Madelaine Drohan

Here are 61 books to add to your must-read list this fall New memoirs from Margaret Atwood and Arundhati Roy, buzzy fiction by Mona Awad and more notable reads this season

I’m really pleased @theglobeandmail.com said my book He Did Not Conquer: Benjamin Franklin’s Failure to Annex Canada (@dundurnpress) is a must-read. Trump’s threats to make Canada the 51st state have made it relevant.
#hedidnotconquer #cdaus #cdahist #dundurn

www.theglobeandmail.com/culture/book...

Thanks! I was pretty happy when I saw that too.

Woman standing in a book store, smiling, holding two copies of the book, He Did Not Conquer: Benjamin Franklin’s Failure to Annex Canada. She is wearing a blue raincoat. There is a table piled with books beside her.

Dropped into #Indigo at the Rideau Centre today. No matter how many books you write, it is a good feeling the first time you see copies on display.
#hedidnotconquer @dundurnpress.bsky.social #cdaus #cdahist

Mark Carney’s radical vision for handling Trumpian America Liberalise at home and lead a new free-trade revolution

It will be interesting to see if Mr. Trump repeats his claim that Canada should become part of the US today. Equally interesting will be how Mr. Carney deals with it.
#hedidnotconquer #cdaus #cdahist #dundurnpress

Opinion: This is what the opening move of the U.S.’s attempted annexation of Canada could look like A Trump annexation effort would likely start in the North. It’s time to take the possibility seriously and have a hard conversation about Canada’s maritime Arctic sovereignty

Well worth reading, right to the end.

#Canada #cdaUS #cdahistory #hedidnotconquer

www.theglobeandmail.com/opinion/arti...

Really enjoyed our conversation.

Throughout his life, Benjamin Franklin nursed a not-so-secret desire to annex Canada and make it American.
But he failed, over and over again.
Author Madelaine Drohan has written all about this in her new book, He Did Not Conquer. And she joins us on the podcast to tell all! pod.link/1489560920/e...

"A not-so-secret desire to annex Canada."

Today's book pick from Damn History, a free monthly newsletter for readers/writers of #popularhistory. Congrats to author @mdrohan.bsky.social & @dundurnpress.bsky.social!

Read/subscribe to Damn History: damn-history-16d93f.beehiiv.com/subscribe

This is a photo of a book signing at an indoor pool. The author is sitting at a picnic table, with a pen in her hand. She is talking to a man sitting beside her. Two other swimmers, a man and a woman wearing swimming costumes, are standing to her left, listening.

Having a book signing at a pool is slightly unconventional. But book lovers can be found everywhere!

#hedidnotconquer #cdaus #cdahist #dundurnpress

It does seem to suggest itself as a sequel!

I used AI to put that image together. The Cake Shop printed it on edible icing and put it on the cake.

Woman in pink shirt addresses a group of people at a book launch in the cafe of the Ottawa Art Gallery.

This photo shows the top of a cake. The design on the cake is of a beaver, showing its teeth and looking aggressive. It is standing on top of an angry-looking eagle.

A woman in a pink top is signing a book for a woman who is smiling at her.

A man is selling copies of the book, He Did Not Conquer: Benjamin Franklin's Failure to Annex Canada. A customer has a book in his hand and is about to pay. The banner behind the table reads The Spaniel's Tale Bookstore.

I had a wonderful time at the official launch of He Did Not Conquer: Benjamin Franklin's Failure to Annex Canada. Thank you to everyone who took the time to come. I am happy to report there was no cake left! A good, Canadian crowd!

#HeDidNotConquer #cdaUS #cdaHist #Dundurn

How Ben Franklin and friends came to an invaded Canada, failed to win us over, and fled: an excerpt from a new book They waged war, fell to smallpox and were inclined to blame a prostitute. During Ben Franklin's brief time in Montreal, the occupying Americans didn't make many friends or much headway.

I’m really pleased the Toronto Star ran an excerpt today from my book, He Did Not Conquer: Benjamin Franklin’s Failure to Annex Canada. Long before Donald Trump mused about making Canada the 51st state, Benjamin Franklin wanted to make it the 14th.
#HeDidNotConquer #cdaUS #cdaHist #Dundurn #Torstar

And here is the same incident from an American point of view.

“As this Colony is in some sort detached from the rest, we imagined ourselves in no danger of being involved in these alarming disputes that now prevail over this Continent; the contrary of which, however, I am now sorry to inform you of.”
#HeDidNotConquer #cdaUS #cdaHist #Dundurn #Canada250

The Americans had exported their civil war to Canada, pitting Canadian against Canadian. A Scottish inhabitant of Quebec bemoaned the situation in a letter to his father.

Their leader was Ethan Allen, who had captured Fort Ticonderoga with the Green Mountain Boys. On this occasion, he was acting without army approval. Most of the invaders fled when 300 Montreal citizens, led by 30 British soldiers, marched into view. Allen was captured and imprisoned.

