Watch The Battle for North America | Part Two
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 5 ก.ค. 2024
- On 13 September 1759, on the Plains of Abraham near the city of Quebec, an outnumbered British army fought a battle that would change the history of the world: the Battle of Quebec. For the past three years, Britain and France were locked in a bitter struggle for dominance in the Seven Years War: the world’s first truly global conflict that involved every great European power and spanned five continents, leading some historians to call it World War Zero. One of the most famous theatres of this war was in North America.
Today we take it for granted that Americans speak English, not French, but it could have been very different if events in 1759 had had the alternate outcome. Deep in the heart of French territory in the Americas was Quebec, the nucleus of that nation’s power in the New World. From there the French had inflicted wave after wave of defeats on the British in the years preceding 1759. Yet that year the British decided to launch a bold operation into the heart of New France to quell this threat. It sent a fleet of nearly 200 ships, carry 10,000 men, under the command of General James Wolfe, on a treacherous mission through unchartered territory with the task of taking Quebec.
It was a bold strategy; just reaching New France’s capital seemed an impossible task. It thus required Britain to use its industrial strength, naval supremacy and a scientific approach to fight a campaign unlike any that had gone before. In time this new method of warfare would enable Britain to forge the largest empire in history, with London at its very centre. Yet its future success all depended on victory at Quebec.
In ‘The Battle for North America’, historian Dan Snow explains why the Battle of Quebec deserves to be on your list of history’s most decisive battles. He sets sail up the St Lawrence River, retracing the route taken by the British fleet, and discovers how this pivotal battle shaped the future of the British Empire and North America.
Part 2 of 2.
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Dan Snow has recreated the best of the history docs the BBC used to put out on primetime slots.
This is one of the best documentaries I've ever seen on the Seven Years' War! Great job! :)
The transitions, between maps and landscapes, is really helpful. You can really get a mental image of everything he's talking about, the battle. 👍
I'm baffled this channel doesn't have more subs, the stories are brilliantly presented and told and covers history you never get to hear about in school. Great stuff all around!
It’s insane how great this is you really get a sense of scale of the conflict as well as learning useful tidbits ( that are especially useful for an upcoming exam )
Good stuff!
It's ironic that the 2%tax which made the colonies revolt against the Crown, was put there to help pay for a war that Lieutenant Colonel G Washington started when he was a soldier in the British Army. Crazy world.
Yep all because they didn't want to pay tax to there king if we had actually bothered to try we would of done in 1776 what we did in 1812 and burnt there capitol to the ground just because we could
@@welshman8954 Yes I know,but that's not how we do things and the only reason the White House got torched was because of the U.S.burning the government buildings etc in Toronto.
@@welshman8954 I do take your point though.👍
@@welshman8954 Where have you gone?
Then, immediately following the Revolution, the first thing Congress did was levy a tax on the production of whiskey which resulted in the Whiskey Rebellion. This is what permanently soured the relationship between the US government and " small scale independent distillers"(moonshiners).
how this doesn't have 30 million views is beyond me
This is a fabulous, much needed documentary. Canadian history as presented in schools is dull and boring, filled with acts and such that bring about revolutionary changes with only the rare flashes of excitement but the Plains of Abraham stands out as a major apex in North American history. In Canadian history, prior to the battle, the French were viewed as the good guys fending off fiendish British along the Mohawk valley, encroaching in Hudson's Bay, Frontenac answering Sir William Phipps with the mouths of his canon. Then suddenly the British become the good guys and the French become a mere problem of what to do with them and how do we deal with America. Canada has become one of the great nations of the world in the shadow of the US and I love it. I love the french fact. They have so enriched this country culturally and to our credit, they thrive and make Canada one of the great French language countries of the world. The French did not go away but remain, in a way, undefeated
Having come back from Quebec City today this does a fantastic job of fleshing out the story and landscape
Thanks Dan, excellent, as usual. Added to the long list of your great stuff.
Dan Snow is my new favorite historian, been binging all his stuff here lately. Keep up the good work!
Fascinating. Didn't know anything about this war, it isn't tought in British schools.
it was taught in Scottish schools, certainly in the 1940s/50s
It isn't really taught in Canadian schools any more either.
Woke history teaches, mustn't offend our French friends 🤣
Woke history is more concerned with climate change and world equality than any nation's military history...
