignity  and  sea- 
sickness are  incompatible.  During  the  interval  in 
London,  he  made  Blackheath  his  head-quarters  ; 
his  parents,  whose  health  occasioned  him  much 
concern,  were  at  Bath,  and  there  was  no  cheery 
send-off.  His  letters  do  not,  however,  suggest  that 
he  was  very  miserable.  Work  is  misery's  antidote, 
and  Wolfe  had  plenty  to  do.  Two  references 
in  his  correspondence  with  his  mother  have 
some  bearing  on  his  ideas  as  to  his  future  :  one 
is  to  the  youngest  of  his  mother's  neighbours 
at  Bath,  probably  the  Miss  Lowther  who  was  to  take 
the  place  of  Miss  Lawson  in  his  heart  ;  the  other, 
dated  the  25th  January,  is  this :  "Of  late,  no 
thought  of  matrimony ;  I  have  no  objection  to 
it  but  differ  much  from  the  general  opinion  about 
it.  The  greatest  consideration  with  me  is  the 
woman,  her  education  and  temper.  Rank  and 
fortune  never  come  into   any  competition  with  the 


PORTSMOUTH  TO  HALIFAX  103 

person.  Any  bargain  on  that  affair  is  base  and 
mean.  I  could  not  with  any  satisfaction  consider 
my  children  as  the  produce  of  such  an  unnatural 
union." 

Wolfe  left  for  Portsmouth  on  the  1st  February,  Portsmouth 
and  was  impatient  as  usual  to  be  off.  On  the  11th  in  I757« 
he  wrote  to  his  mother  :  "  Delays  are  not  only  pro- 
ductive of  bad  consequences,  but  are  very  tiresome 
and  very  inconvenient,  as  every  unhappy  person  whose 
lot  is  to  be  confined  for  any  time  to  this  place  can 
certify.  The  want  of  company  and  of  amusement 
can  be  supplied  with  books  and  exercise,  but  the 
necessity  of  living  in  the  midst  of  the  diabolical 
citizens  of  Portsmouth  is  a  real  and  unavoidable 
calamity.  It  is  a  doubt  to  me  if  there  is  such  another 
collection  of  demons  upon  the  whole  earth.  Vice, 
however,  wears  so  ugly  a  garb  that  it  disgusts  rather 
than  tempts. ' '  Wolfe  was  not  sparing  in  his  criticisms 
of  the  places  in  which  he  found  himself .  On  the  12th 
he  went  on  board  the  Princess  Amelia;  three  days 
later  he  was  at  sea,  and  by  the  22nd  he  was  off 
Plymouth  Sound  in  such  bad  weather  that  one 
important  vessel  was  wrecked  on  a  sandbank.  It  was 
six  weeks  before  the  fleet  reached  Halifax.  "  From 
Christopher  Columbus'  time  to  our  days  there  perhaps 
has  never  been  a  more  extraordinary  voyage.  The 
continual  opposition  of  contrary  winds,  calms  or 
currents  baffled  all  our  skill  and  wore  out  all  our 
patience."1  What  a  place  Halifax  must  have  been 
to  Brigadier  James  Wolfe  :  full  of  activity  and 
excitement,  with    ships   and   troops  gathered  from 

1  Letter  to  Lord  George  Sackville  :  His.  MSS.  Com.,  IX, 
iii,  p.  74.  Von  Ruville  (vol.  ii,  p.  257)  mistakes  this  voyage 
of  1758  for  that  of  1759. 


104 


GENERAL  WOLFE 


Wolfe's 
"  amphi- 
bious 
scheme. ' ' 


many  parts  in  readiness  for  the  grand  coup  to  be 
delivered  at  Louisbourg. 

Admiral  Boscawen  was  indefatigable  on  the  naval 
side,  and  the  army  only  awaited  the  arrival  of  General 
Amherst.  In  conformity  with  instructions  from  Pitt, 
Boscawen  and  Governor  Lawrence  in  the  interval 
proceeded  to  devise  a  plan  for  the  reduction  of  the 
fortress.  The  plan  adopted  was  probably  Wolfe's  : 
"  it  was  elaborate  and  strongly  redolent  of  his  theory 
of  combined  operations,"  says  Mr.  Corbett. 1  "  The 
general  idea,  as  always  with  him,  was  based  on  the 
advantage  of  their  amphibious  flexibility.  Wolfe, 
with  three  battalions  of  his  favourite  Light  Infantry, 
was  to  land  in  Mire  Bay,  about  ten  miles  to  the  north 
of  Louisbourg,  and  to  march  thence  towards  Gabarus 
Bay  with  the  intention  presumably  of  taking  in 
reverse  the  landing-place  at  Cormorant  Cove  which 
the  French  had  now  strongly  entrenched."  Monckton 
was  to  descend  on  a  cove  between  Louisbourg  and 
Mire  Bay,  Boscawen  with  his  fleet  was  to  demonstrate 
at  the  mouth  of  the  harbour,  and  a  third  force  was  to 
slip  ashore  at  Gabarus  Bay  beyond  the  French  works. 
"  Nothing,"  wrote  Wolfe  to  Lord  Sackville  on  May 
24th,  "  is  yet  fixed  nor  will  be  till  we  see  the  object 
[objective],  and  perhaps  General  Amherst  may  arrive 
in  the  meanwhile,  time  enough  to  improve  the  present 
plan."2  Amherst  did  arrive  in  time.  He  sighted 
Halifax  on  the  28th,  the  very  day  that  Boscawen  put 
to  sea,  and  Wolfe's  plan  did  not  commend  itself  to  him. 
"  We  can  well  believe  that  the  division  of  force  which 
it  entailed  and  which  was  always  the  essence  of 
Wolfe's  conduct  of  amphibious  operations  was  rank 


1  England  in  the  Seven    Years'  War,  vol.  i,  p.  318. 

2  His.  MSS.  Com.  IX,  iii,  p.  75. 


AMHERST  AND  WOLFE  105 

heresy  to  a  Continental  strategist." 1  The  very  spirit 
of  originality  in  Wolfe's  scheme  was  enough  to  give 
Amherst  pause.  There  was  none  better  than  Amherst 
on  conventional  lines,  and  there  was  none  less  likely 
to  adhere  to  conventional  lines  than  Wolfe. 

1  England  in  the  Seven    Years'  War,  vol.  i,  p.  321. 


CHAPTER  VIII 

THE    SIEGE    OF   LOUISBOURG 

Louisbourg.  By  the  1st  June  the  fleet  was  in  Gabarus  Bay  ;  on  the 
2nd  a  fog  which  had  enveloped  the  fortress,  the 
Dunkirk  of  America,  lifted  as  though  to  give  the 
British  an  idea  of  the  task  before  them.  What  Wolfe 
felt  when  he  first  caught  sight  of  Louisbourg,  what 
Amherst  and  Boscawen  felt,  can  only  be  matter  of 
conjecture.  Situated  on  the  south  east  of  the  Isle 
of  Cape  Breton,  provided  by  nature  with  defences 
which  the  science  of  the  French  engineers  had  done 
its  best  to  make  impregnable,  it  had  long  been  recog- 
nised by  American  Governors,  as  well  as  French  and 
English  Governments,  as  the  key  to  New  Canada's 
main  entrance.  Known  by  the  French  before  the 
Treaty  of  Utrecht  as  Havre  a  l'Anglais  and  by  the 
English  as  English  Harbour,  directly  that  Treaty  was 
signed  France  took  possession.  What  she  had 
hitherto  done  from  the  banks  of  Newfoundland  she 
now  intended  to 'do  from  the  fine  harbour  of  Louis- 
bourg. It  served  the  purpose  of  empire  and  of 
commerce  ;  it  was  a  naval  base,  at  once  a  protection 
to  the  St.  Lawrence  and  a  refuge  for  her  fleets  against 
superior  British  forces  and  the  storms  of  the  Atlantic  ; 
it  was  a  first-rate  point  from  which  to  attack  the 
English  colonies  on  the  Atlantic  front,  and  it  became 
the  centre  of  the  French  fishing  industry.  To  New 
England,  Louisbourg  was  an  ever-present  source  of 
annoyance  ;  that  the  men  of  Massachusetts  had 
managed  to  take  possession  of  it  must  have  given 

106 


THE  FRENCH  FORCES  10? 

Amherst  and  Wolfe  cause  for  thought ;  that  the 
place  once  secured  should  have  been  given  up  on 
any  consideration  must  have  made  them  marvel  at 
the  genius  of  statesmanship  for  throwing  away  what 
the  soldier  and  sailor  had  won.  In  the  ten  troubled 
years  that  had  elapsed  since  the  Treaty  of  Aix-la- 
Chapelle  no  effort  had  been  spared  to  make  it  im-  Formidable 
possible  Louisbourg  should  ever  again  be  captured,  defences. 
The  town  was  built  on  the  tongue  of  land  to  the  west 
of  the  harbour's  mouth  :  on  the  seaward  side  frowning 
cliffs  and  a  rock-bound  shore  cast  defiance  at  stressful 
billow  and  determined  invader  :  on  the  land  side 
formidable  works  stood  between  a  marsh  and  the 
town,  and  for  miles  the  shore  was  commanded  by 
masked  batteries.  In  the  centre  of  the  harbour 
mouth  was  an  island1  well  fortified,  on  the  opposite 
point  where  the  lighthouse  stood  were  more  defences, 
and  across  the  harbour,  on  the  north  side,  were  the 
Grand  Battery  and  other  works.  Louisbourg  at  this 
time  was  in  charge  of  Governor  Drucour  ;  its  popula- 
tion was  some  2,000,  and  he  had  with  him  2,500  regular 
troops,  600  burghers  and  Canadians,  and  some  3,000 
sailors  belonging  to  a  fleet  of  seven  ships  of  the  line, 
and  five  frigates  which  lay  in  the  harbour.  2  Amherst's 
force,  composed  largely  of  picked  bodies  of  troops 

1  This  island  is  variously  spoken  of  as  Battery  Island  and 
Goat  Island.  Parkman  calls  it  Goat  Island  both  in  his  text 
and  on  his  map.  Mr.  Bradley  speaks  of  it  as  Goat  Island, 
but  his  map  (The  Fight  with  France  for  North  America)  shows 
Goat  Island  not  to  be  Battery  Island  at  all.  Sir  John 
Bourinot  also  calls  Battery  Island  Goat  Island,  but  his  map 
(Cape  Breton  and  its  Memorials)  seems  to  make  it  clear  that 
Battery  Island  and  Goat  Island  were  distinct  places. 

2  Captain  Mahan  ( The  Influence  of  Sea  Power  on  History, 
p.  293)  says  there  were  only  five  ships  in  the  harbour — 
obviously  a  mistake.  Bourinot  (Cape  Breton,  p.  73)  accounts 
for  fourteen,  of  which  two  got  clear  away. 


108  GENERAL  WOLFE 

from  many  regiments  and  from  the  volunteers  of  New 
England,  was  12,000  strong ;  Boscawen's  fleet  con- 
sisted of  thirty-nine  battleships,  118  transports,  two 
fire  ships — a  magnificent  Armada,  an  earnest  of 
Pitt's  resolve  to  give  France  no  chance  now  of 
successfully  disputing  with  Great  Britain  the  Empire 
of  the  West. 
The  The  first  thing  to  be  done  was  to  reconnoitre  ;  late 

landing.  0n  the  afternoon  of  the  2nd  of  June  when  the  fleet 
was  safely  anchored  in  Gabarus  Bay,  Amherst,  with 
Wolfe  and  Lawrence  and  other  officers,  got  into  the 
boats  and  made  as  minute  a  study  of  the  shore  as  a 
rough  sea,  the  treacherous  rocks  and  the  vigilance  of 
the  French  posted  behind  concealed  guns  would 
allow.  From  Freshwater  Cove  away  on  the  west  past 
Flat  Point  and  White  Point  to  Black  Point  near 
the  town,  they  found,  said  Wolfe,  "  some  works 
thrown  up  at  the  places  which  appeared  practicable 
to  land  at,  and  some  batteries."1  But  Amherst  took 
his  decision.  He  would  endeavour  to  effect  a  landing 
on  the  left,  that  is,  at  Freshwater  Cove,  some  four 
miles  from  the  town,  whilst  making  a  pretence  at 
landing  at  other  points  nearer.  Everything  was 
made  ready  for  the  morrow.  The  weather  was, 
however,  unfavourable.  For  three  days  wind  and 
surf  alternated  with  fog  and  swell,  and  the  Admiral 
had  reluctantly  to  confess  that  he  could  not  land  the 
troops.  There  was  talk  of  a  Council  of  War,  but  that 
discredited  expedient  was  happily  not  resorted  to. 
On  the  6th  of  June  the  weather  moderated  ;  the 
boats  were  promptly  got  out,  and  the  men  ordered 
into  them,  but  the  fog  and  swell  returned  before  they 
were  ready  to  put  off,  and  Amherst  had  to  order  them 
1  Correspondence  of  Pitt,  vol.  i,  p.  271. 


THE  SEVENTH   OF  JUNE,    1758 


109 


to  return  to  the  ships,  "  first  acquainting  them  with 
the  reason  for  so  doing,"  he  says  significantly.  Wolfe 
could  not  have  failed  to  remember  Rochefort,  and 
Amherst  was  not  inclined  to  allow  his  officers  and 
men  to  think  for  a  moment  that  similar  demoralising 
influences  were  at  work  now.  All  the  same,  we  know 
enough  of  Wolfe  by  this  time  to  be  sure  that  he  was 


not  taking  this  delay  with  absolute  resignation — a 
delay  which  everyone  was  aware  the  enemy  would 
turn  to  the  best  possible  account.  Once  more  on  the 
7th  there  was  promise,  this  time  not  to  be  disap- 
pointed, of  a  change  for  the  better.  A  number  of 
sloops  were  sent  off  to  the  other  side  of  the  harbour 
entrance,  and  early  on  the  following  morning  three 
divisions  were  ready  in  the  boats  for  the  landing.  At 
three  points,  frigates  opened  a  sharp  cannonade  as 
though  they  were  covering  the  landing  parties,  and 


110  GENERAL  WOLFE 

to  the  roar  of  guns — music  in  the  ears  of  men  em- 
barked on  a  life  and  death  struggle — hundreds  of 
boats  were  pulled  with  all  the  vigour  which  the 
British  bluejacket  could  put  into  the  work,  towards 
the  shore.  In  his  graphically  simple,  soldier-like  way, 
Amherst  reports1 — 

Amherst's  "  When  the  fire  had  continued  about  a  Quarter  of  an  Hour, 

report.  the   Boats  upon  the   left  rowed  into  the   Shore   under  the 

Command  of  Br.  General  Wolfe,  whose  Detachment  was 
composed  of  the  four  eldest  Companys  of  Grenadiers,  followed 
by  the  Light  Infantry,  (a  Corps  of  550  Men  chosen  as  Marks- 
men from  the  different  Regiments  to  serve  as  Irregulars,  and 
are  commanded  by  Major  Scott,  who  was  Major  of  brigade),  (2) 
and  Companys  of  Rangers,  supported  by  the  Highland 
Regiment,  and  then  by  the  Eight  remaining  Companys  of 
Grenadiers. 

"The  Division  on  the  right  under  the  Command  of  Br. 
General  Whitmore  consisted  of  the  Royal,  Lascelles, 
Monckton,  Forbes,  Anstruther,  and  Webb,  and  rowed  to 
our  right  by  the  White  Point  as  if  intending  to  force  a  landing 
there.  The  center  Division  under  the  Command  of  Br. 
General  Lawrence  was  formed  of  Amherst's,  Hopson's. 
Otway's,  Whitmore's,  Lawrence's,  and  Warburton's,  and 
made  at  the  same  time  a  shew  of  landing  at  the  fresh-water 
Cove  :  (3)  this  drew  the  Enemy's  attention  to  every  part  and 

1   Correspondence  of  Pitt,  vol.  i,  pp.  273-4. 

(2)  The  Light  Infantry,  specially  dressed  and  armed,  were 
an  idea  of  Wolfe's.  The  smartness  of  their  movements 
induced  an  officer  to  say  that  they  reminded  him  of  the 
Carduchi  who  harassed  Xenophon  in  his  retreat  over  the 
mountains.  "  You  are  right,"  said  Wolfe,  "  I  had  it  thence  ; 
but  our  friends  are  astonished  at  what  I  have  shown  them 
because  they  have  read  nothing." — (Wright,  p.  442  :  quoted 
from  James's  Military  Dictionary.) 

(3)  As  Parkman's  map  (Montcalm  and  Wolfe,  vol.  ii)  shows 
Freshwater  Cove  to  be  on  the  extreme  left  where  Wolfe  landed 
and  as  Bourinot  (Cape  Breton  and  its  Memorials,  p.  70)  says 
Wolfe  made  the  real  attack  there,  Amherst  possibly  meant 
to  write  Flat  Point  Cove,  which  would  be  the  centre.  Mr. 
Doughty  speaks  of  Lawrence  at  Freshwater  Cove  (vol.  i, 
p.  104),  This  is  only  another  geographical  discrepancy 
defying  settlement. 


SURF,   ROCK   AND   FIRE  111 

prevented  their  troops  posted  along  the  Coast  from  joining 
those  on  their  Right. 

"  The  Enemy  acted  very  wisely,  did  not  throw  away  a  Shot 
till  the  Boats  were  near  in  Shore,  and  then  directed  the  whole 
Fire  of  their  Cannon  and  Musketry  upon  them  ;  the  Surf 
was  so  great,  that  a  place  could  hardly  be  found  to  get  a  boat 
on  shore  ;  notwithstanding  the  fire  of  the  Enemy,  and  the 
violence  of  the  surf,  Brigadier  Wolfe  pursued  his  point  and 
landed  just  at  the  left  of  the  cove,^)  took  post,  attacked  the 
Enemy  and  forced  them  to  retreat.  Many  Boats  overset, 
several  broke  to  Pieces,  and  all  the  Men  jumped  into  the 
Water  to  get  on  shore. 

"As  soon  as  the  left  Division  was  landed,  the  first  Detach- 
ments of  the  center  rowed  at  a  proper  time  to  the  left  and 
followed,  then  the  remainder  of  the  Center  division  as  fast  as 
the  boats  could  fetch  them  from  the  Ships  and  the  right 
Division  followed  the  Center  in  like  Manner. 

"  It  took  up  a  great  deal  of  time  to  land  the  Troops,  the 
Enemy's  Retreat,  or  rather  Flight,  was  through  the  roughest 
and  worst  Ground  I  ever  saw,  and  the  Pursuit  ended  with 
a  Cannonading  from  the  town  which  was  so  far  of  use,  that  it 
pointed  out  how  near  I  could  encamp  to  invest  it  ;  on  which 
the  Regiments  marched  to  their  ground  and  lay  on  their 
Arms,  the  wind  encreased,  and  we  could  not  get  any  thing 
on  shore." 

From  other  sources  we  get  more  detail  of  the  event.  The  first 
Wolfe  leading  the  left  got  near  the  shore  only  to  be  battery- 
received  with  so  hot  a  fire  that  he  speedily  came  to 
the  conclusion  no  man  could  scramble  through  the 
surf  and  up  the  rocks  with  a  chance  of  living.  He 
ordered  that  the  signal  to  stand  away  from  the  shore 
should  be  hoisted,  but  the  mast  which  carried  it  was 
instantly  smashed  by  a  shot.  At  that  moment  he  saw 
that  a  couple  of  other  boats  in  charge  of  subalterns 
had  found  protection  behind  a  projecting  rock,  and 
that  men  were  actually  leaping  into  the  surf.  In  an 
instant  he  was  with  them  followed  by  his  Grenadiers, 

(x)  The  spot  where  Wolfe  landed  is  known  to-day  as  Wolfe's 
Rock  (Ochiltree  Macdonald  :  Last  Siege  of  Louisbourg,  p.  169). 


112  GENERAL  WOLFE 

his  Highlanders,  and  his  Light  Infantry.1  Cane  in 
hand — not  sword,  as  the  would-be  laureate2  of  the 
siege  says — he  had  no  time  to  think  of  boats  smashed, 
of  luckless  men  swept  away  ;  he  rapidly  formed  up 
those  who  were  with  him,  and  in  the  teeth  of  the 
enemy's  fire  charged  for  the  first  battery.  Not  a 
man  should  have  lived  to  tell  the  story  if  the  guns 
had  been  properly  served.  Wolfe,  when  he  came  to 
review  events  quietly,  was  convinced  that  the  cost 
to  the  British  should  have  been  heavy  even  though 
the  affair  had  not  ended  in  irretrievable  disaster. 
"  An  officer  and  thirty  men,"  he  told  Rickson  later, 
'  would  [he  meant  should]  have  made  it  impossible 
to  get  ashore  where  we  did." 

Montcalm,  when  he  heard  of  it,  was  amazed  that 
the  British  had  succeeded  in  gaining  a  footing  on 
what  had  hitherto  been  regarded  as  an  inaccessible 
coast  for  military  purposes.  How  was  it,  he  asked, 
that  troops  charged  with  the  defence  of  the  entrench- 
ments at  this  point,  did  not  march  after  the  first 
discharge  of  artillery  and  musketry,  with  bayonets 
fixed,  upon  the  English  whom  they  should  have 
destroyed.  3  One  answer  is  that  the  bravest  defenders 
are    apt   to   lose  heart   when    the   attack  does  the 

1  An  eye-witness  quoted  by  Mr.  Ochiltree  Macdonald 
{The  Last  Siege  of  Louisbourg,  p.  167)  said  the  French  fire 
was  so  severe  the  men  quailed  before  it.  Wolfe  and  Lawrence 
leapt  ashore,  crying  "  Follow  me,  my  boys  :  this  is  for 
England's  glory,"  and  the  example  inspired  the  troops. 
Lawrence  was  not  with  Wolfe  at  the  moment  of  landing. 
The  situation  is  sufficiently  dramatic  to  lose  by  melodramatic 
imaginings. 

2  Mr.  Ochiltree  Macdonald,  whose  little  book  contains 
some  shocking  doggerel  and  much  that  is  curious  about 
Louisbourg. 

3  Casgrain  :    Journal  du  Marquis  de  Montcalm,  p.  383. 


THE  FRENCH  PANIC  113 

seemingly  impossible.    Whatever  the  explanation  the 
French,  or  as  some  say,  the  Volontaires  Etrangers; 
a  contingent  of  German  mercenaries,  did  not  care  to 
risk  cold  steel ;    they  were  fearful  of  being  cut  off, 
and  the  movements  to  the  centre  and  right  did  as 
much  perhaps  to  win  the  day  as  Wolfe's  and  his 
companions'  daring.     Wolfe  was  in  possession  of  the 
abandoned   battery  when   Amherst   and  the   other 
Brigadiers  joined  him.     The  enemy  abandoned  seven- 
teen guns,  four  mortars,  four  swivells,  with  ammuni- 
tion, tools,  stores,  food,  wine,  brandy — all  of  which 
were  of  immediate  use.     Meanwhile  the  pursuit  was 
hot.     It  was  only  stayed  when  the  guns  on  Louis- 
bourg's  bastions  warned  the  British  that  advantage 
had  been  pushed  to  its  limits.     The  panic  spread 
round  the  harbour.     Every  outpost  was  abandoned. 
Whilst  the  British  were  making  themselves  secure, 
the  French  outside  the  fortress  destroyed  their  works, 
spiked  their  guns,  and  retreated  as  fast  as  boats  and 
legs  could  carry  them.     Even  the  fleet  soon  had  reason 
to  wish  itself  anywhere  but  in  the  harbour.     The 
Admiral,  days  before,  would  have  taken  it  to  the 
comparative  safety  of  the  high  seas,  but  Governor 
Drucour,  who  had  an  idea  that  it  might  be  of  material 
assistance   to   the   defence,   objected.     He   and   the 
Admiral  were  both  right.     The  fleet  was  in  a  trap,  but 
so  long  as  it  lasted  it  was  of  great  service. 

Amherst's  operations  for  some  days  were  impeded  At  Light- 
by  bad  weather,  which  prevented  the  landing  of  siege  hoHse 
guns  and  other  heavy  material.     Boscawen  reported  Point 
that  he  lost  no  fewer  than  100  boats  in  thirteen  days 
between  the  fleet  and  the  shore.     But  Amherst  did 
not  waste  his  time.     He  familiarised  himself  with 
the  ground,  he  reconnoitred  "  places  from  which  he 

9— (2213) 


114  GENERAL  WOLFE 

could  most  sensibly  insult  the  enemy's  works,"1  he 
built  redoubts,  and  threw  up  earthworks.  The  first 
important  decision  was  to  send  Wolfe  with  1,200 
men  to  take  possession  of  Lighthouse  Point  as  the 
most  convenient  position  from  which  to  attempt  the 
destruction  of  the  men  of  war  and  to  silence  the 
island  battery.  The  distance  round  the  harbour  was 
some  seven  or  eight  miles,  and  to  get  to  Lighthouse 
Point  Wolfe  had  to  lead  his  detachment  through 
ambuscades  of  lurking  Indians.2  They  could  not 
have  been  in  great  force  or  he  would  not  have 
reached  the  point  unmolested,  as  he  did.  Wolfe 
found  Lighthouse  Point  abandoned,  but  commanded 
by  the  island  battery.  From  the  north-east  corner 
of  the  harbour  to  the  Lighthouse  he  established 
entrenched  posts  and  batteries  ;  he  worked  away 
with  spade  and  pickaxe  till  his  parties  were  able  to 
inflict  the  maximum  amount  of  damage  with  the 
minimum  of  risk  to  themselves.  To  get  near  enough 
to  the  point  to  silence  the  island  battery  without 
heavy  loss  to  his  own  men  was  the  problem  Wolfe 
set  himself  to  solve.  His  conduct  on  this  occasion 
stamped  him  for  the  intrepid,  cautious,  and  skilful 
leader  he  was.  His  disposition  of  and  care  for  his 
men,  his  precautions  against  surprise  either  from  the 
French  garrison  and  fleet,  or  the  Canadians  and  the 
Indians  who  were  prepared  to  pounce  upon  him  from 
the  hills  and  woods,  his  elaborate  instructions  for  the 
guidance  of  the  officers  in  charge  of  the  batteries,  his. 
concern  for  the  efficiency  and  vigilance  of  the  various 
working  parties,  enabled  him  to  say  to  Amherst  by 

1  Knox  :     Historical   Journal   of  the   Campaign   in    North 
America. 

2  Macdonald,  p.  168. 


THE  AMERICAN   IRREGULAR  115 

the  19th  :    "  My  posts  are  now  so  fortified,  I  can 
afford  you  two  companies  of  Yankees,  and  the  more 
as  they  are  better  for  ranging  and  scouting  than 
either   work   or    vigilance."     Wolfe    at    times   used 
strong  language  about  the  American  irregular. x    He 
may  have  shared  some  of  the  costly  prejudices  of 
Imperial    officers   like    Braddock,    but   he   was   too 
enterprising  and  progressive  a  soldier  himself  to  have 
retained  the   prejudice  when  experience   proved  it 
misplaced.     "  Are  you  not  surprised,"  he  continued, 
"  to  find  that  I  have  a  battery  here  ?  "  that  is  in  the 
north-east   harbour.     "  The   ground   upon   which    I 
propose  to  erect  a  formidable  battery  against  island 
battery  is  so  much  exposed  that  I  must  wait  for  a 
dark  night  or  a  fog  to  get  it  up."     He  believed  the 
French  ships  were  in  "  a  confounded  scrape  ;    that 
is  if  our  bombardiers  are  worth  a  farthing."     The 
conditions  he  desired  came  that  night,  for  by  the  20th 
he  had  advanced  his  principal  battery  sufficiently  to 
begin  pummelling  away  at  the  island.     The  ships 
fired  away  at  Wolfe's  batteries  on  shore  ;  the  batteries 
kept  up  a  duel  with  the  ships  and  the  island  ;    and 
Amherst's  main  body  and  the  defenders  worked  their 
guns  incessantly.     On  the  25th  the  island  battery 
was  silenced  and  Wolfe,  leaving  a  sufficient  contingent 
to  man  Lighthouse  Point  and  prevent  the  restoration 
of  the  demolished  battery,  returned  to  his  chief. 

Amherst  was  making  steady,  if  laborious,  progress.  Wolfe's 
The  British  lines  were  being  gradually  pushed  nearer  enerey« 
the  fatal  city.  Redoubts,  epaulement,  roads,  trenches, 
had  to  be  made  through  country  swept  not  only  by 
the  guns  of  the  fortress,  but  by  those  of  a  ship  in  the 
harbour.     The   Arethuse  had   pluckily   taken   up   a 

1  Letter  to  Sackville,  His.  MSS.  Com.  IX,  iii.  p.  77. 


116  GENERAL  WOLFE 

position  in  the  western  corner  known  as  the  Barachois, 
and  was  able  to  rake  the  British  lines  in  a  way  which 
made  her  fire  more  troublesome  than  that  of  the 
fortress  itself.  Wolfe's  return  had  the  effect  of 
putting  more  spirit  into  the  safe  and  somewhat  stolid 
movements  of  the  besiegers.  Of  course,  Amherst's 
difficulties  were  great,  and  in  a  letter  to  Pitt  he  said 
that  his  approach  had  not  been  as  rapid  as  he  could 
wish  owing  to  the  necessity  of  landing  everything  in 
"  an  almost  continual  surf,  the  making  of  roads, 
draining  and  passing  of  bogs  and  putting  ourselves 
under  cover."  But  for  Wolfe  difficulties  existed  to 
be  overcome  and  if  possible  transferred  to  the  enemy. 
The  Brigadier  was  everywhere,  now  superintending 
the  erection  of  a  battery,  which  was  to  make  the 
Barachois  untenable  for  the  Arethuse,  at  the  same 
time  that  it  cleared  the  way  to  the  West  Gate  of  the 
City  ;  now  directing  the  works  away  to  the  far  right. 
He  did  so  much  that  there  is  perhaps  a  tendency  to 
give  him  credit  for  more  than  he  actually  accom- 
plished. What  is  certain  is  that  the  enemy  never 
knew  from  evening  to  morning  where  a  fresh  battery 
would  spring  up  in  order  to  enable  the  main  army 
to  "  carry  on  their  approaches  with  the  greater 
security  and  more  expedition.  Some  People  of  the 
Garrison,  to  express  their  Surprize  at  this  and  some 
other  Instances  of  the  Suddenness  of  Brigadier  Wolfe's 
Motions  from  one  Place  to  another,  and  their  Senti- 
ments of  the  Effect  of  his  Operations,  used  to  say — 
There  is  no  Certainty  where  to  find  him — but, 
wherever  he  goes,  he  carries  with  him  a  Mortar  in  one 
Pocket  and  a  24-pounder  in  the  other."1 

1  "  A  Spectator,"  quoted  by  Doughty  :    Siege  of  Quebec, 
vol.  i,  p.  117. 


FEARS  OF  VENGEANCE  117 

Such  efforts  told  apace.  The  day  after  Wolfe  Complaints 
silenced  the  island  battery,  the  French  in  order  to  and 
prevent  Admiral  Boscawen  from  entering  the  harbour, 
sank  four  of  their  battleships  at  the  mouth.  Getting 
desperate,  the  defenders  made  more  than  one  sortie, 
and  were  repulsed  after  considerable  loss  on  both 
sides.  Wolfe's  batteries  made  themselves  more  and 
more  felt, *  and  a  note  of  his  to  Amherst  suggests  that 
the  French  were  beginning  to  complain.  He  wrote  : 
"  When  the  French  are  in  a  scrape  they  are  ready  to 
cry  out  in  behalf  of  the  human  species  :  when  fortune 
favours  them  none  more  bloody,  more  inhuman. 
Montcalm  changed  the  very  nature  of  war  and  has 
forced  us  in  some  measure  to  a  deterring  and  dreadful 
vengeance."  The  allusion  here  of  course  is  to  such 
unhappy  incidents  as  the  massacre  of  the  English 
after  the  surrender  of  Fort  William  Henry  for  which 
Montcalm  must  be  held  in  part  responsible.  The 
French  in  Canada  always  had  the  horror  of  that  day 
on  their  consciences  and  dreaded  the  vengeance 
British  victory  might  bring  with  it.  In  the  siege  of 
Louisbourg  chivalry  and  humanity  went  hand  in 
hand  with  the  stern  arbitrament  of  shot  and  shell. 
Drucour  offered  Amherst  the  services  of  a  skilled 
physician  should  he  be  in  need  of  one  ;  Amherst 
acknowledged  the  courtesy  by  sending  some  pine 
apples  from  the  West  Indies  for  the  acceptance  of 
Madame  Drucour,  who  was  with  her  husband,  and 
was  the  good  angel  of  the  hard-pressed  garrison  ; 
Madame  made  grateful  return  in  the  shape  of  a  case 
of  excellent  wine. 

Personal  amenities  only  threw  professional  ardour  Disaster  on 
on  both  sides  into  stronger  relief.     Daily  the  British  disaster. 

1  Even  the  Ships'  Logs  bear  witness  to  Wolfe's  special  energy. 


118  GENERAL  WOLFE 

pressed  their  advantages  home.  The  Arethuse  was 
badly  hit  and  left  her  moorings  :  that  was  an  immense 
gain.  She  repaired  her  injuries  and  then  escaped 
through  the  obstructions  at  the  entrance  of  the 
harbour,  intending  to  carry  news  of  Louisbourg's 
plight  to  France.  She  enjoyed  no  better  luck  than 
another  vessel  which  got  away  much  earlier  with  the 
idea  of  making  for  Quebec.  Both  fell  into  the  hands 
of  British  vessels  which  patrolled  the  seas  wherever 
it  might  be  expected  the  French  would  appear. l  On 
the  21st  July  a  bomb  fell  on  U Entreprennant,  which 
carried  seventy-four  guns  ;  there  was  a  big  explosion, 
and  the  vessel  burst  into  flames  ;  the  flames  spread 
to  the  Capricieux  and  the  Celebre  (sixty-four  guns 
each)  and  all  three  were  burnt  out. 2  Disaster 
followed  disaster.  A  fire  broke  out  in  the  citadel,  and 
to  prevent  its  being  properly  dealt  with  the  besiegers 
pounded  away  at  other  points  ;  after  the  citadel  the 
barracks,  a  structure  mainly  wooden  which  the  New 
Englanders  had  erected  during  their  occupation  a 
dozen  years  earlier,  were  consumed  in  the  same  way. 
The  French  shooting  became  of  the  wildest,  and  old 
iron  or  any  missile  that  could  be  hurled  from  the  guns 
was  used  for  shot.  Wolfe's  energy  seemed  to  grow 
with  the  enemy's  demoralisation.  Writing  from  the 
"  Trenches  at  Daybreak  "  on  the  25th,  he  requested 
that  he  should  be  "  indulged  "  with  six  hours'  rest 
in  order  that  he  might  serve  in  the  trenches  at  night. 

1  Bourinot  (  Cape  Breton,  p.  73)  says  the  ArSthuse  reached 
France  and  was  taken  subsequently  whilst  cruising  in  the 
Channel. 

2  Parkman,  Bradley  and  Doughty  say  the  explosion  was 
on  the  CSlibre.  Boscawen's  report  (Correspondence  of  Pitt, 
vol.  i,  p.  308)  shows  that  they  have  reversed  the  order  of 
events. 


THE  CROWNING  DISASTER  119 

That  night  of  the  25-6th  was  to  put  the  crowning 
touch  to  French  troubles.  Admiral  Boscawen  sent  the 
boats  of  his  squadron  in  two  divisions  under  Captains 
Laforey  and  Balfour  into  the  harbour  to  capture 
or  burn  the  Prudent,  seventy-four  guns,  and  the 
Bienfaisant,  sixty-four  guns,  the  only  ships  remaining 
of  the  French  fleet.  It  was  "  a  particular  gallant 
action,"  as  Boscawen  says.  The  sailors  in  the  dark, 
which  was  intensified  by  fog,  silently  reached  and 
surrounded  the  two  warships,  clambered  up  their  sides 
almost  before  the  alarm  could  be  given,  and  after  a 
few  minutes  of  sharp  work  overwhelmed  the  crews  in 
charge.  As  the  Prudent  was  aground,  she  was  set 
alight  ;  the  Bienfaisant  was  got  safely  away,  and 
towed  to  the  north-east  harbour.  A  few  hours  later 
Boscawen  was  prepared  to  send  his  own  battleships 
in.  But  it  was  unnecessary  ;  the  last  big  gun  on  the 
walls  was  silenced  by  Amherst  just  about  this  time, 
and  the  end  was  very  near. 
The  white  flag  was  hoisted  and  Drucour  sent  out  Thecapitu- 

1      4-* 

to  learn  what  terms  would  be  granted  if  he  capitulated.  26th  Tulv 
He  asked  that  he  might  be  accorded  those  given  by  1758. 
the  French  to  the  English  garrison  of  Minorca. 
Amherst  and  Boscawen  decided  without  a  second's 
hesitation  that  the  garrison  must  surrender  as 
prisoners  of  war  ;  the  surrender  to  be  agreed  upon 
within  an  hour,  otherwise  the  city  would  be  attacked 
'  on  all  sides.  Drucour  protested  ;  the  only  answer 
he  got  was  that  he  might  accept  the  conditions  or 
not  as  he  chose,  and  he  must  now  say  Yes  or  No 
within  half  an  hour.  His  brief  response  was  that  his 
final  resolution  remained  unaltered  ;  he  would  take 
the  consequences  of  the  attack.  His  messenger  had 
barely  left  when  the  civil  authorities  intervened  in 


120  GENERAL  WOLFE 

order  to  avert  the  horrors  of  an  assault.  The  prayers 
of  an  intimidated  people  were  that  they  might  not, 
to  satisfy  military  glory,  "  be  delivered  over  to 
carnage  and  the  rage  of  an  unbridled  soldiery,  eager 
for  plunder  and  impelled  to  deeds  of  horror  by 
pretended  resentment  at  what  has  formerly  happened 
in  Canada."  How  long  these  impassioned  repre- 
sentations occupied,  how  it  happened  that  they 
occurred  simultaneously  with  the  despatch  of 
Drucour's  defiant  message,  we  need  not  inquire  too 
curiously.  Drucour  listened  to  reason,  and  a  second 
messenger  was  sent  to  bring  back  the  first.  As 
Parkman  suggests,  it  is  evident  the  first  was  in  no 
hurry  to  deliver  the  momentous  note,  for  he  had 
scarcely  got  beyond  the  fortifications  when  he  was 
overtaken.  Within  the  half-hour  the  English  terms 
had  been  accepted  and  by  midnight  the  articles  of 
capitulation  involving  the  fate  of  the  whole  Island 
of  Cape  Breton  and  other  places  had  been  signed. 
The  British  took  possession  of  Louisbourg  on  the 
27th  July.  The  first  of  the  series  of  heavy  blows  which 
were  to  drive  the  Bourbon  colours  from  Canada  had 
been  delivered,  and  in  its  delivery  the  hand  that 
was  to  direct  the  decisive  if  not  the  final  blow  was 
at  least  as  conspicuous  as  that  of  the  General  himself. 
The  advantages  of  combined  operations  were  fully 
borne  in  upon  Wolfe  by  Louisbourg.  "  The  Admiral 
and  General,"  he  wrote  to  Lord  George  Sackville, 
"  have  carried  a  public  service  with  great  harmony, 

industry  and  union.     Mr.  Boscawen  is an 

excellent    back   hand    at    a   siege."1    As   on  Wolfe 
had  devolved  so  much  of  the  hard  work  of  invest- 
ment, so  now  he  was  called  upon  to  see  that  order 
1  His,  MSS.   Com.  IX,  iii,  p.  76, 


ABERCROMBY'S  DEFEAT  121 

was  preserved  so  far  as  was  possible  after  the  trying 
ordeal  to  both  sides  of  the  past  seven  weeks.  He 
posted  sentinels  on  the  ramparts  whilst  Brigadier 
Whitmore  received  the  surrender  of  arms  and  colours 
on  the  esplanade  from  between  five  and  six  thousand 
men.  In  a  note  to  his  mother,  the  first  he  had  written 
home  since  the  siege  began,  Wolfe  said  he  had  been 
into  Louisbourg  to  pay  his  "  devoirs  "  to  the  ladies. 
They  were  pale  and  thin  and  had  been  heartily 
frightened  but  no  real  harm  had  befallen  any.  To 
his  father  he  expressed  a  hope  that  "  there  will  be 
fine  weather  enough  for  another  blow  " — he  was 
thinking  of  Quebec — and  to  his  uncle  Walter  he  wrote 
at  some  length  in  the  same  characteristically  critical 
spirit  that  marked  his  letter  to  Rickson. 1  The 
"  attempt  "  to  land  was  "  rash  and  ill-advised  "  and 
succeeded  only  by  "  the  greatest  of  good  fortune 
imaginable."  The  operations,  he  said,  were  "  slow 
and  injudicious."  The  Indians  he  speaks  of  as 
"  contemptible  canaille — a  dastardly  set  of  bloody 
rascals.  We  cut  them  to  pieces  whenever  we  found 
them  in  return  for  a  thousand  acts  of  cruelty  and 
barbarity.  I  do  not  penetrate  our  General's  inten- 
tions. If  he  means  to  attack  Quebec  he  must  not 
lose  a  moment." 

