The Clan Fraser in Canada: Souvenir of the First Annual GatheringFraser, Alexander
History
The Clan Fraser in Canada: Souvenir of the First Annual Gathering
Fraser, Alexander
Clans -- Canada; Fraser family
At Louisburg, Montmorenci, Ste. Foye and on the Plains of Abraham, the
Frasers distinguished themselves greatly. One of the most eloquent
tributes to their prowess was spoken by the Hon. P. J. O. Chauveau, the
French-Canadian, at the inauguration in 1855 of the Statue of Bellona
sent by Prince Napoleon for the monument erected on the famous
battlefield. The French-Canadian historian Garneau, and other writers in
whose veins courses the blood of the vanquished at Quebec, have borne
generous testimony to their military bearing and good conduct. Garneau
writes of the battle of Carillon, 1758: "It was the right of the trench
works that was longest and most obstinately assailed; in that quarter
the combat was most sanguinary. The British Grenadiers and Highlanders
there persevered in the attack for three hours, without flinching or
breaking rank. The Highlanders above all, under Lord John Murray,
covered themselves with glory. They formed the troops confronting the
Canadians, their light and picturesque costumes distinguishing them from
all other soldiers amid the flames and smoke. The corps lost the half of
its men, and twenty-five of its officers were killed or severely
wounded;" and the genial Le Moine, half Highland and half French, says:
"The Frasers of 1759 and of 1775 readily courted danger or death in that
great duel which was to graft progress and liberty on that loved emblem
of Canada, the pride of its forests--the Maple Tree. If at times one
feels pained at the ferocity which marked the conflict and which won for
Fraser's Highlanders at Quebec, the name _Les Sauvages d'Ecosse_,[1] one
feels relieved, seeing that the meeting was inevitable, that the sturdy
sons of Caledonia, in Levis' heroic Grenadiers, did find a foe worthy
of their steel. Scotchmen, on the field of Ste. Foye, in deadly
encounter with France's impetuous warriors, doubtless acknowledged that
the latter were not unworthy descendants of those whom they had helped
to rout England's soldiery on the fields of Brangé, Crevant and
Verneuil."
[Footnote 1: It is but fair to state that Fraser's Highlanders showed no
more ferocity than the usages of war justified. There were barbarous
atrocities committed, undoubtedly, but for these, the Highlanders were
not responsible.--A.F.]
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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