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The Scratch of a Pen: 1763 and the Transformation of North America Audiobook
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(3.01) - 153 listener ratings
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Publisher Description
In February 1763, Britain, Spain, and France signed the Treaty of Paris, ending the French and Indian War. In this one document, more American territory changed hands than in any treaty before or since. As the great historian Francis Parkman wrote, "half a continent...changed hands at the scratch of a pen."
As Colin Calloway reveals in this superb history, the Treaty set in motion a cascade of unexpected consequences. Indians and Europeans, settlers and frontiersmen, all struggled to adapt to new boundaries, new alignments, and new relationships. Britain now possessed a vast American empire stretching from Canada to the Florida Keys, yet the crushing costs of maintaining it would push its colonies toward rebellion. White settlers, free to pour into the West, clashed as never before with Indian tribes struggling to defend their way of life. In the Northwest, Pontiac's War brought racial conflict to its bitterest level so far. Whole ethnic groups migrated, sometimes across the continent: it was 1763 that saw many exiled settlers from Acadia in French Canada move again to Louisiana, where they would become Cajuns. Calloway unfurls this panoramic canvas with vibrant narrative skill, peopling his tale with memorable characters such as William Johnson, the Irish baronet who moved between Indian campfires and British barracks; Pontiac, the charismatic Ottawa chieftain whose warriors, for a time, chased the Europeans from Indian country; and James Murray, Britain's first governor in Quebec, who fought to protect the religious rights of his French Catholic subjects.
Most Americans know the significance of the Declaration of Independence or the Emancipation Proclamation, but not the Treaty of Paris. Yet 1763 was a year that shaped our history just as decisively as 1776 or 1862. This captivating book shows why.
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"Calloway provides an excellent and brief description of the state of British North America in the crucial year of 1763, right at the end of the Seven Years War. This was a required text for a course I took on the American Revolution in the Spring of 2010 at Temple University - Ambler. "
— Mark (4 out of 5 stars)
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“Forget the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence: it was the Treaty of Paris, signed in 1763 at the close of the French and Indian War, that set the stage for the birth of America.”
— Atlantic Monthly -
“A colonial revolution, Indian wars for independence, the cultural survival of a defeated empire…all here brought into sharp focus by Calloway’s illuminating account.”
— Boston Globe -
“Dartmouth historian Calloway…tells a spellbinding tale of a year in American history…This first-rate cultural history…reveals that the events of 1763 changed not only the political geography of a nation but also its cultural geography, as various groups moved from one part of the country to another.”
— Publisher’s Weekly (starred review) -
“Well crafted, scholarly, and stimulating, this book offers fresh perspectives on a signpost year.”
— American Historical Review
The Scratch of a Pen Listener Reviews
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Michele Price, 11/19/2021
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" Seems to be a great, consice book on the time around and during the French and Indian War. Focuses on the feelings generated during the era that led to the American Revolution. "
— Dave, 11/12/2013 -
" A fantastic historical look at North American before and after the signing of the Declaration. I great book for any revolution and founding fathers lover out there. "
— Chris, 10/12/2013 -
" I mean, it's a textbook for my history class. Though, it WAS much better than most history books I've had used in classes. "
— Ems, 10/6/2013 -
" Calloway provides an excellent and brief description of the state of British North America in the crucial year of 1763, right at the end of the Seven Years War. This was a required text for a course I took on the American Revolution in the Spring of 2010 at Temple University - Ambler. "
— Mark, 8/4/2013 -
" Loved this history book. It gives you a view of the Native Americans that you did not know existed. "
— Amber, 1/18/2013 -
" You wouldn't think that one year in history could have much affect on the years that followed it. But this book makes very clear how critical 1763 was to North America, even more than 200 years later. Great book. "
— Dan, 9/9/2012 -
" A Chaotic attempt to (yet again) paint America as an evil fascist tyranny--even before there was an America. "
— M0rfeus, 8/20/2012 -
" I like reading about history, but this was the most boring, nonsensically organized book I've ever read. "
— Sarah, 3/1/2012 -
" Thank god he gave us the questions from each chapter and I just had to skim. I can't imagine reading this whole book word for word. "
— Chelsea, 8/14/2011 -
" Worked with Dr. Calloway this past July at Dartmouth College. Wasn't into it as I would have liked, my fault not the author's. Plenty of interesting information. "
— Mark, 5/1/2011 -
" Interesting book, but it's bogged down in minutiae. "
— Steve, 4/17/2011 -
" I like reading about history, but this was the most boring, nonsensically organized book I've ever read. "
— Hemlock, 4/6/2011 -
" A fantastic historical look at North American before and after the signing of the Declaration. I great book for any revolution and founding fathers lover out there. "
— Chris, 2/18/2011 -
" A Chaotic attempt to (yet again) paint America as an evil fascist tyranny--even before there was an America. "
— M0rfeus, 11/3/2010 -
" You wouldn't think that one year in history could have much affect on the years that followed it. But this book makes very clear how critical 1763 was to North America, even more than 200 years later. Great book. "
— Dan, 1/12/2010 -
" Readable social history of how the end of the Seven Years War affected the different peoples in America. A good look at what Empire does to folks. "
— Phillip, 1/6/2010 -
" Interesting book, but it's bogged down in minutiae. "
— Steve, 8/2/2007 -
" Seems to be a great, consice book on the time around and during the French and Indian War. Focuses on the feelings generated during the era that led to the American Revolution. "
— Dave, 4/19/2007
About Colin G. Calloway
Colin G. Calloway is a professor of history and Samson Occom Professor of Native American Studies at Dartmouth College. His many books on early American history include New Worlds for All: Indians, Europeans, and the Remaking of Early America and The American Revolution in Indian Country. His most recent work, One Vast Winter Count: The Native American West Before Lewis and Clark, received the Ray Allen Billington Prize, the Merle Curti Award, and many other prizes, and was named one of Publishers Weekly’s Best Books of the Year.
About Simon Vance
Simon Vance (a.k.a. Robert Whitfield) is an award-winning actor and narrator. He has earned more than fifty Earphones Awards and won the prestigious Audie Award for best narration thirteen times. He was named Booklist’s very first Voice of Choice in 2008 and has been named an AudioFile Golden Voice as well as an AudioFile Best Voice of 2009. He has narrated more than eight hundred audiobooks over almost thirty years, beginning when he was a radio newsreader for the BBC in London. He is also an actor who has appeared on both stage and television.