Barely  was  Louisbourg  in  British  hands  before  news  Ticonde- 
arrived  which  chastened  the  joy  of  the  victors,  and  roga. 
to  some  extent  tempered  the  bitter  reflections  of  the 
vanquished.  Abercromby  had  been  beaten  at 
Ticonderoga  by  Montcalm,  and  among  those  whose 
lives  had  been  sacrificed  was  the  gallant  young  Howe, 
"  the  noblest  Englishman  that  has  appeared  in  my 
time,"  said  Wolfe,  "  and  the  best  soldier  in  the  army. 

1  Ante,  p.  112, 


122  GENERAL  WOLFE 

Heavens  !  what  a  loss  to  the  country  :  the  bravest, 
worthiest,  and  most  intelligent  man  among  us."  In 
the  midst  of  getting  off  prisoners  to  England  and 
disposing  of  the  innumerable  details  which  demanded 
his  attention,  Amherst  had  to  decide  what  he  would 
do  next.  How  could  he  best  help  Abercromby  ? 
Should  he  take  ship  at  once  to  the  south  with 
reinforcements,  or  should  he  try  to  draw  Montcalm 
off  by  an  expedition  up  the  River  St.  Lawrence  in 
fulfilment  of  the  original  intention  of  the  campaign  ? 
He  was  deliberate  as  usual,  much  to  Wolfe's  annoy- 
ance. "  We  are  gathering  strawberries  and  other 
wild  fruits  of  the  country  with  a  seeming  indifference 
about  what  is  doing  in  other  parts  of  the  world,"  he 
wrote  impatiently  on  August  7th,  and  he  pressed 
Amherst  for  some  hint  of  his  intentions.  Amherst 
was  undecided  ;  the  Admiral  and  he  were  of  opinion 
that  they  could  not  go  to  Quebec  but  must  do  some- 
thing in  General  Abercromby's  favour ;  so  they 
advertised  for  pilots  to  go  up  the  St.  Lawrence,  *  where 
they  had  little  intention  of  even  attempting  to  go. 
Wolfe  wrote  to  Amherst  on  August  8th  a  letter  which, 
to  say  the  least,  was  not  wanting  in  directness — 

Wolfe  to  "  Au  accounts  agree  that  General  Abercromby's  army  is 

Amherst.  cu^  deep,  and  all  the  last  advices  from  those  parts  trace  the 
bloody  steps  of  those  scoundrels,  the  Indians.  As  an  English- 
man, I  cannot  see  these  things  without  the  utmost  horror 
and  concern.  We  all  know  how  little  the  Americans  are  to 
be  trusted  ;  by  this  time,  perhaps,  our  troops  are  left  to 
defend  themselves,  after  losing  the  best  of  our  officers.  If 
the  Admiral  will  not  carry  us  to  Quebec,  reinforcements 
should  certainly  be  sent  to  the  continent  without  losing  a 
moment's  time.  The  companies  of  Rangers,  and  the  Light 
Infantry,  would  be  extremely  useful  at  this  juncture  ;  whereas 
here  they  are  perfectly  idle,  and,  like  the  rest,  of  no  manner 
of  service  to  the  public.     If  Lawrence  has  any  objection  to 

1   Amherst  (Correspondence  of  Pitt,  vol.  i,  p,  313). 


WOLFE'S   PROPHECY  123 

going  I  am  ready  to  embark  with  four  or  five  battalions,  and 
will  hasten  to  the  assistance  of  our  countrymen.  I  wish  we 
were  allowed  to  address  the  Admiral,  or  I  wish  you  yourself, 

Sir,  would  do  it  in  form.     This  d d  French  garrison  takes 

up  our  time  and  attention,  which  might  be  better  bestowed 
upon  the  interesting  affairs  of  the  continent.  The  transports 
are  ready,  and  a  small  convoy  would  carry  a  brigade  to  Boston 
or  New  York.  With  the  rest  of  the  troops  we  might  make 
an  offensive  and  a  destructive  war  in  the  Bay  of  Fundy  and 
in  the  Gulf  of  St.  Lawrence.  I  beg  pardon  for  this  freedom, 
but  I  cannot  look  coolly  upon  the  bloody  inroads  of  those 
hell-hounds  the  Canadians  ;  and  if  nothing  further  is  to  be 
done,  I  must  desire  leave  to  quit  the  army." 

General  Amherst  took  this  strong  language  in  good  The  future 
part,  explained  that  it  was  his  original  intention  to  of  America, 
go  to  Quebec,  but  that  events  now  seemed  to  make  it 
advisable  to  go  to  Abercromby,  to  send  five  or  six 
battalions  to  the  Bay  of  Fundy,  and  another  force 
to  the  Gulf  of  St.  Lawrence.  He  invited  Wolfe  to 
propound  any  scheme  which  might  assist  matters. 
Such  communication,  he  said,  "  will  be  of  much  more 
service  than  your  thoughts  of  quitting  the  army  which 
I  can  by  no  means  agree  to,  as  all  my  thoughts  and 
wishes  are  confined  at  present  to  pursuing  our 
operations  for  the  good  of  his  Majesty's  service,  and 
I  know  nothing  that  can  tend  more  to  it  than  your 
assisting  in  it."  Wolfe  soon  learned  that  he  was  to 
command  three  regiments  which  were  to  be  sent  with 
a  fleet  under  Sir  Charles  Hardy  to  Gaspe  and  other 
places  in  the  Gulf  of  St.  Lawrence  to  destroy  French 
stores,  drive  out  the  settlers,  and  incidentally  induce 
a  belief  that  Quebec  was  to  be  attacked.  Whilst 
preparing  for  the  expedition,  which  Wolfe  regarded 
with  some  contempt  as  one  to  "  rob  fishermen  of 
their  nets,"  he  wrote  a  letter  to  his  mother  which 
gave  her  his  view  as  to  the  character  of  the  British 
possessions  in  America  and  the  climate  of  "  this  fine 


124  GENERAL  WOLFE 

continent."  He  foreshadowed  the  time  when  it 
would  be  "a  vast  Empire,  the  seat  of  power  and 
learning.  Nature  has  refused  them  nothing,  and 
there  will  grow  a  people  out  of  our  little  spot  England 
that  will  fill  this  vast  space  and  divide  this  great 
portion  of  the  globe  with  the  Spaniards  who  are 
possessed  of  the  other  half."  A  little  luck  and  the 
sparing  of  "  that  great  man  " — Lord  Howe — "would 
have  already  laid  the  corner  stone  of  this  great  fabric. 
It  is  my  humble  opinion  that  the  French  name 
would  soon  have  been  unknown  in  North  America, 
and  still  may  be  rooted  out  if  our  Government  will 
follow  the  blows  they  have  given  and  prosecute 
the  war  with  the  vigour  it  requires." 
A  great  The  expedition  to  the  Gulf  of  St.  Lawrence  set  out 

de.al  5?  ,  on  the  28th  August ;  it  anchored  off  Gaspe"  on  the 
5th  September,  and  was  back  at  Louisbourg  again 
on  the  29th.  Wolfe  reported  to  General  Abercromby, 
to  Pitt  and  to  Amherst.  His  letter  to  Pitt1  is  an 
admirable  summary  of  the  operations  conducted  by 
the  fleet  and  detachments  of  the  army  against  the 
settlements  at  Gaspe,  Baye  de  Chaleurs,  and  Mira- 
michi.  Wolfe  was  anxious  to  go  much  further  than 
Sir  Charles  Hardy  cared  to  take  his  fleet  at  that 
season.  They  captured  a  sloop  with  passengers  from 
Quebec  and  learnt  that  great  scarcity  of  provisions 
and  distress  prevailed  in  the  city ;  "  that  (although 
the  magazines  for  the  army  were  full  and  the  best 
harvest  for  many  years)  bread  sold  at  a  shilling  a 
pound ;  that  both  the  troops  and  the  inhabitants 
had  been  reduced  in  the  winter  to  eat  horseflesh  and 
that  the  colony  must  be  ruined  unless  very  early  and 
very  powerful  assistance  were  given."  Wolfe  added 
1   Correspondence,  vol.  i,  p.  379, 


BRADSTREET'S  MASTER-STROKE  125 

that  as  the  British  found  no  enemy  in  a  condition  to 
oppose  them  they  could  add  nothing  to  the  reputation 
of  His  Majesty's  arms.  They  had  destroyed  the 
fishery,  "  a  material  article  of  subsistence  to  the 
Canadians."  He  could  not  conceal  his  disgust.  "  All 
their  houses,  stages,  magazines,  shallops,  nets,  stores, 
and  provisions  are  burnt,  one  hundred  and  forty  of 
the  inhabitants  brought  off,  and  the  rest  of  these 
miserable  poeple  will  in  all  probability  be  forced  to 
abandon  their  settlements  and  retire  to  Quebec." 
Early  next  summer,  he  said,  forty  ships  were  expected 
in  the  River  St.  Lawrence  with  provisions,  stores, 
etc.  Having  thus  done  "  a  great  deal  of  mischief," 
as  he  said  to  Amherst,  Wolfe  took  note  of  what  was 
happening  elsewhere. 

Amherst  had  gone  to  Abercromby  with  3,000  To  relieve 
men,  but  Abercromby  with  four  times  that  number  ^™L 
already  had  done  nothing  beyond  entrenching 
himself  and  quietly  exchanging  "  his  former  role  of 
an  irresistible  invader  of  Canada  to  that  of  the 
defender  of  a  threatened  frontier." x  The  solitary 
piece  of  news  after  Wolfe's  own  heart  which  had  come 
to  hand  was  of  Bradstreet's  daring  seizure  of 
Frontenac  with  a  small  force  which  he  had  induced 
Abercromby  to  give  him.  It  was  a  master-stroke 
and  commanded  Wolfe's  admiration.  "  An  offensive 
daring  kind  of  war,"  he  told  Amherst,  "  will  awe  the 
Indians  and  ruin  the  French.  Blockhouses  and  a 
trembling  defensive,  encourage  the  meanest  scoundrels 
to  attack  us.  .  .  .  If  you  will  attempt  to  cut  up 
New  France  by  the  roots  I  will  come  back  with 
pleasure  to  assist."  Meantime  he  was  preparing  to 
return  to  England  apparently  in  the  hope  that  he 

1  Fight  with  France  for  North  America,  p.  261. 


126  GENERAL  WOLFE 

would  be  employed  on  the  continent.  To  Lord 
George  Sackville  he  said  that  he  thought  the  English 
Ministry  did  not  understand  the  value  of  the  Isle  of 
Aix.  He  undertook,  if  they  would  give  him  4,000 
men,  a  good  quantity  of  artillery,  fascines  and  sand- 
bags to  establish  himself  so  effectually  that  the  French 
would  exchange  Minorca  or  anything  to  get  him  out. l 
A  mysterious  letter  of  Wolfe's,  written  on  the 
6th  June,  1759,  and  preserved  in  the  Public  Record 
Office,  seems  to  throw  some  light  on  the  personal  side 
of  affairs  at  this  time.  It  is  addressed  to  a  peer  whose 
identity  is  uncertain  and  runs — 

"  My  Lord, 

"  I  have  had  the  honour  to  receive  two  letters  from  your 
Lordship,  one  concerning  my  stay  in  this  country  to  which 
I  shall  only  say  that  the  Marshal  told  me  I  was  to  return  at 
the  end  of  the  Campaign,  and  as  General  Amherst  had  no 
other  Commands  than  to  send  me  to  winter  at  Halifax  under 
the  orders  of  an  officer  [Governor  Lawrence  (8)],  who  was  but 
a  few  months  put  over  my  head,  I  thought  it  was  much  better 
to  get  into  the  way  of  service  and  out  of  the  way  of  being 
insulted,  and  as  the  style  of  your  Lordship's  letter  is  pretty 
strong  I  must  take  the  liberty  to  inform  you  that  though 
I  should  have  been  very  glad  to  have  gone  with  G.  Amherst 
to  join  the  army  upon  the  Lakes,  and  offered  my  services 
immediately  after  the  reduction  of  Louisbourg  to  carry  a 
reinforcement  to  Mr.  Abercromby  if  Quebec  was  not  to  be 
attacked  ;  yet  rather  than  receive  orders  in  the  Government 
[of  Nova  Scotia]  from  an  officer  younger  than  myself  (though 
a  very  worthy  man)  I  should  certainly  have  desired  leave  to 
resign  my  commission  for  as  I  neither  ask  nor  expect  any 
favour,  so  I  never  intend  to  submit  to  any  ill-usage 
whatsoever." 

From  which  one  thing  is  clear  :  that  it  was  proposed 
to  reward  Wolfe's  services  by  supercession  and  that 
Wolfe  would  not  submit  to  it.  Was  Amherst,  who 
was  anxious  he  should  remain,  in  any  way  responsible  ? 

1  His.  MSS.    Com.  IX,  iii,  p.  77. 

(2)  Parkman  :    Montcalm  and  Wolfe,  vol.  ii,  p.  202. 


CHAPTER   IX 

PREPARING   FOR  THE   ST.    LAWRENCE 

Wolfe,  to  be  known  for  a  while,  until  a  greater  A  great 
achievement  eclipsed  his  Cape  Breton  performances,  year- 
as  the  hero  of  Louisbourg,  came  back  to  England 
with  Admiral  Boscawen  in  the  Namur.  The  country 
rejoiced,  and  Parliament  voted  its  cordial  thanks  to 
the  Admiral  and  General  Amherst.  Wolfe's  portion 
was  something  approaching  hero-worship  :  everybody 
knew  what  he  had  done  ;  everybody  seemed  to  be 
singing  his  praises  ;  and  the  only  person  who  seemed 
unconscious  that  he  was  a  hero  was — himself.  When 
he  reached  Portsmouth  on  the  1st  November,  he  went 
straight  to  Salisbury  to  join  the  67th  Regiment  whose 
Colonel  he  now  was,  there  to  await  leave  to  repair  to 
town.  Leave  came  in  a  few  days  ;  he  was  at  Black- 
heath  on  the  17th  writing  to  his  uncle  Walter  :  "I 
wish  I  could  say  that  my  health  was  such  as  a  soldier 
should  have.  Long  passages  and  foggy  weather  have 
left  their  natural  effects  upon  me.  The  people  here 
say  I  look  well.  No  care  shall  be  wanting  to  get 
ready  for  the  next  campaign.  They  can  propose  no 
service  to  me  that  I  shall  refuse  to  undertake  unless 
where  capacity  is  short  of  the  task."  The  next 
campaign  !  Pitt  was  already  busy  with  plans  for 
1759.  The  year  now  drawing  to  a  close  had  gone 
splendidly  for  England.  The  French  coast  had 
suffered  severely  from  British  expeditions  ;  French 
fleets  had  been  held  in  check  or  crushed  altogether 

127 


128  GENERAL  WOLFE 

by  Hawke  and  Osborn  ;  Pitt  had  rendered  Frederick 
invaluable  service  by  his  subsidies  and  Prince 
Ferdinand  had  been  appointed  to  command  the 
British  Hanoverian  forces  in  place  of  the  Duke  of 
Cumberland ;  Fort  St.  Louis  in  Senegal  and  the 
Island  of  Goree  had  been  captured  ;  the  Isle  of  Cape 
Breton  was  British ;  Bradstreet  had  by  his  one 
brilliant  stroke  neutralised  Montcalm's  victory  at 
Ticonderoga  and  made  the  way  easier  for  Forbes  to 
capture  Duquesne,  as  he  did  in  November,  renaming 
it  Fort  Pitt,  to  become  in  time  that  hive  of  industry, 
Pittsburg.  Pitt  had  no  reason  to  be  dissatisfied 
with  his  work  in  1758,  qualified  though  it  might 
be  by  Ticonderoga  and  one  or  two  smaller 
reverses. 
An  With  genuine  concern  Wolfe  learned  that  Pitt  had 

annoying  intended  to  continue  him  on  service  in  America.  He 
wrote  at  once  to  the  Minister  explaining  that  it  was 
understood  by  Lord  Ligonier,  the  Commander-in- 
Chief  and  Amherst,  that  from  the  condition  of  his 
health  and  other  circumstances,  he  would  return  to 
England  at  the  end  of  the  campaign.  The  discovery 
was  particularly  annoying  because  none  had  been  so 
anxious  as  he  to  carry  the  campaign  to  the  St. 
Lawrence.  "  I  take  the  freedom,"  he  said  to  Pitt, 
"  to  acquaint  you  that  I  have  no  objection  to  serving 
in  America  and  particularly  in  the  River  St.  Lawrence 
if  any  operations  are  to  be  carried  on  there.  The 
favour  I  ask  is  only  to  be  allowed  a  sufficient  time  to 
repair  the  injury  done  to  my  constitution  by  the 
long  confinement  at  sea,  that  I  may  be  the  better 
able  to  go  through  the  business  of  the  next  summer." 
Back  again  at  Salisbury  he  wrote  to  his  friend 
Rickson  a  long  letter  in  which  he  reiterated  many 


discovery. 


AT  PITT'S  DISPOSAL  129 

of  the  points  as  to  Louisbourg  familiar  in  other 
letters.  The  British  force  in  America,  he  said,  "  was 
so  superior  to  the  enemy's  that  we  might  have  hoped 
for  greater  success.  But  it  pleased  the  Disposer  of 
all  things  to  check  our  presumption  by  permitting 
Mr.  Abercromby  to  hurry  on  that  precipitate  attack 
on  Ticonderoga."  He  expected  to  hear  any  day  that 
a  new  attempt  had  been  made,  "  and  I  can't  flatter 
myself  that  they  have  succeeded,  not  from  any  idea 
of  the  Marquis  de  Montcalm's  abilities,  but  from  a 
very  poor  opinion  of  our  own."  As  for  himself,  he 
added,  he  had  signified  to  Mr.  Pitt  that  he  might 
"  dispose  of  my  slight  carcass  as  he  pleases,  and  that 
I  am  ready  for  any  undertaking  within  the  reach  and 
compass  of  my  skill  and  cunning.  I  am  in  a  very  bad 
condition  both  with  the  gravel  and  rheumatism,  but 
I  had  much  rather  die  than  decline  any  kind  of  service 
that  offers.  If  I  followed  my  own  taste,  it  would 
lead  me  into  Germany  ;  and  if  my  poor  talent  was 
consulted,  they  would  place  me  in  the  cavalry,  because 
nature  has  given  me  good  eyes,  and  a  warmth  of 
temper  to  follow  the  first  impressions.  However,  it 
is  not  our  part  to  choose,  but  to  obey.  My  opinion 
is,  that  I  shall  join  the  army  in  America,  where,  if 
fortune  favours  our  force  and  best  endeavours,  we 
may  hope  to  triumph." 

Wolfe  watched  events  in  Germany  the  more  closely  Wolfe  as 
because  his  old  Regiment  was  doing  excellent  work  disciplina- 
with  Prince  Ferdinand — an  earnest  of  better  things  nan* 
to  come  when  Kingsley's  men  should  cover  themselves 
with  glory  at  Minden.     He  told  one  of  his  old  captains 
how  pleased  he  was  that  the  discipline  they  had 
helped  to  establish  was  producing  "  the  natural  effects 
whenever    it    comes    to    the    proof."     The    Prince's 

10 — (2213) 


The 


130  GENERAL  WOLFE 

abilities  he  rated  very  high.  "  It  is  my  fortune  to  be 
cursed  with  American  service  ;  yours  to  serve  in  an 
army  commanded  by  a  great  and  able  prince  where 
I  would  have  been  if  my  choice  and  inclinations  had 
been  consulted."  During  the  short  time  spent  with 
the  67th,  he  seems  to  have  left  the  same  impression 
on  its  discipline  that  he  left  on  the  20th.  The  greatest 
compliment  was  paid  to  its  abiding  influence  some 
years  later,  when  a  Russian  General  asked  leave  to 
borrow  two  or  three  privates  in  order  to  drill  his  own 
men  in  the  way  of  the  67th.  Major  Campbell  then 
in  command  said  the  only  merit  due  to  himself  was 
the  attention  and  strictness  with  which  he  had 
followed  the  system  introduced  by  Wolfe. x 

For  the  benefit  of  his  health,  Wolfe  went  to  Bath 
Quebec  on  the  7th  December,  and  a  week  or  ten  days  later 
command,  received  a  summons  to  London  from  Pitt.  The  great 
Minister  and  the  young  soldier  both  had  Quebec  in 
mind,  but  with  the  difference  that  whilst  Wolfe  had 
urged  the  importance  of  an  expedition  to  the  St. 
Lawrence  in  which  he  might  serve  under  another, 
Pitt  had  decided  that  Wolfe  himself  was  to  command 
that  most  hazardous  portion  of  a  new  tripartite 
campaign.  Only  a  Pitt  would  have  dared  propose 
for  such  an  enterprise  a  soldier  whose  very  age  was 
not  equal  to  the  length  of  other  veterans'  services. 
Pitt  knew  his  man.  After  the  interview  Wolfe  kept 
his  own  counsel,  though  naturally  rumours  of 
important  developments  were  soon  afloat.  Even  to 
his  old  friend  Warde  he  did  not  divulge  the  facts  when 
he  wrote  on  the  20th  December  to  ask  if  he  might 
mention   Warde's   name   for   distant,    difficult,    and 

1  Memoirs  of  Sir  James  Campbell  of  Ardkinglass,  quoted 
by  Wright,  p.  470. 


SELECTING  HIS  STAFF  131 

disagreeable  service  such  as  would  make  a  call  on  all 
his    skill    and    abilities.     "  If    the    employment    of 
Adjutant-General  or  perhaps  of  Quartermaster  to  a 
very  hazardous  enterprise  be  to  your  taste,  there  are 
people  who  would  be  extremely  glad  of  your  assist- 
ance.    There  is  no  immediate  advantage  arising  from 
it.     That  of  being  useful  to  the  public  at  the  expense 
of  your  health  and  constitution  is  a  recommendation 
that  cannot  be  strongly  urged. "     Warde  was  ready  to 
serve  under  his  whilom  playmate  of  Squerryes,  but 
anticipated    opposition    in    certain    quarters.     His 
willingness  to  fall  in  with  Wolfe's  suggestion  is  clear 
from  Wolfe's  reply  that  his  "  readiness  "  encouraged 
him  to  hope  their  united  efforts  might  be  useful  and 
that    he   would    desire    to   be   excused    from   these  Wh    did 
"  dangerous  honours  "  if  he  could  not  have  his  own  George 
men.     For  some  reason  Warde  did  not  go  to  Quebec  Warde  n°t 
with  Wolfe.     That  reason  must  have  been  ample —  J 
more  ample  than  Mr.  Bradley  suggests  when  he  says 
that  "  Warde  in  spite  of    his  sincere  regard  for  his 
friend,  not  unnaturally  as  a  horse  soldier,  preferred 
the  battlefields  of  Europe,  whither  he  was  shortly 
sent,  to  the  siege  of  an  American  fortress,  howsoever 
important. ' '  x     Perhaps  Warde's  inclinations  combined 
with   official   objections    to    determine    the   matter. 
There  is  no  ground  for  suggesting  that  Warde  volun- 
tarily rejected  an  offer  on  his  acceptance  of  which 
Wolfe  set  so  high  a  value.     Wolfe  told  "  the  leading 
men "   that  if  they  charged  a  young  soldier  with 
weighty  responsibilities  they  must  give  him  the  best 
assistance.     He  knew  in  which  direction  to  look  for 
such  assistance.     He  had  another  friend  in  mind — 
Guy  Carleton.     It  was  unfortunate  that  Carleton  was 
1   Wolfe,  p.   131. 


132 


GENERAL  WOLFE 


The 

Townshend 
appoint- 
ment. 


out  of  favour  with  the  king.  He  had  spoken  dis- 
respectfully of  the  Hanoverians,  and  the  king  punished 
him.  He  refused  him  permission  to  join  Wolfe  at 
Louisbourg,  and  now  when  Wolfe  included  Carleton's 
name  in  his  staff  it  was  struck  out  by  the  royal  quill. 
But  Wolfe  was  as  firm  on  the  one  side  as  the  king  on 
the  other.  After  Louisbourg  he  expressed  the  view 
that  if  Carleton  had  been  there  the  business  might 
have  been  much  expedited.  "  So  much  depends  upon 
the  abilities  of  individuals  in  war  that  there  cannot 
be  too  great  care  taken  in  the  choice  of  men  for  the 
different  offices  of  trust  and  importance."1  He 
was  determined  to  have  his  own  men  now,  and  it 
was  only  after  a  strenuous  fight  against  the  king's 
prejudices,  during  which  Pitt  strongly  urged  Wolfe's 
claim,  and  Lord  Ligonier  had  several  animated 
audiences  in  support  of  it,  that  Carleton  was  included 
as  Quartermaster-General.  As  Pitt  said,  to  refuse 
compliance  with  the  General's  request  was  to  make 
it  impossible  to  hold  him  responsible  if  he  should 
fail. 

Wolfe  made  more  than  one  exceptional  appoint- 
ment ;  he  had  as  sharp  an  eye  for  merit  as  had  Pitt 
in  selecting  himself.  His  three  Brigadiers  were  to  be 
Robert  Monckton,  son  of  Viscount  Galway,  who  had 
seen  service  in  Germany,  Flanders,  and  America  ; 
George  Townshend,  eldest  son  of  Viscount  Townshend ; 
and  James  Murray,  son  of  Lord  Eli  bank  in  whose 
capacity  for  command  Wolfe  had  the  greatest 
confidence.  Townshend  was  not  one  of  Wolfe's  men. 
In  temperament  they  were  unlike,  and  Townshend  had 


1  Letter  to  Lord  G.  Sackville. 
p.  76. 


His.  MSS.   Com,  IX,  iii, 


SOCIAL  INFLUENCE  133 

possibly  been  spoiled  by  admiring  friends.  His 
appointment  is  generally  said  to  have  been  the  direct 
result  of  social  influence.  He  held  an  immoderate 
idea  of  the  claims  of  birth  over  abilitiy  ;  if  that  idea 
could  have  been  eliminated,  such  is  the  impression 
conveyed,  he  would  have  made  a  better  colleague. 
What  his  critics  said,  Horace  Walpole  summarised  in 
a  caustic  sentence  :  "A  very  particular  young  man 
who  with  much  address,  some  honour,  no  knowledge, 
great  fickleness,  greater  want  of  judgment,  and  with 
still  more  disposition  to  ridicule,  had  promised  once 
or  twice  to  make  a  good  speaker."  In  Walpole's 
view,  after  the  appointment,  Townshend,  so  far  as 
wrong-headedness  went,  was  "  very  proper  for  a 
hero."  Townshend's  shortcomings  are  easy  to  detect ; 
if  we  respect  him  only  in  the  degree  to  which  he  loved 
Wolfe  he  will  not  command  much  esteem,  but  he  was 
a  good  soldier  and  if  Wolfe  had  not  been  assured  on 
that  side  Townshend  would  never  have  formed  one 
of  his  staff.  Wolfe  would  not  have  taken  the  risk. 
To  suggest  that  he  would  have  allowed  social  claims 
to  over-ride  professional  considerations  is  to  reflect 
sharply  on  himself.  Wolfe's  difficulties  were  indi- 
cated in  a  letter  to  Major  Alexander  Murray,  whom 
he  wished  to  serve.  He  was  opposed  by  "  a  torrent 
of  family  interest "  which  tended  to  bear  down 
justice  itself.  But  the  most  careful  reading  between 
the  lines  of  Townshend's  life  lends  little  colour  to  the 
suggestions  of  his  enemies.  Townshend  had  seen 
service  as  Wolfe  had  at  Dettingen  and  Laffeldt  and 
Culloden,  and  after  the  fall  of  Louisbourg  he  wrote 
to  Pitt  to  ask  to  be  employed  in  some  expedition 
against  France.  Lord  Ligonier  mentioned  the  matter 
to  the  King  and  the  letter  Townshend  received  from 


134  GENERAL  WOLFE 

Wolfe     hardly     bears     out     Walpole's     too     ready 
depreciation — 

"To  Colonel  the  Honble.  George  Townshend.  (x) 

"  Sir,— 

"  1  came  to  town  last  night  and  found  the  letter  you 
have  done  me  the  honour  to  write.  Your  name  was  mentioned 
to  me  by  the  Mareschal,  and  my  answer  was  that  such  an 
example  in  a  person  of  your  rank  and  character  could  not 
but  have  the  best  effects  upon  the  troops  in  America,  and 
indeed  upon  the  whole  military  part  of  the  nation  ;  and  I 
took  the  freedom  to  add  that  what  might  be  wanting  in 
experience  was  amply  made  up  in  an  extent  of  capacity  and 
activity  of  mind,  that  would  find  nothing  difficult  in  our 
business.  I  am  to  thank  you  for  the  good  opinion  you  have 
entertained  of  me  and  for  the  manner  in  which  you  have 
taken  occasion  to  express  your  favourable  sentiments.  I 
persuade  myself  that  we  shall  concur  heartily  for  the  public 
service — the  operation  in  question  will  require  our  united 
efforts  and  the  utmost  exertion  of  every  man's  spirit  and 
judgment. 

"I  conclude  we  are  to  sail  with  Mr.  Saunders'  squadron. 
Till  then  you  do  what  is  most  agreeable  to  yourself.  If  I 
hear  anything  that  concerns  you  to  know,  be  assured  of  the 
earliest  intelligence. 

"  I  have  the  honour  to  be  with  the  highest  esteem,  Sir,  your 
"Most  obedient  and  faithful  humble  servant, 


London,  6th  Jan.,   1759." 


"  J.  Wolfe. 


Miss  After  his  interview  with  Pitt,  Wolfe  went  back  to 

Lowther.  g^  to  recruit  ms  health,  to  mature  his  plans,  and 
to  enter  on  a  campaign  of  another  sort.  His  precise 
relations  with  Miss  Katherine  Lowther,  the  sister  of 
Sir  James  Lowther,  who  was  to  become  first  Earl  of 
Lonsdale,  must  be  left  to  the  imagination,  2    Clues 

(*)  Military  Life  of  George  Townshend,  p.   143. 

*  Thackeray's  account  in  The  Virginians  of  Wolfe's  love 
for  Miss  Lowther  is  purely  imaginary  if  it  be  true  that  there 
was  no  engagement  till  the  winter  of  1758-9. 


PITT  TO  AMHERST  135 

followed  up  by  ardent  desire  to  know  all  that  is 
possible  of  everything  affecting  James  Wolfe  have 
yielded  little.  We  may  conjure  up  any  idyllic  story 
we  choose  of  the  second  surrender  of  this  brilliant, 
high  souled,  ailing  young  warrior  just  appointed  to 
the  command  of  an  expedition  of  world-wide  signifi- 
cance, taking  to  heart  a  woman  of  whom  it  was  said 
that  rank  and  large  fortune  were  among  her  least 
recommendations.  All  that  is  certain  is  that  she  now 
entered  definitely  into  Wolfe's  life,  but  no  tangible 
evidence  to  that  effect  is  forthcoming  until  the  fateful 
day  which  gave  Great  Britain  a  new  dominion  and 
cost  her  one  of  her  noblest  sons. 

Whatever  the  facts  may  be,  Wolfe  can  have  had  Plan  of 
little  time  for  the  duties  of  suitor  nor  opportunity  for  campaign 
that  perfect  rest  which  he  sought.  Pitt  would  have 
given  him  plenty  to  keep  him  busy.  The  Secretary 
of  State's  letter  to  Amherst,  who  had  succeeded 
Abercromby  as  Commander-in-Chief  in  America, 
announced  Wolfe's  appointment  as  Major-General  for 
purposes  of  the  American  campaign.  Amherst 
himself  was  to  command  an  expedition  which  was  to 
make  its  way  by  Ticonderoga  and  Crown  Point  to  the 
St.  Lawrence,  Montreal,  and  Quebec,  a  third  expedi- 
tion advancing  via  Niagara.  Forbes  would  have 
commanded  the  last,  but  the  Duquesne  Campaign 
had  left  him  a  complete  physical  wreck  and  Brigadier 
Prideaux  was  appointed  in  his  stead.  Amherst  was 
instructed  at  great  length  as  to  the  steps  he  was  to 
take  in  preparation  for  Wolfe's  arrival  at  Louisbourg 
in  April  or  early  in  May.  Pitt's  letter  was  a  masterly 
guide  to  the  means  by  which  a  great  end  was  to  be 
accomplished. *     It  left  to  the  initiative  of  the  man 

1  Correspondence  of  Pitt,  vol.  i,  p.  432-442. 


136 


GENERAL   WOLFE 


Parsimony 
and  public 
service. 


on  the  spot  only  those  things  which  the  responsible 
Minister    could    not    possibly    determine.     Wolfe's 
commission  was  signed  on  the  12th  January,  1759. 
The  local  character  of  that  commission,  which  meant 
that  he  was  plain  Colonel  Wolfe  at  home,    Major- 
General  in  America,  and  until  he  should  join  hands 
with    Amherst,     Commander-in-Chief    on    the    St. 
Lawrence,     involved    embarrassing    financial    con- 
siderations.    Amherst,    as    Commander-in-Chief     in 
fact,  received  £10  a  day  and  £1,000  for  expenses,  but 
Wolfe,  as  a  practically  independent  commander  for 
some  time  to  come  with  equal  claims  upon  his  purse, 
received  £2  a  day  and  no  allowance  for  expenses.     It 
was  of  course  ludicrously  inadequate  and  he  told 
Lord  Barrington,   the  Secretary  for  War,   that  he 
would  have  to  borrow  from  his  father  unless  some 
allowance  from  the  public  purse  were  made.     Lord 
Barrington    reassured    him.     Representations    were 
made  to  the  King,  £500  was  granted  without  demur, 
and  more  was  promised  if  it  should  be  necessary. 
Munificent  treatment  for  one  on  whom  the  fate  of  an 
Empire  hung  !    Economy  there  must  be  somewhere — 
such  was  the  plea  :  then  why  not  economise  in  regard 
to    essential    public    enterprises   whilst    unessential 
workers  grew  fat  at  the  public  expense  ?     In  view 
of  what  happened  when  officialism  was  called  upon 
to    make    pecuniary    acknowledgment    of    Wolfe's 
inestimable  service  in  the  days  to  come,  one  can  but 
recognise  the  generosity  shown  in  anticipation.     Pitt 
himself  was  so  superior  to  considerations  of  hard  cash 
that  he  certainly  would  have  made  no  attempt  to 
gauge  Wolfe's  worth  in  pounds,  shillings  and  pence. 
Wolfe's   services,   like    his  own,    were   patriotically 
speaking  priceless. 


SUFFICIENT  FOR  THE  MOMENT  137 

Nor  did  Wolfe  complain,  though  he  must  have  been  Wolfe's 
conscious  that  he  was  expected  to  do  the  big  job  of  modesty, 
the  campaign  on  slender  resources.  He  said  he 
thought  £500  would  be  ample.  What  he  wanted 
now  as  ever  was  to  be  left  free  to  do  the  work  in  hand 
without  having  to  bother  about  immediate  ways  and 
means.  Love  is  not  the  only  thing  which  flies  out 
when  poverty  enters,  and  a  nature  such  as  Wolfe's 
would  worry  more  about  inability  to  discharge  a 
small  debt  than  about  failure  to  compete  successfully 
with  less  able  men  in  the  acquisition  of  material 
gains.  Lord  Barrington  may  well  have  been 
"  touched  "  by  his  modesty  :  it  was  a  quality  little 
in  evidence  among  the  placemen  of  the  eighteenth 
century.  If  Wolfe  knew  that  his  own  abilities  were 
a  good  deal  in  advance  of  those  of  many  of  the 
leading  military  men  with  whom  he  was  brought  in 
contact,  he  regarded  the  fact  more  in  sorrow  than 
in  pride.  On  the  29th  January,  he  wrote  to  his 
uncle  Walter  :  "I  am  to  act  a  greater  part  in  this 
business  than  I  wish  or  desire.  The  backwardness  of 
some  of  the  leading  officers  has  in  some  measure  forced 
the  Government  to  go  so  low.  I  shall  do  my  best 
and  leave  the  rest  to  fortune  as  perforce  we  must 
when  there  are  not  the  most  commanding  abilities. 
...  If  I  have  health  and  constitution  enough  for  the 
campaign  I  shall  think  myself  a  lucky  man  ;  what 
happens  afterwards  is  not  of  great  consequence." 

Two  anecdotes  recorded  of  Wolfe  in  the  interval  Misunder- 
between  his  appointment  and  his  sailing  again  for  **ood  ^7 
America    are    eloquent    of   the    average    politician's  ticians. 
inability  to  understand  him.     Pitt's  nominal  chief, 
Newcastle,  took  occasion  to  inform  the  King  that 
Wolfe  was  mad.     The  King  replied  :    "  Mad,  is  he  ? 


138  GENERAL  WOLFE 

Then  I  hope  he  will  bite  some  of  my  generals." 
George  II  was  a  soldier  and  prepared  to  take  the 
consequences  of  any  amount  of  such  madness.  The 
other  story  had  its  origin,  not  in  stupidity,  but  in  a 
quality  less  amiable.  It  relates  to  a  little  dinner 
given  by  Pitt  to  Wolfe  on  the  eve  of  his  departure. 
Lord  Temple  was  the  only  other  guest.  "  As  the 
evening  advanced  Wolfe,  heated  perhaps  by  his  own 
aspiring  thoughts  and  the  unwonted  society  of 
statesmen,  broke  forth  into  a  strain  of  gasconade 
and  bravado.  He  drew  his  sword,  he  rapped  the 
table  with  it,  he  flourished  it  round  the  room,  he 
talked  of  the  mighty  things  which  that  sword  was 
to  achieve.  The  two  ministers  sat  aghast  at  an 
exhibition  so  unusual  from  any  man  of  real  sense  and 
real  spirit.  And  when  at  last  Wolfe  had  taken  his 
leave,  and  his  carriage  was  heard  to  roll  from  the 
door,  Pitt  seemed  for  the  moment  shaken  in  the  high 
opinion  which  his  deliberate  judgment  had  formed 
of  Wolfe  ;  he  lifted  up  his  eyes  and  arms  and 
exclaimed  to  Lord  Temple  :  '  Good  God !  That  I 
should  have  entrusted  the  fate  of  the  country  and 
the  administration  to  such  hands.'  "*  In  order  to 
allow  Wolfe  no  chance  of  escape,  we  are  solemnly 
told  that  he  was  none  the  worse  for  wine.  This 
absurd  story  I  have  seen  illustrated  in  popular 
works  in  order,  I  suppose,  to  enable  the  people  of 
England  the  better  to  estimate  so  fine  a  specimen  of 
transpontine  military  swagger.  Wright  chivalrously 
examines  the  evidence  at  considerable  length  in 
disproof  of  the  story. 2  Its  real  disproof  is  the 
character  of  the  chief  witness  and  the  character  of 

1  Mahon's  History  of  England,  vol.  iv,  p.   228. 
*  Life  of  Wolfe,  pp.  483-487. 


THE   EXPEDITION   SAILS  139 

Wolfe  himself.  Two  sentences  from  the  brief  note 
to  his  mother  in  which  he  sought  to  avoid  "  the 
formality  of  leave-taking  "  proclaim  the  man  :  "I 
shall  carry  this  business  through  with  my  best 
abilities.  The  rest  you  know  is  in  the  hands  of 
Providence,  to  whose  care  I  hope  your  good  life  and 
conduct  will  recommend  your  son." 

