Mary Beacock Fryer

Celebrated as the saviour of Upper Canada, Major General Sir Isaac Brock was a charismatic leader who won the respect not only of his own troops, but also of the Shawnee chief Tecumseh and even men among his enemy. His motto could well have been ’speak loud and look big.’ Although this attitude earned him a reputation for brashness, it also enabled his success and propelled him into the significant role he would play in the War of 1812.

Francis Simcoe was the eldest son of John Graves Simcoe and Elizabeth Gwillim. his father is celebrated as the first lieutenant governor of Upper Canada; his mother for her Canadian diary and watercolour sketches. Francis was one year old when his family arrived at Newark (Niagara-on-the-Lake) in 1792, and almost six when they returned to England. Letters written by his mother, sisters, and himself reveal his childhood at Eton. At sixteen, he was an ensign in the 27th Inniskilling Regiment....

Plots, shots, flight, pursuit – all are part of this story from the exciting chapter in America’s history when thousands of Loyalists fled to Canada to evade the vengeance of the American Revolutionaries. Twelve-year-old Ned Seaman tells this lively tale of his family’s perilous journey. Escape may be fiction, but Martha and Caleb Seaman and their children actually existed.

These published rolls are intended to provide a fairly comprehensive list of the loyal colonials who joined the Provincial Corps of the British Army, 1775-1784, that were part of the Northern, or Canadian, command during the American Revolution. The name «Provincial corps of the British Army» applied to regiments established for loyal residents of Britain's colonies. To conduct the war against the rebels in the Thirteen colonies, the British government organized military departments at key...

More Battlefields of Canada is a sequel to Mary Beacock Fryers bestselling Battlefields of Canada. Like it's predecessor, this volume covers nearly three hundred years of history and covers the most significant – as well as some of the most comic and bizarre – Canadian battles. Illustrated with sketches, photographs and detailed maps, the individual chapters begin by setting the context of the battle in terms of the larger struggle. The reader is then taken on to the battlefield with an...

Beautifully illustrated, this book looks at the nine women who have been Princesses of Wales. From Joan, the «Fair Maid of Kent,» through the tragic Katharine of Aragon, Henry’s VIII’s first wife, and the tempestuous Caroline of Brunswick, the mistreated wife of George IV, to the present fairy-tale, headline-catching Princess, their stories are told with insight and compassion.

At the beginning of the American Revolution, Justus Sherwood left his young family in order to serve with the King's forces, first with General Burgoyne on his disastrous invasion of New York. He was soon appointed Supervisor of Spies and Prisoner Exchanges, and from his «Loyal Blockhouse» on Lake Champlain he sent out raiding parties and spying missions to harass the rebels in New York and England.

The diaries, letters, and sketches of Elizabeth Simcoe are drawn upon as sources in this portrayal of the energetic and remarkable woman who came to Upper Canada with her husband when he was appointed lieutenant governor.

King's Men is the story of the Loyalist regiments who became the soldier founders of the Province of Ontario, the Loyal Colonials who joined the Provincial Corps of the British Army, Canadian Command, during the American revolution. Mythology on the United Empire Loyalists who founded two Canadian provinces is ingrained. We often envisage loyal families marching out of the victorious United States at the close of the American Revolution. But these myths lead us to overlook a fascinating...

Battlefields of Canada encompasses nearly 300 years of history and features sixteen of the most significant Canadian battles as well as some of the most comic or bizarre. Profusely illustrated with sketches, photographs, and detailed maps, each chapter sets the context of the battle in terms of the struggle of which it was part, and then describes the hour-by-hour events. A brief conclusion to each chapter assesses the consequences for the victors and losers, assigning its place in Canadian...

Beginning Again is a sequel to Escape: Adventures of a Loyalist Family , Mary Beacock Fryer's historical novel for ten to fourteen-year-olds. This new work chronicles the lives of the Seamans as they make a new start in Canada. The main theme is the building, by Caleb, the father, and his sons Cade, Sam and Ned, of a huge timber raft. Along the way they have many other adventures – a brush with the supernatural, a visit by a wealthy uncle, a return to the family home on Long Island by...

Born on the Isle of Mull to an impoverished lair of the clan Maclean, young Allan fought his first battle – for Bonnie Prince Charlie at Culloden – from a sense of deep conviction and family loyalty. He fled into exile when the Stuart cause was lost. In Holland he became a mercenary, and after amnesty was granted for Jacobites, he joined the British army serving in North America during the Seven Years’ War, and again during the American Revolution. He was at Quebec on New Year’s Eve 1775 when...

One of the legendary figures of Ontario history, John Graves Simcoe was the commander of the Queen’s Rangers during the American Revolution. In 1791 he was appointed the first lieutenant-governor of Upper Canada, and upon his arrival in 1792 he founded the town of York (present-day Toronto). John Graves Simcoe completes a trilogy of Simcoe books published by Dundurn Press. Mary Beacock Fryer’s Elizabeth Posthuma Simcoe was first published in 1989, while Our Young Soldier: Lieutenant...