@@gray3553 Well, also mustn’t be reminded that the King went mad and lost the colonies. Not much point having a founding myth about the jewel of your empire which you’ve lost!
What a great piece of work. Thank you very much.
Thank you for this video. I was given the bare bones of this at school, but this has given me so much detailed information. Again thank you!
When you came unstuck back then ,you really were in big shit those British soldiers very brave indeed thousands of miles from home 🇬🇧
Part 1 and part2 watched, enjoyed this massively.
Was in Quebec recently amazingly impressed by city
This was very well done
thanks!
Very well done....thank you!
The band played the Grenadiers March the men tuck off in a mad and wild charge. Anyone who’s heard the grenadiers march will understand 🇬🇧✝️
Excellent docu. Taught me something. Thank you very much.
Awesome documentary!
Bravo,
I remember well when you and your father first did a series on the campaign.
If you travel east along the St. Lawrence in wintertime you wonder how any living thing can survive there. No wonder so many British soldiers died.
Documentary are getting better! No doubt!
Excellent doco! 👍🏽
Well put together documentary.
The whole time Dan's speaking I keep hearing "and the ferocity of the French taunting...". Thanks Monty Python.
Thoroughly enjoyed this, how about a documentary on the Battle Of Minden? A great example of the power of close range British musketry.
Every north American should watch this.
Another great documentary by Dan Snow.
An amazing account of the failed attack on Quebec city at first until the attack at the plains of Abraham.
incredible how the french could let themselves get taken by surprise like that, you'd think they would have sentries all along that river
The US colonies didn't rebel because they no longer "feared" Canada. One of the first things they did in the war was try and enlist it as the 14th colony. They took Montreal and then failed to take Quebec. Washington wrote an appeal to Canada to throw off the British yoke, 1,000 Canadiens enlisted in the Continental army and served through the war, though most chose loyalty to Britain.
The taxes angered the American colonies because thousands of New Englanders had fought for the Crown in this war, hundreds were casualties. Their reward? Tax laws that they had no say in passing. When they asked for representation in Parliament, they were told "no."
Wish you’d do a video on the war of 1812
Thanks!
Wow didn't have a clue about this cheers dan
Enjoyed that very much! Would like to see more Canadian content.
Interesting 🧐😊🧡
Bard of Wolfe's Army
James Thompson, Gentleman Volunteer, 1733-1830, well worth a read, deals with a number of significant battles, before ,during and after the Battle for Quebec, plus a good account ot the life of the Highland soldier in Wolfes army.As a youngster, I was taught that Wolfe had fought at Culloden and despised his Highland adversaries. Thompson puts that thought to bed. Wolfe according to Thompson admired his Highlanders.
31:55
Do you know what country's law, culture and political systems are even MORE British than the Americans?
Canada's.
Dan, great presentation. Please do an episode on our burning of Washington during the war on 1912!
yes I know... 1912 was a typo.
@@jamesewanchook2276 You do know you can edit right?
That aerial shot Quebec Fort looked a lot like Tilbury Fort from the air.
Mr. Snow, you are as good a history teller as your father was an election presenter. 👍👍
Fascinating History, I have an newspaper article of my 3x Great Grandmother tell a story of her Great Grandfather who fought under James Wolfe at the Battle of Quebec. I dont have a name unfortunately. She was born in Ireland.This mentions British soldiers, what would it cover? If there is any list of men who was at that battle , I would love to get my hands on it.. Can anyone advise me on it? !
I'm sure my 5x Great Granduncle James Wolfe appreciated him.
Did they really teach British children about this in school 🇨🇦
"Quebec was allowed to keep its language and culture."
Objection.
What is funny, in Pennsylvania, the English common law and colonial laws are still valid if they have not been replaced. Even to a point of passing a law to say so.
🇬🇧🇬🇧🇬🇧
@@mickharrison9004 make England Great again 🏴
It's almost November 11th "Remembrance Day"..... How sad it is Canadians do not "Remember" the events of 1775-1776 in Remembrance Day ceremonies. Lost to the annals of "His-Story" are these Veterans. We were a nation then and the Victory in those years affirmed it. I choose to Remember... I am very proud to say my French family was there somewhere in the melee. We nearly went into the American melting pot. Merci famille du Gamache se souvenir, merci d'apres Canada
How ironic, the man who started a global conflict ended up kicking us out of our American colonies. The whole of North American from east to west would have been part of the Empire. Still Canada stood loyal. Great documentary.