A  fleet  of  sixty  transports,  six  sail  of  the  line  and  Pitt's 
nine  frigates,  sailed  from  Portsmouth  under  Rear-  anticipa- 
Admiral  Holmes  in  the  middle  of  February  to  be 
followed  on  the  17th  by  a  squadron  under  Admiral 
Saunders,  who  was  to  command  the  fleet  in  the  St. 
Lawrence.  Wolfe  was  with  the  Admiral  on  board 
the  Neptune,  which  carried  ninety  guns.  Weather 
was  against  the  precise  ordering  of  events  as  usual. 
Wolfe  intended  to  make  straight  for  Louisbourg,  but 
the  harbour  was  ice-bound,  and  the  Neptune  went 
instead  to  Halifax.  They  put  into  port  ten  days 
later  than  was  originally  contemplated.  In  America, 
Admiral  Durell  had  been  energetically  advancing 
preparations  on  the  naval  side,  and  Amherst, 
Lawrence,  and  others  had  been  hard  at  work  on  the 
military.  Pitt's  instructions  were  that  Amherst  was 
to  have  all  ready  for  Wolfe  to  start  from  Louisbourg 
by  the  12th  May,  but  it  was  some  days  later  than  that 
before  the  fleet  could  even  move  from  Halifax  to 
Louisbourg.  Amherst  was  to  hurry  up  with  his  own 
arrangements  so  that  operations  might  begin  by  the 
1st.  If  Amherst  were  moving  by  the  beginning 
of  May  he  would  possibly  make  the  way  easier  for 
Wolfe  at  Quebec,  and  when  Wolfe  attacked  Quebec 
forces  would  certainly  be  drawn  from  elsewhere. 
They  would  thus  be  mutually  helpful.  It  has  been 
said  that  Pitt  never  anticipated  that  Wolfe  would 


140  GENERAL  WOLFE 

capture  Quebec  without  the  immediate  co-operation 
of  Amherst,  who  it  was  hoped  would  arrive  on  the 
St.  Lawrence  in  the  course  of  the  summer.  Secret 
instructions  issued  to  Wolfe  make  it  clear  that  Pitt 
foresaw  the  possibility  of  Wolfe's  success  before  he 
got  into  touch  with  Amherst.  He  was  given  general 
directions  as  to  what  he  should  do  "in  case  by  the 
Blessing  of  God  upon  our  arms  "  he  should  make 
himself  master  of  Quebec  ;  "  ulterior  operations  "  were 
left  to  his  and  Saunders'  discretion. x 
The  According    to    Pitt's    calculations,    Wolfe    was    to 

strength  of  commanci     12,000    men,     but    when    the    number 
the  Army.  ' 

assembled  at  Louisbourg  was  totalled,  it  was  found 

that  there  were  only  8,635,  or  less  than  75  per  cent. 

of  the  number  Pitt  intended.     As  Wolfe  was  originally 

of  opinion  that  12,000  would  not  be  a  sufficient  force, 

the  actual  numbers  with  which  he  embarked  on  this 

great  enterprise  were  barely  half  what  he  would  have 

taken   if  he   could.     Writing   to   Pitt   from   Halifax 

Harbour  the  day  after  he  arrived,  he  expressed  his 

satisfaction    with    what    had    been    done    in    other 

respects.     He  pointed  out  that  every  man  in  Canada 

was  a  soldier.     "  Our  troops  are  good  and  very  well 

disposed.     If  valour  can  make  amends  for  want  of 

numbers  we  shall  probably  succeed.     Any  accident 

on  the  river  or  sickness  among  the  men  might  put  us 

in  some  difficulties."     Whilst  waiting  at  Halifax  he 

drew  up  various  orders  for  the  guidance  of  the  troops 

in  circumstances  of  urgency  during  the  voyage  up 

the  St.  Lawrence,  and  for  the  better  preservation  of  the 

men's  health  whilst  on  board  ship.     Personal  sorrow 

came  to  him  shortly  after  he  reached  Louisbourg  : 

his  father  died  at  Blackheath  on  the  26th  March, 

1  Doughty,  vol.  ii,  p.    19. 


"A  VERY  NICE  OPERATION"  141 

and  the  sense  of  bereavement  was  intensified  by  the 
thought  of  his  mother's  loneliness.  In  a  letter  to  his 
uncle  from  Louisbourg  on  the  19th  May  he  gave  a 
lengthy  account  of  the  military  and  naval  position  as 
he  saw  it  within  a  fortnight  of  his  departure  for 
Quebec. 

"  We  are  ordered  to  attack  Quebec — a  very  nice  operation. 
The  fleet  consists  of  twenty-two  sail  of  the  line  and  many 
frigates ;  the  army  of  9,000  men ; — in  England  it  is  called 
12,000.  We  have  ten  battalions,  three  companies  of  Grena- 
diers, some  Marines  (if  the  Admiral  can  spare  them),  and 
six  new-raised  companies  of  North  American  Rangers — not 
complete,  and  the  worst  soldiers  in  the  universe  ;  a  great 
train  of  artillery,  plenty  of  provisions,  tools,  and  implements 
of  all  sorts ;  three  Brigadiers  under  me, — all  men  of  great 
spirit ;  some  Colonels  of  reputation,  Carleton  for  Quarter- 
master-General, and  upon  whom  I  chiefly  rely  for  the 
engineering  part.  Engineers  very  indifferent,  and  of  little 
experience ;  but  we  have  none  better.  The  regular  troops 
in  Canada  consist  of  eight  battalions  of  old  Foot — about  400 
a  battalion — and  forty  companies  of  Marines  (or  colony 
troops) — forty  men  a  company.  They  can  gather  together 
8,000  or  10,000  Canadians,  and  perhaps  1,000  Indians.  As 
they  are  attacked  by  the  side  of  Montreal  by  an  enemy  of 
12,000  fighting  men  [Amherst's  force]  they  must  necessarily 
divide  their  force  ;  but,  as  the  loss  of  the  capital  implies  the 
loss  of  the  colony,  their  chief  attention  will  naturally  be  there, 
and  therefore  I  reckon  we  may  find  at  Quebec  six  battalions, 
some  companies  of  marines,  four  or  five  thousand  Canadians, 
and  some  Indians,  altogether  not  much  inferior  to  their 
enemy." 

As  a  matter  of  fact,  the  force  with  which  Montcalm  Wolfe's 
opposed  Wolfe  was  some  13,000  or  14,000  strong  ;  so  confidence, 
that  numerically  Montcalm  had  a  heavy  advantage. 
Wolfe  explained  to  his  uncle  how  Rear-Admiral  Durell 
had  gone  up  the  river  with  ten  sail  to  cut  off  succours 
for  Quebec — which,  unfortunately  for  the  subsequent 
operations,  he  only  partially  succeeded  in  doing — 
and  to  seize  islands  where  the  navigation  was  most 


142  GENERAL  WOLFE 

dangerous.  He  was  to  push  with  his  squadron  as 
far  up  the  river  as  possible  "  that  all  might  be  free 
and  open  behind."  The  Commander-in-Chief  of  the 
fleet  Wolfe  described  as  "  a  zealous  brave  officer  " — 
a  just  tribute  to  Admiral  Saunders  and  a  proof  of  the 
excellent  relations  between  the  two  services.  Wolfe 
said  :  "  It  is  the  business  of  our  naval  force  to  be 
masters  of  the  river  both  above  and  below  the  town. 
If  I  find  the  enemy  is  strong,  audacious  and  well 
commanded,  I  shall  proceed  with  the  utmost  caution 
and  circumspection,  giving  Mr.  Amherst  time  to  use 
his  superiority.  If  they  are  timid,  weak  and  ignorant, 
we  shall  push  them  with  more  vivacity  that  we  may 
be  able  before  the  summer  is  gone  to  assist  the 
Commander-in-Chief.  I  reckon  we  shall  have  a 
smart  action  at  the  passage  of  the  river  St.  Charles, 
unless  we  can  steal  a  detachment  up  the  river  St. 
Lawrence  and  land  them  three,  four,  five  miles  or 
more  above  the  town,  and  get  time  to  entrench  so 
strongly  that  they  won't  care  to  attack."  Especially 
significant  is  this  last  sentence  in  view  of  the  develop- 
ments of  the  next  three  months.  It  indicates 
Wolfe's  original  idea.  Again,  he  referred  to  the  army 
under  his  command  as  "  rather  too  small  for  the 
undertaking,  but  it  is  well  composed."  Finally,  he 
told  his  uncle  :  "  You  may  be  assured  that  I  shall 
take  all  proper  care  of  my  own  person,  unless  in  case 
of  the  last  importance  where  it  becomes  a  duty  to 
do  otherwise.  I  never  put  myself  unnecessarily  into 
the  way  of  danger.  Young  troops  must  be  encouraged 
at  first.  What  appears  hazardous  sometimes  is  really 
not  so  to  people  who  know  the  country  " — as  he  had 
proved  by  the  small  losses  among  his  own  men  at 
Louisbourg  ten  months  previously. 


THE   BRITISH  TOAST  143 

The  troops  waiting  to  put  to  sea  were  in  high  spirits,  incidental 
Wolfe  reviewed  them  battalion  by  battalion  on  shore,  difficulties, 
and  to  an  officer's  apology  for  his  men's  deficiency  in 
a  new  exercise  he  is  said  to  have  made  response  : 
"  Poh  !  poh  !  new  exercise — new  fiddlestick  !  if 
they  are  otherwise  well  disciplined  and  will  fight 
that's  all  I  require  of  them."  Among  the  novelties 
in  the  composition  of  the  army  was  a  body  of  Louis- 
bourg  Grenadiers,  whom  Wolfe  had  specially  formed 
as  a  recognition  of  the  men's  excellent  service  in  the 
previous  year's  siege.  They  were  commanded  by 
Alexander  Murray.  It  was  one  of  Wolfe's  happy 
thoughts  as  had  been  the  formation  of  the  Light 
Infantry  for  Louisbourg.  The  army,  its  shortage 
notwithstanding,  was  slow  in  assembling  owing  to 
fog  and  the  difficulties  of  transport,  and  it  was  the 
first  of  June  when  the  fleet  began  to  move.  For 
nearly  a  week  the  sailings  of  the  troopships,  com- 
prising seventy-six  vessels,  seventeen  flat-bottomed 
boats,  122  cutters,  and  thirteen  whaleboats,  continued. 
"  British  colours  on  every  French  fort,  port  and 
garrison  in  America,"1  was  the  toast  in  favour  with 
the  officers,  and  the  men  by  their  shouts  and  cheers 
as  the  ships  cleared  the  harbour,  echoed  the  sentiment. 
Wolfe's  report  to  Pitt  of  the  little  accidents  that  had 
delayed  departure  was  sent  off  from  the  Neptune  on 
the  6th.  Several  transports  had  not  joined  them  ; 
some  of  the  companies  of  Rangers  provided  by  the 
Colonies  were  very  bad  ;  the  camp  equipage  of  three 
regiments  was  missing  ;  certain  of  the  Boston  Militia 
wanted  as  pioneers  refused  an  invitation  to  go  :  "It 
seldom  happens  that  a  New  England  man  prefers 
service  to  a  lazy  life,"  said  Wolfe,  and  money  for 
1  Knox  :    Journal,  vol.  i,  p.  279. 


144  GENERAL  WOLFE 

which  he  had  written  to  Amherst  was  not  forthcoming. 
"  This  is  one  of  the  first  sieges  perhaps  that  ever  was 
undertaken  without  it."  But  these  little  troubles 
were  incidental.  Wolfe's  confidence  as  to  the  issue 
was  complete.  "  WTe  expect  to  find  a  good  part  of 
the  force  of  Canada  at  Quebec,  and  we  are  prepared 
to  meet  them.  Whatever  the  end  is,  I  flatter  myself 
that  his  Majesty  will  not  be  dissatisfied  with  the 
behaviour  of  the  troops." 


CHAPTER  X 

FROM  CHAMPLAIN   TO   MONTCALM 

Never  did  a  great  country  throw  away  Empire  more  Quebec's 

recklessly   than   France   in   America.     History   can  heroic  . 

memories 
supply    few    more    striking    instances    of    flaunting 

ambition  o'erleaping  itself.  The  St.  Lawrence  was, 
so  far  as  record  tells,  hers  by  discovery  ;  it  was 
certainly  hers  by  right  of  occupation.  Car  tier  was 
the  first  European  to  find  his  way  up  the  mighty 
river  which  for  hundreds  of  miles  is  a  veritable  arm 
of  the  sea,  and  Champlain  was  the  founder  of  Quebec. 
The  great  promontory  which  thrusts  "  its  scarped 
front  into  the  surging  torrent  "  was  for  a  century  and 
a  half  the  pivot  of  French  fortunes  in  North  America, 
and  for  a  century  and  a  half  has  perhaps  been  the 
most  romantic  spot  in  the  British  Empire.  "  Here," 
as  Parkman  said,  "  clothed  in  the  majesty  of  solitude, 
breaking  the  stern  poetry  of  the  wilderness,  rose  the 
cliffs,  now  rich  with  heroic  memories"1 — heroic 
memories  which  belong  to  France,  to  Great  Britain, 
to  the  United  States  of  America,  memories  of 
Frontenac  and  Montcalm,  of  Wolfe  and  Carleton,  of 
Montgomery  and  Arnold. 

When    England    and    France    both    woke    up    to  French  and 
transatlantic  possibilities  at  the  end  of  the  sixteenth     "^j     . 
and  beginning  of  the  seventeenth  centuries,  France,  a  contrast 
roughly  speaking,  took  the  northern  and  less  hos- 
pitable half  of  the  eastern  coast  of  North  America, 
and    England    the    southern    and    generally    more 

1  Pioneers  of  France  in  the  New  World,  p.  207. 

145 
ii— (3213) 


146  GENERAL  WOLFE 

inviting  stretch.  Antagonists  and  rivals  as  France 
and  England  were,  their  very  lines  of  communication 
over-seas  crossed.  In  origin  and  objects  the  colonies 
were  dissimilar.  The  English  colonies  were  founded 
now  for  liberty's  sake,  now  for  purposes  of  agriculture 
and  commerce,  now  for  the  profits  of  proprietors  or 
to  further  some  royal  or  patriotic  end.  The  French 
colonies  were  intended  to  secure  an  Empire  beyond 
the  seas,  the  monopoly  of  rich  trades  such  as  the  fur, 
the  conversion  of  the  heathen,  incidentally  maybe 
to  discover  the  great  western  water  route  to  the  east 
which  for  so  long  was  believed  to  exist.  The  English 
colonies  whatever  their  difficulties  and  dangers, 
internal  or  external,  prospered  ;  New  France  lan- 
guished. Bound  in  the  swaddling  clothes  of  red  tape 
made  and  tied  in  Paris,  limbs  that  might  have  been 
healthy  and  strong  were  impoverished  and  dwarfed. 
France  sent  gallant  sons  to  the  St.  Lawrence  to  settle, 
to  explore,  to  fight  the  wilderness,  to  become  involved 
in  native  strife  ;  she  sent  priests  to  martyrdom  ;  and 
she  sent  soldiers  and  statesmen  on  that  most  heart- 
breaking of  all  missions — to  construct  an  Empire 
without  material  resources.  Jealous  of  English 
expansion,  she  handicapped  her  own  people  in 
competition,  and,  instead  of  free  men,  too  often 
selected  for  colonists  the  sweepings  of  the  streets 
and  gaols  of  her  great  towns. 
Absolut-  Everything   was  controlled   by  the   King  or  his 

ism.  ministers  at  a  distance  of  four  or  five  thousand  miles  ; 

between  the  despatch  and  receipt  of  instructions 
months  elapsed  and  situations  changed.  A  Frontenac 
was  the  creature  of  uncompromising  absolutism  ; 
coureurs  de  bois,  who  should  have  been  encouraged, 
were   outlawed,    and   La   Salle   and   other   intrepid 


QUEBEC  A  MENACE  147 

explorers  acted  in  defiance  of  orders  from  home. 1 
Yet  if  orders  had  been  obeyed  New  France  might 
have  been  saved,  La  Salle's  voyages  being  mainly 
responsible  for  the  attempt  to  hem  the  English 
colonies  in  between  the  Alleghanies  and  the  sea. 
New  countries  cannot,  however,  be  built  up  without 
enterprise,  and  the  French  settlers  had  not  too  many 
inspiring  and  animating  examples.  The  French 
colonial  system  was  nicely  calculated  to  foster 
enterprise  in  the  wrong  direction.  Fortunes  were 
made  at  the  expense  of  people  who  had  no  voice  in 
their  own  affairs.  By  the  middle  of  the  eighteenth 
century,  the  population  of  New  France,  Indians  apart, 
did  not  exceed  some  eighty  to  ninety  thousand. 
With  such  a  population  so  ruled,  France  proposed  to 
take  possession  of  a  continent,  the  extent  of  which 
was  unknown  and  to  leave  a  coast  strip  to  rivals  whose 
numbers  were  as  far  in  excess  of  her  own  as  was  their 
virility. 

From  the  first  Quebec  had  been  a  menace  to  the  The 
English,  which  as  early  as  1628  they  took  measures  EnSllsh 
to  remove.     The  Kirkes  led  an  English  fleet  up  the  Quebec. 
St.  Lawrence,  did  a  certain  amount  of  damage,  gave 
the  habitants  a  bad  fright  and  retired.     Champlain's 
rude  fort  was  not  in  a  condition  to  withstand  serious 
attack.     Nor  the  following  year,  when  the  Kirkes 
re-appeared,  were  the  people  in  a  mood  for  fighting. 
Champlain  had  difficulty  in  feeding  his  tiny  garrison 
and  defence  was  not  to  be  thought  of.     The  terms  of 
capitulation  were  made  easy  and  the  English  flag 
floated  over  Quebec  for  the  first  time  in  1629.  England 
and  France  had  concluded  a  peace  before  the  Kirkes 
entered  Quebec,   and  the  place  should  have  been 

1  Douglas  :    Old  France  in  the  New  World,  p.  390 . 


148  GENERAL  WOLFE 

restored  immediately.  Charles  I  held  it  for  three 
years  against  the  balance  of  his  Queen's  dowry,  which 
the  French  King  had  not  paid.  When  half  a  century 
later  the  great  Frontenac  became  Governor,  he  sys- 
tematically harried  the  English  settlements  at  the 
same  time  that  he  gave  special  attention  to  the 
defences  of  Quebec.  In  1690  the  colony  of  Massa- 
chusetts decided  to  strike  at  the  city  in  the  name  of 
King  William.  They  sent  a  fleet  under  Sir  William 
Phipps  who  haughtily  demanded  that  Quebec  should 
be  surrendered  within  an  hour  "  upon  the  peril  that 
would  ensue."  He  was  met  by  an  equally  haughty 
response  that  the  Prince  of  Orange  was  a  usurper  and 
that  Frontenac  the  servant  of  Louis  XIV  would 
answer  with  the  mouths  of  his  cannon.  Phipps  found 
him  as  good  as  his  word,  and  after  a  week's  fighting 
by  land  and  water  the  English,  badly  battered, 
disappeared  once  more.  During  the  war  of  the 
Spanish  succession  Quebec  was  to  be  attacked  by 
England  and  her  colonies  jointly.  An  army  was  to 
march  overland  from  New  England,  whilst  a  fleet 
under  Sir  Hovenden  Walker  was  to  co-operate  on  the 
St.  Lawrence.  The  fleet  was  unable  to  navigate  the 
river,  some  battleships  and  several  hundred  lives  were 
sacrificed,  the  enterprise  was  abandoned  and  the 
overland  force  was  recalled.  Phipps  and  Walker 
succeeded  in  giving  Quebec  a  sense  of  security  which 
it  was  to  enjoy  till  Wolfe  and  Saunders  dispelled  all 
illusions. 
^fjiMii>  The  state  of  Canada  at  the  time  that  the  campaign 

of  1759  was  opened  by  Amherst  and  Wolfe  was 
pitiable.  Neglected  by  the  Mother  Country  whose 
hands  were  over  full  in  Europe,  battened  on  by  officials 
who  made  fortunes  out  of  her  misery,  deficient  in  food 


Frippone. 


BIGOT  149 

supplies  and  in  regular  defenders,  her  councils  were 
torn  by  dissensions  between  those  whom  her  mis- 
fortunes should  have  made  one.  Vaudreuil,  a 
Canadian  by  birth,  was  governor,  Montcalm,  com- 
mander-in-chief, Bigot,  intendant.  Vaudreuil's  vanity 
and  jealousy,  combined  with  Bigot's  colossal  venality, 
made  the  task  of  the  man  charged  with  the  military 
defence  of  the  colony  one  of  extraordinary  difficulty. 
Poor  colony !  the  sport  of  Pompadour  and  Louis  XV 
in  Europe,  and  of  Vaudreuil  and  Bigot  in  America  ! 
Bigot's  record  as  given  by  Parkman,  who  devoted 
patient  examination  to  all  the  documents  in  French 
and  Canadian  archives,  is  almost  incredible. *  His 
position  placed  the  commerce,  the  finance  and  the  civil 
administration  entirely  at  his  mercy,  and  trust  was 
never  more  shamelessly  abused.  With  the  assistance 
of  many  accomplices,  he  bought  at  an  absurdly  low 
rate  for  an  establishment  run  by  himself,  which  came 
to  be  known  as  La  Frippone,  or  the  Cheat,  goods 
belonging  to  the  King  and  re-sold  them  to  the  King 
at  more  than  double  the  price.  When  Bigot  sent  in 
his  bills  to  Paris,  Ministers  examined  them  curiously 
and  made  some  sharp  reflections  which  hurt  the  poor 
sensitive  intendant.  Minister  Berryer  seems  to  have 
seen  through  his  not  very  subtle  practices,  but  instead 
of  insisting  on  his  dismissal,  put  some  very  plain 
questions  and  urged  him  to  give  these  things  his 
serious  attention.  "  What  has  become  of  the 
immense  quantity  of  provisions  sent  to  Canada  last 
year  ?  I  am  forced  to  conclude  that  the  King's  stores 
are  set  down  as  consumed  from  the  moment  they 
arrive  and  then  sold  to  his  Majesty  at  exorbitant 
prices.  Thus  the  King  buys  stores  in  France,  and 
1  Parkman  :    Montcalm  and  Wolfe,  chap.  xrii. 


150 


GENERAL  WOLFE 


Montcalm 
and  Wolfe 
a  parallel. 


then  buys  them  again  in  Canada.     I  no  longer  wonder 
at  the  immense  fortunes  made  in  the  colony."     Well 
might  Montcalm,  who  was  instrumental  in  bringing 
knowledge   of   Bigot's    transactions   to    the    French 
Ministry,  exclaim  :   "  What  a  country  !     Here  all  the 
knaves  grow  rich  and  the  honest  men  are  ruined." 
Vaudreuil  filled  a  peculiarly  perverse  role.     He  hated 
Montcalm  and,  at  whatever  risk  to  the  Canada  he 
loved,  placed  every  obstacle  in  his  way,  denounced 
any  miscarriage  as  due  to  Montcalm's  refusal  to  take 
his  advice,  and  appropriated  credit  for  every  success. 
He  held  Bigot  in  high  regard  and  at  a  time  when 
the  intendant's  malefactions  were  the  most  obvious 
thing  in  Canada,  found  words  in  his  defence.     He 
supported  the  man  who  was  ruining  Canada  and 
opposed  the  one  man  who  might  have  saved  her. 
Yet  Vaudreuil  was  not  regarded  as  a  rogue.     He  was 
rather  the  high  placed  tool  of  rogues.     He  did  not 
share  their  ill-gotten  millions,  and  when  years  after 
he  and  Bigot  and  the  rest  were  brought  to  trial  in 
France,   Vaudreuil  was  acquitted  whilst  they  were 
subject  to  heavy  penalties. 

What  strikes  one  about  the  Marquis  de  Montcalm 
is,  allowing  for  the  difference  of  nationality  and 
circumstances,  the  similarity  between  his  views  and 
work,  and  the  record  of  Wolfe  with  whom  his  name 
is  indissolubly  connected  in  history.  Montcalm  was 
born  in  the  Chateau  de  Candiac  near  Nimes  on  the 
29th  February,  1712,  and  after  a  few  years  under  a 
tutor  named  Dumas,  entered  the  army  at  fifteen. 
He  seems  to  have  been  sufficiently  brilliant  to  make 
M.  Dumas  anxious  that  he  should  do  better  than  he 
did.  In  a  letter  to  his  father,  Montcalm  set  out  his 
aims  as  a  young  man  in  explicit  terms  :     '  To  be  an 


MONTCALM'S  EARLY  DAYS  151 

honourable    man    of    good    morals,    brave,    and    a 
Christian.     To  read  in  moderation  ;  to  know  as  much 
Greek  and  Latin  as  most  men  of  the  world  ;   also  the 
four  rules  of  arithmetic,  and  something  of  history, 
geography,  and  French  and  Latin  belles  lettres  as 
well  as  to  have  a  taste  for  the  arts  and  sciences  ;    to 
be  fond  of  intellectual  accuracy  if  I  do  not  possess  it 
myself.     And,  above  all,  to  be  obedient,  docile  and 
very  submissive  to  your  orders,   and  those  of  my 
dear  mother,  and  to  defer  to  the  advice  of  M.  Dumas. 
To  fence  and  ride  as  well  as  my  small  abilities  will 
permit."     With   Montcalm   as   with   Wolfe   a   good 
mother's  influence  was  in  evidence  through  life.     He 
fought  in  the  war  brought  about  by  the  struggle  for 
the  Polish  throne   between    the  Elector  of  Saxony 
and  Stanislaus,  and  whilst  in  camp  learnt  German 
and  "  read  more  Greek,  thanks  to  my  loneliness,  than  I 
had  done  for  three  or  four  years."     At  twenty-two 
he    married — at    about    the    age    when    Wolfe    was 
passionately  in  love  with  Miss  Lawson.     He  fretted 
under  inaction  as  Wolfe  did  and  finding  that  his 
regiment  was  to  take  no  part  in  the  war  of  the 
Austrian   succession,    he   secured   himself   a   special 
appointment.     He  was  as  keen  for  promotion  and  to 
justify  it  by  efficiency  as  Wolfe  was,  and  held  positions 
in  advance  of  his  official  rank.     Major  Wood  points 
out  that  though  Montcalm  had  been  more  carefully 
educated  than  Wolfe,  both  had  "  that  sympathetic 
insight  into  life  which  craves  expression  in  the  fittest 
words  and  naturally  stimulates  a  man  both  to  read 
the  best  in  literature  and  to  find  a  true  style  for 
himself    when    he    comes    to    write." *     Montcalm's 
letters  are  as  remarkable  as  Wolfe's,  in  a  literary  way 

1   The  Fight  for  Canada,  p.   126. 


commis- 
sion 


152  GENERAL  WOLFE 

more  remarkable  perhaps.     When  a  first-rate  officer 
was  wanted  to  command  the  French  forces  in  Canada, 
the  Minister  for  War  recommended  Montcalm  and 
early  in  1756  he  was  appointed  with  the  Chevalier 
de   LeVis   as   his   second  in    command    and    M.    de 
Bourlamaque  third. 
M^^*lm'8       ^s  commission,  unhappily  for  him,  was  not  on 
all  fours  with  that  given  to  Wolfe.     He  was  to  be 
commander,  with  the  rank  of  Major-General,  and  to 
act  under  the   authority  of  the  Governor-General, 
M.  de  Vaudreuil  !     "As  the  said  Marquis  de  Montcalm 
is  to  command  only  under  the  Governor's  authority 
and  be  subordinate  in  all  matters,  M.  de  Montcalm 
shall  only  execute  and  see  that  the  troops  under  his 
command  execute  all  the  Governor's  orders."     In 
times  of  peace,  even  such  warlike  peace  as  existed 
in    America,    these    conditions    were    necessary    to 
civil  supremacy,  but  when  war  came  they  were  the 
very   handcuffs    of    military   efficiency.     They   cost 
Montcalm  many  a  pang,  and  it  was  not  until  affairs 
in  America  had  reached  a  most  critical  stage  that 
M.  de  Vaudreuil,  to  his  infinite  chagrin,  was  told  to 
conform  in  military  matters  to  Montcalm's  views. 
Montcalm  in  America,  the  Governor's  attitude  not- 
withstanding, was  not  long  in  making  his  energetic 
and  able  presence  felt  on  the  confines  of  the  British 
Colonies  ;    Oswego,  Fort  William  Henry,  and  Ticon- 
deroga  were  samples  of  his  soldierly  enterprise  and 
resource.     His  reputation  would  stand  even  higher 
than  it  does  if  it  were  possible  wholly  to  disclaim  his 
responsibility    for    the    atrocious    misdeeds    of    his 
Indians.     Better  have  shot  down  his  allies  and  taken 
the  risks  it  involved  than  allow  the  tomahawk  to  do 
its  ghastly  work  among  defenceless  men  and  women. 


BOUGAINVILLE'S  MISSION  153 

Otherwise  Montcalm's  escutcheon  is  untarnished. 
His  patriotism  was  high  above  that  of  his  fellows  ; 
he  was  as  clean  handed  in  the  very  heart  of  corruption 
as  Wolfe  or  Pitt.  Anxious  to  leave  Canada  after 
his  defeat  of  Abercromby,  he  was  equally  eager,  after 
Bradstreet  had  captured  Frontenac,  to  remain,  in 
order  to  repair  the  affairs  of  the  colony,  or  at  least 
retard  their  ruin.  "  I  wish  my  intentions  may  be 
seconded,"  he  added  significantly. 

Both  Montcalm  and  Vaudreuil  sent  urgent  appeals  Appeals  to 
to  France  for  help  during  the  latter  part  of  1758.  France. 
Bougainville,  one  of  the  envoys,  explained  to  the 
court  the  desperate  plight  of  the  colony  and  begged 
for  men  and  munitions,  for  food  and  for  ships  to 
hold  the  entrance  of  the  St.  Lawrence.  France 
could  do  little.  Her  resources  were  being  drained 
in  Europe  and  the  British  swept  the  seas.  If  she 
could  have  afforded  to  part  with  troops  and  supplies 
she  was  afraid  to  send  them  lest  they  should  be 
captured  by  the  English.  Yet  she  realised  that  Pitt's 
main  effort  was  directed  on  America.  As  Pitt  had 
laid  his  plans  to  conquer  France  in  Europe  by 
defeating  her  in  America,  so  France  decided  on  one 
bold  stroke  which  might  have  the  effect  of  saving 
Canada  by  turning  the  tables  on  England  within  her 
own  boundaries.  Big  fleets  were  prepared  at  Havre 
and  Brest  and  Toulon  in  1759  with  a  view  to  a  descent 
in  force  on  England  and  Ireland.  A  blow  at  the  very 
heart  of  the  British  Empire  if  not  decisive  would 
change  the  whole  aspect  of  the  war.  There  were  no 
troops  in  England  capable  of  meeting  a  French  force 
if  it  were  once  landed.  The  navy  saved  England 
from  this  distracting  effort.  Vigilant  as  daring,  her 
commanders  never  gave  the  French  fleets  a  chance 


154  GENERAL  WOLFE 

of    concentrating.     They    were    always    on    hand, 

whatever  the  conditions  of  the  weather.     Boscawen 

resolved  the  Toulon  fleet  into  its  elements  oft  Lagos  ; 

Rodney  destroyed  every  vestige  of    boat  at  Havre 

and  a  large  part  of  the  town  itself  ;   Hawke  watched 

Conflans  at  Brest  for  months  and  finally  disposed 

of  him  in  Quiberon  Bay.     There  is  something  almost 

uncanny    in    the    unerring    instinct    which    enabled 

British  admirals  to  anticipate  the  movements  of  the 

French  fleets.     They  left  Wolfe  and  Saunders  free 

to  do  their  great  work  on  the  St.  Lawrence. 

All  Bou-  A     proper     appreciation     of     the     probabilities 

gainville        made  the  French  Ministers  chary  of  attempting  to 
brought.  ,         .  ,     _,  •       n  ,      i  i        T-i 

comply   with   Bougainville  s   demands.     Iney   sent, 

however,  plenty  of  advice  and  instructions.  "  As 
we  must  expect  the  English  to  turn  all  their  force 
against  Canada,"  wrote  Belleisle  to  Montcalm  in 
February,  1759, *  "  and  attack  you  on  several  sides 
at  once,  it  is  necessary  that  you  limit  your  plans  of 
defence  to  the  most  essential  points  and  those  most 
closely  connected,  so  that  being  concentrated  within 
a  smaller  space,  each  part  may  be  within  reach  of 
support  and  succour  from  the  rest.  How  small  soever 
may  be  the  space  you  are  able  to  hold,  it  is  indis- 
pensable to  keep  a  footing  in  North  America,  for  if 
we  once  lose  the  country  entirely  its  recovery  will  be 
almost  impossible."  Montcalm  was  urged  to  go  to 
almost  any  extreme  rather  than  submit  to  conditions 
as  shameful  as  those  imposed  at  Louisbourg,  the 
memory  of  which  he  was  expected  to  obliterate. 
Montcalm  vowed  that  he  would  save  "  this  unhappy 
colony  "  or  perish.     Bougainville's  mission  was  not 

1  Quoted     by     Parkman  :      Montcalm  and  Wolfe,  vol.  ii, 
pp.  84-5. 


news. 


VAUDREUIL'S   BOAST  155 

absolutely  wasted.  He  returned  with  several  vessels 
laden  with  provisions,  an  addition  to  the  fighting 
strength  of  Canada  of  326  men,  and  a  generous 
complement  of  decorations  for  those  who  had  distin- 
guished themselves  in  the  service  of  France.  He 
reached  the  St.  Lawrence  just  in  time  to  escape  with 
some  of  his  store-ships  the  attentions  of  Admiral 
Durell.  What  he  brought  was  gratefully  received,  for 
as  Montcalm  said,  "  to  those  who  have  nothing,  a 
little  is  precious." 

But  he  brought  something  more  than  a  few  provi-  Stupefying 
sions  and  men  and  gewgaws  and  words  of  advice. 
He  brought  news  of  the  preparations  of  Great  Britain 
— news  of  an  army  and  a  great  fleet,  of  which  the 
advance  guard  under  Durell  was  already  within  eighty 
or  ninety  miles  of  Quebec.  All  Canada  was  stupefied. 
Montcalm  hurried  to  Quebec  ordering  Bourlamaque 
to  make  the  best  stand  he  could  at  Ticonderoga 
against  Amherst ;  the  militia  were  called  to  the 
defence  of  the  capital,  and  every  able-bodied  man 
and  youth  was  pressed  into  the  bearing  of  arms. 
Vaudreuil  as  usual  blustered  and  boasted  and  breathed 
great  things.  He  was  not  to  be  scared  even  though 
the  enemy  were  at  every  door. x  He  proclaimed  the 
wicked  designs  of  the  English — "  leur  pro  jet  etant  se 
massacrer  tout  ce  qui  est  Canadienne  sans  distinction  de 
sexe  ni  d'age." 2  But,  he  said,  Canada  would  bury  her 
children  under  her  ruins  before  they  would  surrender  ; 
there  was  no  ruse,  no  zeal,  nor  resource  which  patriotic 
ingenuity  might  suggest  that  should  not  be  forth- 
coming to  ensnare  the  invader  ;  what  ardour  could  do 
to  defeat  the  ambitious  designs  of  the  English  would 

1  Casgrain  :    Journal  du  Marquis  de  Montcalm,  p.  534 
a  Doughty,  vol.  ii,  p.  48. 


156  GENERAL  WOLFE 

be  done.  He  would  hold  his  ground  even  to  annihila- 
tion. Gasconade  of  this  sort  was  entirely  absent 
from  Montcalm,  who  set  about  the  task  of  preparing 
for  the  struggle  with  soldier-like  energy  and  resource 
and  entire  loyalty  to  the  wishes  of  the  government 
at  home.  Vaudreuil  obstructed  when  he  should  have 
assisted  and  acted  when  too  late.  "  Apr&s  le  mort, 
U  medecin,"  complained  Montcalm  bitterly. 


CHAPTER  XI 

BEFORE   QUEBEC 

Three  weeks  after  leaving  Louisbourg  Wolfe  set  eyes  Navigating 

for  the  first  time  on  the  frowning  fortress  in  the  St.  \he  St 

Lei  wrcnc^. 

Lawrence  whose  name  is  to  his  what  Waterloo  is  to 
Wellington's,  what  Trafalgar  is  to  Nelson's.  It  was 
a  time  full  of  incident  and  excited  expectancy.  Every 
mile  of  the  gulf  and  river  contained  possibilities  of 
surprise  and  disaster.  The  French  fondly  believed 
the  St.  Lawrence  was  unnavigable  by  the  English 
unaided — a  belief  in  itself  a  sufficient  tribute  to  the 
hazards  run.  The  Kirkes  and  Phipps  had  negotiated 
its  currents  and  its  surfs  successfully,  but  Admiral 
Walker  had  gone  to  pieces  off  Anticosti.  The 
French  by  landmarks  and  watermarks  had  made 
navigation  reasonably  safe,  but  every  one  of  these 
guides  had  been  removed  in  anticipation  of  the 
British  approach.  The  voyager  to-day  who  ascends 
the  well-lighted  and  well-marked  course  can  have 
little  conception  of  the  anxieties  which  beset  naviga- 
tion in  the  eighteenth  century.  Durell  with  his 
advance  squadron  had  reached  the  He  aux  Coudres 
in  safety,  but  Saunders,  with  a  vast  collection  of 
transports  carrying  troops  on  whom  everything 
depended,  had  very  different  responsibilities. 

The  French  made  their  calculations  without 
allowance  for  the  wiles  and  the  skill  of  the  British 
sailor. 

157 


pilots. 


158  GENERAL  WOLFE 

Astonishing  Durell,  by  running  up  the  French  flag  had  lured 
lnl£rencl1  French  pilots  on  board.  A  most  amusing  account  is 
given  by  Knox  of  the  fury  of  these  patriotic  guides 
compelled  to  assist  the  navigation  of  the  English 
ships.  One  of  them  raged  and  swore  that  the 
English  would  never  get  through  ;  in  a  few  days  the 
walls  of  Quebec  would  be  decorated  with  their  scalps. 
With  Vaudreuil,  he  believed  that  the  English  could 
not  pass  a  war-fleet  where  the  French,  with  150  years' 
experience  of  the  St.  Lawrence,  would  not  dare  take 
a  vessel  of  100  tons  burden  without  the  most  elaborate 
precautions.  The  gallant  Master  of  the  transport — 
a  Trinity  House  veteran — on  which  the  pilot  found 
himself,  was  doubtful  whether  the  Frenchman  might 
not  run  them  into  difficulties  even  at  the  sacrifice 
of  his  life.  Without  a  moment's  hesitation  therefore 
the  Master  took  matters  into  his  own  hands,  snapped 
his  fingers  at  French  menaces,  and  steered  the  vessel 
safely  through  the  most  treacherous  channel  known 
as  the  Traverse.  In  the  hearty  style  of  the  British 
tar,  he  said  he  knew  a  thousand  worse  places  in  the 
Thames,  and  he'd  convince  the  pilot,  whose  storming 
was  silenced  in  sheer  amazement,  that  an  Englishman 
would  go  where  a  Frenchman  dare  not  show  his 
nose.  Every  now  and  then  he  would  shout,  "  Ay, 
ay,  my  dears,  mark  it  down — '  A  damn  dangerous 
navigation.'  If  you  do  not  make  a  sputter  about  it 
you  will  not  get  credit  in  England."  Whatever  he 
might  get  in  England,  he  got  plenty  of  credit  on  the 
St.  Lawrence.  When  the  pilot  learned  that  the 
Master  was  a  stranger  to  the  river  he  lifted  "  his 
hands  and  eyes  to  heaven  with  astonishment  and 
fervency."1 
1  Knox  :    vol.  i. 


OPPOSITE  QUEBEC  159 

Vaudreuil  has  been  blamed  for  neglecting  to  occupy  Vaudreuil's 
a  position  at  the  Traverse  from  which  he  could  pour  neglect, 
shot  into  the  English  fleet  as  it  approached  ;  his 
answer  was  that  he  believed  the  English  could  never 
pass  the  Traverse.  Bigot  endorsed  the  excuse  by 
saying  that  the  enemy  made  child's  play  of  navigation, 
which  to  the  French  was  always  an  anxious  business. l 
The  Chief  Pilot  of  Quebec  said  that  soundings  had 
not  been  taken  for  twenty-five  years ;  when  he 
proposed  to  take  them  the  necessary  expenses  were 
refused.  As  the  expedition  moved  up  the  river  the 
soldiers  had  plenty  to  interest  them  apart  from  the 
risks  of  navigation :  the  fine  river  and  the  fine 
scenery,  the  deserted  villages  and  the  bonfires  which 
heralded  the  British  advance.  In  the  afternoon 
of  the  26th  June  the  Island  of  Orleans  was  reached. 
As  the  western  end  of  the  island  juts  its  nose  out  into 
the  river  right  opposite  the  Quebec  headland,  it 
might  have  been  thought  worth  while  to  make  some 
show  of  defence,  but,  again  by  Vaudreuil's  orders,  the 
1,200  Canadians  and  Indians  who  held  it,  decamped 
and  left  Wolfe  free  to  land.  Everyone  was  charmed 
with  the  country,  which  was  well-cultivated  and 
homelike.  "  A  bountiful  island,"  said  Sergeant 
Johnson.  "  A  most  agreeable  prospect,"  said  Knox  ; 
"  windmills,  watermills,  churches,  chapels,  compact 
farm  houses,  all  built  with  stone  and  covered  some 
with  wood  and  some  with  straw." 