A black and white engraving showing Ethan Allen, a colonel in the American Revolution, conferring with members of the Green Mountain Boys. Allen is pointing to something on the table. The six other men are seated or standing around the table and listening to him. No one is wearing a uniform.

#OTD Sept 25, 1775, citizens of Montreal, including French Canadians and British merchants, repelled an attack by American invaders. The aggressors, who numbered less than 100, included some Canadians who had been promised 15 pence a day plus a share of the booty when they plundered Montreal.

Benjamin Franklin, painted by Joseph Siffrein Duplessis

John Dickinson

Silas Deane

19 SEPTEMBER 1775, PHILADELPHIA: The Second Continental Congress elects the membership of the Secret Committee, the body that will supply the Continental Army with the weapons of war. The nine members include Benjamin Franklin, John Dickinson and Silas Deane.

Yes, the invasion wasn’t very well thought out. Aside from asking for money, Schuyler was asking how many troops he should leave in Canada (assuming they won) and how to govern them. Act first, think later seemed to be the their idea.

This is an image of a bill worth $3 in continental currency. It has an image of an eagle attacking a crane. The crane's bill has pierced the breast of the eagle. The bill has an ornate border and is yellowed with age. It was issued in 1776.

But Canadians refused. They had been left in the lurch when France refused to honour the full value of its paper currency after its 1760 defeat by British and colonial forces.
The Americans were plagued with money woes throughout their ill-fated invasion.
#HeDidNotConquer

This is an image of a $4 bill in continental currency, issued in 1775. It has the image of a boar in a circle. The boar was supposed to be inoffensive when left to itself, but dangerous when provoked. The border of the bill is ornate. The bill is yellowed with age.

The invaders had assumed that Canadians would accept a new paper currency issued by Congress, with its images of harps, wild boars, eagles, and even a beaver gnawing at a tree (the beaver was meant to symbolize the rebels, the tree Britain).

This is an image of $8 in continental currency, issued in 1775. It has an image of a harp in a circle. The strings are meant to represent the 13 colonies, held together by the frame of the harp. The border is ornate. The bill is yellowed with age.

#OTD September 19, 1775, rebel leader Philip Schuyler wrote the Continental Congress begging for money. “Where shall I get gold and silver to pay for necessaries for the Army? Paper, of any kind, not having the least currency in Canada.”

This is an image of a $6 bill in continental currency. It features an image of a beaver gnawing at a tree. It says the bearer is entitled to receive six Spanish milled dollars or the value of that in gold according to the resolutions of the United States Congress. It is dated May 1775 and was printed in Philadelphia. It has an ornate border. The beaver and tree image has the word Perserverando (Perseverence) over the top.

The American invasion of Canada in 1775 ran into financial difficulties within the first month. Some Canadians were willing to sell the invaders food, but only in exchange for cold, hard cash.

#HeDidNotConquer #cdaUS #cdaHist #Dundurn #skystorians

🏆Public voting is now open for the annual CIPS Best Blog Award!

Our judge, @mdrohan.bsky.social, kindly narrowed down the full list of 53 blogs, which were written between June 2024 & May 2025, to a shortlist of 5 blogs!

☑️Voting closes Sept. 26th

Check out the shortlist >>> bit.ly/46jMjVf

🏆Le vote public est désormais ouvert pour le prix annuel du meilleur blog CÉPI !

Notre juge, @mdrohan.bsky.social, a gentiment réduit la liste complète de 53 blogs, rédigés entre juin 2024 et mai 2025, à une liste restreinte de 5 blogs !

☑️Le vote se termine le 26 septembre

>>> bit.ly/4gvil3N

He warned Arnold that plunder or disrespecting the Catholic religion would bring “shame, disgrace, and ruin" to his men. Treating Canadians as friends would lead to “a lasting union and affection.” Arnold would later disregard Washington’s orders.
#HeDidNotConquer #cdahist #cdaUS #canada250

Most of the British regular troops, supported by Canadian and indigenous fighters, were trying to stave off American invaders at St. Jean on the Richelieu River.
Washington still believed the French and indigenous inhabitants of Canada were friendly to the American cause.

A coloured map showing the invasion routes into Canada taken by soldiers in the continental army in 1775. One route goes up Lake Champlain to Montreal. The other goes up the Kennebec River to Quebec City. The map is from the US Army Center of Military History.

#OTD Sept. 14, 1775, George Washington opened a second front in the invasion of Canada, instructing Colonel Benedict Arnold to lead 1,000 men up the Kennebec River to attack Quebec City. The seat of power in the British colony was vulnerable.

About 1,700 Americans laid siege to the fort. It was defended by about 500 British regulars, 120 French Canadians, and their indigenous allies. It took the invaders almost a month to capture the fort and resume their march on Montreal. Winter was fast approaching.

#HeDidNotConquer #cdaUS #cdaHist