On a rainy November day in 1813, a greatly outnumbered army of British soldiers, supported by a few Canadian militia and 30 Mohawk warriors, stood on the muddy fields of John Crysler’s farm on the banks of the St. Lawrence River facing the largest army assembled by the United States prior to the Civil War. The American aim was to capture Montreal and turn Canada into another state of the Union. Fortunately for Canadian history, the British commander fought an almost perfect battle and the Americans were defeated.

Donald E. Graves is a heritage and travel consultant, and a recognized expert on the War of 1812. Field of Glory is his fifth book on the war and a companion volume to his acclaimed Where Right and Glory Lead: The Battle of Lundy’s Lane, 1814. Graves centres his narrative around a vivid description of the two-and-a-half hours of fighting on the afternoon of November 11. By the time the battle breaks out, the reader has a clear picture of the international context, the composition of both armies, the characters involved, and the nature of life for a soldier 200 years ago. After the musket fire dies away there are descriptions of the fate of the wounded, the scramble to blame the Americans, the remainder of the war, and what has happened to the battlefield. The text is supported by an index, bibliography, extensive notes, and nine appendixes covering the weapons used, orders of battle, and medal recipients.

The staggering wealth of detail might daunt the general reader, but the rewards are numerous. Field of Glory is rich and complex, the subject clarified by Graves’ accessible prose, numerous maps, and pictures of the large cast of main characters. Each chapter begins with words from a military song including early versions of tunes known today as “Waltzing Matilda,” “Streets of Laredo,” and “The Star Spangled Banner.” And there is even humour, as in the description of a Canadian Paul Revere attempting to furiously ride a plodding carthorse ahead of the invading Americans to warn the citizens.

This is history at its best: exciting, entertaining, and readable. Even readers with a passing interest in Canadian history will find this account of an important and overlooked battle hard to put down.