It  was  not  till  the  following  day  that  Wolfe  was  Quebec. 
able  to  get  the  greater  part  of  his  troops  on  to  the 
island,  but  in  the  company  of  his  engineer-in-chief, 
Major  Mackellar,  he  hastened  to  take  stock  of  Quebec 
across  the  intervening  basin.     Mackellar,  who  knew 

1  Doughty,  vol.  ii,  p.  61. 


160  GENERAL  WOLFE 

the  city,  and  had  been  assiduous  in  picking  up  scraps 
of  information  which  enabled  him  to  give  the  General 
a  fairly  complete  account  of  its  natural  and  artificial 
defences,  had  prepared  him  for  the  impressive 
spectacle  now  revealed  by  his  glass. x  A  city  of  many 
churches,  colleges,  and  public  buildings,  perched  on 
a  magnificent  promontory  and  guarded  by  batteries, 
it  was  out  of  reach  of  any  gun  carried  by  vessels  in 
the  waters  below.  At  the  base  of  the  cliff,  on  the 
stretch  of  shore  between  it  and  the  river  was  the 
Lower  Town,  "  by  much  the  richest  part  of  the  whole, 
being  chiefly  taken  up  with  the  dwellings,  warehouses 
and  magazines  of  the  principal  merchants."  At 
Quebec  the  St.  Lawrence  narrowed :  Quebec 
apparently  being  a  corruption  of  a  native  word 
meaning  the  narrowing  of  the  river.  The  southern 
bank  was  formed  by  another  headland  called  Point 
Levi,  whilst  immediately  to  the  right  of  Quebec  as 
Wolfe  looked  at  it  was  the  River  St.  Charles. 
Between  the  St.  Charles  and  the  Montmorency  to 
the  north  of  the  point  on  which  he  stood,  was 
Beauport,  its  church  a  conspicuous  landmark.  The 
shore  was  a  series  of  low-lying  cliffs  rising  to  the 
Montmorency. 
Guarding  If  Wolfe  had  not  ascertained  already  he  learned 

Charles.  now  ^at  ^e  would  not  fight  Montcalm  in  Quebec  at 
all.  The  shore  between  Quebec  and  the  Montmorency 
Falls  was  one  long  line  of  strongly  defended  works, 
behind  which  Montcalm  had  posted  11,000  or  12,000 
men,  2,000  being  left  under  de  Ramesay  to  look  after 
the  city.  Montcalm  was  in  fact  in  possession  of  the 
very  ground  over  which,  judging  from  his  letter  to  his 

1  Mackellar's  report  is  given  in  full  by  Doughty,  vol.  ii, 
Appendix. 


THE  GENERAL'S  PROBLEM  161 

uncle, x  Wolfe  had  thought  of  marching  with  a  view 
to  the  investment  of  Quebec.     Curiously  enough,  as 
Wolfe's  idea  was  to  attack  Quebec  by  crossing  the 
St.  Charles,  so  it  was  Montcalm's  first  idea  to  hold 
the    St.    Charles,    but    his    second    thoughts    were 
strategically  best.     Montcalm  realised  the  danger  so 
thoroughly  that  a  vessel  was  sunk  at  the  mouth  of 
the  St.  Charles  lest  any  attempt  should  be  made  to 
utilise  it.     Had  Wolfe  been  able  to  throw  men  across 
that  river  and  attack  Quebec  from  the  country — the 
plains  of  Abraham — between  it  and  the  St.  Lawrence, 
whilst    Saunders   kept   the   enemy   busy   from   the 
Quebec   basin,   even  perhaps  got  men   up  the   St. 
Lawrence  as  was  ultimately  done,  the  story  of  the 
siege  would  have  been  very  different  from  what  it 
was.     The  question  was  whether  ships  could  pass 
Quebec,  swept  as  the  river  was  by  the  French  guns. 
With  all  his  spirit  and  enterprise  the  Admiral  would 
conceivably  have  refused  to  incur  risks  involving  not 
only  his  fleet  but  the  army.     Mackellar's  conviction 
was  that  on  the  land  side  Quebec's  defences  were 
weak,  and  Wolfe's  problem  was  how  to  get  at  them. 
Quebec  certainly  could  not  be  taken  from  the  river 
side.     As    Mackellar    said,    the    men-of-war    could 
annoy,    even    destroy,    the    Lower   Town,    but    the 
besieger  would  be  as  far  as  ever  from  possession  of  the 
Upper  Town.     Wolfe's  stout  heart  must  have  beat 
a  little  more  quickly  as  he  took  stock  of  Quebec,  of 
the  miles  of  earthworks,  of  redoubts  and  floating 
batteries.     Almost  unexampled  in  history,  says  Mr. 
Doughty, 2  were  the  activity  and  determination  of 
the  defenders  of  Canada.      And  how  little  it  availed 
them  ! 


1  Ante  p.  142.  »  Vol.  ii,  p.  28. 

12— (2213) 


tion. 


162  GENERAL  WOLFE 

Wolfe's  By  midday  on  the  27th,  Wolfe's  army  was  on  the 

proclama-  Island  of  Orleans.  On  the  door  of  a  church  was 
found  a  letter  addressed  by  the  local  priest  to  "  The 
Worthy  Officers  of  the  British  Army  "  asking  them 
to  protect  the  church  and  his  house,  and  regretting 
they  had  not  arrived  before  the  asparagus  ran  to 
seed.  Wolfe  on  his  part  drew  up  a  proclamation  to 
the  Canadians  which  was  translated  into  French. x  I 
give  the  English  version, 2  because  the  English  version 
is  what  Wolfe  actually  wrote — 

"By  his  Excellency  James  Wolfe,  Esq.,  Colonel  of  a  Regiment 
of  Infantry,  Major -General  and  Commander-in-Chief  of 
his  Britannic  Majesty's  Forces  in  the  River  St.  Lawrence, 
etc. 
"The  formidable  sea  and  land  armament  which  the  people 
of  Canada  now  behold  in  the  heart  of  the  country,  is  intended 
by  the  King,  my  master,  to  check  the  insolence  of  France, 
to  revenge  the  insults  offered  to  the  British  colonies  and 
totally  to  deprive  the  French  of  their  most  valuable  settlement 
in  North  America.  For  these  purposes  is  the  formidable 
army  under  my  command  intended.  The  King  wages  no 
war  with  the  industrious  peasant,  the  sacred  orders  of  religion, 
or  the  defenceless  women  and  children  ;  to  these  in  their 
distressful  circumstances,  his  royal  clemency  offers  protection. 
The  people  may  remain  unmolested  in  their  lands,  inhabit 
their  houses  and  enjoy  their  religion  in  security.  For  these 
inestimable  blessings  I  expect  the  Canadians  will  take  no 
part  in  the  great  contest  between  the  two  Crowns.  (3)  But  if, 
by  a  vain  obstinacy  and  misguided  valour,  they  presume  to 
appear  in  arms,  they  must  expect  the  most  fatal  consequences — 
their  habitations  destroyed,  their  sacred  temples  exposed  to 
an  exasperated  soldier}',  their  harvest  utterly  ruined,  and  the 

1  Mr.  Doughty  gives  the  French  version,  vol.  ii,  pp.  67-70. 

2  Wright,  p.  517. 

(3)  The  French  version  contains  this  important  modification 
Je  leur  promets  ma  protection,  et  je  les  assure  qu'ils  pourront 

sans  craindre  les  moindres  molestations,  y  jouir  de  leurs  biens, 
suivre  le  culte  de  leur  religion,  en  un  mot  jouir  au  milieu  de 
la  guerre  de  toutes  les  douceurs  de  la  paix,  pourvu  qu'ils 
s'engagent  a  ne  prendre  directement  ou  indirectement  aucune 
part  a  une  dispute  qui  ne  regarde  que  les  deux  Couronnes." 


A  WARNINCx  TO  CIVILIANS  163 

only  passage  for  relief  stopped  up  by  a  most  formidable  fleet. 
In  this  unhappy  situation,  and  closely  attacked  by  another 
great  army,  what  can  the  wretched  natives  expect  from 
opposition  ? 

' '  The  unparalleled  barbarities  exerted  by  the  French  against 
our  settlements  in  America  might  justify  the  bitterest  revenge 
in  the  army  under  my  command,  but  Britain  breathes  higher 
sentiments  of  humanity,  and  listens  to  the  merciful  dictates 
of  the  Christian  religion.  Yet  should  you  suffer  yourselves 
to  be  deluded  by  an  imaginary  prospect  of  our  want  of 
success  ;  should  you  refuse  these  terms  and  persist  in  opposi- 
tion, then  surely  will  the  law  of  nations  justify  the  waste  of 
war,  so  necessary  to  crush  an  ungenerous  enemy  ;  and  then, 
the  miserable  Canadians  must  in  the  winter  have  the  mortifica- 
tion of  seeing  their  very  families,  for  whom  they  have  been 
exerting  but  a  fruitless  and  indiscreet  bravery,  perish  by  the 
most  dismal  want  and  famine.  In  this  great  dilemma  let 
the  wisdom  of  the  peoples  of  Canada  show  itself.  Britain 
stretches  out  a  powerful  yet  merciful  hand  ;  faithful  to  her 
engagements  and  ready  to  secure  her  in  her  most  valuable 
rights  and  possessions.  France,  unable  to  support  Canada, 
deserts  her  cause  at  this  important  crisis,  and  during  the 
whole  war  has  assisted  her  with  troops,  who  have  been 
maintained  only  by  making  the  natives  feel  all  the  weight  of 
grievous  and  lawless  oppression. 

"Given  at  Laurent  in  the  Island  of  Orleans,  this  28th  day 
of  June,   1759." 

This  proclamation  had  no  effect.  Wolfe  could  Loyal 
hardly  have  looked  for  any.  But  it  was  worth  trying.  Canadians. 
He  had  heard  much  of  the  discontent  among  the 
Canadians  and  there  was  just  a  chance  that  they  might 
prefer  to  remain  neutral  when  not  compelled  to  fight 
for  the  maintenance  of  the  old  regime.  It  was  the 
old  story  :  loyalty  to  an  unnatural  mother,  if  indeed 
that  is  not  too  harsh  a  term,  rather  than  assistance 
to  the  most  benevolent  of  strangers  in  arms  against 
her.  In  any  case  Wolfe's  proclamation  was  a  warning 
to  civilians  not  to  start  irregular  warfare  :  if  they 
wanted  to  fight  they  must  join  the  fighting  lines. 
French  historians  have  said  the  document  reflects 


164  GENERAL  WOLFE 

no  honour  on  its  author  :  a  view  which  is  certainly 
partial. 
Flood  and  Wolfe  had  barely  got  his  men  on  to  the  Island  when 
a  storm  burst  over  the  St.  Lawrence  and  played  havoc 
with  much  of  the  shipping.  It  was  so  violent  that  the 
sailors  regarded  the  escape  of  the  fleet  as  of  happy 
augury  for  the  operations  about  to  begin.  On  the 
night  of  the  28th  they  were  faced  with  another  peril, 
not  this  time  either  wind  or  water,  but  fire.  Mackellar 
said  the  French  had  long  since  let  it  be  known  that 
if  an  expedition  was  got  up  to  Quebec  they  had  at 
command  an  infallible  invention  for  the  destruction 
of  ships.  This  "  invention  "  took  the  form  of 
radeaux  d  feu — or  fire-rafts.  The  idea  was  to  bind 
huge  logs  of  timber  together  to  coat  them  with  in- 
flammable composition,  and  float  them  down  among 
the  shipping,  which  would  soon  be  in  a  blaze.  That 
something  of  the  sort  would  be  attempted  was 
therefore  to  be  expected,  and  if  it  were  attempted 
successfully,  there  must  have  been  a  bonfire  of  British 
hopes.  Admiral  Saunders  was  on  his  guard,  but  the 
sentries  on  duty  on  shore  were  taken  unawares. 
Late  at  night  seven  of  the  eight  vessels  which  Bigot 
had  purchased  from  confederates  for  the  good  round 
sum  of  1,000,000  livres  according  to  Montcalm,  were 
floated  into  mid-stream.  Out  of  the  darkness  the 
British  sentries  suddenly  detected  these  ships  moving 
silently  and  stealthily  towards  them.  They  lost 
their  nerve,  and  bolted,  and  for  a  time  there  was 
a  small  panic  in  the  British  camp — a  panic  which  led 
to  the  arrest  of  the  officer  in  command,  whom  Wolfe 
subsequently  pardoned  on  account  of  his  excellent 
character.  But  the  General  was  severe  :  "  Next  to 
valour,"  he  said,  "  the  best  qualities  in  a  military 


"GRANDEST  FIREWORKS"  165 

man  are  vigilance  and  caution."  The  British  sentries 
were  not  the  only  people  whose  nerves  gave  out  that 
night.  The  foremost  fire-ship  was  in  charge  of  a 
young  officer  whose  courage  and  patience  evaporated 
as  he  approached  the  danger  zone.  He  set  light  to 
his  vessel,  loaded  as  it  was  with  explosives  and 
combustibles,  prematurely  :  his  action  was  the  signal 
for  others,  and  all  except  one  who  saw  the  mistake 
they  were  making,  applied  the  torch  and  sought  their 
own  safety.  The  brave  fellow  who  tried  to  avert  the 
miscarriage  of  the  enterprise  was  sacrificed  with  two 
companions  to  the  demons  of  their  own  creation.  A 
lovely  starlit  night,  almost  as  by  magic,  was  turned 
to  an  inferno.  The  flames  shot  up  so  brilliantly 
that  the  stars  could  not  be  seen,  missiles  were  hurled  in 
every  direction,  and  explosion  alternated  with  the 
hissing  of  water.  The  French  crowded  every  building 
and  eminence  to  get  a  sight  of  the  destruction  which 
Vaudreuil  and  his  friends  had  promised,  and  the 
British  watched  the  steady  approach  of  the  infernal 
machines  with  anxious  eyes.  The  scene  beggars 
description,  those  who  saw  it  being  least  able  to  put 
their  sensations  into  fitting  words.  Knox  says  "  they 
were  certainly  the  grandest  fireworks  that  could 
possibly  be  conceived  " — awful  yet  beautiful. *  Again 
the  French  had  reckoned  without  the  British 
"sailor  man."  Across  the  flame-reflecting  water 
rowed  boat  after  boat  straight  for  the  burning 
death-dealing  monsters.  The  tars,  armed  with 
grappling  hooks  got  a  grip  of  the  vessels,  and, 
heedless  of  their  own  peril,  beached  them  all,  leaving 
them,  mere  impotent  demons,  to  fizzle  away  through 
the  night. 

1  Journal,  vol.  i,  p.  298. 


166  GENERAL  WOLFE 

Point  Levi.  French  nerves  had  a  very  important  bearing  not 
only  on  the  fireship  stratagem  but  in  other  directions. 
Reports  reached  Vaudreuil  and  Montcalm  that 
Wolfe's  army  was  20,000  strong  and  to  meet  such  a 
force  they  concentrated  every  available  man  either 
behind  the  St.  Charles-Montmorency  works  or  in 
Quebec,  to  the  neglect  of  vital  spots  elsewhere.  One 
was  the  Point  Levi  where  Montcalm  would  have 
placed  three  or  four  thousand  men  but  for  Vaudreuil's 
objections.  Wolfe's  survey  showed  him  at  once  that 
if  the  headland  could  be  secured,  he  would  be  able 
to  inflict  serious  damage  on  Quebec,  would  at  least 
divide  command  of  the  river  at  that  point  with  the 
French  batteries,  and  might  induce  Montcalm  to 
make  fresh  dispositions  from  which  everything  might 
be  hoped.  Moreover  Saunders  was  alive  to  the 
danger  his  fleet  might  run  from  an  enemy  posted  on 
Point  Levi.1  On  the  29th  therefore  Monckton's 
brigade  and  some  Light  Infantry  were  ferried  across 
the  river  ;  they  had  a  sharp  bout  with  a  body  of 
Canadians  and  Indians,  who  took  a  dozen  scalps  and 
one  prisoner.  The  prisoner  was  sent  to  Vaudreuil, 
and  under  cross-examination  confirmed  Vaudreuil's 
belief  that  Wolfe  intended  to  attack  Beauport. 
Promptly  the  Governor  ordered  the  men  still  on  Point 
Levi  to  cross  the  river  to  assist  in  the  defence  of  the 
North  Shore  and  the  way  was  left  for  Wolfe  to  begin 
the  construction  of  batteries  at  Pointe  aux  Peres  just 
to  the  left  of  Levi.  The  work  was  carried  on  under 
a  galling  fire  from  Quebec.  It  is  strange  the  French 
should  have  deluded  themselves  with  the  belief  that 
Wolfe's  guns  would  not  carry  into  the  town.  They 
discovered  their  mistake,  when  on  the  12th  Wolfe  fired 
1  Wright,  p.  517. 


THE  HEROIC  TEST  167 

a  rocket  as  a  signal  to  the  forty  guns  and  mortars1  he 
had  erected  on  Point  Levi,  to  open  the  bombardment. 
Some  days  before  the  batteries  were  complete  the 
citizens  of  Quebec  waited  upon  Vaudreuil  with  a 
proposal  that  a  volunteer  force  should  attempt  to 
re-take  a  position  that  ought  never  to  have  been 
abandoned.  After  some  demur  Vaudreuil  assented. 
There  were  volunteers  in  plenty,  including  burghers, 
Indians,  youths  from  the  Seminary  and  regulars,  the 
whole  amounting  to  1,400  or  1,500.  They  were  to 
be  led  by  one  of  Montcalm's  officers,  Captain  Dumas. 
It  was  intended  to  make  the  attempt  on  the  very  night 
that  the  batteries  opened,  but  after  the  expedition 
had  started  the  booming  and  flash  of  the  big  guns 
suggested  a  postponement.  The  party  returned  to 
Quebec  and  waited  another  twenty-four  hours.2 
Marching  to  Cap  Rouge,  the  volunteers  crossed  the 
river  and  proceeded  in  two  columns,  which  soon  lost 
touch3  towards  the  unsuspecting  British  encamp- 
ment. What  they  would  have  accomplished  if  they 
had  ever  reached  the  neighbourhood  of  the  batteries 
may  be  imagined  from  what  actually  happened.  The 
first  column,  while  still  some  three  miles  distant  from 
Levi,  were  startled  by  a  noise  or  movement  of  some 
sort  in  a  wood,  took  fright,  and  retreated  ;  as  they 
doubled  back  they  made  the  second  column  believe 
the  British  were  upon  them.  The  second  column 
fired  and  the  first  had  just  enough  spirit  left  to  return 
the  volley.  Once  more  the  nerves  of  self-appointed 
heroes  proved  unequal  to  the  heroic  test ;    M.  Dumas 

1  Bradley  :    Fight  with  France,  p.  303. 

2  Doughty,    vol.    ii,    p.    101.     Parkman    (Montcalm    and 
Wolfe,  vol.  ii,  p.  225)  dates  the  actual  attempt  the  12th. 

3  Wood,  p.  186. 


168  GENERAL  WOLFE 

found  :t  impossible  to  restore  order  the  men  — ade 
:'::  Tie  ::i:5  V-7  tie  z:i-.'ir.:  ::  lintel  sleep 
and  by  six  o'clock  in  ;  i -  ~  -  f  :  : 
overwhelmed,  says  Parkman,  with  despair  and  shame. 
Within  a  conple  of  days,  Quebec  was  crumbling  up 
under  the  fierce  storm  ;  the  cathedral  and  other  build- 
ing        .  burnt  out  by  bursting  shells,  mar 

re  lost,  and  the  non-combatants  found  the  place 
too  hot  for  them, 
v.'c'.fe  s  AD  this     as  ione  under  Wolfe's  immediate  direc- 

sr--*7  tion  ;  vet  he  was  not  inactive  elsewhere.     He  seemed 

not  only  "  ampfaibioas      but  ubiquitous.     At  one 
moment  he  was  with  the  men  on  the  Island  of  Orleans, 
at   another  with  those   on   the   south   of   the    5: 
Lawrence,  at  a  third  v.  miral  Saunders.     Body 

and  brain  rivalled  each  other  in  energy,   des; 

-  indifferent    health.     He   sent   an   envoy    on 

a  flag  of  truce  to  Yaudreuil  to  tell  him  that  the  town 
would  be  attacked  on  behalf  of  His  Britannic  Maje; : 
but  he  hoped  that  the  war  would  be  carried  on  v 
humanity,  and  that  tie  revolting  practice  of  scalp- 
taking  would  not  be  permitted.  If  it  were  he  would 
have  no  alternative  but  revenge.  The  appeal  was 
fruitless  is  '.rere  Ami.  erst  ?  ::::::  it  7.::r. ier:  ri  :: 
lessen  the  horrors  of  which  the  native  allies  of  the 
7:  ere  guilry.     To  ius  troops  Wolfe  explained1 

fliat  the  object  of  the  campaign  was  to  complete  the 
conquest  of  Canada  and  so  finish  the  war  in  America  ; 
he  intended  to  carry  on  the  operati:  os 
loss  as  possible,  and  expected  his  men  to  work  cheer- 
fully and  without  unsoldierlike  complaint.  TJffkers 
were  warned  against  surprise  and  false  alarms ; 
"tnertv      -5   r.:t   ::    :e    iestr:yei      .t:.:_t    :rier= 

-  r.'-i 


AN   IMPORTANT  MOVE  169 

and  all  persons  remaining  in  their  homes  were  to  be 
treated  humanely.  "  If  violence  be  offered  to  a 
woman  the  offender  shall  be  punished  with  death." 
Persons  convicted  of  robbing  officers'  or  soldiers'  tents 
would  be  executed  ;  there  was  to  be  no  drunkenness 
or  licentiousness,  and  if  rum  or  spirits  of  any  kind 
were  needed  by  men  who  were  wet  or  fatigued, 
the  general  would  order  the  quantities  he  thought 
good  for  them.  He  would  be  as  keen  to  reward 
distinguished  service  as  to  punish  misconduct. 

The  great  event  which  marked  the  interval  between  j^e  Mont, 
the  seizure  of  Point  Levi  and  the  opening  of  the  morency 
bombardment  was  the  occupation  of  the  heights  to  heiehts« 
the  east  of  the  Montmorency.     Unable  either  to  put 
his  original  plan  into  execution  or  to  get  at  the  enemy 
from  the  water,   Wolfe  made  careful  study  of  the 
possibility  of  striking  at  him  from  lower  down  the 
north   bank  of  the   river.     There   had   been  much 
discussion  on  the  French  side  as  to  the  wisdom  of  an 
attack  on  the  Orleans  force,  which  was  thought  to 
have  been  seriously  depleted  in  order  to  make  the 
Levi  position  secure.     But  it  was  only  one  of  many 
discussions  of  which  discretion  was  the  invariable 
concomitant.     The   strategy  by  which  the  heights 
east  of  Montmorency  were  seized  was  perfect.     On 
the  9th  Monckton  began  to  move  a  considerable  body 
of  men  up  the  river  bank  from  Point  Levi ;    simul- 
taneously Saunders  sent  several  vessels  in  near  the 
north  shore  to  open  a  furious  fire  upon  the  section  of 
the  works  held  by  the  Chevalier  de  Levis  near  the 
Montmorency,  and  under  cover  of  these  feints  3,000 
men  under  Murray  and  Townshend  were  got  over 
during  the  night  from  the  Island  to  the  north  shore. 
Wolfe  himself  led  the  way,  and  the  movement  was 


no 


GENERAL  WOLFE 


Towns  - 

hend's 

complaints. 


accomplished  with  very  small  loss,  the  only  opposition 
being  a  party  of  Canadians  and  Indians  who  were 
driven  off.  In  taking  this  step  Wolfe  hoped  to  draw 
Montcalm  to  a  battle,  or  if  not,  then  to  get  at  him  by 
a  ford  some  way  up  the  Montmorency.  In  any  case 
from  the  heights  of  Montmorency  he  would  be  able 
to  bombard  Montcalm's  left.  He  took  risks,  but 
unless  he  were  to  sit  down  and  wait  on  the  Island  of 
Orleans  whilst  Monckton  hammered  away  at  Quebec, 
what  was  he  to  do  but  take  risks  ?  If  we  were  to 
take  Brigadier  Townshend's  view  Wolfe  placed  himself 
in  jeopardy  and  neglected  the  elementary  precautions 
of  good  generalship. 

What  had  happened  to  create  the  atmosphere  which 
clearly  now  existed  between  the  General  and  his 
second  Brigadier  ?  Had  Townshend  been  too  assertive 
for  Wolfe's  patience  ?  Had  he  indulged  too  freely 
a  gift  for  caricature  which  offended  as  often  as  it 
amused  ?  It  is  said  that  on  one  occasion  Townshend 
made  Wolfe  his  victim  at  the  dinner-table,  and  Wolfe, 
pocketing  the  caricature  and  the  affront,  said  that 
if  he  lived  this  matter  should  be  enquired  into,  but 
first  they  had  to  beat  the  enemy.  The  business  in 
hand  did  not  admit  of  the  immediate  adjustment  of 
personal  differences.  Townshend's  papers  are  full 
of  complaints  of  Wolfe's  proceedings.  When 
Townshend  landed  on  the  north  shore  there  was 
nothing  to  indicate  the  direction  Wolfe  had  taken  ; 
he  made  a  point  of  finding  the  baggage  of  the  advance 
body  unprotected  in  the  meadows.  He  stayed  to 
collect  it  and  put  a  guard  over  it :  which  Wolfe 
probably  considered  unnecessary,  particularly  as  it 
involved  delay.  Then  Townshend  complained  that 
he  was  not  given  time  to  examine  certain  copses  and 


STRAINED  RELATIONS  171 

he  was  dissatisfied  with  the  position  Wolfe  occupied  : 
he  said  that  it  placed  their  front  to  their  friends  on 
the  Isle  of  Orleans,  their  right  flank  to  the  enemy 
and  a  ford  between  the  Falls  and  the  St.  Lawrence, 
and  exposed  them  to  incursions  of  savages  from  woods 
to  the  rear  and  fords  higher  up  the  Montmorency. 1 
On  the  face  of  it  there  would  seem  to  be  something 
in  this  point,  and  we  learn  from  French  memoirs2 
that  the  irregulars  with  Montcalm  were  eager  to  be 
led  to  the  attack,  but  before  anything  could  be  done 
there  was  the  inevitable  council  of  war  and  nothing 
was  done.  In  his  anxiety  Townshend  fortified  his 
camp,  so  that  a  night  attack  was  provided  against, 
and  his  biographer  says  that  the  breastworks  were 
constructed  in  a  way  which  showed  Townshend  to  be 
far  more  advanced  in  his  views  than  Wolfe  himself. 
However  that  may  be,  Wolfe  was  not  very  compli- 
mentary when  he  saw  what  Townshend  had  done. 
He  evidently  thought  that  the  Brigadier  had  gone 
beyond  the  requirements  of  the  case,  and  said  Towns- 
hend had  indeed  made  himself  secure  for  he  had 
made  a  fortress. 3  Townshend's  cup  came  near  to 
overflowing  when  Wolfe  removed  two  of  his  cannon 
"  to  grace  the  park  of  artillery  the  General  chose  to 
ornament  his  quarters  with  upon  the  descent  of  the 
hill,"  leaving  "  our  whole  right  and  front  without 
any."4  Wolfe  even  "rather  laughed"  at  Towns- 
hend's apprehensions  when  he  reported  that  an 
officer  with  an  escort,  who  might  be  Montcalm,  had 
been    seen    examining    the    British    camp.     Their 

1  Military  Life  of  Townshend,  p.  175. 

2  Parkman  :     Montcalm  and   Wolfe,  ii,   pp.    227-8. 
'■'■   Townshend,  p.   177. 

*  Ibid.,  p.   179. 


172  GENERAL  WOLFE 

strained  relations  resulted  a  day  or  two  later  in  a  rebuff 
which  Townshend  himself  records.  Wolfe  had  left 
the  camp  at  Montmorency  to  go  over  to  Orleans 
without  giving  instructions.  Townshend  ran  after 
him  and  caught  him  at  the  water's  edge. 

"  He  received  me  in  a  very  stately  manner,  not  advancing 
five  steps.  I  told  him  that  if  I  had  suspected  his  intention  of 
going  over  I  had  waited  on  him  for  his  commands  which  I 
should  be  glad  to  receive  and  execute  to  his  satisfaction. 
1  Sir,'  says  he,  very  drily,  '  the  Adjutant-General  has  my 
orders  :  permit  me,  Sir,  to  ask,  are  the  troops  to  encamp  now 
on  their  new  ground,  or  not  do  it  till  the  enemy's  battery 
begins  to  play  ?  '  " 

No  word  of  Wolfe's  exists  to  throw  light  on  this 
purely  personal  matter,  but  it  is  clear  that  he  had 
come  to  regard  Townshend  as  a  pretentious  busybody, 
whatever  his  soldierlike  qualities,  and  was  determined 
that  only  the  most  formal  official  relations  should 
subsist  between  them. 
Sea-power  Wolfe's  forces  were  now  divided  into  three  sections  : 
miniature  Montmorency,  Orleans  and  Levi.  His  dispositions 
have  been  sharply  criticised,  and  the  French  them- 
selves at  times  talked  of  attempting  to  overwhelm 
him  piecemeal.  Parkman  says  :  "  The  left  wing  of 
his  army  at  Point  Levi  was  six  miles  from  the  right 
wing  at  the  cataract  and  Major  Hardy's  detachment 
on  the  Point  of  Orleans  was  between  them  separated 
from  each  by  a  wide  arm  of  the  St.  Lawrence."1 
Colonel  Townshend  talks  of  Wolfe's  "  error  in  frit- 
tering away  his  forces." 2  Such  a  remark  shows  that 
Colonel  Townshend  entirely  fails  to  grip  either  the 
situation  or  Wolfe's  genius  for  utilising  joint  land 
and    water    opportunities.     It    is    often    said    that 

1  Parkman  :    Montcalm  and  Wolfe,  vol.  li,  p.  229. 
8  Military  Life  of  Townshend,  p.  181. 


MONTCALM  AS   LIMPET  173 

Saunders'  part  in  the  operations  has  been  inadequately 
recognised.  Here  is  surely  a  case  in  point.  Wolfe 
had  the  fleet  in  the  Quebec  Basin  as  the  connecting 
link  between  his  three  camps.  In  reality  they  were 
not  divided  at  all,  as  a  recent  historian  of  the  Empire 
points  out.  The  Quebec  Basin  and  its  south,  east 
and  north-east  shores  formed  Wolfe's  camp.  The 
river,  "  the  best  of  all  roads,"  enabled  him,  says  Mr. 
Pollard,  to  move  his  men  hither  and  thither  at  his 
ease. x  It  was  indeed  an  object  lesson  in  miniature 
in  that  sea-power  which  was  being  enforced  so 
splendidly  by  Hawke  and  Boscawen  and  Rodney  in 
European  waters. 

If  Wolfe  took  risks,  Montcalm  took  none.  His  Montcalm 
instructions  were  to  cling  to  Quebec,  whatever  else  tempted/ 
was  surrendered,  and  he  held  to  his  works  like  a  limpet. 
No  ruse  could  tempt  him  from  the  position  which 
he  was  confident  the  British  could  never  take  by 
assault,  and  Wolfe  had  reluctantly  to  abandon  the 
idea  of  getting  at  him  from  the  rear.  But  what 
Wolfe  intended  Montcalm  never  knew.  Wolfe's  own 
men  did  not  know.  He  issued  orders  only  to  counter- 
mand them  ;  his  plans,  so  far  as  proclamation  was 
concerned,  were  changed  almost  as  soon  as  made. 
These  changes  coincided  remarkably,  says  Mr. 
Doughty,  with  the  escape  of  deserters, 2  from  whom 
Montcalm  learned  little :  "  Deserteurs,  verbiage, 
aucune  lumie're,"  was  his  significant  comment.8 
Wolfe  was  capable  of  keeping  his  own  counsel  even 
to  the  mystification  of  his  brigadiers.  "  Every 
step  he  takes  is  wholly  his  own.     I'm  told  he  asks 

1  A.  F.  Pollard  :    The  British  Empire,  p.  258. 

a  Vol.  ii,  p.  78. 

•  Journal  du  Marquis  de  Montcalm,  p.  584. 


174  GENERAL   WOLFE 

no  one's  opinion  and  wants  no  advice,  and  therefore 
as  he  conducts  without  an  assistant  the  honour 
or  .  .  .  will  be  in  proportion  to  his  success."1  The 
days  went  wearily  by,  and  nothing  was  accomplished. 
"  You  may  demolish  Quebec,"  said  a  messenger  from 
the  French  camp  who  had  come  in  under  a  flag  of 
truce.  "  You  will  never  get  inside  it."  "  I  will 
take  Quebec  if  I  stay  here  till  November,"  replied 
Wolfe. 

It  was  on  the  18th  July  that  an  event  happened 
which  had  an  important  bearing  on  the  ultimate 
issue.  Saunders  tried  an  experiment.  He  sent  the 
Sutherland  with  a  frigate  and  some  smaller  vessels  to 
test  the  possibility  of  getting  up  the  river  beyond 
Quebec.  To  the  amazement  of  the  French,  the  ships 
got  through  practically  untouched,  although  Bougain- 
ville and  others  were  quite  certain  that  the  batteries 
of  Quebec  would  make  any  such  attempt  merely 
quixotic.  But  then  Bougainville  had  spoken  without 
thought  that  there  might  be  British  batteries  at 
the  Point  Levi  to  lend  invaluable  assistance.  On 
the  following  day  a  fleet  of  boats  was  dragged  over 
Point  Levi  and  launched  above  Quebec.  Montcalm, 
unwilling  though  he  was  to  part  with  men,  was 
compelled  forthwith  to  send  a  strong  detachment  to 
guard  the  shore  between  Quebec  and  Cap  Rouge. 
The  event  was  a  surprise  to  both  combatants.  It 
has  induced  some  wise-after-the-event  commentators 
to  ask  why  ships  were  not  sent  up  the  river  at  first  ? 
Major  Wood  supplies  the  answer.  "  The  success  of  the 
experiment  by  no  means  proves  that  Wolfe  should 
have  gone  straight  past  the  town  on  his  arrival.  It 
would  have  been  absurdly  foolhardy  to  have  run  the 

1  James  Gibson,  quoted  by  Doughty,  ii,  p.  112. 


ABOVE  QUEBEC  175 

gauntlet  of  a  passage  little  more  [or  less  (?)]  than  a 
mile  wide  with  over  100  crowded  ships."1  When 
once  Wolfe  had  boats  above  Quebec  and  was  able  to 
move  men  on  the  river,  he  kept  the  French  in  a  state 
of  nervous  anticipation.  Carleton  on  the  20th  took 
600  men,  according  to  Parkman, 2  4,000  according  to 
the  French, 3  eighteen  miles  above  Quebec,  made 
a  descent  on  Pointe  aux  Trembles  in  the  hope  of 
capturing  persons  and  papers  of  importance,  and 
decamped  with  a  large  number  of  ladies  and  a  few 
men  who  had  taken  up  their  residence  out  of  the  din 
and  danger  from  the  batteries.  Wolfe  entertained 
the  ladies  at  supper,  talked  to  them  pleasantly  of  the 
circumspection  of  their  generals  and  expressed  his 
surprise  that  they  had  not  taken  advantage  of  the 
favourable  opportunities  he  gave  them  for  attack. 
He  offered  to  return  the  ladies  safely  to  their  friends 
if  the  Quebec  batteries  would  allow  a  vessel  conveying 
sick  and  wounded  to  pass  the  city.  The  compact  was 
made  and  faithfully  carried  out,  but  the  French  said 
afterwards  that  Wolfe  had  seized  the  chance  to  get 
cattle  and  provisions,  which  they  quite  erroneously 
believed  he  needed,  down  the  river  also.  A  day  or 
two  later  Vaudreuil  did  gain  time  to  repair  some 
damaged  works  by  despatching  an  envoy  to  Wolfe 
with  acknowledgments  of  his  courtesy  in  another 
matter  :  Wolfe  had  sent  into  Quebec  some  cases  of 
wine  taken  from  a  captured  French  vessel,  and 
Vaudreuil  asked  the  General  and  Saunders  to  do  him 
the  honour  of  accepting  a  few  cases  in  return. 

1  Wood :    p.   187. 

a  Montcalm  and  Wolfe,  vol.  ii,  p.  224. 

3  Doughty,  vol.  ii,  p.   113. 


176  GENERAL  WOLFE 

Sterner  Wolfe  began  to  feel  that  more  extreme  measures 

measures,  would  have  to  be  taken  ;  the  Canadians  had  not 
responded  to  his  overtures,  and  he  was  especially 
incensed  by  the  discovery  that  many  of  them  fought 
in  the  disguise  of  Indians.  There  was  a  vigorous 
interchange  of  views  between  him  and  Montcalm 
regarding  scalping  and  he  issued  a  significant  order 
strictly  forbidding  "  the  inhuman  practice  except 
when  the  enemy  were  Indians  or  Canadians  dressed 
like  Indians."  In  a  new  proclamation  on  the  25th 
July  he  said  the  Canadians  had  shown  themselves 
unworthy  of  the  offers  he  had  made  them  ;  he  had 
therefore  issued  orders  that  his  troops  should  overrun 
their  country,  seize  the  inhabitants,  and  their  flocks, 
and  destroy  whatever  they  should  consider  necessary. 
As,  however,  he  was  ashamed  to  go  to  the  barbarous 
extremities  of  which  the  Canadians  and  their  Indian 
allies  had  set  the  example,  he  proposed  to  defer  his 
reprisals  till  the  10th  August  in  the  hope  that  the 
Canadians  would  submit.  Whatever  severities 
Wolfe's  proclamations  might  suggest,  it  is  certain 
that  he  never  permitted  any  cruelty  or  hardship  to 
be  inflicted  on  the  people  who  were  at  his  mercy, 
unless  he  deemed  harsh  measures  essential  in  the 
interests  of  his  army.  The  French,  whose  privations 
were  growing  daily,  and  who  saw  the  summer  rapidly 
progressing  with  no  prospect  of  harvesting  their 
crops,  became  desperate  and  once  more  Vaudreuil 
determined  to  try  the  effect  of  fire-rafts.  On  the 
27th  no  fewer  than  seventy-two  were  sent  down  the 
river  en  masse.  It  seemed  impossible  the  ships  could 
escape  this  time.  Two  were  actually  caught  by  the 
flames,  which,  however,  were  put  out  before  much 
damage  had  been  done.     Once  more  the  sailors  came 


WOLFE'S  THREAT  177 

to  the  rescue,  cheerfully,  as  one  of  them  said,  taking 
Hell  in  tow.  Wolfe  did  not  consider  that  fire-ships 
were  part  of  the  game,  and  took  strong  measures  to 
stop  the  nuisance.  "  If,"  he  told  Vaudreuil,  "  you 
presume  to  send  down  any  more  fire-rafts  they  shall 
be  made  fast  to  the  two  transports  in  which  the 
Canadian  prisoners  are  confined,  in  order  that  they 
may  perish  by  your  own  base  inventions."  There 
were  no  more  fire-ships. 


tick.       .      , 

•3— (2813) 


CHAPTER  XII 

THE   MONTMORENCY   REVERSE 

How  to  A  month  of  manceuvrings  and  bombardment,  of 
Montcalm  ?  skirmishings  and  reconnoitring,  of  excursions  and 
alarums,  and  for  all  practical  purposes  Wolfe  was  as 
far  off  the  capture  of  Quebec  as  on  the  day  when 
he  landed  on  the  Island  of  Orleans.  As  day  by  day 
went  by  he  became  more  and  more  impressed  with 
the  urgency  of  compelling  Montcalm  to  come  out  and 
fight.  As  to  the  issue  of  a  fair  and  square  battle,  he 
entertained  not  the  slightest  misgiving  ;  he  under- 
stood, as  did  Montcalm,  that  the  troops  behind  the 
Beauport  ramparts  were  no  match  in  the  open  for  his 
seasoned  veterans.  Quality  and  numbers  were  in 
inverse  ratio.  Wolfe  had  to  think  of  Amherst  and 
Pitt,  as  well  as  of  his  own  and  his  army's  reputation. 
But  what  could  he  do  ?  Amherst  was  making  no 
progress  which  served  to  draw  off  any  of  Montcalm's 
men.  England,  on  the  other  hand,  expected  Wolfe 
to  strike  a  blow  which  would  assist  Amherst's  move- 
ments, and  he  found  himself  engaged  in  a  more  or 
less  futile  interchange  of  shot  and  shell  with  the 
enemy.  The  examination  of  the  river  above  Quebec 
had  not  appeared  to  offer  much  more  prospect  of 
getting  at  the  city  from  that  direction  than  did  the 
fords  up  the  Montmorency  and  the  wooded  country 
to  Montcalm's  rear.  Montcalm  shared  his  view  about 
the  St.  Lawrence,  and  from  the  force  which  Wolfe 
could  bring  to  bear  on  the  Montmorency  side  ^ 
anticipated  no  serious  attack.     To  do  nothinp   "6 

178 


A  PERILOUS  PROJECT  179 

however,  to  Wolfe  intolerable,  and  if  to  do  something 
involved  frightful  odds,  the  odds  must  be  given. 