Yet, at that time just about any British officer would have done the same... France and the British were heading for war anyway, sooner or later...
phew! found part two.. 🙂
1:13 they were vaping back then already! haha
What about mah boi Amherst?
@ about 6 mins, you might not leave any tracks using moccasins but you'll almost certainly break you're ankles!! 😉
9.07 filming location in 'catch me if you can' where Tom Hanks gets arrested for printing fake money.
we need more battles in america...for histories sake. and making docs on them would be cool too lol
Yes I find it strange that all we hear about is the romans and ww1 and 2 but nothing about America. I mean it must be well documented what happened
NO mention of the ROYAL MARINES !
Yeah well said they were the top squads back then 🇬🇧
I hope there's no poison ivy in that shrubbery he was grabbing to climb that hill.
No mention of the Fraser Highlanders, that scaled the cliffs, nor of Wolfe’s dismissive attitude towards their possible deaths. ( James Wolfe's assertion in the Battle of the Plains of Abraham that Scottish soldiers should be sent into battle because "they are hardy, intrepid, accustomed to a rough country, and no great mischief if they fall." )
Or how they were the ones who went back to save the grenadiers after the debacle at the Montmorrency falls.
Bard of Wolfe's Army
James Thompson, Gentleman Volunteer, 1733-1830, Douglas, nothing could be further from the truth, read it and get the first hand version, not the one we were taught in school.
You just made a History Hit sale, Dan. Great video.
The British artillary bombing of Quebec almost sounds like Dresden...
Boff it is the French army which lost on the plains. Not French Canadians. French Canadians won a place in the British Empire. 😉
Notice how the Wolfe dying painting represents Christ being taken down the cross. No, there was not a single native on the scene when he died. As for the Traité de Paris, signred in 1763, since this was a world war fought on many theatres, the negociations could have gone in any directions. France could have decided to keep Canada and relinquish the west Indies, or its African colonies.
People who knew nothing about war preferred the French commander Montcalm because of his accent!
Good Grief..the city had LESS than 8,000 inhabitants.
Yes, my logo on the left of this comment is a snapshot of a NATO map from the Cold War. One of the few times when attendance made a difference.
India was considered more important to the empire than the 13 colonies at the time of the revolution. Much of the Americas wealth was yet to be realized while the East India Trading Company was making bank. The French and English were fighting in many theatres after the fall of Quebec. The Red line was very thin.
I think the west indies was where the money was at the time and most important to the british
9:46 What town?
The burned out husk with every standing structure compromised and easily half the population dead?
That town?
Quebec had substantial fortifications, they should have just dug in.
The problem was supply. And the fact the Brits would have had a great bombardment position on those heights
Montcalm sure made a gamble in sallying out. There is also the fact that Bouguinville and his cavalry was
Merely hours away from Québec when the British attacked. Had he been there, the outcome might have been different too.
You have earned 5 out of 5 jalapenos!
I would have loved a mention of the Battle of Ste-Foy in the spring of 1760 when the French troops, militia and indigenous allies had the brits running and surrounded Québec city, waiting to see who would get reinforcements first. While the battle on the plains of abraham is often depicted as the final straw of British conquest of North-America, Ste-Foy the following year marked the very last battle of the conflict in the area of Québec. Only the arrival of British ships down the St-Laurent once the ice melted did secure the British victory.
The odds were very much in favour of the British given the precarious situation of the French in Europe. They simply couldn't afford to spend reinforcements for Canada. Nonetheless, the French, Canadians and indigenous did hold for quite some time despite being gravely outnumbered and having to defend a much larger territory. None of this would have been possible if not for the ability of the French to adapt to the guerilla warfare of their indigenous allies. The battle of Monongahela of 1755 is a great example.
Not sure why he seems to emphasise the defeat, even revel in it to a point. The UK had lots of defeats, they also had a huge empire to defend. Fighting multiple wars all around the world at the same time... what do you expect to happen when the enemy is the same people as you.
It could easily be described as a civil war just not in the UK itself.
All told it didn't really harm the empire, it still had Canada, areas of west and south of north America.
In words from a press clipping of the time, we can forget all the trouble they caused and concentrate on dealing with the problems in Europe (approx).
A warm barrel grows in diameter and loses velocity/range. Might want to take a Science class along with all that History.
Enjoyed this series however , the film depiction of the artillery is way off base .
