Captors and Captives: The 1704 French and Indian Raid on Deerfield

by Evan Haefeli, Kevin M. Sweeney, Kevin Sweeney

Book Overview

On February 29th, 1704, a party of French and Indian raiders descended on the Massachusetts village of Deerfield, killing 50 residents and capturing more than a 100 others. within a framework... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1558494197
• ISBN13: 9781558494190
• Release Date: November 2003
• Publisher: University of Massachusetts Press
• Length: 376 Pages
• Weight: 1.85 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.3" x 6.2" x 9.7"

Customer Reviews

Coherent, balanced, & well documented

This work skillfully profiles the 1704 raid on Deerfield in sections entitled `Creating Communities,' `The Raid,' `Negotiating Empires,' and `Preserving Communities.' The authors examine assailants and victims in depth to enable the reader to decide who (if anyone) was right or wrong. Formative history, the raid itself, the aftermath, and lasting political significance is admirably related. A minor criticism is the lack of a wider discussion of the English/Iroquois alliance against the French (e.g. Gabriel Druillettes and Jean Paul Godefroy's rejected mission for mutual alliance at New Haven in 1651; NY Governor Thomas Dongan's declaration of the Iroquois as English subjects in 1683, etc). The English protected and supplied a confederacy that attacked New France and her native allies (Hurons, Ottawas, Eries, Andastes, Delawares, Neutrals, Tobacco, Illinois, etc) mercilessly from 1609-1701. This was a smart move (as Philbrick points out in `Mayflower' - Mohawks were largely responsible for defeating Metacom - King Philip - 1675-6). The authors don't fully explore the routine, repeated Iroquois assaults involving French families whose members fought at Deerfield (Pierre Boucher and 40 other colonists held off 600 Iroquois at Trois-Rivières in 1653; the previous year the town was devastated by the massacre of it's governor and 21 other habitants. Joseph François Hertel de LaFresnière spent 1661-3 in Iroquois captivity after torture including loss of a thumb and burned limbs). Iroquois assaults on New France make the Deerfield raid look like a walk in the park. On 4 August 1689, for example, 1500 Iroquois attacked Montréal, destroying 56 farms and killing or capturing over a hundred colonists (all with English blessing). The following year Phips unsuccessfully attempted to take Québec with 2000 men and 34 ships. Another minor entertainment disappointment: the lack of a more robust description of English Imperial efforts (including Admiral Sir Hovenden Walker's leadership of the British attack fleet in 1711, and a wider view of the Mathers, whose history in Salem bears attention). These are, however, minor issues. This work is a valuable contribution well worth reading. Highly recommended.

Showing the confrontational and friendly relationships between diverse groups of the times

Any collection strong in Native American or early American history should make Captors And Captives: The 1704 French And Indian Raid On Deerfield a collection acquisition: explores the raid from different viewpoints of the raiders, both French-Canadian and Native American, and the Deerfield villages alike, showing the confrontational and friendly relationships between diverse groups of the times. In using the individual experience to provide history and social and cultural insights, Captors And Captives provides an outstanding social coverage.

The most in depth study of the 1704 raid to date.

This books breaks down to what leads up to the most infamous destruction of a town during any of the four French/Indian wars.Very well researched and layed out to make you part of the history thats happening.A play-by-play of the actual attack with excellent reference charts as back-up info as the saga unfolds.I can't say enough about this book,definitely not dry history in any sense.If your a colonial military history buff or a student of the French and Indian wars than this is the one to read.