There  was  more  than  usual  stir  in  the  British  ranks  The 
on  the  29th  and  30th  July.  Precisely  what  was  fhe0ar"port 
intended  only  Wolfe  and  Saunders,  and  perhaps  the 
Brigadiers,  knew.  Wolfe  had  decided  to  try  to  pierce 
the  left  of  the  French  defences  near  the  Montmorency 
held  by  the  Chevalier  de  Levis.  If  the  idea  was  des- 
perate it  was  also  resourceful  and  was  based  on  the 
most  minute  study  of  the  physical  conditions  which 
so  far  had  been  possible.  The  attack  was  to  be  partly 
by  land,  partly  by  water.  Between  the  cliffs  behind 
which  Montcalm  had  thrown  up  his  entrenchments 
and  the  water's  edge  at  high  tide  is  a  stretch  of  shore 
some  200  yards  wide.  When  the  tide  is  out  there 
is  exposed  a  stretch  of  oozy  gully-riven  mud.  A 
redoubt  had  been  built  on  the  shore  just  above  the 
high-water  mark,  but  its  exact  distance  from  the 
entrenchments  Wolfe  had  never  been  able  to  ascertain. 
A  second  redoubt  stood  nearer  the  Falls.  These  posts 
would  make  any  attempt  to  land  a  matter  of  extreme 
peril.  Even  after  they  had  been  disposed  of  there 
was  the  strand  to  be  crossed  under  point  blank  fire 
from  the  shelter  of  the  works  on  the  cliff.  At  low 
water  the  Montmorency  below  the  Falls  was  easily 
fordable,  and  Wolfe's  plan  was  to  run  in  on  the  high 
tide  a  couple  of  armed  flat-bottomed  transports, 
called  catts,  as  near  the  first  redoubt  as  the  range 
permitted,  to  get  the  Centurion  carrying  sixty  guns 
in  a  position  near  the  Falls  from  which  to  bombard 
the  batteries  and  the  redoubt  on  the  French  left, 
whilst  a  powerful  battery  in  the  English  camp  played 
upon  them  from  across  the  Montmorency.  At  low 
tide  the  catts  would  be  aground  and  able  to  assist  the 


180  GENERAL  WOLFE 

landing  of  the  troops  which  Wolfe  intended  himself 
to  direct  ;  whilst  Townshend  with  a  couple  of 
thousand  men  would  move  across  the  ford  beneath 
the  Falls.  A  preliminary  movement  of  Townshend's 
up  the  Montmorency  was  made  to  suggest  that  a 
simultaneous  attack  would  be  delivered  to  the  north, 
and  activity  on  the  southern  shore  was  to  render 
uncertainty  doubly  uncertain. 
July  31st.  By  10  o'clock  on  the  morning  of  the  31st  Wolfe  was 
afloat  with  several  regiments  from  both  Points  Levi 
and  Orleans  ;  the  catts  and  the  Centurion  took  up 
their  allotted  places,  and  fire  was  opened  from  the 
Levi  and  Montmorency  batteries,  as  well  as  from  the 
vessels.  Wolfe,  nearer  the  French  lines  than  he  had 
ever  been,  saw  that  the  redoubts  were  commanded 
by  the  French  batteries  and  realised  more  strongly 
than  had  been  possible  hitherto  the  character  of  the 
undertaking.  Some  students  of  that  historic  day 
have  thought  that  his  object  was  perhaps  little  more 
than  what  is  euphemistically  called  a  reconnaissance 
in  force,  but  no  one  who  reads  his  despatch  to  Pitt 1 
can  doubt  that  his  intention  at  starting  was  to  attack 
the  French  entrenchments.  Otherwise,  from  the 
nature  of  the  enterprise,  there  would  be  much  to  be 
said  in  favour  of  Mr.  Bradley's  view  that  the  General, 
having  inspected  the  position,  would  do  little  more 
than  make  a  demonstration  on  the  water. 2  As  the 
day  proceeded,  Montcalm  for  once  thought  the 
occasion  demanded  outside  action  on  his  part,  and 
actually  ordered  a  detachment  to  cross  the  up  river 
fords  to  take  Townshend's  men  in  the  rear.  The 
movement  was  noticed  by  Wolfe,  and  he  promptly 
signalled  to  the  Point  Levi  that  some  men  should  be 
1  Appendix  I.  2   Wolfe,  p.   166. 


THE  LONG   WAIT  181 

sent  westward  along  the  south  shore  ;  the  effect  of 
this  counter  move  was  instantaneous,  and  Montcalm's 
resolution  failed  him.  The  fact  that  Wolfe  did  not 
strike  at  once  but  moved  his  boats,  laden  with  eager 
soldiery,  for  hours  up  and  down  the  river  to  the  greater 
bewilderment  of  the  enemy  seems  to  have  encouraged 
the  idea  that  he  hesitated.  It  was  a  hot  July  day, 
the  air  was  heavy  with  electricity,  and  the  trial  to 
both  British  and  French  was  severe.  "  The  cause 
of  the  delay  is  not  apparent,"  says  Mr.  Doughty1  ; 
"  the  attempt  after  long  and  close  inspection,  seemed 
too  desperate  to  be  justifiable,"  says  Mr.  Bradley.2 
The  explanation  surely  is  that  the  two  catts  had  to 
go  in  at  high  tide  in  order  to  ground  as  near  the 
redoubts  as  possible  at  low  tide,  and  that  until  low 
tide  the  Montmorency  ford  was  impracticable.  To 
land  the  troops  at  high  tide  was  out  of  the  question  ; 
yet  to  secure  the  assistance  of  the  catts,  operations 
must  begin  at  high  tide  ;  the  plan  was  ingenious  and 
Wolfe  had  Saunders'  cordial  co-operation. 

"  At  a  proper  time  of  the  tide,"  Wolfe  signalled  The  first 
to  the  Brigadiers  to  make  a  forward  move,  though 
what  that  proper  time  was  I  cannot  determine.  Mr. 
Doughty  3  and  Major  Wood4  say  it  was  "  past  three  "  ; 
Mr.  Bradley,  that  "  it  was  past  four  o'clock  before 
Wolfe  made  up  his  mind  "  ; 5  Parkman,  that  the  crisis 
came  at  half-past  five.  6  Having  delayed  so  long  it 
was  vital  now  that  every  movement  should  be 
executed  with  smartness  and  in  good  order.  Wolfe's 
calculations  were  to  be  upset  this  day  by  a  check 
when  he  wanted  to  advance,  and  by  a  precipitate 

1  Vol.  ii,  p.  136.         2  Wolfe,  p.  167 

3  Vol.  ii,  p.  136.         4  p.  192. 

5  Wolfe,  p.   166.         6  Montcalm  and  Wolfe,  vol.  ii,  p.  240. 


embarrass- 
ment. 


182  GENERAL   WOLFE 

rush  forward  when  there  should  have  been  delibera- 
tion. The  boats  suddenly  struck  a  shoal,  from  which 
they  were  got  off  with  some  difficulty ;  Wolfe  made 
a  considerable  point  of  the  delay  thus  caused,  and  was 
at  first  inclined  to  lay  blame  on  the  sailors  who  should 
have  saved  him  from  his  temporary  embarrassment. 
The  accident  was  the  more  grievous  seeing  that 
Saunders  was  present  in  person  doing  his  best  to  make 
the  operations  a  success.1  Having  got  clear  of  the 
obstacle  and  found  a  place  to  land,  Wolfe  going  in 
first  with  some  naval  officers  to  make  sure  this  time, 
the  Grenadiers  were  put  on  shore,  followed  by  the 
Royal  Americans  ;  the  Grenadiers  were  to  form  up 
in  four  distinct  bodies,  and  with  the  support  of 
Monckton's  Brigade  in  their  rear,  and  of  Townshend 
and  Murray  now  moving  across  the  Ford,  were  to 
lead  the  attack  on  the  redoubt. 
Xhe  What   possessed   the   Grenadiers   at   that   critical 

Grenadiers '   moment  ?     They  were  Wolfe's  veterans  on  whose  disci- 
wild  dash.     pHne  he  WQuld  haye  staked  all      yet  like  a  trusted 

high  mettled  horse,  who  for  once  in  his  life  takes  the 
bit  between  his  teeth,  the  Grenadiers,  without  waiting 
for  orders,  dashed  wildly  forward  ;  whether  they 
thought  they  had  orders  one  cannot  tell ;  whatever 
the  explanation,  "  they  made  one  of  those  un- 
accountable blunders  that  will  sometimes  happen 
with  the  best  troops  in  the  heat  of  action."2  ^They 
went  straight  for  the  redoubt  which  the  French 
abandoned,  but  as  it  was  open  at  the  rear,  it  could 
not  be  used  as  a  support  for  the  attack  on  the  entrench- 
ments. 3  For  a  moment  they  were  checked  by  a 
terrific  fusillade  ;  and  then,  away  they  went  again  as 
though  they  imagined  alone  they  could  carry  the 
1   Wood,  p.   193.  a  Ibid.  *  Ibid, 


DISASTER   AND  RETREAT  183 

enemy's  works.  Heavy  clouds  had  been  collecting, 
and  now  to  the  thunder  of  cannon  and  crack  of 
musket  was  added  the  thunder  of  the  elements.  A 
storm  burst,  and  the  rain  destroyed  any  sort  of 
foothold  the  Grenadiers  might  have  found  in  their 
wild  attempt  to  reach  the  heights  behind  which  lay 
thousands  of  well  protected  Frenchmen,  Canadians 
and  Indians.  The  Grenadiers  who  started  on  that  mad 
heroic  rush  were  1,000  strong  ;  they  were  not  stopped 
till  nearly  half  their  number  lay  dead  or  wounded 
on  the  ground  between  the  redoubt  and  the  entrench- 
ments. Some  French  writers  have  argued  that  the 
storm  saved  Montcalm  ;  others  that  it  saved  Wolfe. 
English  authorities  are  equally  divided.  If  the 
Grenadiers  had  ever  reached  the  French  lines  their 
chances  were  as  twenty  to  one.  After  what  had 
happened,  Wolfe  saw  there  was  nothing  for  it  but 
to  call  them  back.  Townshend's  advance  was  stayed 
by  signal,  and  as  the  tide  was  turning,  the  General 
ordered  the  men  into  the  boats.  Four  hundred  and 
fifty  gallant  fellows  lay  stretched  on  the  shore  ; 
Indians  in  large  numbers  burst  out  from  the  woods 
with  scalping  knives  to  do  their  hideous  work ;  the 
78th  Highlanders  were  sent  forward  to  bring  off  as 
many  of  the  wounded  as  they  could  find  ;  there  were 
many  acts  of  individual  devotion,  which  a  century 
later  would  have  commanded  the  Victoria  Cross, 1  and 
the  French  in  at  least  one  instance  showed  a 
humanity  which  was  not  always  forthcoming  on 
either  side. 


1  The  thrilling  oft-told  story  of  Ensign  Peyton's  refusal  to 
leave  Captain  Ochterloney  who  lay  wounded  and  at  the 
mercy  of  the  first  tomahawk,  forms  Chapter  VII  of  Mr. 
Doughty's  2nd  volume. 


184  GENERAL  WOLFE 

Wolfe's  Wolfe  got  his  army  back  into  the  boats,  together 

comments.  w^n  ^e  WOunded  who  had  been  rescued,  and 
Townshend's  men  retreated  in  perfect  order,  waving 
their  hats  in  defiance  at  the  enemy  on  the  heights, 
who  even  at  this  critical  moment  dare  not  come  out 
and  fight.  As  the  various  regiments  made  their 
way  to  their  quarters  in  the  three  camps,  Wolfe's 
ruminations  were  bitter  as  the  exhilaration  in  the 
French  lines  was  excessive.  Vaudreuil  boasted  and 
hoped  that  M.  Wolfe  would  repeat  his  mad  enterprise. 
"  I  have  no  more  anxiety  about  Quebec,"  he  wrote.1 
Wolfe's  critics  in  his  own  camps  were  not  sparing, 
though  naturally  they  took  care  to  confine  their  views 
to  private  papers,  but  the  General  himself  promptly 
made  his  own  thoughts  public.  He  issued  orders  in 
which  he  expressed  the  hope  that  the  check  which  the 
Grenadiers  had  met  with  would  be  a  lesson  to  them  : 
'  Such  impetuous,  irregular,  and  unsoldier-like  pro- 
ceedings destroy  all  order,  make  it  impossible  for 
their  commanders  to  form  any  disposition  for  an 
attack,  and  put  it  out  of  the  General's  power  to 
execute  his  plan.  The  Grenadiers  could  not  suppose 
that  they  alone  could  beat  the  French  army,  and 
therefore  it  was  necessary  that  the  corps  under 
Brigadier  Monckton  and  Brigadier  Townshend  should 
have  time  to  join,  that  the  attack  might  be  general  ; 
the  very  first  fire  of  the  enemy  was  sufficient  to  repulse 
men  who  had  lost  all  sense  of  order  and  military 
discipline  ;  Amherst's  and  the  Highland  regiments 
alone  by  the  soldier-like  and  cool  manner  they  were 
formed  in,  would  undoubtedly  have  beat  back  the 
whole  Canadian  army,  if  they  had  ventured  to  attack 
them.  The  loss,  however,  is  inconsiderable,  and  may 
1  Parkman  :    Montcalm  and  Wolfe,   vol.  ii,  p.  243. 


CRITICISMS   OF   WOLFE  185 

be  easily  repaired  when  a  favourable  opportunity 
offers,  if  the  men  will  show  a  proper  attention  to  their 
officers." 

These  reflections  were  described  by  one  chronicler  The 
of  the  campaign  as  "a  cruel  aspersion  "  on  the  view 
Grenadiers,  and  an  officer  of  "  knowledge,  fortune  and 
interest  " — it  sounds  curiously  like  Townshend — was 
heard  to  say  that  "  the  attack  then  and  there  was 
contrary  to  the  advice  and  opinion  of  every  officer." 
Townshend 's  biographer  says  that  "  the  confidence 
of  the  troops  in  Wolfe  was  much  shaken  by  this 
disaster.  For  nothing  in  war  is  so  bad  as  failure  and 
defeat :  "  a  statement  which  every  incident  in  the 
remainder  of  the  campaign  flatly  contradicts,  unless 
we  are  to  accept  the  few  malcontents  in  Wolfe's 
camps  as  wholly  trustworthy  witnesses.  Colonel 
Townshend  does  not  believe  that  the  men  advanced 
in  spite  of  orders.  "  I  feel  convinced  that  the  cause 
of  this  disaster  as  in  so  many  other  cases  was  a 
burning  thirst  for  battle  on  the  part  of  the  troops, 
officers  and  men  alike,  such  as  one  sees  in  men  who, 
never  having  been  on  active  service  before,  are 
impatient  to  find  themselves  engaged";1  in  other 
words  Colonel  Townshend  confirms  the  impression  left 
by  Wolfe's  own  words  that  splendid  veterans  on  this 
occasion  acted  like  raw  troops  eager  to  show  their 
spirit  and  courage.  Wolfe  loved  his  Grenadiers,  and 
his  rebuke  was  based  on  immediate  observation  ; 
his  critics  spoke  at  second-hand.  The  General  was  at 
special  pains  to  show  that  he  considered  the  officers 
free  from  blame  :  he  visited  personally  during  the 
night  every  wounded  officer  and  invited  the  survivors 

1  Military  Life  of  Townshend,  p.  196, 


186  GENERAL  WOLFE 

to  dine  with  him. l  The  morale  of  the  men  them- 
selves was  in  no  way  destroyed  by  their  mistake  and 
its  heavy  punishment.  "  The  survivors  re-formed  at 
once,  the  discipline  which  had  been  lost  for  those  few 
fatal  minutes  was  restored,  and  the  next  day  all  ranks 
were  as  fit  for  service  as  ever."2  That  day  Wolfe 
wrote  to  Monckton  :  "  This  check  must  not  dishearten 
us:  prepare  for  another  and  better  attempt."3 
Tfh  thPart  Why  Wolfe  combined  a  land  and  sea  attack  is  not 

fleet.  plain  to  Colonel  Townshend, 4  nor  to  Mr.  Doughty, 

who  sees  "  disadvantages  in  union,"  when  Wolfe 
might  have  confined  himself  to  a  land  attack  and  used 
his  boats  to  distract  the  enemy's  right. 5  What  they 
see  a  century  and  a  half  after  the  event  Wolfe  saw 
directly  experience  had  proved  theory  to  be  mislead- 
ing. A  long  letter  to  Saunders  makes  this  point  quite 
clear.  Before  sending  his  despatch  of  the  2nd 
September  to  Pitt, 6  Wolfe  submitted  it  to  his  naval 
colleague.  Something  in  that  despatch  referring  to 
the  part  played  by  the  navy  in  the  attempt  on 
Montmorency  was  not  approved  by  Saunders  and 
Wolfe  promptly  struck  it  out.  From  his  reply  to  the 
Admiral  we  get  an  excellent  insight  into  Wolfe's 
thoughts  concerning  the  whole  business  :  "I  am,"  he 
said,  "  sensible  of  my  own  errors  in  the  course  of  the 
campaign  ;  see  clearly  wherein  I  have  been  deficient ; 
and  think  a  little  more  or  less  blame  to  a  man  that 
must  necessarily  be  ruined,  of  little  or  no  conse- 
quence." He  denied  that  he  attributed  all  his  diffi- 
culties to  the  two  catts  not  being  so  placed  as  "to 

1  Bradley  :    Wolfe,  pp.  170-1. 

2  Wood,  p.  194. 

8  Dictionary  of  National  Biography  :    Monckton. 

4  p.  197.  »  Vol.  ii,  p.  135.  6  See  Appendix  I. 


THE  ESSENTIAL  MATTER  187 

annoy  the  two  small  batteries  with  their  guns  "  ;  on 
the  contrary,  they  did  all  that  could  be  expected,  and 
yet  "  the  upper  battery  was  not  abandoned  by  the 
enemy  but  continued  firing  till  the  Grenadiers  ran  like 
blockheads  up  to  it."  It  seems  that  Captain  James 
Cook,  the  navigator,  who  was  one  of  Saunders' 
Captains,  believed  he  could  get  within  forty  or  fifty 
yards  of  the  redoubts,  and  Wolfe  would  have  been 
satisfied  with  150  or  200  yards  if  the  upper  redoubt 
had  been  as  far  from  the  entrenchments  as  it  appeared 
to  be  from  the  British  camp.  From  the  lower  redoubt 
so  brisk  a  fire  was  kept  up  that  Wolfe  himself  had 
a  narrow  escape.  "  I  was  no  less  than  three  times 
struck  with  splinters,  and  had  my  stick  knocked 
out  of  my  hand  with  a  cannon-ball."  The  blame  of 
"  that  unlucky  day  "  he  took  entirely  upon  his  own 
shoulders.  "  Accidents  cannot  be  helped.  As  much 
as  the  plan  was  defective  falls  justly  upon  me,"  and 
it  was  of  no  great  consequence  whether  the  catts  fired 
ill  or  well,  lost  time  in  landing  or  not.  "  In  none  of 
these  circumstances  the  essential  matter  resides. 
The  great  fault  of  that  day  consists  in  putting  too 
many  men  in  the  boats,  who  might  have  been  landed 
the  day  before,  and  might  have  crossed  the  ford  with 
certainty  while  a  small  body  remained  afloat  and  the 
superfluous  boats  of  the  fleet  employed  in  a  feint  that 
might  have  divided  the  enemy's  force.  A  man  sees 
his  errors  often  too  late  to  remedy."  If  Wolfe's  plan 
had  been  ideal  the  action  of  the  Grenadiers  would 
have  thrown  it  completely  out  of  gear. 

Wolfe  now  thought  of  trying  to  get  into  touch  with  Murray's 
Amherst,  or  at  any  rate  to  open  a  way  which  might  °Perations« 
make  communication  possible  in  the  near  future. 
Whilst  the  French  fleet  was  in  the  river  between 


188  GENERAL  WOLFE 

Quebec  and  Montreal  no  such  communication  was 
possible.  General  Murray,  therefore,  with  1,200  men 
was  ordered  to  join  Admiral  Holmes  up  the  river  ; 
they  were  to  get  at  and  destroy  the  French  ships,  if 
possible,  and  Murray  was  to  invite  Bougainville  to 
battle  by  attacking  French  posts  whenever  it  could 
be  done  on  "  tolerable  terms."  The  ships  could  not 
be  got  at  and  Murray  made  two  attempts  to  land  at 
Pointe  aux  Trembles  which  were  repulsed  with  the 
loss  of  some  eighty  men,  but  he  outwitted  Bougainville 
at  Deschambault,  where  he  landed,  destroyed  valuable 
stores  of  ammunition,  clothing  and  other  necessaries, 
secured  some  useful  papers  and  prisoners,  and  was 
back  in  the  boats  before  Bougainville  could  reach  the 
spot  in  force.  Murray's  operations  had  the  effect  of 
compelling  Montcalm  to  detach  as  many  as  1,600  to 
act  under  Bougainville,  and  his  failure  at  Pointe  aux 
Trembles  brought  some  compensation  by  inducing 
the  belief  that  the  more  difficult  heights  nearer  the 
city  were  at  any  rate  secure.  The  French  conceived 
more  than  one  enterprising  project  by  way  of  turning 
the  tables  on  Holmes  and  Murray,  but  for  various 
reasons  they  did  nothing.  Bougainville  thought  of 
crossing  to  the  south  bank  and  attacking  Murray's 
camp,  but  bad  weather  was  a  sufficient  excuse  for 
delay.  Another  officer  was  prepared  to  make  an 
attack  on  one  of  Holmes'  ships,  but  jealousy  inter- 
vened, and  before  anything  could  be  done  Saunders 
had  sent  up  reinforcements.  It  was  on  the  5th  August 
that  Murray  started  up  the  river  ;  he  was  away  nearly 
three  weeks,  much  to  Wolfe's  annoyance.  "  By  his 
long  stay  above  and  detaining  all  our  boats  Murray 
is  actually  master  of  the  operations,  or  rather  puts 
an  entire  stop  to  them,"  said  the  General,  and  on  the 


DISCONTENT  AND  DISTRESS  189 

24th  rockets  were  sent  up  to  show  Holmes  that 
something  was  wanted. 

Both  armies  were  feeling  the  strain  ;  in  the  French  Laying  the 
camp  there  was  scarcity  of  food  and  of  ammunition  :  cou"try 
in  the  British  there  was  much  sickness.  The  French 
loss  during  the  operations  had  not  been  many  more 
than  half  that  of  the  British — so  that  the  numerical 
disproportion  of  the  forces  was  greater  than  ever. 
All  told,  Wolfe  had  lost  over  800  men.  But  the  state 
of  his  army  was  in  every  way  superior  to  that  which 
Montcalm  and  Vaudreuil  controlled.  Among  the 
French,  discontent  was  rampant  and  desertions 
numerous.  The  Canadians  saw  a  plentiful  harvest 
being  wasted  whilst  they  were  on  duty  behind 
Montcalm's  earthworks ;  a  wasted  harvest  meant 
privation  and  ruin  when  the  campaign  was  over. 
Wolfe  continued  to  lay  the  country  bare,  torches  were 
placed  beneath  homesteads  whose  owners  refused  to 
be  neutral,  and  the  crops  which  the  Canadian  hoped 
to  garner  for  himself  were  appropriated  by  the  British. 
Some  barbarous  things  were  done  in  carrying  out 
Wolfe's  orders,  notably  by  a  brother  of  the  Richard 
Montgomery  who  died  in  the  attempt  to  take  Quebec 
during  the  War  of  Independence.  Montgomery  had 
prisoners  killed  in  cold  blood.  There  were  some  signal 
deeds  of  heroism,  too,  such  as  the  holding  at  bay  by 
a  sergeant  and  a  dozen  men  of  100  Canadians  and 
Indians  for  two  hours  till  relief  came.  Wolfe  was 
quick  to  reward  any  special  act  of  this  sort,  and 
instantly  gave,  or  promised  to  give,  the  sergeant  a 
commission.  When  the  luckless  habitant  applied  to 
Vaudreuil  to  know  what  he  should  do  he  was  urged 
to  fight  for  his  country  more  energetically  than  ever 
because  the  English  would  disappear  with  the  end  of 


190  GENERAL  WOLFE 

August.  Poor  wretch  :  if  he  fought,  Wolfe  punished 
him  ;  if  he  failed  to  fight  he  was  treated  as  a  traitor 
by  his  own  people.  And  the  assurances  that  the 
British  were  defeated  and  maintaining  a  hopeless 
struggle  carried  as  little  weight  with  him  as  with  the 
Indians,  who  began  to  lose  confidence  and  said  they 
would  believe  that  the  French  had  triumphed  when 
the  English  were  driven  back  to  their  ships.  "  Are 
they  not  as  unconcerned  in  their  camps  as  if  nothing 
had  happened  ?  "  Vaudreuil  and  Montcalm  were 
encouraged  by  the  reports  of  deserters  that  the  British 
fleet  would  shortly  sail  and  that  Wolfe  contemplated 
breaking  up  his  camps.  News  reached  Quebec  early 
in  the  month  that  Amherst  had  captured  Ticonderoga, 
and  that  Niagara  also  had  fallen.  But  Bourlamaque 
wrote  that  he  had  taken  up  an  impregnable  position 
at  Isle  aux  Noix, x  and  from  the  capture  of  two  officers 
carrying  despatches  from  Amherst  to  Wolfe  Montcalm 
learned  that  Amherst's  operations  would  depend  upon 
the  success  Wolfe  met  with  at  Quebec.  2 

Wolfe's  health  was  a  sore  trial  during  this  month  of 
August.  The  Montmorency  failure  told  upon  him 
more  than  he  cared  perhaps  to  admit.  He  was 
haunted  by  the  feeling  that  he  would  not  accomplish 
what  Pitt  expected  of  him,  and  he  loathed  the  thought 
of  returning  to  England  to  hear  the  criticisms  of  the 
ignorant.  When  Townshend  wrote  to  his  wife, 
"  General  Wolfe's  health  is  but  very  bad  :  his  general- 
ship in  my  poor  opinion  is  not  a  bit  better,"3  he  was 
only  saying  what  a  good  many  others  were  either 
thinking  or  preparing  to  think.     About  the  18th  or 

1  Parkman  :   Vol.  ii,  p.  276. 

*  Doughty  :    Vol.  ii,  p.  226. 

3  Military  Life  of  Townshend,  p.  210. 


THE  PUBLIC  SERVICE  191 

19th  August  Wolfe  began  to  be  seriously  ill ;  by  the 
20th  he  was  prostrate  with  fever,  and  for  a  day  or  two 
it  was  a  question  whether  he  would  be  fit  to  resume 
the  command.  Knox  wrote  on  the  22nd  that  it  was 
with  the  greatest  concern  the  army  learned  of  "  our 
amiable  general  being  very  ill  of  a  slow  fever.  The 
soldiers  lament  him  exceedingly  and  seemed  appre- 
hensive of  this  even  before  we  were  ascertained  of  it 
by  his  not  visiting  the  camp  for  several  days."  He  was, 
as  we  have  seen,  sufficiently  recovered  by  the  24th  to 
interest  himself  in  Murray's  return,  and  on  the  25th 
Knox  noted  that  "  General  Wolfe  is  on  the  recovery 
to  the  inconceivable  joy  of  the  whole  army  " —  a 
sufficient  commentary  on  the  suggestion  that  a  single 
reverse  had  cost  Wolfe  his  popularity  with  the  rank 
and  file. 

Ill  as  he  had  been  Wolfe's  thoughts  were  all  for  the  The 
public  service.     He  told  his  doctor  that  he  knew  he  brigadiers 
could  not  cure  his  complaint  but  begged  to  be  patched  consult* 
up  so  that  he  might  be  without  pain  for  a  few  days 
and  able  to  do  his  duty.     "  That  is  all  I  want."     As 
he  lay  helpless  on  his  bed  he  fretted  at  his  inability 
to  urge  matters  forward  to  a  definite  issue  ;  every  day 
brought  him  appreciably  nearer  the  season  when  it 
would  be  possible  to  do  nothing.     He  had  already 
in  his  mind  the  idea  of  taking  up  winter  quarters  on 
the  Isle  aux  Coudres,  though  that  was  a  prospect 
little  more  inviting  than  absolute  failure.     For  the 
first  time,  therefore,  he  called  upon  his  Brigadiers  "  to 
meet  and  consult  for  the  public  utility  and  advan- 
tage."1   How  best  could  the  enemy  be  attacked? 

1  The  Abbe  Casgrain  says  (Wol  e  and  Montcalm,  p.  154) 
that  Wolfe  "  handed  the  command  over  to  the  three 
Brigadiers  " ;   he  did  nothing  of  the  sort. 


192  GENERAL   WOLFE 

Defeat  of  the  French  army,  he  concluded,  would  mean 
the  immediate  surrender  of  the  town,  badly  provi- 
sioned as  it  was.  He  suggested  for  their  consideration 
three  methods  all  turning  on  the  Beauport  entrench- 
ments, from  either  the  rear  or  the  shore  or  both  in 
combination.  The  Brigadier's  reply  to  this  invitation 
was  responsible  for  a  controversy  in  the  mists  of 
which  the  great  achievement  which  was  the  outcome 
has  sometimes  been  obscured.  Recently  published 
papers  enable  one  to  form  a  judicial  and  final  opinion 
on  the  merits  of  the  case.  "  The  natural  strength  of 
the  enemy's  situation  between  the  Rivers  St.  Charles 
and  Montmorency  now  improved  by  the  art  of  their 
engineers  makes  the  defeat  of  their  army,  if  attacked 
there,  very  doubtful,"  wrote  the  Brigadiers.  "  Late 
experience  "  made  them  shy  of  repeating  the  attack 
of  the  31st  July.  They  pointed  out  that  if  Montcalm 
were  defeated,  he  would  still  have  it  in  his  power  to 
dispute  the  passage  of  the  St.  Charles.  "  We  are 
therefore  of  opinion  that  the  most  probable  method 
of  striking  an  effectual  blow  is  by  bringing  the  troops 
to  the  south  shore  and  directing  our  operations  above 
the  town.  When  we  have  established  ourselves  on 
the  north  shore,  of  which  there  is  very  little  doubt, 
the  Marquis  de  Montcalm  must  fight  us  on  our  own 
terms  ;  we  are  between  him  and  his  provisions,  and 
betwixt  him  and  the  French  army  opposing  General 
Amherst.  If  he  gives  us  battle  and  we  defeat  him, 
Quebec  must  be  ours  and  what  is  more  all  Canada 
must  submit  to  his  Majesty's  arms,  a  different  case 
from  any  advantage  we  can  hope  for  at  Beauport." 
On  the  question  of  an  immediate  attack,  or  a  post- 
ponement till  the  ruin  of  the  harvest  had  completed 
the  ruin  of  the  Colony,  "  or  with  a  view  of  facilitating 


THE  BRIGADIERS'   PLAN  193 

the  operations  of  our  armies  now  advancing  into  the 
heart  of  the  country,"  the  Brigadiers  could  not  take 
upon  themselves  to  advise,  "  although  we  cannot  but 
be  convinced  that  a  decisive  affair  to  our  disadvantage 
must  enable  the  enemy  to  make  head  against  the  army 
under  the  command  of  General  Amherst  already  far 
advanced  by  the  diversion  this  army  has  made  on 
this  side."  The  Brigadiers  proposed  a  plan,  but  with 
the  same  dip  of  ink  cast  doubts  on  the  expediency  of 
carrying  it  out.  If  they  had  been  men  of  less  grit 
and  less  worthy  soldiers,  one  might  be  forced  to 
unpleasant  conclusions. 

Townshend's  friends,  somehow,  have  managed  to  Towns- 
fix  all  the  credit  for  the  plan  on  himself.  Martin 1  and  hend  's 
Warburton, 2  sixty  years  ago,  like  Colonel  Townshend 
six  years  ago,  treated  the  matter  as  conclusive. 
"  After  having  maturely  deliberated,  the  brigadiers 
agreed,"  says  Warburton,  "  in  recommending  the 
remarkable  plan  which  Wolfe  unreservedly  adopted. 
The  merit  of  this  daring  and  skilful  proposition 
belongs  to  Colonel  George  Townshend,  although  long 
disputed  or  withheld  by  jealousy  or  political 
hostility."  To  that  statement  Wolfe's  own  words3 
would  lend  some  colour  if  the  facts  were  not  now 
placed  deyond  dispute.  To  Townshend  probably 
belongs  an  even  smaller  part  of  "  the  merit  "  than 
to  the  other  Brigadiers,  and  Miss  Kimball  says  it  is 
doubtful  if  Townshend  did  not  protest  against  the 
plan  as  too  hazardous. 4  It  remained  only  for  Colonel 
C.  V.  F.  Townshend  to  clench  the  errors  of  other 

1  Martin's  British  Colonies,  Div.  I,  p.   13. 

2  Conquest  of  Canada,  vol.  ii,  p.  322. 

3  Appendix  :    "I  have  acquiesced  in  their  proposal." 

4  Correspondence  of  Pitt,  vol.  ii,  p.   164. 
14 — (2213) 


194 


GENERAL  WOLFE 


Wolfe's 

prompt 

action. 


writers  by  giving  "  the  plan  of  operations  which  was 
adopted  in  consequence  of  the  Brigadier's  answer  " — 
the  plan  which  was  not  that  eventually  carried  out 
by  Wolfe  at  all — and  to  append  an  extract  from  a 
letter  by  Wolfe  to  Townshend  which  he  assumed 
belonged  to  the  plan  as  drawn  up,  but  which  had 
nothing  to  do  with  it.  Colonel  Townshend  got  his 
papers  muddled  and  fell  into  a  trap  of  his  own  making. x 
He  says  in  his  preface  :  "It  will  be  seen  that  the 
unexpected  and  surprising  manner  in  which  Quebec 
was  taken  was  the  plan  of  the  Brigadiers  and  not  of 
Wolfe.  That  Wolfe  put  into  happy  execution  the 
plan  of  others  is  no  disparagement  to  his  glorious 
happy  memory — such  things  are  not  unknown  to 
students  of  military  history." 

The  Brigadiers'  reply  was  dated  the  29th  August. 
Their  views  were  a  reversion  to  Wolfe's  earlier  idea, 
mentioned  in  his  despatch  to  Pitt,  of  carrying  the 
operations  up  the  river,  an  idea  which  he  abandoned 
because  the  formidable  nature  of  the  cliffs,  the  ease 
with  which  they  could  be  defended  by  a  handful  of 
men  against  an  army,  and  the  difficulties  of  getting 
men  and  supplies  past  Quebec  seemed  to  make  the 
task  more  hopeless  than  an  attack  on  the  Beauport 
lines.  "  My  ill  state  of  health  hinders  me  from 
executing  my  own  plan,"  said  Wolfe  to  Saunders  on 
the  30th  ;  "  it  is  of  too  desperate  a  nature  to  order 
others  to  execute.  The  generals  seem  to  think  alike 
as  to  the  operations  ;  I  therefore  join  with  them,  and 
perhaps  we  may  find  some  opportunity  to  strike  a 
blow."  His  decision  taken,  he  began  to  give  effect 
to  it  with  a  spirit  which  was  in  striking  contrast  with 
the  hesitancy  of  the  Brigadiers'  last  words,  and  within 

1  Doughty  :    vol.  ii,  p.  243. 


THE  SITUATION   IN   A  NUTSHELL 


195 


twenty-four  hours  he  had  told  Saunders  that  it 
would  be  necessary  "  to  run  as  many  small  craft  by 
the  town  as  possible  with  provisions  and  rum  for  six 
weeks  for  about  5,000,  which  is  all  I  intend  to  take." 

In  the  midst  of  his  preparations  he  wrote  to  his  Last  letter 
mother.    It  was  the  last  letter  she  had  from  him,  t0  h*s 
and  it  is  as  significant  on  account  of  what  it  omits  as 
of  what  it  says. 

'*  Banks  of  the  St.  Lawrence, 

0  "315/  August,   1759. 

"  Dear  Madam, — 

' '  My  writing  to  you  will  convince  you  that  no  personal 
evils  worse  than  defeats  and  disappointments  have  fallen 
upon  me.  The  enemy  puts  nothing  to  risk  and  I  can't,  in 
conscience,  put  the  whole  army  to  risk.  My  antagonist  has 
wisely  shut  himself  up  in  inaccessible  entrenchments,  so  that 
I  can't  get  at  him  without  spilling  a  torrent  of  blood,  and 
that  perhaps  to  little  purpose.  The  Marquis  de  Montcalm  is 
at  the  head  of  a  great  number  of  bad  soldiers,  and  I  am  at 
the  head  of  a  small  number  of  good  ones,  that  wish  for  nothing 
so  much  as  to  fight  him ;  but  the  wary  old  fellow  avoids  an 
action,  doubtful  of  the  behaviour  of  his  army.  People  must 
be  of  the  profession  to  understand  the  disadvantages  and 
difficulties  we  labour  under,  arising  from  the  uncommon 
natural  strength  of  the  country. 

"  I  approve  entirely  of  my  father's  disposition  of  his  affairs, 
though  perhaps  it  may  interfere  a  little  with  my  plan  of 
quitting  the  service,  which  I  am  determined  to  do  the  first 
opportunity — I  mean  so  as  not  to  be  absolutely  distressed 
in  circumstances,  nor  burdensome  to  you  or  anybody  else. 
I  wish  you  much  health  and  am,  dear  Madam, 

"Your  obedient  and  affectionate  son, 

"  Jam  :  Wolfe. 

"  If  any  sums  of  money  are  paid  to  you  of  what  is  due  to  my 
father  from  Government,  let  me  recommend  you  not  to 
meddle  with  the  funds,  but  keep  it  for  your  support  until 
better  times." 


CHAPTER   XIII 

THE   PLAINS  OF  ABRAHAM 

Removing  Wolfe's  first  business  was  to  get  his  men  safely  away 
a  camp.  from  Montmorency  :  the  task  was  a  supremely  diffi- 
cult and  delicate  one.  It  would  provide  the  French 
with  an  opportunity  for  mischief  for  which  they  had 
been  on  the  look-out  during  several  weeks.  Knox 
as  early  as  the  5th  August  recorded  in  his  journal  : 
"  Scarce  a  day  passes  but  we  hear  of  some  brilliant 
coup  which  the  French  intend  to  strike  at  one  or  other 
of  our  three  encampments.  Now  we  are  told  by 
deserters  that  they  will  wait  until  General  Wolfe  is 
obliged  to  withdraw  his  troops  from  the  north  camp — 
then  fall  on  him  with  their  whole  force  and  cut  the 
flower  of  his  army  to  pieces."  Wolfe  was  here  as 
elsewhere  more  than  a  match  for  his  wily  and  cautious 
opponent.  The  transference  was  accomplished  by 
tactics  which  completely  deceived  Montcalm  as  to 
their  real  purpose.  Montcalm  early  discovered  that 
some  great  movement  was  afoot,  but  the  movement 
was  chiefly  upon  the  water  and  the  south  shore. 
Preparations  were  being  made  obviously  for  a  new 
attack,  but  whether  the  attack  was  to  be  on  the 
Beauport  lines  or  on  the  other  side  of  Quebec  he 
had  no  means  of  discovering.  There  was  a  great 
demonstration  by  boats,  the  Point  Levi  batteries 
kept  up  a  ceaseless  fire,  and  the  signs  were  all  in 
favour  of  something  happening  very  different  from 
the  thing  that  did  happen.  As  the  boats  stood  in  to 
the  Montmorency  shore,  the  enemy's  belief  that  the 

196 


A  CHANCE  MISSED  197 

men  of  a  new  attacking  force  were  to  be  taken  off 
grew,  and  in  their  anxiety  to  be  ready  at  all  points 
they  missed  the  chance  of  delivering  a  blow  that 
must  have  been  heavy.  Early  in  the  morning  of  the 
3rd  September,  the  whole  Montmorency  camp  was 
transferred  without  the  loss  of  a  single  man. 

