Frontenac: The Courtier Governor

By W.J. Eccles

Book Overview

Louis de Buade, Comte de Frontenac (1622-1698), was a towering figure in North American history. Appointed in 1672 as governor general of New France, he was credited with intimidating the Iroquois, defying British colonial military might, and promoting France's imperial expansion to the west. W. J. Eccles masterfully debunks these myths, created in part by Francis Parkman, and reveals Frontenac as an anachronism who sought to maintain his privileged status through corruption, favors at court, and the illicit pursuit of commerce in the West. A deft analysis and reexamination of official administrative and military sources have made Frontenac the classic study of a complex and historically misrepresented governor.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0803267509
• ISBN13: 9780803267503
• Release Date: January 2003
• Publisher: Unp - Nebraska Paperback
• Length: 406 Pages
• Weight: 1.32 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 5.9" x 9.2"

Customer Reviews

A seminal contribution to a colonial era portrait

Frontenac: The Courtier Governor is the absorbing and deftly researched biography of Louis de Buade, Comte de Frontenac (1622-1698), who was appointed governor general of New France in 1672. Though Louis de Buade was popularly credited with making a daunting and ruthless impression on the Iroquois, defying the military power of colonial Britain, and promoting the imperial expansion of France, his biographer W. J. Eccles (Professor of History, University of Toronto) deftly dissects these myths and steadfastly delves into a more sordid picture of the true Frontenac: a man out of his time who strived to hold on to power and status through corruption, favors at court, and the illicit drive for commerce in the West. A closely researched reexamination and interpretation of primary sources, Frontenac is seminal contribution to a colonial era portrait, and a welcome addition to Canadian and North American history and biography collections.

Incredible

This is THE book on the fur trade, Canadian colonial government,the Iroquois Wars, and Frontenac himself. It is not a biography of Frontenac, but an engaging history of French Canada. Highly recommended to me by an expert on the subject.