The True Face of Sir Isaac Brock by Guy St. Denis


I just finished reading, “The True Face of Sir Isaac Brock”, by Guy St. Denis published by University of Calgary Press, 2018. It was a really enjoyable read. As it turns out, the book was much more than I thought it would be. It is not so much a biography of Sir Isaac Brock, although it is that, it is a book that is part art history, part historiographical analysis, part military history, and part detective story.

Guy St. Denis has thoroughly researched and impeccably analyzed his subject, never accepting anything at face value and always digging deeper into every situation. He questions and verifies every “fact” that was presented to him in the course of his research. This was the detective story that Guy St. Denis unfolds in the underlying narrative of his book. I have to say that I read this book as if it were a detective page turner anxious to find out what happens next.

In this time of fake news and “alternative facts” otherwise known as bald-faced lies, this book is a refreshing and honest conversation on how to arrive at the truth. Guy St. Denis demonstrates how history should be done, researched and written by historians.

We can all learn from this book, not to accept everything, or in fact anything that is presented to us as “truth” without subjecting it to the same kind of scrutiny and investigation that Guy St. Denis so amply demonstrates in this book. We need to follow Guy St. Denis’ example and question, question, question until we arrive at a version of the truth that is as close to what actually happened as possible.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Joseph Joachim Ulric Voyer and Marie Louise Alice Bedard

Image
I have written about my parents and I have written about my father's parents. It would only be reasonable and fair to write about my mother's parents.  There is so much to write about that I will actually have to consider what I want to include and what I want to leave out. Let's start with the basic facts. Joseph Joachim Ulric Voyer was born on July 5, 1892 in Quebec City. According to the 1891 Census of Canada for 1891 , the year before Ulric was born, his father and mother, Napoleon Voyer and Marie Rose Delina Dion were living in St. Roch at number 542. It is interesting to note that the Bedard family was living next door at 541. Ulric was the fifth of seven children. He had two brothers and two sisters who were born before him. My grandfather was a polymath if there ever was one. He was a composer of operas, a playwright, a professor of piano, church organist, court clerk, shorthand instructor, publicity manager for J.B. Renaud (a commercial company started
Read more

Francois Parent (1774 - 1851)

I ended the last post on François Voyer (1774 - 1851) with the death of Madeleine Vandal on July 9, 1815. At that time François was a resident of L'Ancienne Lorette and as a 'cultivateur' or farmer, he had a farm in the seigneury of Gaudarville. In just over a year after the death of Madeleine Vandal, François married Judith Bertrand on July 30, 1816. They were married in Quebec City  at the Notre-Dame-de-Quebec. In the marriage record François and Judith's residence was in Quebec City. In the document that I will discuss in a little while François' residence is stated as L'Ancienne Lorette. I cannot explain this discrepancy. At the time of their marriage Judith parents were deceased. Her father, Jean Bertrand was a 'journalier' or 'labourer'. and Judith's mother was Félicité Trépanier. Judith Bertrand was born on September 27, 1779 in Neuville. Judith was 37 years old when she married François Voyer. Considering the time period, 37 was o
Read more

The Parent Family in New France

 Étienne Parent (1802 - 1874) was descended from Pierre Parent and Jeanne Badeau. Pierre Parent arrived in New France around 1650. He had been contracted as an indentured worker to spend four years working on the Jesuit's seigneury. After his term of work he would be granted land to work. In 1651 the Jesuits ceded land to Pierre Parent and Jacques Badeau, his future father-in-law.  In 1654 Pierre married Jeanne Badeau. His father-in-law, Jacques Badeau died in 1658. In 1660 the Jesuits ceded the quarry to Pierre Parent. This quarry was located on the land that had belonged to his father-in-laws. By 1670 Pierre Parent was delivering limestone from his quarry to building sites in Quebec City to construct houses. In 1675 Pierre Parent supplied the the door jambs and corner joints for the construction of the Seminary in Quebec. Pierre Parent was well on his way to becoming a wealthy man. Jeanne Badeau was Pierre Parent's wife and partner. She actively participated in the family bus
Read more