What  the  French  felt  as  they  watched  the  boats  Amusing 
with  a  well-timed  movement  withdraw  instead  of  the  enemy« 
advance  may  be  gleaned  from  French  journals  and 
letters.  Montcalm  was  blamed,  and  all  he  and  his 
officers  could  say  in  justification  was  that  they 
detected  2,000  men  lying  on  their  faces  in  the  British 
entrenchments  at  the  very  moment  that  they  were 
supposed  to  have  crossed  over  to  the  Island  of  Orleans. 
"There  was  danger  of  falling  into  some  snare,"1 
they  said.  Wolfe  next  removed  all  save  600  men, 
whom  he  left  under  Carleton,  from  the  Island  to  the 
south  shore  ;  1 ,600  men  were  left  on  Point  Levi  under 
Colonel  Burton,  and  the  rest,  as  far  as  could  be  by 
night,  marched  in  detachments  under  Monckton, 
Murray,  and  Townshend  to  spots  where  boats  were 
waiting  to  carry  them  to  the  ships  between  Sillery  and 
Cap  Rouge.  Wolfe  joined  the  fleet  up  the  river  on 
the  5th,  and  Admiral  Holmes  began  to  "  amuse  " 
the  enemy  by  sailing  his  vessels  backwards  and 
forwards.  Montcalm  had  sent  de  Levis  to  Montreal 
with  reinforcements  in  view  of  Amherst's  advance  ; 
he  strengthened  Bougainville  and  held  himself  in 
readiness  to  go  to  any  point  at  any  moment  danger 
threatened.  He  shifted  his  main  camp  from  the 
Montmorency  to  La  Canardiere  much  nearer  Quebec, 
and  was  prepared  for  the  appearance  of  Wolfe  at 
Cap  Rouge  or  higher  up,  or  on  the  Beauport  shore. 
1  Doughty  :    vol.  ii,  p.  264. 


198  GENERAL  WOLFE 

How  many  men  Wolfe  had  transferred  above  Quebec 
there  was  nothing  to  indicate,  a  clever  show  of 
strength  being  maintained  in  both  the  camps  across 
the  water.  Montcalm  dared  not  reduce  the  numbers 
already  depleted  by  the  detachments  given  to  de 
LeVis  and  Bougainville,  and  he  was  confident  that  the 
latter  could  meet  any  force  that  might  attempt  a 
landing  anywhere  between  Quebec  and  Pointe  aux 
Trembles.  That  the  attempt  if  made  would  be 
between  Cap  Rouge  and  Pointe  aux  Trembles,  in 
accordance  with  the  plan  of  the  Brigadiers,  was  the 
opinion  of  Montcalm.  The  one  man  who  had  other 
views  was  Wolfe.  Montcalm  ought  to  have  known 
by  this  time  that  the  British  General  never  did  the 
obvious  thing,  and  the  more  attention  Wolfe  paid  to 
a  particular  stretch  of  coast  the  less  likely  was  he 
to  strike  there. 
A  respite  Wolfe  conferred  with  the  Brigadiers  on  the  7th 

anH     SOITIG 

doubts.  as  to  the  best  method  of  attack  ;    the  next  day  the 

Brigadiers  reconnoitred  and  proposed  to  land  at 
Pointe  aux  Trembles *  on  the  9th.  The  plan,  if  it  was 
entertained,  was  defeated  by  a  heavy  storm,  which 
lasted  over  two  days,  during  which  operations  were 
suspended.  The  men  cooped  up  in  the  transports 
were  suffering  from  their  confinement  and  Wolfe  sent 
half  the  number  on  shore  to  refresh  themselves  and 
stretch  their  limbs.  He  took  advantage  of  the 
respite  himself  to  write  a  long  letter  to  the  Earl  of 
Holderness,  the  Secretary  of  State  for  the  Southern 
Department.  Some  points  in  his  letter,  which  was 
dated  "  The  Sutherland  at  Anchor  off  Cape  Rouge, 
September  9,  1759,"  are  an  interesting  supplement 
to  the  despatch  sent  a  week  earlier  to  Pitt. 2  If 
1  Wood,  p.  215.  2  Appendix  I. 


AWAITING  AN   OPPORTUNITY  199 

Montcalm  had  shut  himself  up  in  Quebec,  Wolfe  said, 
it  would  have  been  long  since  captured.  He  described 
the  Canadians  as  "  extremely  dissatisfied  but,  curbed 
by  the  force  of  the  Government  and  terrified  by  the 
savages  that  are  posted  round  about  them,  they  are 
obliged  to  keep  together  to  work  and  man  the  en- 
trenchments." Referring  to  the  French  vessels  which 
got  up  the  river  before  Admiral  Durell  arrived,  and 
were  now  out  of  the  reach  of  the  British  men-of-war, 
he  said  :  "  These  ships  serve  a  double  purpose  ;  they 
are  magazines  for  their  provisions  and  at  the  same 
time  cut  off  all  communication  between  General 
Amherst's  army  and  the  corps  under  my  command, 
so  that  we  are  not  able  to  make  any  detachment  to 
attack  Montreal  or  favour  the  junction  or  by  attacking 
the  fort  of  Chambly  or  Boulemarque's  Corps  behind 
open  the  General's  way  into  Canada."  He  paid  a 
compliment  to  the  unceasing  hard  work  which  his 
"  poor  soldiery  "  had  done  without  murmuring  ;  he 
indicated  the  nightly  risks  they  ran  from  surprise 
and  murder,  and  the  difficulties  of  the  ships  during 
"  the  most  violent  ebb  tide  when  they  often  drag 
their  anchors  by  the  mere  force  of  the  current.  Our 
fleet  blocks  up  the  river  above  and  below  the  town, 
but  can  give  no  manner  of  aid  in  an  attack  on  the 
Canadian  army. x  We  are  now  here  with  about  3,600 
men  waiting  an  opportunity  to  attack  them  when 
and  wherever  they  can  best  be  got  at.  The  weather 
has  been  extremely  unfavourable  for  a  day  or  two, 
so  that  we  have  been  inactive.     I  am  so  far  recovered 

1  The  Abbe  Casgrain  (Wolfe  and  Montcalm,  p.  167) 
says  :  "  It  is  curious  that  Wolfe  should  state  that  the  fleet 
could  give  no  manner  of  aid  in  an  attack  on  Quebec."  Wolfe 
obviously  meant  that  the  ships  could  not  get  at  the  enemy ; 
he  did  not  intend  to  imply  that  the  naval  forces  were  useless. 


au   Foulon. 


200  GENERAL  WOLFE 

as  to  do  business,  but  my  situation  is  entirely  ruined 
without  the  consolation  of  having  done  any  consider- 
able service  to  the  State  or  without  any  prospect  of 
it."     Touches  always  of  doubt — touches  which  throw 
the  event  now  so  near  into  more  dramatic  relief. 
The^Anse         When  the  stormy  conditions  passed,  and  everyone 
anticipated  that  the  critical  hour  had  arrived,  the 
General    did    more    reconnoitring.     With    Admiral 
Holmes  and  certain  officers,  all  dressed  as  Grenadiers, 
he  dropped  down  the  river,  examining  every  inch  of 
the  cliff  with  keen  eye  as  he  went,  and  ultimately 
took  up  his  position  on  the  south  shore  opposite  the 
Anse  au  Foulon.     By  whom  Wolfe's  attention  was 
originally  drawn  to  this  particular  cove,  or  whether 
its   advantages   over  others   were   detected   by  the 
General  himself,  is  matter  of  speculation.     Credit  is 
generally  given  to  one  Major  Stobo,  a  Scotch  officer 
who  was  one  of  Washington's  hostages  after  Fort 
Necessity  ;   Stobo,  taken  to  Quebec,  gave  his  parole, 
broke  it  and  escaped  to  convey  information  to  the 
British  at  Louisbourg.     Biographers  of  Washington 
refer  to  Stobo  as  though  there  were  no  question  as 
to  Wolfe's  indebtedness  to  him  ;   but  Stobo  has  been 
associated  on  the  strength  of  his  own  representations 
with  much  in  which  he  had  no  hand.     Mr.  Doughty, 
for  instance,  has  disproved  his  claim  to  have  been  one 
of  the  heroes  with  Wolfe  in  the  final  attack  ;   he  left 
the  St.  Lawrence  on  the  7th  September  nearly  a  week 
before  the  event. x     The  essential  fact  is  that  twenty- 
four  hours  after  the  Brigadiers  imagined  that  the 
assault  was  to  be  made  on  the  enemy's  position  many 
miles  higher  "up  river,  Wolfe  was  studying  the  spot 
within  two  miles  of  Quebec  which  ever  since  has  been 
1   The  Siege  of  Quebec,  vol.  ii,  p.   114. 


PREPARATIONS  FOR  A  LANDING  201 

known  as  Wolfe's  Cove.  Information  must  have 
reached  him  that  whilst  Montcalm,  Vaudreuil,  and 
Bougainville  were  running  hither  and  thither  in  order 
not  to  be  taken  unawares  either  above  Cap  Rouge  or 
below  Quebec,  the  Anse  au  Foulon  was  weakly  held 
by  an  officer  named  Vergor  who  had  already  proved 
v  his  worthlessness  if  not  his  actual  treachery.  There 
is  hardly  a  movement  at  this  juncture  which  is  not 
the  occasion  of  controversy.  Major  Wood  and  others 
say  that  it  was  by  Vaudreuil's  own  orders  that  Vergor 
was  allowed  to  hold  the  post  ;  the  Abbe  Casgrain  says 
that  Bougainville's  action  in  placing  it  in  the  hands 
of  such  a  man  was  unpardonable. x  Then  Vergor 
should  have  been  supported  by  the  Guyenne  Regiment 
which  Montcalm  had  allotted  for  that  purpose,  but 
the  Regiment  was  elsewhere.  Vergor  had  allowed 
most  of  his  men  to  go  to  their  farms  on  the  under- 
standing that  they  should  look  after  his  own  :  it  is 
suggested  that  he  trusted  to  the  Guyenne  Regiment 
in  the  event  of  any  attempt  being  made. 

Whatever  the  explanation  Wolfe  discovered  how  Orders  and 
weak  the  defence  was  at  this  point,  and  for  the  next  intentlons- 
two  days  the  apparent  preparations  for  a  landing  in 
the  direction  of  Pointe  aux  Trembles  and  at  Beauport 
kept  the  French  on  the  alert  at  both  ends.  Montcalm 
urged  Bougainville  to  watch  every  movement  of  the 
enemy  afloat,  and  to  take  every  possible  precaution 
against  surprise.  For  a  week  or  more  the  state  of 
Montcalm's  mind  was  reflected  in  one  sentence.  "  II 
est  certain  que  la  conduite  des  ennemis  est  aussi 
embarrassante  qu'equivoque."  If  any  information 
of  Wolfe's  intentions  reached  Montcalm  it  was  to  the 

1   Wolfe  and  Montcalm,  p.   178. 


202  GENERAL  WOLFE 

effect,  as  Admiral  Holmes  wrote  after  the  battle,  that 
a  plan  to  land  four  leagues  above  the  town  was  afoot. 
Wolfe  as  usual  kept  his  own  counsel :  he  did  not,  it 
is  generally  agreed,  say  a  word  to  his  Brigadiers  as 
to  the  decision  he  had  taken  ;  they  seem  to  have 
learned  no  more  than  was  contained  in  the  General 
Orders  issued  on  the  11th — orders  which  went  into 
detail  on  every  point  except  as  to  the  spot  at  which 
the  attack  was  to  be  made.  Nor  was  it  even  men- 
tioned in  further  orders  on  the  12th.1  "  The  troops 
will  land  where  the  French  seem  least  to  expect  it. 
The  first  body  that  gets  on  shore  is  to  march  directly 
to  the  enemy  and  drive  them  from  any  little  post 
they  may  occupy.  The  battalions  must  form  on  the 
upper  ground  and  be  ready  to  charge  whatever 
presents  itself.  The  officers  and  men  will  remember 
what  their  country  expects  of  them."  The  Brigadiers 
were  only  less  in  the  dark  than  the  French  them- 
selves. Late  on  the  12th  all  three  wrote  to  ask 
Wolfe  to  give  them  more  explicit  instructions  for  the 
operations  which  were  to  take  place  in  a  few  hours' 
time.  "  We  must  beg  leave  to  request  of  you  as 
distinct  Orders  as  the  nature  of  the  thing  will  admit 
of,  particularly  of  the  place  or  places  we  are  to  attack. 
This  circumstance  (perhaps  very  decisive)  we  cannot 
learn  from  the  public  orders,  neither  may  it  be  in  the 
power  of  the  naval  officer  who  leads  the  Troops  to 
instruct  us." 
Wolfe  and  And  these  were  the  Brigadiers  whose  plan  Wolfe  is 
hi?      .  supposed  to  have  adopted  :   this  was  the  plan  whose 

nga  iers.     "unexpected  and  surprising  character,"  Warburton 
and  Townshend  said,  was  the  Brigadiers'  and  not 
Wolfe's  ;  this  was  "  the  daring  and  skilful  proposition" 
1  Wood,  p.  221. 


COLONEL   BURTON   INFORMED  203 

of     which    the     "  merit  "      belonged     to     George 

Townshend.     Could  confession  of  ignorance  be  more 

absolute  ?     Wolfe's  answer  was  to  the  effect  that  the 

attack  would  be  at  the  Foulon  about  two  miles  from 

Quebec.     But  he  reminded  the  Brigadiers  that  it  was 

not  usual  in  public  orders  to  indicate  the  direct  spot 

of  an  attack  "  nor  for  any  inferior  officers  not  charged 

with  a  particular  duty  to  ask  instructions  on  that 

point."    To  the  best  of  his  knowledge  and  abilities 

he  had  fixed  upon  that  spot  where  they  could  act 

with  the  most  force  and  were  most  likely  to  succeed. 

"If  I  am  mistaken  I  am  sorry  for  it  and  must  be 

answerable  to  his  Majesty  and  the   public  for   the 

consequence."     Mr.    Doughty    says    that    "  Wolfe's 

sudden  rejection  of  the  plan  of  the  Brigadiers   after 

all  the  details  had  been  arranged  naturally  caused  a 

feeling  of  resentment  at  the  moment  and  protests 

were  made.     This  may  be  the  reason  why  Wolfe  did 

not  disclose  his  plan  more  fully  to  his  officers  at  the 

time."1     It  is  a  remarkable  fact  that  what  Wolfe 

kept  from  his  Brigadiers  he  communicated  to  Colonel 

Burton  commanding  Webb's  Regiment  at  Point  Levi 

on  the  10th  September — 

"  Sixteen  hundred  of  our  men  are  upon  the  south  shore 
to  clean  and  refresh  themselves  and  their  transports ;  and 
indeed  to  save  the  whole  army  which  must  have  perished  if 
they  had  continued  forty-eight  hours  longer  on  board. 
To-morrow  the  troops  re- embark,  the  fleet  sails  up  the  river 
a  little  higher,  as  if  intending  to  land  above  upon  the  north 
shore,  keeping  a  convenient  distance  for  the  boats  and  armed 
vessels  to  '  fall  down  to  the  Foulon  ;  and  we  count  (if  no 
accident  of  weather  or  other  prevents)  to  make  a  powerful 
effort  at  that  spot  about  four  in  the  morning  of  the  13th. 
At  ten  or  eleven  or  twelve  at  night,  sooner  or  later  as  it  may 
be  necessary,  on  Wednesday  the  12th,  we  get  into  our  boats. 
If  we  are  forced  to  alter  these  measures  you  shall  know  it ; 

1  The  Siege  of  Quebec,  vol.  ii,  p.  248. 


204  GENERAL  WOLFE 

if  not  it  stands  fixed  :  be  you  careful  not  to  drop  it  to  any, 
for  fear  of  desertion,  and  it  would  not  be  amiss  for  Carleton 
to  pass  his  troops  [from  Orleans]  in  the  beginning  of  Wednes- 
day night.  Crofton  can  file  along  the  shore  to  his  right,  and 
meet  you  at  the  post  you  take  ;  let  the  men  have  their 
blankets  and  let  the  tents  be  struck,  bundled  up  and  ready  to 
bring  over.  If  we  succeed  in  the  first  business,  it  may  produce 
an  action,  which  may  produce  the  total  conquest  of  Canada  ; 
in  all  cases  it  is  our  duty  to  try  the  most  likely  way,  whatever 
may  be  the  event."  (J) 

This  letter  seems  to  have  been  overlooked  in  the 
discussion  of  the  question  of  Wolfe's  independent 
action.  Why  should  Wolfe  have  told  Burton  what 
he  refused  to  tell  Monckton  and  Murray  ?  That  he 
should  withhold  information  from  Townshend  was 
not  altogether  inexplicable,  and  perhaps  in  Townshend 
we  have  the  key  to  the  mystery. 
Fore-  What  "  harbinger  preceding  still  the  fates,"  what 

bodings.        «  precurser  of  fierce  events,"  on  this  12th  night  of 

September  was  it  that  affected  both  Wolfe  and 
Montcalm  ?  What  made  the  one  feel  he  would  not 
survive  that  night's  enterprise,  the  other  that  irre- 
trievable disaster  was  impending  ?  Among  Mont- 
calm's great  anxieties  was  the  problem  of  provisions  : 
Quebec  and  his  army,  before  the  English  secured  so 
complete  a  command  of  the  river,  had  been  fed  by 
both  the  land  route  and  the  water  route.  Latterfy 
supplies  had  come  by  water  as  far  as  St.  Augustine, 
thirteen  miles  from  Quebec,2  whence  they  had  been 
taken  overland.  Now  the  recent  bad  weather  had 
made  the  roads  almost  impassable,  and  there  was 
nothing  for  it  but  to  risk  sending  down  boats  in  the 
dead  of  night  in  the  hope  that  they  might,  by  hugging 
the  northern  shore,  get  safely  past  the  vessels  lying 

(*)   Wright,  p.  569. 

2   Kingsford,  vol.  iv,  p.  260. 


WOLFE'S   WILL  205 

in  mid-stream.  From  deserters  Wolfe  learned  this 
very  night  that  the  provisions  were  to  go  down  with 
the  ebb-tide.  The  information  was  invaluable,  and 
he  turned  it  to  account  in  a  manner  not  less  masterly 
than  everything  else  associated  with  these  historic 
hours.  At  the  turn  of  the  tide  his  boats,  filled  with 
men,  were  to  put  off  from  the  vessels  and  float  with 
the  stream  towards  the  city  ;  they  must  now  antici- 
pate the  provision  boats,  and  if  by  good  luck  he 
gained  the  heights  before  the  mistake  was  discovered, 
his  daring  project  would  already  be  far  on  the  way  to 
success. 

Everything  was  ready  :  the  men  on  shore  as  well  as  The  turn 
the  men  on  the  transports  were  taking  what  rest  they  of  the  tide, 
could  get  before  the  signal  should  be  hoisted  in  the 
Sutherland's  main-top  shrouds  which  would  start 
them  on  their  momentous  trip.  Wolfe  found  time 
at  this  hour  to  visit  a  couple  of  young  officers  who 
were  on  the  sick  list,  one  of  those  little  attentions  in 
which  he  never  failed.  Then  he  thought  of  himself, 
and  summoned  to  his  cabin  on  board  the  Sutherland, 
Jack  Jervis,  who  was  in  charge  of  the  Porcupine  sloop. 
How  these  two  had  become  such  intimate  friends  there 
is  nothing  in  the  papers  of  either  of  them  that  I  have 
been  able  to  trace  to  show  ;  may  be  the  fact  that 
they  had  been  under  the  same  schoolmaster,  though 
not  at  the  same  time,  was  the  first  link  in  the  chain  of 
which  the  last  was  now  to  be  forged.  Wolfe  handed 
over  to  his  friend  for  disposal  in  case  the  presentiment 
which  had  seized  him  should  be  realised,  his  papers 
and  a  miniature  of  Miss  Lowther,  which  he  wore 
beneath  his  waistcoat.  In  his  will  he  desired  that 
the  picture  might  be  set  in  jewels  to  the  value  of  £500 
and  returned  to  her  by  Jervis  ;    he  made  various 


206  GENERAL  WOLFE 

legacies,  asked  Admiral  Saunders  to  accept  his  light 
service  of  plate  "  in  remembrance  of  his  guest,"  left 
his  papers  and  books  to  Carleton,  made  various  money 
presents  to  certain  officers,  friends,  and  servants,  and 
the  residue  to  his  "  good  mother  entirely  at  her 
disposal."  There  remained  nothing  now  to  be  done 
but  to  await  the  turn  of  the  tide,  the  turn  of  the  tide 
in  every  sense  of  the  word  for  Wolfe,  for  Montcalm, 
for  Canada,  for  America,  for  two  great  Empires. 
Midnight  was  approaching  when  a  single  lantern 
conveyed  the  order  that  Monckton's  and  Murray's 
men  were  to  take  their  place  in  the  boats  :  the  night, 
hitherto  lighted  only  by  the  stars,  had  become  misty  ; 
the  movement  would  therefore  be  shrouded  from  the 
sharpest  watch  on  shore  even  if  it  were  kept,  and  the 
men  who  had  been  warned  to  maintain  silence  made 
the  least  possible  noise.  Before  the  tide  ceased  to  flow 
part  of  Holmes'  fleet  began  to  move  up  the  river  ;  it 
was  his  custom  to  go  up  and  down  with  the  tide,  and 
no  suspicion  that  any  special  development  was  at 
hand  was  started  in  the  minds  of  the  French,  if  they 
detected  the  big  ships  making  the  usual  movement. 
For  an  attack  they  were  prepared.  Away  on  the 
other  side  of  Quebec  the  fleet  under  Saunders  was 
active,1  and  the  Levi  batteries  flashed  and  boomed. 
The  signal  About  two  o'clock  a  second  signal  was  given  and 
the  boats,  the  first  of  which  contained  Wolfe,  his  staff, 
and  twenty-four  men  who  had  been  selected  to  lead 
what  might  prove  to  be  a  forlorn  hope,  set  out  in  a 

1  An  Edinburgh  Reviewer  (July,  1903),  who  has  examined 
the  ships'  logs  preserved  in  the  Public  Record  Office,  disputes 
the  activity  of  both  Holmes  and  Saunders  as  commonly 
reported,  but  I  can  see  nothing  in  the  ships'  records  to  disprove 
that  Holmes  moved  up  the  river  to  deceive  Bougainville,  or 
that  Saunders  demonstrated  to  deceive  Montcalm. 


THE  "ELEGY"   INCIDENT  207 

procession  which  it  is  estimated  took  an  hour  to  pass 
a  given  point.  As  the  boats  were  carried  swiftly 
but  silently  on  the  ebb  tide,  Wolfe  is  said  to  have 
revealed  his  own  forebodings  by  reciting  to  his 
companions  the  verse  from  Gray's  Elegy  which 
ends — 

' '  The  paths  of  glory  lead  but  to  the  grave, ' '  General  and 

poet, 
and  to  have  made  the  comment  that  he  would  rather 

have  been  the  author  of  those  lines  than  take  Quebec. 
The  anecdote  in  its  traditional  form,  accepted  for 
long  as  true,  is  not  credible  ;  it  was  subject  to  search- 
ing examination  by  Dr.  E.  E.  Morris  ;  1  and  it  is 
reasonably  certain  that  if  Wolfe  did  recite  Gray's 
Elegy  and  make  any  such  comment,  it  was  not  on  this 
occasion.  Is  it  conceivable  that  he  should  break  the 
rule  of  silence  he  had  laid  down,  by  so  unnecessary 
a  proceeding  as  even  a  whispered  recitation,  or  that 
he  should  tell  men  who  were  embarking  on  a  life  and 
death  errand  that  their  and  his  work  was  of  less 
account  than  the  poet's  ?  The  original  story  is  based 
on  a  statement  made  by  a  midshipman  named 
Robison,  and  is  to  be  found  in  a  letter  from  Sir 
Walter  Scott  to  Southey  dated  September  22nd,  1830, 
discovered  by  Mr.  Augustine  Birrell  some  years  ago. 
Scott  knew  that  Southey  had  in  mind  the  publication 
of  the  life  and  letters  of  Wolfe,  and  recounted  the 
anecdote,  which  he  got  first  hand,  for  Southey's 
benefit. 

"  On  the  night  when  Wolfe  crossed  the  river  with  his  small 
army  they  passed  in  the  men-of-war's  long  boats  and  launches, 
and  the  General  himself  in  the  Admiral's  barge.  The  young 
midshipman    who    steered    the    boat    was    John    Robison, 

1  English  Historical  Review,   1900,  p.  125. 


208  GENERAL  WOLFE 

afterwards  Professor  of  Natural  Philosophy  in  the  University 
of  Edinburgh,  a  man  of  high  scientifick  attainments.  I  have 
repeatedly  heard  the  Professor  say  that  during  part  of  the 
passage  Wolfe  pulled  out  of  his  pocket  and  read  to  officers 
around  (or,  perhaps,  repeated),  Gray's  celebrated  Elegy  in 
a  Country  Churchyard.  I  do  not  know  if  the  recitation  was 
not  so  well  received  as  he  expected,  but  he  said,  with  a  good 
deal  of  animation,  "  I  can  only  say,  Gentlemen,  that,  if  the 
choice  were  mine,  I  would  rather  be  the  author  of  these  verses 
than  win  the  battle  which  we  are  to  fight  to-morrow  morning." 
It  must  not  be  supposed  that  this  was  a  matter  of  serious 
election,  but  it  was  a  strong  way  of  expressing  his  love 
of  literature.  I  have  (heard)  Mr.  Robison  tell  the  story 
repeatedly,  for  his  daughter  became  the  wife  of  my  intimate 
Friend  Lord  Erskine." 

This  letter,  Mr.  Birrell  said  in  communicating  it  to 
the  Times,  "  seems  to  prove  the  truth  of  the  story 
as  conclusively  as  human  testimony  can  prove 
anything."  What  it  does  seem  to  prove  is  that  Wolfe 
recited  the  lines,  not  when  floating  down  the  river, 
but  a  good  many  hours  previously.  Either  that  or 
Scott  confused  his  facts. 
Wolfe's  ..  Many  reasons  have  been  given  why  Wolfe  was 
peculiarly  lucky  in  this  supreme  adventure.  Parkman 
discovers  seven  ; x  the  Abb6  Casgrain  discovers  ten  2 
and  they  all  amount  to  this  :  that  if  the  French  had 
been  as  competent,  as  loyal,  and  as  vigilant  as  the 
circumstances  demanded,  the  path  of  glory  would 
have  been  the  path  of  crushing  disaster.  In  Wolfe 
the  French  had  to  deal  with  a  genius  for  war  that 
was  quite  exceptional,  and  the  Abbe  Casgrain's 
editors  sum  the  matter  up  admirably  when  they  say  : 
'  Wolfe  had  good  luck,  it  is  true,  but  the  good  luck 
which  accompanies  excellent  strategy."  His  good 
luck  was  much  more  in  the  immediate  circumstances 
than  in  those  antecedent  to  the  stratagem  itself ; 

1  Montcalm  and  Wolfe,  vol.  ii,  p.  296. 

2  Wolfe  and  Montcalm,  pp.   184-5. 


luck. 


THE  SENTRY'S   CHALLENGE  209 

with  the  immediate  circumstances  in  his  favour,  as 
they  were,  Wolfe's  gallant  twenty-four  might  still  have 
effected   a   successful   coup   and   the    developments 
would  have  been  pretty  much  what  they  were.     When 
Wolfe's   boat   was   opposite   the   Samos   shore   and 
consequently  nearing  his  objective,  a  sentinel's  voice 
broke  the  stillness  of  those  anxious  moments  :    "  Qui 
vive ! "     A    captain    of   Fraser's    Highlanders,    who 
knew  French,  answered  "  La  France  !  "     Parkman 
says  that  the  question,  "  A  quel  regiment?  "  followed, 
and  the  captain,  knowing  that  part  of  the  corps  was 
with  Bougainville,  answered  :   "  De  la  Reine."1    The 
Abbe  Casgrain  says  that  the  sentinel,  thinking  it  was 
the  convoy  of  provisions,  the  order  for  which  had 
been  countermanded  though  the  guards  had  not  been 
so   informed,    allowed   the    boats   to    pass   without 
demanding  the  password  or  assuring  himself  of  the 
truth. 2     A  little  later  the  challenge  was  repeated, 
and  in  response  to  the  question,  "  Pourquoi  est-ce  que 
vous  ne  parlez  plus  haul?  "  the  captain  enjoined  the 
sentry  not  to  make  a  noise  ;   the  sloop,  Hunter,  was 
near,  and  they  might  be  overheard.     The  presence  of 
the  Hunter,  thus  turned  to  such  excellent  account, 
had  very  nearly  involved  a  mishap  that  would  have 
been  fatal.     The  captain  had  been  misled  as  to  the 
provision  boats  also.     As  Wolfe  got  within  half  a 
cable's  length,   he  noticed  that  the  Hunter's  crew 
were  running  to  quarters  and  training  their  guns  on 
his  boat.     He  was  only  just  in   time  to   hail  her 
and   prevent    the    probable  failure    of    the    whole 
enterprise. 3 

1  Montcalm  and  Wolfe,  vol.  ii,  p.*298 

2  Wolfe  a^A  Montcalm,  p.  180. 

3  Wood,  p.  229. 

'5— (&»3) 


210  GENERAL  WOLFE 

The  The  boats,   safely  past  the  second  sentry,   were 

landing.  carried  so  swiftly  down  by  the  current  that  Wolfe 
presently  found  himself  overshooting  the  precise  spot 
at  which  he  wished  to  land.  How  they  ever  found 
their  way  at  all  and  how  they  avoided  hopeless 
confusion  in  the  dark  is  sheer  mystery.  Led  by 
Captain  Delaune  the  first  volunteers  jumped  ashore  ; 
the  narrow  path  to  the  top  had  been  protected  by 
an  abatis  of  fallen  trees,  but  the  men  never  hesitated. 
With  their  guns  slung  on  their  backs  they  began  to 
pull  themselves  up  the  steep  face  of  the  cliff  with  the 
aid  of  the  bushes  and  anything  that  afforded  foothold 
or  handhold.  A  larger  detachment  followed,  and 
all  got  up  safely  without  so  much  as  a  challenge. 
Admiral  Saunders  described  the  difficulty  of  gaining 
the  top  as  "  scarcely  credible  "  j1  it  was  hardly  less 
credible  that  the  inevitable  cracking  of  branches  of 
trees,  the  rolling  down  of  stones  and  the  involuntary 
mutterings  of  men  who  found  themselves  in  danger 
of  pitching  headlong  back  to  the  shore  should  not 
have  reached  the  ears  of  anyone  in  Vergor's  camp. 
Wolfe  remained  below  straining  every  nerve  for  the 
first  indication  of  what  might  happen.  He  had 
his  men  now  rapidly  arriving  ready  to  follow  if  the 
volunteers  succeeded  in  overwhelming  the  guard  ;  if 
they  failed  they  knew  they  would  be  sacrificed,  but 
Wolfe  would  not  have  sacrificed  his  army.  As  Mr. 
Doughty  suggests, 2  this  view  is  borne  out  by  the  letter 
he  wrote  to  Townshend  a  few  hours  previously : 
"  General  Monckton  is  charged  with  the  first  landing 
and  attack  on  the  Foulon.  If  he  succeeds  you  will 
be  pleased  to  give  directions  that  the  troops  afloat 

1  Correspondence  of  Pitt,  vol.  ii,  p.  170. 

2  The  Siege  of  Quebec,  vol.  iii,  p.  83. 


CAUGHT  NAPPING  211 

be  set  on  shore  with  the  utmost  expedition  as  they  are 
under  your  command." 

Events  moved  rapidly  ;  when  the  leaders  reached  Up  the 
the  top  they  made  a  dash  for  the  rear  of  the  white 
tents  which  were  visible  in  the  dark  ;  coming  upon 
a  picket  Captain  Macdonald,  who  also,  fortunately, 
spoke  French  perfectly,  was  challenged  and  replied 
that  he  was  bringing  reinforcements  from  Beauport  ; 
almost  as  the  sentries  discovered  their  mistake  and 
gave  the  alarm  by  firing  wildly  at  the  apparitions 
rushing  upon  them,  they  were  overpowered.  Vergor, 
asleep  in  his  tent,  was  startled  by  the  firing  and  made 
his  appearance  only  to  be  shot  in  the  heel.  Most  of 
the  picket  escaped  in  the  dark  to  the  thickets  and 
cornfields  near.  Again  disaster  was  narrowly  averted. 
Some  of  Wolfe's  Light  Infantry  got  up  the  cliff  to  the 
left  by  pre-arrangement,  but  the  volunteers  had  done 
their  work  unaided  so  thoroughly  that  the  friends 
whose  coming  might  have  been  invaluable  were 
forgotten.  But  for  their  splendid  discipline  and  nerve 
the  volunteers  would  certainly  have  fired.  If  they 
had,  they  would  have  disposed  of  many  of  Fraser's 
Highlanders.  A  loud  cheer  told  Wolfe  that  all  was 
well,  and  while  the  men  already  on  top  took  several 
prisoners  and  gave  vigorous  chase  to  others,  the  forces 
in  the  boats  were  quickly  disembarked  ;  the  ob- 
structions on  the  cliff  path  were  cleared  away  ;  the 
boats  went  out  to  the  ships  which  had  now  also 
dropped  down  the  river  as  far  as  the  Foulon  bringing 
more  men,  and  Colonel  Burton  from  the  opposite 
shore  joined  Wolfe  with  Webb's  Regiment.  The 
General  himself  with  an  energy  which  in  one  who  had 
recently  suffered  so  much  was  unnatural,  pulled  him- 
self up  the  cliff  and  formed  his  men  in  lines  as  they 


212  GENERAL  WOLFE 

arrived.     Away  on  the  left  some  few  hundred  yards 

distant  was  the  battery  of  Samos  which  had  opened  a 

heavy  fire  on  the  boats  and  done  some  damage  ;    a 

little  further  still  was  the  battery  at  Sillery,  which 

fired  vigorously  on  the  squadron.     Wolfe,   Murray 

with  the  58th  Regiment,  and  Colonel  Howe  with  the 

Light  Infantry,  went  to  capture  the  Samos  battery  ; 

this  was  accomplished  after  a  smart  skirmish,  and  then 

the  battery  at  Sillery  was  attacked  and  silenced  also. 

Selecting  The  British,  numbering  now  between  three  and  four 

tne  thousand,  stood  undisputed  masters  of  what  were 

^ittle  field 

believed  to  be  inaccessible  cliffs.     As  the  morning 

broke,   cloudy  and  misty,  and  Wolfe  surveyed  the 

cornfields  and  the  woods  and  the  undulating  country 

rising  away  towards  Quebec,  who  shall  say,  who  can 

for  an  instant  understand,  what  his  feelings  were  ? 

He  knew  that  the  apparently  impossible  having  been 

accomplished  the  feat  was  the  beginning  of  the  end 

either  for  his  army  or  Montcalm's.     But  he  went 

about  his  business  as  coolly  as  ever  he  paraded  his 

men  at  Inverness  or  at  Dover.     Behind  him  were  the 

cliffs  of  the  St.  Lawrence  rendering  retreat  out  of  the 

question  ;   on  his  left  already  attracted  by  the  firing 

was  Bougainville,  with  a  force  almost  half  as  strong 

as  his  own  ;   on  his  right  lay  Quebec,  with  Vaudreuil 

and  Montcalm  and  de  Ramesay  ;    straight  in  front 

the  very  land  lying  between  the  St.  Lawrence  and 

the  Charles  which  in  his  letter  to   his  uncle  three 

months  before  he  had  contemplated  occupying  at 

the  opening  of  the  campaign.     He  was  no  doubt  as 

familiar  with  every  inch  of  the  ground  as  any  man 

could  be  who  had  never  had  the  opportunity  of  looking 

upon  it  before.     A  little  reconnoitring  and  he  made 

up  his  mind  where  he  would  take  his  stand  for  the 


THE   PLAINS  OF  ABRAHAM  213 

battle  which  he  felt  Montcalm  must  at  last  fight. 
He  wheeled  his  army  towards  Quebec  and  marched 
to  the  plains  of  Abraham — a  table-land  from  which 
Quebec  was  hidden  by  rising  ground.  The  first  sign 
of  the  enemy  was  a  detachment  of  the  Guyenne 
Regiment  on  the  ridge  between  the  British  and  the 
city.  Wolfe  halted  his  men,  and  made  his  disposi- 
tions ;  Monckton  was  towards  the  St.  Lawrence, 
Murray  towards  the  St.  Charles,  Wolfe  himself  in  the 
centre.  To  prevent  any  flanking  movement  from  the 
St.  Charles,  Townshend  was  placed  at  right  angles 
facing  the  river  ;  Burton  had  Webb's  Regiment  in 
reserve,  Howe  occupied  the  position  in  the  rear  from 
which  the  French  had  so  recently  been  driven,  and  a 
battalion  was  in  charge  of  the  Foulon.  All  told 
Wolfe  had  some  4,000  men,  the  estimates  varying 
from  3,500  to  4,800. x  The  number  actually  in  the 
firing  line  was  3, 1 1 1 . 2 

Montcalm's  first  intimation  that  something  was  The  alarm 
amiss  induced  him  to  believe  that  the  British  had  raised- 
successfully  attacked  the  provision  convoy  on  the 
safe  arrival  of  which  so  much  depended  ;  the  idea 
seemed  to  account  for  some  part  of  his  agitation 
throughout  the  night.  When  a  messenger  arrived 
with  the  news  that  the  British  had  forced  the  Foulon 
the  man  was  regarded  as  a  lunatic  ;  it  was  believed 
that  his  brain  had  been  turned  by  sheer  fright,  3  and 
he  was  not  believed.  But  when  Montcalm  rode  out 
in  the  early  morning  behind  the  Beauport  lines  until 
he  got  in  view  of  the  Plains  across  the  St.  Charles  and 
there  saw  for  himself  the  line  of  redcoats,  he  knew 
the  business  was  serious  as  he  said  to  the  Chevalier 

1  Appendix  III.  2  Wood,  p.  235. 

3  Casgrain  :    Journal  du  Marquis  de  Montcalm,  p.  611. 


214  GENERAL  WOLFE 

Johnstone,  who  was  with  him.  He  despatched 
messengers  to  bring  up  troops,  and  in  headlong  haste 
there  pressed  over  the  bridge  of  the  St.  Charles  into 
and  through  the  narrow  streets  of  the  almost  ruined 
town  "  troops  of  Indians  in  scalp-locks  and  warpaint, 
a  savage  glitter  in  their  deep-set  eyes  ;  bands  of 
Canadians  whose  all  was  at  stake — faith,  country 
and  home  ;  the  colony  regulars  ;  the  battalions  of 
old  France,  a  torrent  of  white  uniforms  and  gleaming 
bayonets,  La  Sarre,  Languedoc,  Roussillon,  Beam, 
victors  of  Oswego,  William  Henry,  and  Ticonderoga. 
So  they  swept  on,  poured  out  upon  the  plain,  some 
by  the  gate  of  St.  Louis,  and  some  by  that  of  St.  John, 
and  hurried,  breathless,  to  where  the  banners  of 
Guyenne  still  fluttered  on  the  ridge."1 
Montcalm's  To  the  rear  there  had  been  heard  renewed  firing. 
A  detachment  of  Bougainville's  men  had  come  upon 
Colonel  Howe  and  been  repulsed.  Bougainville 
himself  by  this  time  had  probably  been  informed,  and 
was  moving  to  the  assistance  of  Quebec  with  what 
haste  he  could.  Montcalm  called  a  council  of  war, 
and  the  decision  was  taken  to  give  battle  forthwith. 
Vaudreuil  had  not  appeared  on  the  scene  and  de 
Ramesay  was  not  prepared  to  part  with  the  guns 
for  which  Montcalm  asked.  Why  did  not  Montcalm 
wait  till  he  had  gathered  sufficient  strength  at  any 
rate  to  give  him  a  great  numerical  advantage  ?  The 
arrival  of  Bougainville  in  due  course  would  have 
improved  the  chances  of  victory  incalculably.  Some 
say  Montcalm  was  anxious  to  fight  before  Vaudreuil 
should  interfere  ;  some  that  he  was  eager  to  snatch 
the  laurels  of  this  great  day  single-handed  ;  others 
that  he  felt  the  instant  necessity  of  driving  Wolfe 
1  Parkman  :    Montcalm  and  Wolfe,  vol.  ii,  pp.  303-4. 


decision. 


