Struggle for North America, 1754-1758

George Yagi Jr. is Adjunct Professor of History at the University of the Pacific, USA.

The American aspect of the Seven Years War is hardly an untold story. But George Yagi succeeds in bringing to this new study a fresh perspective. Rather than focus on the victorious culmination of the struggle, with the capture of Quebec in 1759 and then Montreal in 1760, he looks in detail at the first phase of the war – a period marked by British defeat and setback. Written with great clarity, and based on deep and wide research, Yagi’s account paints a compelling picture of the problems the British faced between 1754 and 1758 – the year when the tide turned and eventual triumph began to seem almost inevitable.

• Introduction 1. The Newcastle Ministry and the Origins of Failure in North America2. Legislative Turmoil: Governors, Assemblies, and the Struggle for Colonial Support3. The Colonial Americans: Necessary but Problematic Allies4. How Important Were the Native Americans?5. A Logistical Problem: Roads, Transportation, and Adequate Provisions6. The Army: An Inadequate, Frightened, and Sickly Force7. The Performance of the Navy: The Effects of Nature and the Death of an AdmiralConclusionBibliographyIndex