This war. Is the war that taught Americans how to fight the British Empire.
And they couldn't hit the grenadiers because they were so fucking flat and were coming at them sideways
Please remember that Washington was able to defeat the British with the significant assistance of the French
The problem I have with this documentary is that you don't see the french point of view. Montcalm was not a good general because he could not use his troops properly. The french army was mainly composed of militia that were used to fight indian style war or guerrila. Still, Montcalm used them in an like regulars with the result that we know. Montcalm had also ordered Lévis to reinforce Montréal, leaving Québec more vulnerable. When you talk about a conflict an only take the point of view of the victor, you are biased
Shooting eyes closed lol
Try shooting a flintlock with your eyes open. You'll get one round off then be blinded by the burning bits of gunpowder as they blast you in the face,
You left the part out that there was a French traitor who showed the English troops the path up
Is that really true, or was it a myth or excuse to explain the French speaker's defeat?
I understand there were indigenous peoples existing on the continent. Have you heard of such a thing?
Pretty well covered in pt 1
The Red Face in the shot with the native Indigenous warrior did not age well in 2022, otherwise superb work in this episode.
not sure which shot you're talking about, but the ones at the beginning are haudenosaunee (iroquois) individuals wearing traditional war paint
Well Damn I had not heard or read about this battle. Although I know more about World War II and the American Civil war. This was so interesting to see a break down of the battle. According to DNA tests I am 58% British. Although I am 100% American. I love this channel showing about so much history of England.
The greatest achievement of the 1759 combat is that both commanders died as a result of the combat. Any modern leaders want to live up to that bravery? Maybe go and work in retail during COVID? Maybe go out training with the military in Feburuary in the Northern hemisphere? Possibly assisting in a hospital I.C.U. or emergency room? Hello leaders, political or business. Your economy, our lives!
Good point, well put.
neither commanders wanted to lose
if i remember correctly
1. Montcalm was shot in the back as he was attempting to relocate through the ruins
2. Wolfe was sniped by a guerilla, unsure if it was native american or French militia
Big Dan did emphasize that Wolfe was a battlefield commander, so that point comparing the risks he took and asked others to take to the actions of modern leaders and the amount they personally risk in the choices of their leadership is a fair one!
Thank god America came along and fixed everything. Can’t imagine back before. The world was guideless. If only we had another Reagan
Tell that to the Vietnamese!
America caused that war, and 100s more since. Just as war hungry today IMO.
just amazing how incompetent the french seem to have been during this entire siege. they deserved to lose.
Well we won Canada so
And about two centuries later, the colony that had rebelled against them and beat them for their independence would rescue them (and the world) in their hour of need.
Welcome to north America limey!
fun fact: the British sackings of countryside and bombardment of the city is the main reason why the British are often viewed negatively to this day on the French side of the story AKA local side and has been the main ingredient to fuel the independence cause of Quebec from British Canada ever since the French surrender
the locals never really accepted nor agreed with the surrender and one could actually argue that Quebec is technically still the only province in Canada to be "occupied" so to speak as it never signed the treaty of the confederation but was forced into it anyway
all of these events have caused numerous protests, revolts and even a few open rebellions against the British over all the years since<
now yall know why the Canadian government has always had a hard time dealing with Quebec: historical resentment
You’re correct up to a point. French Canadiens in Quebec also know that if the British hadn’t been successful in defending Canada from American attempts during the Revolutionary and 1812 Wars to invade and conqueror it they’d be speaking English and wouldn’t have preserved their own language and laws. There was also no mass uprising in Quebec during the Napoleonic Wars due to them, grudgingly perhaps, preferring a British King who preserved their customs to a radical and revolutionary French Emperor .
@@neilbone9490 The proof in the pudding was the countless thousands of Quebecois who subsequently went to New England for opportunity all became English speaking.
It's a bit more complex than that, but it sure plays into it. There was also the unapologetic hatred of French canadians by nunerous British officials post-conquest, the unapologetic hatred of French Canadians by numerous Canadian officials post-Confederacy (including John A. McDonald who referred to French Canadians as dogs) as well as the fact that up until the 60s, most of the wealthy industry owners in Québec were anglophones while the majority of the poor workforce was the Francophone population. Although the class aspect of it was central to the unrest of the time and the 'révolution tranquille', we only remember the language and cultural aspect of it today, which is a shame.