MONTCALM'S   CHOICE  215 

back  before  he  could  entrench  himself  across  the 
French  line  of  communications.  In  a  letter  to 
Bougainville  a  week  earlier  he  said  :  "  Je  crains 
toujours  la  communication  coupee."  If  the  enemy 
should  steal  a  march  on  Bougainville,  it  would,  he 
wrote,  be  for  him  to  see  that  they  did  not  entrench 
themselves.  That  is  the  secret.  If  further  explana- 
tion be  necessary  it  may  be  found  in  the  simple  desire 
of  a  gallant  leader  to  dispose  out  of  hand  of  a  great 
menace.  Whatever  the  cause,  Montcalm  did  the  one 
thing  which  Wolfe  had  invited  him  to  do  during  eleven 
weary  weeks.  He  came  out  into  the  open  and  fought. 
Indeed  it  is  the  opinion  of  the  soldier  as  opposed  to 
that  of  the  layman  that  Montcalm  had  little  choice. 
"  Once  Wolfe  had  gained  the  Heights  in  force, 
Montcalm  was  compelled  to  fight  immediately  for 
his  very  existence."1  Mr.  Corbett  emphasises  this 
point  when  he  says  :  "  Could  every  general  who 
suffers  an  enemy  to  pierce  his  centre  wait  till  he  could 
combine  a  front  and  rear  attack  with  his  several 
wings,  then  interposition  as  a  tactical  stroke  would 
lose  the  deadly  character  it  has  earned."2 

Wolfe  watched  and  awaited  developments  with  a  The  French 
patience  which  was  none  the  less  perfect  because  he  advance, 
knew  now  that  a  few  hours  must  determine  the  fate 
of  both  armies  ;  a  few  hours  and  the  news  would  be 
on  its  way  to  Amherst  and  Pitt  that  a  bold  stroke 
had  either  succeeded  brilliantly  or  failed  disastrously. 
Montcalm  was  not  long  in  making  his  dispositions  ; 
he  sent  Indians  and  Canadians  to  worry  Wolfe's 
flanks,  and  well  they  knew  how  to  take  advantage 
of  every  inch  of  cover  afforded  by  a  clump  of  trees,  a 

1  Wood,  pp.  247-8. 

2  England  in  the  Seven  Years'  War,  vol,  i,  p.  470. 


216  GENERAL  WOLFE 

bush  or  a  break  in  the  ground.     There  was  sharp 
fighting   on   the   left    and   Townshend's   men    were 
hotly  engaged  in   taking  and  losing  and  retaking 
some   houses   which   afforded   excellent   shelter   for 
sharpshooters.     Montcalm    advanced    steadily,    his 
colonials  on  either  wing  ;   his  army  was  about  equal 
to  Wolfe's  in  numbers.     As  it  moved  forward,  its 
weapons  gleaming  in  occasional  bursts  of  sunlight,  it 
presented  a  spectacle  of  blue  and  white  uniforms  in 
striking  contrast  with  the  red  lines  waiting  to  meet  it. 
Montcalm  had  several  field  pieces  which  did  a  con- 
siderable amount  of  damage,  but  Wolfe  had  only  a 
couple  of   light  guns  which  Saunders'  blue -jackets, 
the  handy  men  then  as  ever,  had  managed  to  haul 
up  the  Foulon  path.     Montcalm  rode  at  the  head  of 
his  men  ;   Wolfe  moved  freely  along  the  lines,  giving 
his  last  instructions.     He  had,  with  the  weakness  of 
more  than  one  famous  general,  donned  a  brand  new 
uniform  for  the  occasion,   and  his  tall  figure  was 
conspicuous.     For    their    better    protection,    Wolfe 
for  a  time  kept  most  of  his  men  lying  at  full  length 
on  the  ground.     Now  that  the  enemy  was  actually 
approaching  he  had  his  ranks  two  deep — "  this  was 
the  first  occasion  in  history  that  one  European  army 
had  stood  two  deep  to  face  another  on  a  flat  and  open 
battlefield  "  ; 1  every  musket  was  to  be  loaded  with 
two  balls,  and  not  a  shot  was  to  be  fired  until  he  gave 
the   word.     The  French  came   on  shouting  wildly, 
Indian    fashion,    and   firing   as   they   came.     Wolfe 
moved  his  men  a  little  forward  as  though  to  encourage 
and  incite  the  attack  ;    then  they  halted  and  stood 
to   be    shot    at    without    a  sign    that    they  meant 
to  reply. 

1  Wood,  p.  236. 


AT  FORTY  PACES  217 

It  was  a  trying  few  minutes  for  men  whose  battle  The 
blood  was  up  and  made  them  as  eager  to  get  at  the  victory, 
foe  as  a  hound  to  break  away  from  the  restraining 
leash  ;    the  discipline  which  failed  at  Montmorency 
was  unshakeable  in  face  of  a  galling  shower  which 
left  gaps  in  the  British  ranks.     Wolfe  at  that  moment 
seemed  to  pervade  his  army  ;  every  detail  seemed  to 
be  under  his  immediate  control  and  he  had  a  word 
of  encouragement  for  those  who  waited  so  loyally 
for  his  commands,  a  word  of  sympathy  for  those  who 
fell  martyrs  to  discipline.     As  Wolfe  surveyed  the 
enemy,  declared  one  who  observed  him  closely,  his 
expression    became    "  radiant    and    joyful    beyond 
description."     Some  slight  confusion  and  a  momen- 
tary pause  was  caused  in  the  French  ranks  by  the 
action  of  the  irregulars  who  true  to  the  practice  of 
Canadian  as  well  as  New  England  rangers — a  practice 
that  might  have  saved  Braddock's  force  from  anni- 
hilation if  it  had  not  been  misunderstood — threw 
themselves  on  the  ground  after  firing  in  order  to 
re-load.     The   French  regulars   were   apparently  as 
little  prepared  as  Braddock  for  the  movement.     But 
they  swept  on  until  they  were  within  some  forty  paces. 
Then  Wolfe's  command  came,  and  the  British  muskets 
rang  out  as  one  :  "  the  most  perfect  volley  ever  heard 
on  a  battlefield  "  sounding  to  British  and  French 
alike  as  if  fired  from  "  a  single  monstrous  weapon." 
There  were  few  British  bullets  which  did  not  find  a 
billet   in   that   point-blank   discharge.      Montcalm's 
army  reeled  before  it.     As  the  smoke  cleared  away 
it  revealed  the  hideous  writhing  chaos  of  human 
agony  ;  in  the  brief  interval  the  British  had  reloaded 
and  again  they  fired.     It  was  more  than  flesh  and 
blood  could  stand,  and  Montcalm  attempted  in  vain 


218  GENERAL  WOLFE 

to  stay  the  headlong  flight  of  the  survivors.  Wolfe 
ordered  the  charge,  and  the  Highlanders,  with  a  yell 
rivalling  that  of  Red  Indians,  the  Grenadiers  and  the 
rest  drove  the  panic-stricken  remnant  of  the  French 
army  back  into  Quebec  or  across  the  St.  Charles  ;  the 
pursuit  was  checked  only  by  the  guns  on  the  walls 
or  the  Canadians  and  Indians  who  lurked  in  the 
woods. 
How  The    victory  was  complete,  but  costly  :    only  less 

Wolfe  died.  COstly  in  personnel  to  the  British  than  to  the  French. 
Wolfe  and  Monckton  were  both  wounded  early  in  the 
engagement ;  the  General's  wrist  was  torn  by  a 
bullet,  but  he  bound  up  the  wound  with  a  handker- 
chief ;  he  was  next  hit  in  the  groin,  but  refused  to 
retire  for  an  instant ;  he  continued  to  direct  the  fight 
until  the  moment  when  the  French  gave  way  before 
his  terrific  fire.  Then  placing  himself  at  the  head  of 
the  Grenadiers  he  led  the  charge.  But  he  did  not  get 
far.  A  bullet  entered  his  chest,  he  reeled  and  was 
only  saved  from  falling  by  two  officers  who  saw  him 
stagger.  "  Don't  let  my  brave  fellows  see  me  fall," 
he  said,  as  though  he  understood  in  that  supreme 
moment  what  his  presence  meant  to  his  army.  It 
was  the  solicitude  of  the  true  captain.  He  was 
carried  to  the  rear  and  knew  that  the  surgeon's  skill 
was  useless.  "I'm  done  for,"  he  murmured,  as  he  sank 
into  a  state  of  semi-consciousness.  He  revived  for  a 
second  when  he  heard  the  cry  :  "  They  run  !  "  "  Who 
run  ?  "  "  The  French,  Sir,  they  give  way  every- 
where." Wolfe  opened  his  glazed  eyes  and  the  master 
spirit  gave  its  final  orders  :  "  Then  go  to  Colonel 
Burton  and  tell  him  to  take  Webb's  Regiment  and 
cut  off  their  retreat  by  the  St.  Charles."  He  turned 
on  his  side,  a  smile  broke  upon  his  pain-contracted 


WOLFE'S   LAST  WORDS  219 

face,  and  in  words  variously  given  but  all  to  one 
effect,  breathed  his  last :  "  God  be  praised  :  I  die 
content."  ..."  At  11,"  so  runs  the  simple,  eloquent 
entry  in  the  master's  Log  of  the  Lowestoft,  "  came 
on  board  the  corpse  of  General  Wolfe." 

On  the  French  side  the  General  also  was  among  Montcalm 
those  wounded  unto  death  :  he  was  shot  in  the  effort  mortally 
to  rally  his  broken  soldiery,  and  was  supported  back  wounded- 
to  Quebec  on  his  charger.     Wolfe  died  happy  in  the 
hour  of  victory  :  Montcalm  happy  that  he  would  not 
be  a  witness  of  the  surrender  of  Quebec.    He  survived 
till   the   following   morning.     He   was   forty-seven ; 
Wolfe  thirty-two. 

By  a  stroke  of  inscrutable  fate  the  command  Townshend 
devolved  on  Townshend  ;  he  completed  the  work  in 
begun  by  Wolfe  ;  Bougainville  appeared  in  force,  command- 
but  when  he  found  that  all  was  over,  retreated  and 
Townshend  paid  Wolfe's  choice  of  a  battle-ground  the 
compliment  of  refusing  to  leave  it  even  to  deliver  a 
blow  at  Bougainville's  dismayed  and  retiring  army. 
Townshend  entrenched  himself ;  five  days  later  the 
capitulation  was  signed  ;  the  French  marched  out 
from  Quebec  with  the  honours  of  war  ;  the  British 
entered  into  possession  for  the  second  time  ;  and 
though  Murray  the  following  year  nearly  contrived 
to  lose  it  again  to  de  Levis,  it  has  remained  British 
during  150  years — a  monument  to  British  prowess 
ranking  with  Gibraltar  and  the  Ridge  at  Delhi.  Once 
only  since  the  Treaty  of  Paris  confirmed  the  surrender 
of  Canada  has  it  been  seriously  challenged,  and  that 
was  by  the  American  rebels  who  sent  Arnold  and 
Montgomery  to  capture  it.  But  Carleton,  Wolfe's 
friend,  held  it  for  England  against  the  very  men  in 
whose  interests  it  had  been  wrested  from  France. 


220  GENERAL   WOLFE 

Montcalm  is  credited  with  a  prophecy1  that  if 
England  took  Canada  she  would  lose  America ; 
whether  the  document  embodying  that  prophecy  is 
genuine  or  not — and  Parkman  after  exhaustive 
inquiry  declared  it  an  imposture2 — it  was  not  a 
solitary  view,  and  within  ten  years  of  the  signature  of 
the  Treaty  which  ended  the  career  of  New  France, 
New  England  was  claiming  privileges  the  assertion 
of  which  drove  British  authority  from  the  English 
section  of  America,  leaving  it  intact  only  in  Canada. 
So  speedy  and  so  mighty  were  the  results  attending 
Wolfe's  independent  daring  when  he  decided  to  try 
his  fortunes  at  the  Anse  au  Foulon. 

1  Appendix  II. 

2  Montcalm  and  Wolfe,  vol.  ii,  p.  39. 


CHAPTER   XIV 

WOLFE'S  ACHIEVEMENTS   AND   CHARACTER 

Admiral  Saunders,  for  none  but  he  could  have  taken  Brought  to 
so  important  a  decision,  arranged  forthwith  that  the  England, 
body  of  Wolfe  should  be  embalmed  and  sent  to 
England.  It  was  his  tribute,  the  most  significant 
and  eloquent  he  could  pay,  to  the  loss  sustained  by  his 
country  in  the  death  of  his  military  colleague  ;  he 
and  Wolfe  for  the  past  six  months  had  lived  and  toiled 
together,  discussed  great  strategic  problems,  evolved 
great  schemes  in  the  most  trying  circumstances, 
faced  the  fortunes  of  war  in  positions  of  joint  responsi- 
bility, and  to  appreciate  Wolfe's  quality  both  as  man 
and  as  soldier  none  was  better  placed  than  the  master 
of  the  co-operating  fleet.  Whilst  the  mortal  remains 
of  Wolfe  were  being  encased  for  transference  to  his 
native  land,  those  of  his  opponent  found  sepulchre 
in  a  cavity  made  beneath  the  floor  of  the  Ursuline 
convent  by  a  British  shell. 

British  and  French  alike  mourned  their  heroes  now  A  joint 
at  rest,  and  posterity  in  both  countries  as  in  Canada  memorial, 
itself,  has  honoured  the  vanquished  with  the  victor. 
The   Wolfe-Montcalm  monument   which  stands   on 
Dufferin    Terrace,    Quebec,    is    surely    an    unique 
memorial  to  rival  heroes. 

MORTEM    VIRTUS    COMMUNEM 
FAMAM    HISTORIA 
MONUMENTUM    POSTERITAS 
DEDIT. 

221 


war 


222  GENERAL  WOLFE 

At  the  moment  that  Montcalm  was  breathing  his 
last  Townshend  was  issuing  General  Orders,  of  which 
the  first  two  lines  speak  for  themselves — 

"  14  Sept.,  1759 — Plains  of  Abraham. 
"  Parole — Wolfe.  Countersign — England." 

The  pathos  In  England  the  news  of  the  victory  and  death  of 
ofglorious  Wolfe  f0rjowed  quick  on  the  despatch  to  Pitt  in  which 
he  had  indicated  his  difficulties  in  a  way  to  make  the 
Government  and  the  nation  feel  that  the  task  set 
him  was  beyond  his  powers,  if  indeed  it  was  not 
beyond  the  powers  of  any  man.  The  revulsion  of 
feeling  from  the  dull  acceptance  of  disappointment 
to  the  realisation  that  a  triumph  had  been  achieved 
equal  to  the  highest  hopes,  that  a  brilliant  coup  had 
wiped  failure  completely  from  the  record,  carried 
the  nation  into  transports  which  Horace  Walpole 
described  in  his  own  vivid  way. 1  It  was  Horace 
Walpole  who,  exactly  twenty  years  earlier,  had  said 
that  the  people  who  were  ringing  their  bells  would 
soon  be  wringing  their  hands  ;  now  the  process  was 
reversed  and  people  who  were  preparing  to  wring 
their  hands  rang  their  bells,  lighted  their  bonfires, 
and  almost  buried  the  king  under  an  avalanche  of 
congratulatory  addresses.  But  the  joy  was  chastened 
by  the  recollection  that  Wolfe  had  paid  the  price  of 
victory  with  his  life.  To  two  hearts  at  least  the  event 
brought  deepest  sorrow  ;  there  was  the  widowed 
mother,  of  whom  he  was  ever  so  thoughtful,  and  there 
was  the  lady  to  whom  he  had  so  recently  become 
engaged. 2    Few  are  the  joys  that  do  not  bring  with 

1  Memoirs  of  George  IT,  vol.  ii,  p.  384. 

2  Miss  Lowther  in  due  time  married  the  Duke  of  Bolton. 
Mr.  Doughty  records  practically  all  that  is  known  of  her, 
which  is  very  little. 


PORTSMOUTH,    17  NOV.,    1759  223 

them  some  secret  sorrow,  and  the  happiness  of  a 
nation  is  fertilised  by  the  salt  tears  of  individuals. 
When  leaders  themselves  fall,  the  public  conscious- 
ness of  homes  bereaved  is  quickened.  The  pathos 
of  glorious  war  was  borne  in  upon  the  masses  at 
Portsmouth  who  awaited  the  signal  from  the  Royal 
William  on  Saturday,  the  17th  November,  1759, 
for  the  removal  of  the  body.  At  eight  o'clock  it  was 
lowered  into  a  twelve-oared  barge,  which  was  towed 
by  two  twelve-oared  barges  and  attended  in  solemn 
procession  by  twelve  twelve-oared  barges.  Grief,  we 
are  told,  made  every  man  and  woman  mute,  and  for 
an  hour  the  minute  guns  of  the  ships  alone  broke  the 
hush.  The  body  was  received  on  shore  by  a  regiment 
of  invalids  and  a  company  from  the  garrison  ;  it  was 
put  on  a  hearse,  and  with  flags  half-mast  on  the  fort, 
with  the  arms  of  the  men  in  the  train  reversed,  to 
the  ringing  of  muffled  bells  and  the  booming  of  guns, 
the  hearse,  followed  by  a  solitary  mourning  coach 
specially  sent  from  London,  passed  through  the 
weeping  crowd  on  its  way  to  the  family  vault  at 
Greenwich. * 

If  Wolfe  had  lived  !  From  the  emotion  of  the  hour  a  great 
when  his  body  arrived  at  Portsmouth  we  may  conceive  theme, 
what  would  have  happened  had  he  been  spared  to 
return  the  Conqueror,  the  hero.  As  it  was,  neither 
oratory  nor  poetry  was  quite  equal  to  an  occasion, 
than  which  none  more  inspiring,  it  might  be  thought, 
could  be  desired.  Pitt's  glowing  eulogy  in  Parliament 
was  apparently  so  carefully  prepared  that  it  failed  to 
satisfy ;  according  to  Walpole  at  least  it  had  not  the 
true  ring  ;  the  versifier  perpetrated  lines  that  hardly 
reached  the  lyrical  level  demanded  for  a  third-rate 

1  Annual  Register,   1759/ p.  282-3. 


224 


GENERAL  WOLFE 


music-hall  ballad  ;  no  poet  has  taken  Quebec  for 
his  theme,  and  the  one  outstanding  poetic  reference 
to  Wolfe's  achievements  and  abiding  influence  is  to 
be  found  in  Cowper — 

"  England,  with  all  thy  faults,  I  love  thee  still. 
Time  was  when  it  was  praise  and  boast  enough 
In  every  clime,  and  travel  where  we  might, 
That  we  were  born  her  children.     Praise  enough 
To  fill  the  ambition  of  a  private  man 
That  Chatham's  language  was  his  mother  tongue 
And  Wolfe's  great  name  compatriot  with  his  own. 


Wolfe,  where'er  he  fought, 
Put  so  much  of  his  heart  into  his  act 
That  his  example  had  a  magnet's  force, 
And  all  were  swift  to  follow  whom  all  loved."  (*) 


Unhappy 
recrimina- 
tions. 


It  is  matter  for  profound  regret  that  personal 
recriminations  should  have  challenged  Wolfe's  title 
to  the  chief  glory  in  the  conquest  of  Quebec,  recrimina- 
tions in  their  way  as  unworthy  as  those  with  which 
Vaudreuil  and  his  peculiar  friends  pursued  the 
memory  of  Montcalm.  What  Townshend's  ambitious 
designs  began  the  loyalty  of  a  descendant  has  unfortu- 
nately revived,  and  Colonel  Townshend's  action  has 
been  supported  in  quarters  from  which  a  more 
intimate  knowledge  of  the  facts  might  have  been 
expected.  It  is  impossible  to  escape  the  conclusion 
that  Townshend  was  anxious  to  appropriate  the 
laurels  ;  he  addressed  a  despatch  to  Pitt  in  which  his 
only  reference  to  Wolfe  was  :  "It  was  then  our 
General  fell  at  the  head  of  Braggs'."  He  sent  a  copy 
of  that  despatch  to  Amherst  with  a  covering  letter 
which  comments  on  the  battle  but  makes  no  mention 

(!)   The  Task,  Book  II. 


TOWNSHEND'S   ACTION  225 

of  Wolfe.  In  his  orders  to  the  troops  on  the  14th 
September  he  struck  a  note  which  came  perilously 
near  the  contemptuous  when  he  said  that  the  general 
officers  wished  "  that  the  person  who  lately  com- 
manded them  had  survived  so  glorious  a  day."  From 
whom  did  Warburton  get  his  view  that  Townshend 
was  not  only  the  author  of  the  plan  by  which  Quebec 
was  taken  but  was  actually  entitled  to  the  credit  for 
scaling  the  cliff,1  when  as  a  matter  of  fact  the  cliff 
had  been  secured  before  Townshend  was  even  on  his 
way  with  the  boats  ?  Townshend,  with  all  his 
presumption,  could  not  be  responsible  for  that  because 
his  despatch  to  Pitt  refers  to  his  waiting  till  "  the 
second  disembarkation."  But  Townshend's  ambition 
may  be  seen  from  a  letter  of  Monckton's  on  the 
day  when  the  capitulation  of  Quebec  was  signed. 
Monckton  was  ignored  in  the  negotiations  and  pro- 
tested that  he  did  not  imagine  any  arrangement 
would  be  signed  without  consultation  with  him.  He 
was  Townshend's  superior,  and  as  within  three  days 
of  the  battle  he  was  rapidly  recovering  from  his 
wounds,  there  was  no  reason  why  he  should  not  have 
been  considered.  Townshend,  held  in  check  by  the 
master-mind  of  Wolfe  during  a  campaign  of  which 
he  had  grown  heartily  tired,  revelled  in  the  freedom 
of  a  self-sufficiency  which  left  no  room  even  for 
common  courtesy  to  a  disabled  colleague.  As  early 
as  the  3rd  October  Horace  Walpole  spoke  of  Lady 
Townshend  as  "  the  conqueror's  mother.  ...  I 
hear  she  has  covered  herself  with  more  laurel  leaves 
than  were  heaped  on  the  children  in  the  wood." 
Thus  the  idea  that  Townshend's  was  the  principal 
part  in  the  business  was  already  abroad.  The 
1  Conquest  of  Canada,  vol.  ii,  p.  322. 

i6— (2213) 


opinion. 


226  GENERAL  WOLFE 

meanness  of  it  all  is  just  what  might  be  expected 
from  one  who  would  have  disclaimed  every  shred  of 
responsibility  for  failure. 
Private  In  1760  the  Townshend  pretension  induced  a  satirist 

versus  of  the  time  to  address  an  open  letter  to  "  an  honour- 

able Brigadier-General  Commander  in  Chief  of  His 
Majesty's  Forces,  Canada  " —  a  title  which  the  writer 
said  was  given  by  the  Compilers  of  the  Court  Calendar 

to  Brigadier-General  T — d.     The  letter  is  in  this 

vein  :  "  Your  understanding  was  not  to  be  dazzled 
by  Mr.  Wolfe's  foolish  passion  for  glory.  He  had 
precipitately  ventured  beyond  all  possibility  of 
retreating.  He  had  no  other  chance  but  that  of  death 
or  victory,  especially  after  you  had  entered  your 
solemn  protest  against  his  plan  for  attacking  the 
enemy."  This  document  was  responsible  for  a 
controversy  in  the  true  eighteenth-century  manner, 
and  Townshend  sought  to  disprove  the  case  against 
himself  by  publishing  a  letter  to  someone  unknown 
which  he  was  supposed  to  have  written  on  the  25th 
September  containing  the  words  :  "In  General  Wolfe 
I  have  lost  but  a  friend,"  and  "  We  lost  poor  General 
Wolfe  who  fell  in  the  warmest  part  of  the  engage- 
ment." Strange  that  these  references  should  appear 
only  in  a  private  document  where  usually  prejudices 
hold  greater  sway  than  in  public !  Walpole,  for 
instance,  in  his  history  judged  Wolfe  in  very  different 
vein  from  that  of  his  letters.  Walpole  was  obsessed 
by  his  love  for  Conway,  whose  part  at  Rochefort 
Wolfe  had  dared  to  criticise.  Writing  to  Conway  on 
the  18th  October,  1759,  Walpole  says— 

"  Wolfe  as  I  am  convinced  has  fallen  a  sacrifice  to  his  rash 
blame  of  you.  If  I  understand  anything  in  the  world 
his    letter    that    came  on    Sunday   said    this :      Quebec   is 


THE  COUNTRY'S   DEBT  227 

impregnable,  it  is  flinging  away  the  lives  of  men  to 
attempt  it.  I  am  in  the  situation  of  Conway  at  Rochefort, 
but  having  blamed  him  I  must  do  what  I  now  see  he  was  in 
the  right  to  say  wrong  and  yet  what  he  would  have  done, 
and  as  I  am  commander,  which  he  was  not,  I  have  the 
melancholy  power  of  doing  what  he  was  prevented  doing. 
Poor  man  !  his  life  has  paid  the  price  of  his  injustice  and  as 
his  death  has  purchased  such  benefit  to  his  country  I  lament 
him  as  I  am  sure  you  do  who  have  twenty  times  more  courage." 

Wolfe's  place  in  our  national  history  is  secure,  and  Official 
the  judgment  of  Pitt  is  the  judgment  of  impartial  ingratitude, 
posterity.  Parliament  voted  him  a  monument  in 
Westminster  Abbey,  and  the  country  and  the  Govern- 
ment owed  him  so  much  and  acclaimed  his  achieve- 
ments so  gratefully,  that  it  would  be  incredible  were 
the  evidence  not  conclusive,  that  his  mother  was 
point-blank  refused  assistance  when  she  asked  to  be 
placed  in  a  position  to  comply  with  the  not  very 
excessive  commands  contained  in  his  will.  Red  tape 
left  her  to  do  from  her  own  slender  resources  what 
should  have  been  done  by  the  nation  without  the 
asking.  Wolfe  gave  England  an  Empire  at  the  cost 
of  his  life,  and  official  gratitude  having  no  further 
favours  to  come,  was  callous  to  all  claims  which 
conflicted  with  official  convention.  It  was  unworthy 
of  Pitt,  and  in  strict  conformity  with  the  spirit  of 
the  time.  Wolfe  in  his  short  life  had  done  more 
for  England  than  any  soldier,  except  Clive,  since 
Marlborough  ;  his  brilliant  soldiership  was  manifest 
almost  from  the  very  hour  that  he  received  his 
commission  ;  his  one  mistake  at  Montmorency  would 
not  have  been  costly  if  his  men  had  given  him  the 
chance  of  discovering  it  before  it  was  too  late  ;  nor 
possibly  need  that  mistake  ever  have  been  made 
had  Amherst  seen  his  way  to  forge  ahead  as  he  pro- 
bably would  have  done  had  Wolfe  been  at  his  elbow 


228  GENERAL  WOLFE 

as  he  was  at  Louisbourg.  Amherst  had  not  the  genius 
for  sweeping  difficulties  aside  ;  he  proceeded  to 
remove  them.  The  historian  of  Canada  blames  him 
for  the  slow  progress  which  enabled  Montcalm  so 
long  to  keep  the  bulk  of  his  forces  intact.  Possibly 
he  believed  Wolfe  must  fail. 1 
Wolfe  as  When  it  became  necessary  to  despatch  de  Levis 

general.  ^0  Montreal  as  a  precaution  in  case  Bourlamaque  was 
driven  from  Isle  aux  Noix,  and  to  give  Bougainville  a 
substantial  force  about  Cap  Rouge  in  order  to  prevent 
any  landing  there,  Wolfe  saw  how  to  use  both  his  own 
and  Saunders'  resources  to  the  fullest  advantage. 
It  is  a  favourite  view  with  those  who  know  their  Wolfe 
superficially  or  their  Thackeray  thoroughly  that 
Wolfe  took  the  gambler's  chance.  "  Is  merit  or 
madness  the  patron  of  greatness?"  asks  Thackeray. 
"Is  it  Frolic  or  Fortune  ?  "  Thackeray  vows  that 
he  scarce  knows  whether  in  the  last  act  of  the  hero's 
life  to  admire  the  result  of  genius,  invention,  and 
daring  or  the  boldness  of  a  gambler  winning  surprising 
odds.  "  Suppose  his  ascent  discovered  a  half-hour 
sooner,  and  his  people,  as  they  would  have  been 
assuredly,  beaten  back  ?  Suppose  the  Marquis  de  Mont- 
calm not  to  quit  his  entrenched  lines  to  accept  that 
strange  challenge  ?  Suppose  these  points — and  none  of 
them  depend  upon  Mr.  Wolfe  at  all — and  what  becomes 
of  the  glory  of  the  young  hero,  of  the  great  minister  who 
discovered  him,  of  the  intoxicated  nation  which  rose 
up  frantic  with  self-congratulation  at  the  victory  ?  "2 
Except  in  so  far  as  the  element  which  some  men  call 
Luck,  which  Wolfe  regarded  as  the  intervention  of  an 
Inscrutable   Power,   enters  into   all  human   affairs, 

1  Kingsford  :    vol.  iv,  p.  269. 

2  The   Virginians,  chap.  Ixxiv. 


CHARACTER    OF   WOLFE  229 

there  was  little  left  to  chance  on  that  September 
morning.  Everything  did  depend  on  Wolfe.  He 
was  utilising  his  extreme  mobility  and  obeying  a  sound 
strategical  law, x  and  he  had  taken  such  precautions 
that  if  the  strategical  law  had  failed  him  he  would  have 
withdrawn  with  his  forces  practically  intact.  That 
was  not  the  gambler's  part.  Wolfe  from  the  moment 
he  watched  the  operations  at  Rochefort,  seized  the 
significance  and  possibilities  of  combined,  or  as  Mr. 
Corbett  calls  them,  amphibious  operations ;  he  set 
an  example  by  which  others  were  to  profit,  as  any 
reader  of  Mr.  Corbett's  pages  will  easily  understand. 
To  study  the  history  of  the  War  of  Independence 
which  Wolfe's  generalship  did  so  much  to  make 
possible,  is  to  start  one  speculating  as  to  the  chances 
of  the  revolt  if  a  Wolfe  had  been  at  hand  to  take 
charge  of  the  earlier  movements  of  the  campaign. 
One  historian  of  Canada  during  that  time2  finds  it 
impossible  to  keep  the  thought  of  what  Wolfe  would 
have  done  from  his  pages.  There  would  at  least  have 
been  no  Saratoga  ;  and  if  Washington  had  triumphed 
ultimately  he  would  have  held  a  still  bigger  place 
in  history. 

In  James  Wolfe  England  lost  one  of  the  rare  char-  ^  rare 
acters  that  no  community  of  men  would  willingly  let  character, 
die  and  that  the  eighteenth  century  could  spare  less 
perhaps  than  any.  His  virtues  were  as  high  above 
the  spirit  of  the  age  as  his  military  abilities,  his  insight, 
his  energy,  his  grip  were  beyond  those  of  commanders 
whose  opportunities  were  greater.  "  I  may  with  strict 
truth,"  says  Knox,3  "advance  that  Major-General 

1  Corbett,  vol.  i,  p.  460. 

2  Lucas  :    A  History  of  Canada,   1763-1812. 

3  Historical  Journal,  vol.  ii,  p.  73. 


230  GENERAL  WOLFE 

James  Wolfe  by  his  great  talents  and  martial  dis- 
position which  he  discovered  early  in  life  was  greatly 
superior  to  his  experience  in  generalship,  and  was  by 
no  means  inferior  to  a  Frederick,  a  Henry,  or  a 
Ferdinand."  What  he  accomplished  was  done  in  the 
years  when  the  ordinary  mortal  is  learning  his  busi- 
ness ;  he  was  to  war  what  William  Pitt,  the  son  of 
the  great  commoner  who  sent  him  to  Quebec,  was 
later  to  politics,  what  Keats  was  to  literature. x  Self- 
educated  to  a  very  large  extent  alike  in  his  profession 
and  in  letters,  a  right  knowledge  both  of  books  and 
men  came  to  him  as  by  the  sort  of  instinct  which 
directs  some  men  to  their  destination  in  strange 
localities  where  the  majority  would  go  astray.  As 
Colonel  Lambert  told  Warrington,  Wolfe  was  "  a 
good  scholar  as  well  as  a  consummate  soldier  "  ;  and 
with  it  all  there  was  about  him  "  a  simplicity,  a 
frankness,  and  a  sort  of  glorious  bravery,"  to  quote 
Warrington  himself,  which  made  it  as  natural  for  him 
to  command  troops  of  friends  as  to  command  his 
seniors  in  the  field.     Smollett  truly  said— 

"  Had  his  faculties  been  exercised  to  their  full  extent  by 
opportunity  and  action,  had  his  judgment  been  fully  matured 
by  age  and  experience,  he  would,  without  doubt,  have 
rivalled    in    reputation    the    most    celebrated    captains    of 

antiquity."  (2) 

His  moral  courage  went  hand  in  hand  with  his 
physical  :  and  surely  physical  courage  is  never  greater 
than  when  it  rises  superior  to  such  wracking  pains 
and  chronic  ill-health  as  Wolfe's.  "  A  delicate 
constitution,  and  a  body  unequal  to  that  vigorous  and 
enterprising  soul  that  it  lodged,"  said  Edmund 
Burke. 3    He  resisted  nepotism  and  favouritism  to  the 

1  Beckles  Willson  :    Nineteenth  Century,  Sept.   1908. 
(2)  History  of  England  (1790  Edn.),  vol.  ii,  p.  71. 
3  Annual  Register,  vol.  ii,  p.  39. 


MEMORIAL   TABLET  231 

incompetent  even  when  the  petitioner  was  his  dearly- 
loved  mother,  and  the  enemies  he  made  only  serve 
to  point  Emerson's  saying,  that  "  the  sun  were 
insipid  if  the  world  were  not  opaque."  Stern  disci- 
plinarian though  he  was,  he  was  loved  by  his  men,  and 
one  of  his  captains  on  the  day  of  the  battle  which 
ended  his  brilliantly  brief  career  spoke  of  him  as  "  the 
gentleman  who  commands  in  chief  and  who  in  his 
military  capacity  is  perhaps  equalled  by  few  and 
surpassed  by  none." x  He  was  "  The  Officer's  Friend  ; 
the  Soldier's  Father."2  Devotion  is  the  only  word 
that  sums  up  his  life  :  devotion  to  parents,  to  friends, 
to  profession,  to  country,  to  truth.  His  very  failings, 
his  constant  complaints,  his  strong  dislikes,  his 
impatience  of  stupidity  and  slackness  buttressed  by 
convention,  his  uncompromisingly  harsh  judgments 
on  occasion,  only  emphasise  the  essential  sweetness 
of  his  nature,  the  integrity  of  his  patriotism,  the 
readiness  to  sacrifice  self  for  the  common  weal.  A 
marble  tablet  placed  in  Westerham  Church  by  his 
co-mate  Warde  bears  the  lines — 

"  While  George  in  sorrow  bows  his  laurell'd  head 
And  bids  the  artist  grace  the  soldier  dead  ; 
We  raise  no  sculptur'd  trophy  to  thy  name. 
Brave  youth  !    the  fairest  in  the  list  of  fame 
Proud  of  thy  birth,  we  boast  th'auspicious  year, 
Struck  with  thy  fall,  we  shed  a  general  tear ; 
With  humble  grief  inscribe  one  artless  stone 
And  from  thy  matchless  honours  date  our  own. 
I  Decus  I  Nostrum." 

What  belongs  to  Westerham  belongs  to  the  Empire, 
and  with  the  men  of  Kent  the  men  of  Great  and 
Greater  Britain  may  say  as  they  close  the  story  of 
Wolfe's  life  :    "  His  glory  is  ours." 

1  Quoted  by  Wood,  p.  238. 

2  Doughty,  vol.  iii,  p.  236. 


APPENDIX    I 


Headquarters  at  the  Camp  of  Montmorenci, 

River  of  St.  Lawrence, 

Sept.  2d,   1759. 
Sir  — 

I  wish  I  could,  upon  this  occasion  have  the  honour  of 
transmitting  to  you,  a  more  favourable  Account  of  the 
progress  of  His  Majesty's  Arms ;  But  the  Obstacles  we  have 
met  with  in  the  Operations  of  the  Campaign,  are  much  greater 
than  we  had  reason  to  expect  or  could  foresee.  Not  so  much 
from  the  number  of  the  Enemy  (tho'  superior  to  us)  as  from 
the  natural  strength  of  the  country,  which  the  Marquis  de 
Montcalm  seems  wisely  to  depend  upon. 

When  I  learnt  that  succours  of  all  kinds  had  been  thrown 
into  Quebec,  That  five  Battalions  of  regular  Troops  com- 
pleated  from  the  best  of  the  Inhabitants  of  the  Country,  Some 
of  the  Troops  of  the  Colony,  and  every  Canadian  that  was  able 
to  bear  Arms,  besides  several  Nations  of  Savages,  had  taken 
the  Field  in  a  very  advantagious  situation  ;  I  could  not  flatter 
myself  that  I  should  be  able  to  reduce  the  Place  :  I  sought 
however  an  occasion  to  attack  their  Army,  knowing  well 
that  with  these  Troops  I  was  able  to  fight,  And  hoping  that 
a  Victory  might  disperse  them. 

We  found  them  incamp'd  along  the  Shore  of  Beauport, 
from  the  River  St.  Charles  to  the  Falls  of  Montmorenci,  & 
intrench'd  in  every  accessible  part.  The  27th  of  June  we 
landed  upon  the  Isle  of  Orleans  ;  But  receiving  a  message 
from  the  Admiral,  that  there  was  Reason  to  think  the  Enemy 
had  Artillery  &  a  Force  upon  the  Point  of  Levi,  I  detach'd 
Brigadier  Monckton  with  four  Battalions  to  drive  them  from 
thence.  He  pass'd  the  River  the  29th,  at  Night,  &  march'd 
the  next  Day  to  the  Point ;  He  obliged  the  Enemy's  Irregulars 
to  retire  &  possess' d  himself  of  that  Post ;  The  advanced 
Partys  upon  this  occasion  had  two  or  three  skirmishes  with 
the  Canadians  and  Indians  with  little  loss  on  either  side. 
Colonel  Carleton  march'd  with  a  Detachment  to  the  Wester- 
most  point  of  the  Isle  of  Orleans,  From  whence  our  Operations 
were  likely  to  begin. 

233 


234  APPENDIX   I 

It  was  absolutely  necessary  to  possess  these  two  Points  & 
fortify  them  ;  Because  from  either  the  one  or  the  other,  the 
Enemy  might  make  it  impossible  for  any  Ship  to  lye  in  the 
Bason  of  Quebec,  or  even  within  two  miles  of  it. 

Batterys  of  Cannon  &  Mortars  were  erected  with  great 
Dispatch,  on  the  Point  of  Levi,  to  bombard  the  Town  and 
Magazines  and  to  injure  the  Works  and  Batterys :  the 
Enemy  perceiving  these  Works  in  some  Forwardness,  pass'd 
the  River  with  1,600  men,  to  attack  &  destroy  them  :  Un- 
luckily they  fell  into  Confusion,  fired  upon  one  another,  & 
went  back  again.  By  which  we  lost  an  Opportunity  of  defeat- 
ing this  large  Detachment.  The  Effect  of  this  Artillery  has 
been  so  great  (tho'  across  the  River),  that  the  Upper  Town 
is  considerably  damaged, &  the  Lower  Town  entirely  destroy'd. 

The  works  for  the  security  of  our  Hospitals  and  Stores  on 
the  Isle  of  Orleans  being  finished  :  on  the  9th  of  July  at  night 
we  pass'd  the  North  Channel  &  encamp'd  near  the  Enemy's 
left,  the  River  Montmorenci  between  us.  The  next  morning, 
Capt.  Danks's  company  of  Rangers  posted  in  a  wood,  to  cover 
some  Workmen,  were  attack'd  &  defeated  by  a  Body  of 
Indians  ;  And  had  so  many  killed  &  wounded  as  to  be  almost 
disabled  for  the  rest  of  the  Campaign.  The  Enemy  also 
suffer'd  in  this  Affair  &  were  in  their  turn  driven  off  by  the 
nearest  Troops. 

The  Ground  to  the  Eastward  of  the  Falls  seem'd  to  be  (as 
it  really  is)  higher  than  that  on  the  Enemy's  side,  to 
command  it  in  a  manner  which  might  be  made  usefull  to  us  : — 
There  is  besides  a  Ford  below  the  Falls,  which  may  be  pass'd 
for  some  hours  in  the  latter  part  of  the  Ebb,  &  beginning  of 
the  Flood  Tide  ;  and  I  had  hopes  that  possibly,  means  might 
be  found  of  passing  the  river  above,  so  as  to  fight  the  Marquis 
de  Montcalm  upon  terms  of  less  disadvantage,  than  directly 
attacking  his  Intrenchments.  In  reconnoitring  the  River 
Montmorenci,  we  found  it  fordable  at  a  place  about  three 
miles  up,  But  the  opposite  Bank  was  intrench'd  &  so  steep  & 
woody,  that  it  was  to  no  purpose  to  Attempt  a  Passage  there  ; 
The  Escort  was  twice  attacked  by  the  Indians,  who  were  as 
often  repulsed,  But  in  these  Rencounters  we  had  forty  (Officers 
&  Men)  kill'd  &  wounded. 

The  18th  of  July,  two  Men  of  War,  two  arm'd  Sloops,  &  two 
Transports  with  some  Troops  on  board,  pass'd  by  the  Town 
without  any  Loss,  &  got  into  the  Upper  River ;  This  enabled 
me  to  reconnoitre  the  Country  above,  where  I  found  the  same 
attention  on  the  Enemy's  side  &  great  difficultys  on  ours. 
Arising  from  the  Nature  of  the  Ground,  &  the  Obstacles  to 
our  Communication  with  the  Fleet.     But  what  I  feared  most, 


APPENDIX  I  235 

was,  that  if  we  should  land  between  the  Town  &  the  River 
Cap  Rouge,  the  Body  first  landed  could  not  be  reinforced 
before  they  were  attack'd  by  the  Enemy's  whole  Army. 
Notwithstanding  these  difficultys  I  thought  once  of  attempting 
it  at  St.  Nicholas,  about  three  miles  above  the  Town  ;  But 
perceiving  that  the  Enemy  were  jealous  of  the  design,  were 
preparing  against  it,  and  had  actually  brought  Artillery  & 
a  Mortar  (which,  being  so  near  to  Quebec,  they  could  increase 
as  they  pleased)  to  play  upon  the  Shipping  ;  And  as  it  must 
have^been  many  hours  before  we  could  attack  them  (even 
supposing  a  favourable  night  for  the  Boats  to  pass  by  the 
town  unhurt)  It  seem'd  so  hazardous  that  I  thought  it  best 
to  desist. 

However,  to  divide  the  Enemy's  force,  &  to  draw  their 
attention  as  high  up  the  River  as  possible,  And  to  procure 
some  Intelligence  I  sent  a  detachment  under  the  Command 
of  Colonel  Carleton,  to  land  at  the  Point  de  Trempe, *  to 
attack  whatever  he  might  find  there,  bring  off  some  Prisoners, 
&  all  the  usefull  Papers  he  could  get.  I  had  been  inform'd, 
that  a  Number  of  the  Inhabitants  of  Quebec  had  retired  to 
that  Place,  and  that  probably  we  should  find  a  Magazine 
of  Provisions  there. 

The  Colonel  was  fired  upon  by  a  Body  of  Indians,  the 
Moment  he  landed,  but  they  were  soon  dispersed,  &  driven 
into  the  Woods  :  He  search'd  for  Magazines,  but  to  no 
purpose,  brought  off  some  Prisoners,  &  return'd  with  little 
loss.  After  this  business  I  came  back  to  Montmorenci,  where 
I  found  that  Brigadier  Townshend  had  by  a  superior  fire 
prevented  the  French  from  erecting  a  Battery  on  the  bank  of 
the  River,  from  whence  they  intended  to  cannonade  our 
Camp.  I  now  resolved  to  take  the  first  opportunity  which 
presented  itself  of  attacking  the  Enemy,  tho'  posted  to  great 
advantage,  &  everywhere  prepared  to  receive  us. 

As  the  Men  of  War  cannot  (for  want  of  a  sufficient  depth  of 
Water)  come  near  enough  to  the  Enemy's  Intrenchments  to 
annoy  them  in  the  least ;  The  Admiral  had  prepared  two 
Transports  (drawing  but  little  water)  which  upon  occasions 
could  be  run  aground,  to  favour  a  Descent.  With  the  help 
of  these  Vessels,  which  I  understood  would  be  carry'd  by  the 
Tide  close  in  shore,  I  proposed  to  make  myself  Master  of  a 
detach'd  Redoubt  near  to  the  Water's  Edge,  &  whose  situation 
appear'd  to  be  out  of  Musquet  Shot  of  the  Intrenchment  upon 
the  Hill  :  If  the  Enemy  supported  this  detach'd  piece,  it  would 
necessarily  bring  on  an  Engagement,  what  we  most  wish'd 
for  ;  And  if  not,  I  should  have  it  in  my  Power  to  examine  their 

1  Pointe  Aux  Trembles. 


236  APPENDIX   I 

Situation,  so  as  to  be  able  to  determine  where  we  could  best 
attack  them. 

Preparations  were  accordingly  made  for  an  Engagement, 
The  31st  of  July,  in  the  forenoon,  the  boats  of  Fleet  were 
fill'd  with  Grenadiers  &  a  part  of  Brigadier  Monckton's 
Brigade  from  the  Point  of  Levi ;  The  two  Brigades  under 
Brigadiers  Townshend  &  Murray,  were  order'd  to  be  in 
readiness  to  pass  the  Ford  when  it  should  be  thought 
necessary.  To  facilitate  the  passage  of  this  Corps,  the 
Admiral  had  placed  the  Centurion  in  the  Channel,  so  that  she 
might  check  the  fire  of  the  lower  battery,  which  commanded 
the  Ford  ;  This  Ship  was  of  great  use,  as  her  fire  was  very 
judiciously  directed.  A  great  Quantity  of  Artillery  was 
placed  upon  the  Eminence,  so  as  to  batter  &  enfilade  the  left 
of  their  Intrenchments. 

From  the  vessel  which  run  aground  nearest  in  I  observed 
that  the  Redoubt  was  too  much  commanded,  to  be  Kep't 
without  very  great  loss.  And  the  more  as  the  two  arm'd 
Ships  could  not  be  brought  near  enough  to  cover  both  with 
their  Artillery  &  Musquetry,  Which  I  at  first  conceived  they 
might.  But  as  the  Enemy  seem'd  in  some  Confusion,  and 
we  were  prepared  for  an  Action,  I  thought  it  a  proper  time  to 
make  an  attempt  upon  their  Intrenchment.  Orders  were 
sent  to  the  Brigadiers  General,  to  be  ready  with  the  Corps 
under  their  Command,  Brigadier  Monckton  to  land,  And  the 
Brigadiers  Townshend  &  Murray  to  pass  the  Ford.  At  a 
proper  time  of  the  Tide,  the  signal  was  made.  But  in  rowing 
towards  the  Shore,  many  of  the  Boats  grounded  upon  a  Ledge 
that  runs  off  a  considerable  distance.  This  accident  put  us 
into  some  Disorder,  lost  a  great  deal  of  time,  &  obliged  me 
to  send  an  Officer  to  stop  Brigadier  Townshend's  march, 
whom  I  then  observed  to  be  in  motion.  While  the  Seamen 
were  getting  the  Boats  off,  the  Enemy  fired  a  number  of 
Shells  &  Shot,  but  did  no  considerable  damage.  As  soon  as 
this  Disorder  could  be  set  a  little  to  Rights,  &  the  Boats  were 
ranged  in  a  proper  Manner,  some  of  the  Officers  of  the  Navy 
went  in  with  me  to  find  a  better  place  to  land  ;  we  took  one 
Flat-bottom'd  Boat  with  us  to  make  the  Experiment,  &  as 
soon  as  we  had  found  a  fit  part  of  the  Shore,  the  Troops  were 
ordered  to  disembark ;  Thmking  it  not  yet  too  late  for 
the  Attempt. 

The  thirteen  companys  of  Grenadiers  &  200  of  the  second 
Royal  American  Battalion  got  first  on  shore  ;  the  Grenadiers 
were  ordered  to  form  themselves  into  four  distinct  bodys  & 
to  begin  the  Attack,  supported  by  Brigadier  Monckton's 
Corps,  As  soon  as  the  other  Troops  had  pass'd  the  Ford,  & 


APPENDIX    I  237 

were  at  hand  to  assist.  But  whether,  from  the  Noise  &  hurry 
at  landing,  or  from  some  other  Cause,  the  Grenadiers,  instead 
of  forming  themselves  as  they  were  directed,  ran  on  im- 
petuously towards  the  Enemy's  Intrenchments  in  the  utmost 
Disorder  &  Confusion,  without  waiting  for  the  Corps  which 
were  to  sustain  them,  &  join  in  the  Attack  : — Brigadier 
Monckton  was  not  landed,  &  Brigadier  Townshend  was  still 
at  a  considerable  Distance,  tho'  upon  his  march  to  join  us, 
in  very  good  Order. 

The  Grenadiers  were  check' d  by  the  Enemy's  first  Fire,  & 
obliged  to  shelter  themselves  in  or  about  the  Redoubt, 
which  the  French  abandon'd  upon  their  Approach.  In  this 
Situation  they  continued  for  some  time,  unable  to  form  under 
so  hot  a  fire,  &  having  many  gallant  officers  wounded,  who 
(careless  of  their  Persons)  had  been  solely  intent  upon  their 
Duty  :  I  saw  the  Absolute  Necessity  of  calling  them  off,  that 
they  might  form  themselves  behind  Brigadier  Monckton' s 
Corps,  which  was  now  landed,  &  drawn  up  upon  the  Beach 
in  extream  good  Order.  By  this  new  Accident  &  this  second 
Delay,  It  was  near  Night ;  A  sudden  Storm  came  on,  &  the 
Tide  began  to  make,  so  that  I  thought  it  most  advisable  not 
to  persevere  in  so  difficult  an  Attack,  lest  (in  case  of  a 
Repulse)  the  Retreat  of  Brigadier  Townshend's  Corps  might 
be  hazardous  &  uncertain. 

Our  Artillery  had  a  great  effect  upon  the  Enemy's  left, 
where  Brigadiers  Townshend  &  Murray  were  to  have  attacked, 
And  it  is  probable  that,  if  those  Accidents  I  have  spoken  of, 
had  not  happen' d,  We  should  have  penetrated  there,  Whilst 
our  left  &  center,  more  remote  from  our  Artillery,  must  have 
bore  all  the  violence  of  their  Musquetry. 

The  French  did  not  attempt  to  interrupt  our  March  ;  some 
of  their  Savages  came  down  to  murder  such  wounded 
as  could  not  be  brought  off,  And  to  scalp  the  Dead,  as  their 
Custom  is. 

The  Place  where  the  Attack  was  intended,  has  these 
Advantages  over  all  others  hereabout — Our  Artillery  could 
be  brought  into  use — the  greatest  Part,  or  even  the  Whole 
of  the  Troops,  might  act  at  once — And  the  Retreat  (in  case 
of  a  Repulse)  was  secure,  at  least  for  a  certain  time  of  the 
Tide.  Neither  one,  nor  other  of  these  Advantages  can  any 
where  else  be  found. — The  Enemy  were  indeed  posted  upon 
a  commanding  Eminence — The  Beach  upon  which  the  Troops 
were  drawn  up,  was  of  deep  Mud,  with  Holes,  and  cut  by 
several  Gullys — The  Hill  to  be  ascended,  very  steep,  &  not 
every  where  practicable — The  Enemy  numerous  in  their 
Intrenchments  &  their  fire  hot — If  this  attack  had  succeeded, 


238  APPENDIX   I 

our  loss  must  certainly  have  been  great,  and  their's  incon- 
siderable from  the  shelter  which  the  neighbouring  Woods 
afforded  them. — The  River  St.  Charles  still  remained  to  be 
passed,  before  the  Town  was  invested — All  these  circum- 
stances I  considered,  But  the  Desire  to  Act  in  Conformity 
to  the  King's  intentions  induced  me  to  make  this  Trial, 
Persuaded  that  a  victorious  Army  finds  no  Difficultys. 

The  Enemy  have  been  fortifying  ever  since  with  Care,  so 
as  to  make  a  second  attempt  still  more  dangerous. 

Immediately  after  this  Check,  I  sent  Brigadier  Murray 
above  the  Town  with  1,200  men,  Directing  him  to  assist 
Rear-Admiral  Holmes  in  the  Destruction  of  the  French  Ships 
(if  they  could  be  got  at)  in  order  to  open  a  Communication 
with  General  Amherst.  The  Brigadier  was  to  seek  every 
favourable  Opportunity  of  fighting  some  of  the  Enemy's 
detachments,  provided  he  could  do  it  upon  tolerable  Terms, 
And  to  use  all  the  Means  in  his  Power  to  provoke  them  to 
attack  him.  He  made  two  different  attempts  to  land  upon 
the  North  Shore,  without  success  ;  but  in  a  third  was  more 
fortunate.  He  landed  unexpectedly  at  Dechambaud  &  burnt 
a  Magazine  there,  in  which  were  some  Provisions,  some  Ammu- 
nition, and  all  the  spare  Stores,  Cloathing,  Arms,  &  Baggage 
of  their  Army.  Finding  that  their  Ships  were  not  to  be  got 
at,  &  little  Prospect  of  bringing  the  Enemy  to  battle,  He 
reported  his  Situation  to  me,  &  I  order'd  him  to  join  the  Army. 
The  Prisoners  he  took  informed  him  of  the  Surrender  of  the 
Fort  of  Niagara,  And  we  discovered  by  intercepted  Letters, 
that  the  Enemy  had  abandoned  Carillon1  &  Crown  Point, 
were  retired  to  the  Isle  aux  Noix,  And  that  General  Amherst 
was  making  Preparations  to  pass  the  Lake  Champlain,  to 
fall  upon  Monsieur  de  Bourlemaque's  Corps,  which  consists  of 
three  Battalions  of  Foot,  &  as  many  Canadians  as  make 
the  whole  amount  to  3,000  Men. 

The  Admiral's  Dispatches  &  mine  would  have  gone  eight 
or  ten  Days  sooner,  If  I  had  not  been  prevented  from  writing 
by  a  Fever  ;  I  found  myself  so  ill,  &  am  still  so  weak,  that  I 
begg'd  the  General  Officers  to  consult  together  for  the  Publick 
Utility.  They  are  all  of  opinion,  that,  (as^more"  Ships  & 
Provisions  have  now  got  above  the  Town)  they  should  try,  by 
conveying  up  a  Corps  of  4  or  5,000  Men,  (which  is  nearly 
the  whole  strength  of  the  Army,  after  the  Points  of  Levi  and 
Orleans  are  left  in  a  proper  State  of  Defence)  to  draw  the 
Enemy  from  their  present  Situation,  &  bring  them  to  an 
Action.  I  have  acquiesced  in  their  Proposal,  &  we  are 
preparing  to  put  it  in  Execution. 

1  Ticonderoga. 


APPENDIX    I  239 

The  Admiral  and  I  have  examin'd  the  Town,  with  a  view 
to  a  general  Assault,  but  after  consulting  with  the  Chief 
Engineer  who  is  well  acquainted  with  the  interior  parts  of  it, 
and  after  viewing  it  with  the  utmost  attention,  we  found,  that 
tho'  the  Batterys  of  the  lower  Town  might  be  easily  silenced 
by  the  Men  of  War,  Yet  the  Business  of  an  Assault  would  be 
little  advanced  by  that,  since  the  few  Passages  that  lead  from 
the  lower  to  the  Upper  Town  are  carefully  intrench'd,  And 
the  upper  Batterys  cannot  be  affected  by  the  Ships  which 
must  receive  considerable  Damage  from  them  &  from  the 
Mortars. 

The  Admiral  would  readily  join  in  this  or  in  any  other 
Measure  for  the  Publick  Service,  But  I  could  not  propose  to 
him  an  undertaking  of  so  dangerous  a  Nature  &  promising  so 
little  Success. 

At  my  first  coming  into  the  Country,  I  used  all  the  Means 
in  my  Power,  to  engage  the  Canadians  to  lay  down  their  Arms, 
by  offers  of  such  Protection  &  Security  for  themselves,  their 
Property  and  Religion  as  was  consistent  with  the  known 
mildness  of  His  Majesty's  Government.  I  found  that  good 
treatment  had  not  the  desired  Effect,  so  that  of  late  I  have 
changed  my  Measures  &  laid  waste  the  Country ;  partly  to 
engage  the  Marquis  de  Montcalm  to  try  the  Event  of  a  Battle 
to  prevent  the  Ravage,  And  partly  in  Return  for  many  Insults 
offer'd  to  our  People  by  the  Canadians,  As  well  as  the  frequent 
Inhumanitys  exercised  upon  our  own  Frontiers.  It  was 
necessary  also  to  have  some  Prisoners  as  Hostages  for  their 
good  Behaviour  to  our  People  in  their  Hands,  whom  I  had 
reason  to  think  they  did  not  use  very  well.  Major  Dalling 
surprized  the  Guard  of  a  village  &  brought  in  about  380 
Prisoners,  which  I  keep,  not  proposing  any  Exchange  till  the 
end  of  the  Campaign. 

In  case  of  a  Disappointment,  I  intended  to  fortify  Coudres 
&  leave  3,000  Men  for  the  Defence  of  it ;  But  it  was  too  late 
in  the  Season,  to  collect  Materials  sufficient  for  covering  so 
large  a  Body. 

To  the  uncommon  strength  of  the  Country,  the  Enemy 
have  added  (for  the  Defence  of  the  River)  a  great  Number  of 
Floating  Batteries  &  Boats.  By  the  vigilance  of  these,  and 
the  Indians  round  our  different  Posts,  it  has  been  impossible 
to  execute  anything  by  surprize.  We  have  had  almost  daily 
skirmishes  with  these  Savages,  in  which  they  are  generally 
defeated,  But  not  without  Loss  on  our  Side. 

By  the  List  of  disabled  officers  (many  of  whom  are  of  Rank) 
you  may  perceive,  Sir,  that  the  Army  is  much  weaken'd — 
By  the  Nature  of  the  River,  The  most  formidable  part  of  the 


240  APPENDIX   I 

Armament  is  deprived  of  the  Power  of  acting  ;  Yet  we  have 
almost  the  whole  Force  of  Canada  to  oppose. — In  this  situa- 
tion, there  is  such  a  Choice  of  Difficultys,  that  I  own  myself 
at  a  Loss  how  to  determine.  The  Affaires  of  Great  Britain,  I 
know,  require  the  most  vigorous  Measures  ;  But  then  the 
Courage  of  a  Handfull  of  brave  Men  should  be  exerted,  only 
where  there  is  some  Hope  of  a  favourable  Event.  However 
you  may  be  assured,  Sir,  that  the  small  part  of  the  Campaign 
which  remains,  shall  be  employ'd  (as  far  as  I  am  able)  for  the 
Honour  of  His  Majesty  &  the  Interest  of  the  Nation,  In  which 
I  am  sure  of  being  well  seconded  by  the  Admiral  &  by  the 
Generals.  Happy,  if  our  Efforts  here  can  contribute  to  the 
Success  of  His  Majesty's  Arms  in  any  other  Parts  of  America. 

I  have  the  honour  to  be  with  the  greatest  Respect,  Sir, 
Your  most  obedient  and  most  humble  Servant, 

Jam  :  Wolfe. 


APPENDIX    II 

Extracts  from  Montcalm's  letter  dated  "  Du  Camp 
devant  Quebec,  24  d'Aout,  1759,"  and  addressed  to 
'  M.  de  Mole,  Premier  President  au  Parlement  de 
Paris."  The  letter  is  in  the  British  Museum,  and  is 
reprinted  in  full  by  Mr.  Doughty,  vol.  ii,  pp.  280-7. 

Me  voici,  depuis  plus  de  trois  mois,  aux  prise  avec  Mons. 
Wolfe  :  il  ne  cesse,  jour  &  nuit  de  bombarder  Quebec,  avec 
une  furie,  qui  n'a  gudres  d'exemple  dans  le  siege  d'un  place, 
qu'on  veut  prendre  &  conserver.  .  .  Aussi  apres  trois  mois 
de  tentative,  n'est-il  pas  avance  dans  son  dessein  qu'au  pre- 
mier jour.  II  nous  ruine,  mais  il  ne  s'enrichit  pas.  ...  II 
semble  qu'apres  un  si  heureux  prelude,  la  conservation  de  la 
colonie  est  presque  assure.  II  n'en  est  cependant  rien  :  la 
prise  de  Quebec  depend  d'un  coup  du  main.  Les  Anglois 
sont  maitres  de  la  riviere ;  ils  n'ont  qu'a  erfectuer  une 
descente  sur  la  rive,  ou  cette  ville,  sans  fortifications  and  sans 
defense,  est  situee.  Les  voila  en  etat  de  me  presenter  la 
bataille,  que  je  ne  pourrai  plus  refuser  &  que  je  ne  devrai 
pas  gagner.  M.  Wolfe,  en  effet,  s'il  entend  son  metier,  n'a 
qu'a  essayer  le  premier  feu  venir  ensuite  a  grand  pas  sur  mon 
armee,  faire  a  bout  parlant  sa  decharge,  mes  Canadiens,  sans 
discipline,  sourds  a  la  voix  du  tambour  &  des  instrumens 
militaires,  deranges  par  cet  escarre,  ne  scauront  plus  reprendre 
eurs  rangs.  .  .  .  Une  assurance  que  je  puis  vous  donner, 
c'est  que  je  ne  survivrois  pas  probablement  a  la  perte  de  la 
colonie.  II  est  des  situations  ou  il  ne  reste  plus  a  un  general, 
que  de  perir  avec  honneur ;  je  crois  y  etre  ;  &,  sur  ce  point, 
je  crois  que  jamais  la  posterite  n'aura  rien  a  reprocher  a  ma 
memoire ;  mais  si  la  Fortune  decida  ma  vie,  elle  ne  decidera 
pas  de  mes  sentimens — ils  sont  Francois  &  ils  le  seront,  j  usque 
dans  le  tombeau,  si  dans  le  tombeau  on  est  encore  quelque- 
chose.  Je  me  consolerai  du  moins  de  ma  defaite,  &  de  la 
perte  de  la  colonie,  par  Tin  time  persuasion  ou  je  suis,  que 
cette  defaite  vaudroit  un  jour  a  ma  patrie  plus  qu'une  victoire 
and  que  le  vainqueur  en  s'aggrandissant,  trouveroit  un 
tombeau  dans  son  aggrandissement  meme.  .  .  .  Toutes  ces 
colonies  Angloises  auroient,  depuis  longtemps,  secoue  le  jong, 

241 

17— (2213) 


242  APPENDIX   II 

chaque  province  auroit  forme  une  petite  republique  inde- 
pendante,  si  la  crainte  de  voir  les  Francois  a  leur  porte  n'avoit 
ete  un  frein  qui  les  avoit  retenu.  ...  Si  l'ancienns  Angle- 
terre,  apres  avoir  conquis  le  Canada  scavoit  se  l'attacher  par 
la  politique  &  les  bienfaits  &  se  le  conserver  a  elle  seule,  si 
elle  le  laissoit  a  sa  religion,  a  ses  loix,  a  son  langage,  a  ses 
coutumes,  a  son  ancien  gouvernement,  le  Canada,  divise 
dans  tous  ces  points  d'avec  les  autres  colonies,  formeroit 
toujours  un  pais  isole  qui  n'enteroit  jamais  dans  leurs 
interets,  ni  dans  leurs  vues,  ne  fut  ce  que  par  principe  de 
religion  :  mais  ce  n'est  pas  la  la  politique  Britannique.  Les 
Anglois  font  ils  une  conquete,  il  faut  qu'ils  changent  la 
constitution  du  pays,  ils  y  portent  leurs  loix,  leurs  facons  de 
penser,  leur  religion  meme,  qu'ils  font  adopter  sous  peine,  au 
moins,  de  privation  des  charges  ;  e'est-a-dire,  de  la  privation 
dc  la  qualite  de  citoyen.  .  .  .  En  mot,  etes-vous  vaincus, 
conquis  par  les  Anglois  ?  II  faut  devenir  Anglois  !  Mais  les 
Anglois  ne  devroient-ils  pas  comprendre  que  les  tetes  des 
hommes  ne  sont  pas  toutes  des  tetes  Angloises  &  sur  tout 
d'esprits.  .  .  .  Chaque  pays  a  ses  arbres,  ses  fruits,  ses 
richesses  particuliers  ;  vouloir  n'y  transporter  que  les  arbres, 
que  les  fruits  d'Angleterre,  seroit  une  ridicule  unpardonable. 
1 1  est  de  meme  des  loix,  qui  doivent  s'adapter  aux  climats ; 
parce  que  les  hommes  aux-memes  tienne  beaucoup  des  climats 
....  Sur  ce  pied  le  Canada  pris  une  fois  par  les  Anglois, 
peu  d'annees  suffiroient  pour  le  faire  devenir  Anglois.  Voila 
les  Canadiens  transformes  en  politiques,  en  negocians,  en 
hommes  infatues  d'une  pretendue  liberte,  qui  chez  la  populace 
tient  souvent  en  Angleterre  de  la  licence,  and  de  l'anarchie. 
Adieu,  done,  leur  valeur,  leur  simplicite,  leur  generosite,  elur 
respect  pour  tout  ce  qui  est  rcvetu  de  l'autorite,  leur  frugality, 
leur  obeissance  &  leur  fidelite ;  e'est  a-dire,  ne  seroient 
bien-tot  plus  rien  pour  l'ancienne  Angleterre  &.  qu'ils  seroient 
peut-etre  contre  elle.  Je  suis  si  sur  de  ce  que  j'ecris  que  je 
donnerai  pas  dix  ans  apres  la  conquete  de  Canada  pour  en 
voir  raccomplissement. 


APPENDIX    III 


The  total  strength  of  Wolfe's  army  present  at  the 
battle  on  the  Plains  of  Abraham  was  4,829  of  all 

ranks,  and  2  guns.  Major  Wood  (The  Fight  for 
Canada,  p.  225)  gives  the  following  interesting 
table — 

Major-General        .  .          .  .          .  .          .  .           .  .          .  .  1 

Brigadiers  . .           .  .          .  .          .  .           .  .          .  .          .  .  3 

Divisional  Staff     .  .          . .          .  .          . .          . .          .  .  9 

Louisbourg  Grenadiers. — From  1st  Royals  ;  17th,  22nd, 

40th  and  45th  Regiments 241 

15th — "  Amherst's."     Now  East  Yorkshire  Regiments  406 

28th—"  Bragg's."     Now  1st  Bn.  Gloucestershire     . .  421 

35th—"  Otway's."     Now  1st  Bn.  Royal  Sussex       . .  519 

43rd — "  Kennedy's."     Now  1st  Bn.  Oxfordshire  Light 

Infantry          327 

47th—"  Lascelles'  "     Now     1st     Bn.     Loyal     North 

Lancashire      . .          . .          . .          . .          . .          . .  360 

48th— "  Webb's."     Now  1st  Bn.  Northamptonshire. .  683 
58th — "  Anstruther's."     Now  2nd  Bn.  Northampton- 
shire      335 

2nd — Bn.     Royal    Americans — "  Monckton's."     Now 

2nd  Bn.  King's  Royal  Rifle  Corps          . .          . .  322 

3rd  Bn.  Royal  Americans. — "  Lawrence's."     Now  3rd 

Bn.  King's  Royal  Rifle  Corps 540 

78th—"  Fraser's."    Now  2nd  Bn.  Seaforth  Highlanders  662 

4,829 


243 


BIBLIOGRAPHY 

Wright  :   Life  of  Wolfe. 

Bradley  :    Wolfe. 

Parkman  :    Montcalm  and  Wolfe.     2  vols. 

Casgrain  :     Wolfe  and  Montcalm. 

Townshend  :      The    Military  Life    of    the    First    Marquess 

Townshend. 
Knox:  Historical  Journal  of  the  Campaign  in  North  America. 

2  vols. 
Bourinot  :    Cape  Breton  and  Its  Memorials. 
Macdonald  :     The  Last  Siege  of  Louisbourg. 
Doughty  :    The  Siege  of  Quebec.     6  vols. 
Kingsford  :     The  History  of  Canada.     Vol.  iv,   1756-1763. 
Bradley  :    The  Fight  with  France  for  North  Ameri 
Wood  :     The  Fight  for   Canada. 
Warburton  :    The   Conquest  of  Canada.     2  vols. 
Corbett  :    England  in  the  Seven    Years'  War.     2  vols. 
Waddington  :   La  Guerre  de  Sept  Ans. 
Mante  :   History  of  the  Late  War. 
Hassall  :  Balance  of  Power,   1715-1789. 
Lecky  :     England  in  the  18th   Century.     Vol.  ii. 
Seeley  :     The   Expansion  of   England. 
Von  Ruville  :    William   Pitt,   Earl  of   Chatham.     Vol.  ii. 
Kimball  :    Correspondence    of    William    Pitt    with   Colonial 

Governors,  etc.     2  vols. 

Correspondence  of  the  Earl  of  Chatham. 

Casgrain  :    Guerre  du   Canada  (Journals  and   Correspondence 
of  Montcalm,  Bougainville,  de   Livis,  etc.)     12  vols. 

Walpole  :   Letters,  1757-1759. 

Memoirs  of   George  II. 

Fortescue  :    A  History  of  the  British  Army.     Vol.  ii. 

Beckles  Willson  :    Nineteenth    Century,    Sept.    1908,    and 

Connoisseur,  Jan.  1909. 
The  Annual  Register,  1759  ;  Dictionary  of  National  Biography  ; 

Additional  MSS.   British   Museum;        Historical   MSS. 

Com.  Reports  ;   Amherst  Papers  and  Ships'  Logs  Record 

Office. 


INDEX 


Abercromby,  General,  101, 121, 
122,  123,  124,  125,  126,  129, 
135,   153 
Abraham,  Plains  of,  213-219, 222 
Aix,  Isle  of,  94,  97,  126 
Aix-la-Chapelle,  38,  42,  71 
Amherst,     General,     102,     104, 
105,  106,  108,  109,  110-1,  113, 
115,  116,  119,  122,  123,  124, 
125,  126,  127,  128,  135,  136, 
139,  140,  142,  144,  155,  168, 
178,  187,  190,  194,  197,  199, 
215    227-8 
Army!  The,  12,  60,  70,  82-3,  98 
Augustus  Fort,  59 

Banff,  49,  52 
Barrington,  Lord,  136,  137 
Belleisle,  Marshal,  26,   154 
Bigot,  149,  150,  159,  164 
Birrell,  Mr.  Augustine,  207-8 
Boscawen,  Admiral,  51,  73,  102, 

104,  106,  108,  113,  117,  119, 

120,  124,  156 
Bougainville,  153,  154,  174,  188, 

197,  198,  201,  206,  212,  214, 

215,  219,  228 
Bourlamaque,    152,    155,    190, 

199,  228 
Boyne,  The,  62 
Brigadiers'    Plan  for  attacking 

Quebec,  191-194 
Braddock,  73,  77,  82,  115,  217, 
Bradstreet,  125,  128,  153 
Burton,  Col.,  197,  203,  204,  211, 

213    219 
Bury,'  Lord,  48,  57-58,  63,  67, 

76,  80,  91 
Byng,  Admiral,  74,  85,  86,  87 

Carleton  Guy,  65,  66,  131-2, 
141,  145,  175,  196,  204,  206, 
219,  233,  235 

Cartagena  Expedition,  7,  9 


Cartier,   1,   145 

Champlain,   1,   145 

Chesterfield,  90,  96 

Clive,   Robert,   51,   72,   74,   92, 

227 
Conway,   Hon.   H.   S.,   93,   95, 

96,    100,   226-227 
Cook  Captain,   187 
Cope,  Sir  John,  26 
Cornwallis,  Hon.  E.,  43,  48,  87, 

93,  96 
Culloden,  31-33,  52,  57,  62,  133 
Cumberland,   Duke  of,   15,  24, 

31-35,  36,  37,  38,  57,  67,  91, 

92 

Delaune,  Capt.,  210 
Dettingen,  18-21,  133 
Devonshire,  Duke  of,  75,  91 
Drucour,    Governor,    107,    113, 

117,  119,  120 
Dublin,  in  1752,  60,  61,  62 
Dumas,  Capt,*  167 
Dupleix,  74 
Duquesne,  Fort,  72-3,  82,   101, 

128 
Durell,  Admiral,  139,  141,  155, 

157,  158,  199 

Falkirk,  29-30,  31 

Ferdinand,  Prince,  128,  129-130 

Fire-ships,  164,  176-7 

Fontenoy,   xi,  24 

Forbes,  Brigadier,  101,  128,  135 

Forbes,  Duncan,  91 

Forbes,  Mrs.  John,  56 

Foulon,  Anse  au,  200-1, 203, 21 1 , 

126 
Fraser,  Simon,  92 
Fraser's    Highlander    and    the 

Sentry,  209 
Frederick  the  Great,  14,  16,  17, 

74,  86,  89,  90,  128 
Frontenac,   1,   145,   146,    148 


245 


246 


INDEX 


George  II,   6,  14,  15,    18,  19, 

74,  75,  132,  136,  137 
Ghent,  16,  17,  22,  23,  24 
Glasgow,  29,  44,  45,  46,  48,  55, 

59,  68,  69 
Grammont,  Due  de,  18,  19 
Gray's  "  Elegy,"  207-8 
Greenwich,  Wolfe's  days  at,  5 
Grenadiers,  111  ;    Wild  rush  at 

Montmorency,  182-3  ;    Plains 

of  Abraham,  218 

Halifax,  103,  104,  139 
Hamilton,  Duchess  of,  69 
Hardy,  Sir  Charles,  123,  124 
Hawke    Admiral,    51,    73,    92, 

93,95,  100,  128,  153 
Hawley  "  Hangman,"  29,  30 
Highlanders,  27-34,  43,  51,  81, 

91-2,  183,  184,  209,  211,  218 
Holborne,  Admiral,  92 
Holderness,   Earl  of,    198 
Holmes,      Rear-Admiral,      139, 

188,  200,  202,  206 
Honeywood,  Col.,  80,  81 
Howe,  Capt.,  94 
Howe,  Col.,  212,  213,  214 
Howe,  Lord,  97,  101,   121,   124 

Inverness,  35,  52,  55 

Jervis,  Jack,  5,  205 

Kingsley,  Col.  W.,  81,  129, 
Kirkes,  The,  147,  157 

Lacey,  Miss,  36-7,  41 
Laffeldt,   37-38,    133, 
La  Salle,  146,  147 
Lawrence,  Governor,  104,   108, 

110,    122 
Lawson,   Miss,   41,   45,   49,   66, 

77,    102,    151 
Levi.    (See  Point  Levi.) 
Levis,  de,    152,   169,    179,    197, 

198,  219,  228 
Ligonier,  Sir  John,    38;    Lord, 

128,  132,  133 
Loudon,  Lord,  92,  101 
Louis  XV,   16,  24,  25,  28,  36, 

37,  38,  63,  74,  149 


Louisbourg,  42,  92,  101,  102, 
106-121,    139,   142,   154 

Lowther,  Miss,  102,  134,  205, 
222 


Mackellar,   159-160,   161,   164 
Maestricht,  36,  38 
Maria  Theresa,   14,   16,  37,  74 
Minorca,   74,   85-6,    119,    126 
Monckton,     Brigadier     Robert, 
105,  132,  166,  169,  170,  182, 
184,  186,  197,  204,  210,  213, 
218,  225 
Mordaunt,  Sir  John,  77,  78,  92, 

93,  94,  95,  96,  100 
Montcalm,   1,  74,  92,   112,   117, 
121,  122,  128,  129,   141,   145, 
149,    150-156,    160,    161,    164, 
166,  170,  173,  174,  178,  180-1, 
189,  190,  192,  195,  196,   197, 
198,  199,  201,  204,  206,  212, 
213,     214,     216,     219,     220, 
221-2,  224,  228,  241-242 
Montgomery,   145,   189,  219 
Montmorency,  160,  166,  169-172 
178-180  196-7,  234,  235,  237 
Murray,    Brigadier,     132,     169, 
182,    188,   191,  197,  204,  212, 
213,  219,  236 
Murray,  Lord  George,  32,  33 
Murray,  Major  Alexander,  133, 
143 


Navy,  The,  8,  84,   154 
Newcastle,  Duke  of,  75,  91,  137 
Noailles,  Due  de,   16,   18,   19 
Nova  Scotia,  48,  50-51 

Orleans,  Island  of,   159,   162, 

168,   197 
Ostend,  15,  16,  22 
Oswego,  Fort,  75,  152 

Paris,  65-7 

Pelham,  42,  50 

Phipps,  Sir  William,    148,   157 

Pitt,  75,   90-93,    100,    102,    104, 

124,  127,  128,  129,   130,  135. 

138,  139,  140,  153,  180,  216, 

223,  227 


INDEX 


247 


Point  Levi,    160,  166-168,  174, 

196,     197 
Portraits  of  Wolfe,  11 
Pompadour    Madame  de,  64-5, 

74,   149 
Prestonpans,  26 


Quebec,  72,  101,  118,  121,  122, 
123,  124,  125,  130,  135,  140, 
145,    147-8 


Ramesay,  de,  160,  212,  214 
Richmond,  Duke  of,  65-6 
Rickson,  Capt.  William,  46,  48, 

52,  81,  91,  99,  121,  128 
Rorhefort,  92,  93-100 
Robison,  Prof.  John,  207-8 


St.  Lawrence,  Navigation  of, 

157-9 
St.  Vincent.    (See  Jack  Jervis). 
Sackville,  Lord  G.,  42,  47,  104, 

120,    126 
Saunders,  Admiral,  51,  134,  139, 

142,  153,  157,   164,  166,  168, 

169,  173,  174,  179,   181,   182, 

186,  188,  194,  195,  206,  210, 

221 
Saxe   Marshal,  22,  24,  36,    37, 

38 
Scalping,  166,  176,  183 
Scott,  Sir  Walter,  35,  207-8 
Sea  Power,  154  ;    In  Miniature, 

172 
Spain,  War  with,  6-7 
Stair,  Earl  of,  15,  16,  18 
Stobo,  Major,  200 
Stuart,   Charles,    23-4,   26-33 
Swinden,  Rev.  S.  R,  5,  10 


Temple,  Lord,   137 

Ticonderoga,  101,  121,  128,  135, 
152,  155,  168,  190 

Townshend,  Brigadier,  132-4, 
169,  170-2,  180,  182,  184,  185, 
190,  193-4,  197,  203,  204,  210, 
213,  216,  219,  222,  224-6 

Townshend,   Henry,  87 


Vaudreuil,  149,  150,  152,  153, 
155-6,  158,  159,  165,  166, 
167,  168,  175,  184,  189,  190, 
201,  212,  214,  224 

Vergor,  201,  210 

Wade,  General,  22,  26,  27 
Walker,  Sir  Hovenden,  148,  157 
Walpole  Horace,  7,  63,  93,  100, 

133,  222,  223,  225 
Walpole  Sir  R.,  5-6,  42 
Warde,  George,  4,  10,  130-131, 

231 
Washington,  George,  9,  72,  82, 

200,  229 
Westerham,  1-2,  4,  231-2 
William  Henry,  Fort,  117,   152 
Whitmore,   Brigadier,   110,   121 
Wolfe,   Colonel   Edward,    3,    7, 

27,    140 
Wolfe,  Edward,  4,   17,  18,  21  ; 

Death  of,  22-23 
Wolfe,    General  James  :    Rival 
birthplaces,    1  ;     Westerham, 
1-2;    Birth,  2;    Ancestry,  3; 
School-days,  5  :     a  Volunteer 
at  thirteen,  7  ;  Duty  and  love, 
8 ;    First     Commission,     10 ; 
Portraits,    11;      Ensign,    12; 
Flanders,    12-13;    in   Ghent, 
16-17,     22,     24;      Adjutant 
at    sixteen,    17 ;     Dettingen, 
18-21  ;       Lieutenant,       21  ; 
with     Wade     at     Newcastle, 
27  ;   with  Hawley  at  Falkirk, 
29 ;      with     the     Duke     at 
Culloden,    "31-35  ;      Flanders 
Again,   35  ;    Laffeldt,   37-38  ; 
21st  birthday,  38  ;    Desire  to 
Travel,  40,  48  ;    Major  of  the 
20th,    42  ;      Stirling,    42-44  ; 
Glasgow,  44-48  ;    Lieut. -Col., 
48 ;     Banff,    49 ;     Inverness, 
52 ;      Reflections     on     25th 
birthday,   53  ;    Mathematics, 
54  ;    Words  and  Action,  55  ; 
Wolfe     and      the     Common 
Soldier,  60;    In  Ireland,  61- 
63  ;   in  Paris,  63-67  ;    Return 
to  Scotland,   68 ;     March  to 
Dover,  69-70_;    Dover,  75-7  ; 
in  Exeter,  77-8  ;  A  Course  of 


IMS 


INDEX 


Wolfe,  General — (contd.) 

Reading,  87 ;  Irish  Ap- 
pointment, 89  ;  the  _J£oche- 
fort  Expedition,2^- 100  ; 
Louisbourg,  102,  106-121; 
Gulf  of  St.  Lawrence,  123-5  ; 
Colonel  of  the  67th,  100,  127; 
Appointed  to  the  Quebec 
Command,  130;  His  Modesty, 
137;  "two  Anecdotes,  137-9; 
Preparing  for  Quebec,  14U-4  ; 
Quebec,  157-169;  Mont- 
morency,   169-172,    178,    187, 


196-7  ;  Last  Letter  to  his 
Mother,  195  ;  Proclamations 
162-3,  176;  t  Despatch  to 
Pitt,  186,  194,  198,  233-9  ; 
Illness,  190-1  ;  Brigadiers 
.  Cons  ul-tr— 191  ;  thaif — Plan, 
192-4,;  Anse  au  Foulon, 
200-1  ;  Gray's  "  Elegy,"  207- 
8  ;  the  Plains  of  Abraham, 
213-18;  Death,  218;  Charac- 
ter, 228-31. 
Wolfe,  Major  Walter,  33,  60, 
96,    127,   137,   141 


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