That's why they need a referendum where everyone in Canada gets a vote. We would happily let them go. They've been an albatross around our necks since 1867.
@@minuteman4199 You are a complete clown just by saying this, you know nothing of that province and it shows
Let me educate you; they had two referendums for it, one almost passed (49% in favor vs 51% against leaving Canada) and the separatist movement died off since then
Today Quebec does provide a fairly decent share to the economy of Canada and is one of the 4 major arteries of the country's economy whether people like you like it or not
As someone with a career in the corporate world now, i still think Quebec needs Canada and vice-versa because whatever Quebec gives to Canada in terms of resources, trade and R&D, Canada gives to Quebec in terms of stability and support (well almost, it rather really is complicated just like anything else involving Canadian politics)
The term 'superpower' is entirely anachronistic in the 18thC. The loss of the American colonies was really only 'catastrophic' for the Ancien Regime in France, and led directly to decades of violence in Europe. At the time the West Indies were considered more valuable economically to Britain. The American oligarchs thought they could avoid taxation, but ironically having lost the protection of the Royal Navy on the high seas they merely replaced the modest taxation of Britain with the substantial extortions of Muslim pirates.
Incredible that the British "rigorous, scientific approach to warfare" is essentially the perfection of the brilliant tactic of lining men up in a field and taking turns butchering each other with what amounts to a thousand-man shotgun. Stiff upper lip, lads.
The proof of his assertion is in the results.
I really appreciate HH, for many of the same reasons as others have pointed out. But having Andre Bourbeau speak about the advantages the Indigenous people had when it comes to surviving on their lands was a poor judgement call. As a historian, you must understand that how academia (especially in the Arts) has historically spoken about Indigenous people is problematic. Interviewing a white person about Indigenous people makes them, and their way of life, seem antiquated, dead, and equivalent to a historical artifact. It continues the trend of 'othering' Indigenous people. While Andre did praise the capacity of Indigenous people to survive, I'm confident you could have found an Indigenous person in Quebec who would have been happy to speak about their history.
But which tribe would you use? The First Nations who occupy Quebec are Abenaki, Algonquin, Atikamekw, Cree, Haudenosaunee, Huron-Wendat, Innu, Wolastoqiyik (Maliseet), Mi'kmaq and Naskapi. The reserve with the largest population belongs to the Mohawks of Kahnawà:ke. This list of tribes may provide a clue why the First Nations lost most of their land to the European North Americans...
@@ronclark9724 I hear your mentality often amongst other settlers. The notion that Indigenous peoples losing their lands is their own fault is problematic for two reasons. First, that is literally victim blaming. Is it right that Ukraine is losing its lands to Russia? Second, the British and French relied on Indigenous peoples and often made treaties with Indigenous peoples to share the land and cooperate with each other. Unfortunately, the British, especially, felt little reason to respect these treaties and did everything they could to destroy the cultures of Indigenous peoples in Canada.
Learn some actual history before you speak.
Quebec wss anuthing but wilferness at that time .
It was closer to southern France.
That is why they called it
New France .
It had many towns and villages
Up and down the coast
DML
And to think many Arcadians eventually moved to Louisiana. I wonder who Louisiana is named after? /sarcasm
We almost had German as the national language too.
It is ironic that hundreds of years later this great city of Quebec is not English it is still...French!
It's Canadian
And it's not Ironic. As Dan said in this docu, the French language and customs were allowed to continue after the city was captured. Nothing ironic there at all.
Most people tend to think of Canada as an English speaking country. It is bilingual. 1/3rd of the population speaks French and it is a leader among French speaking countries
and while the Americans seceded, Quebec remained part of the British Empire. One of the offenses that led to the American revolution was the Quebec Act, that protected Quebec's language, legal system and religion. This led to the partition of North America into two countries.
The French weren't charging, they were trying to surrender as fast as possible.
What a stupid comment.
@@vincentlefebvre9255 What a stupid reply.
Also, France GAVE America its independence. I'm not sure why Dan is appealing to American propaganda by saying they alone beat the British - it's laughable.
He didn’t.
Judging by the British maps of Quebec, my conclusion would be that the French were defeated because they couldn't speak English language!
A lot of research has been done about British marksmanship in the past decade. The bit where they shoot at targets is laughable at best. Try actually learning how to use a musket, and practice shooting, like Brit soldiers did, rather than pushing mythology.