What do you think?
Rate this book
The Vanquished
A California politician goes to Mexico to make himself king
The Sonorans hire Henry Crabb to protect them from Apaches. In the lawless days that followed the Mexican-American War, bands of Indians roamed the countryside, preying on the hard-working peasants of northern Mexico. Desperate for help, a farming community offers Crabb land to establish a colony in exchange for a year’s protection from the marauders. The Sonorans do not recognize that Crabb—a Californian with frustrated political ambition—is the greatest threat of all. Although their deal was for peaceful settlement, Crabb’s thoughts turn quickly to conquest. In the tradition of American filibusters like William Walker, Crabb attempts to establish Sonora as an independent country—with him as the dictator. Based on a true story, this is a stunning narrative of conquest, adventure, and the shocking lengths to which ambition can drive men.
The Sonorans hire Henry Crabb to protect them from Apaches. In the lawless days that followed the Mexican-American War, bands of Indians roamed the countryside, preying on the hard-working peasants of northern Mexico. Desperate for help, a farming community offers Crabb land to establish a colony in exchange for a year’s protection from the marauders. The Sonorans do not recognize that Crabb—a Californian with frustrated political ambition—is the greatest threat of all. Although their deal was for peaceful settlement, Crabb’s thoughts turn quickly to conquest. In the tradition of American filibusters like William Walker, Crabb attempts to establish Sonora as an independent country—with him as the dictator. Based on a true story, this is a stunning narrative of conquest, adventure, and the shocking lengths to which ambition can drive men.
- GenresWesterns
215 pages, Kindle Edition
Published December 27, 2011
24 people are currently reading
53 people want to read
About the author
Brian Garfield
106 books78 followersBrian Francis Wynne Garfield was a novelist and screenwriter. He wrote his first published book at the age of eighteen, and gained prominence with 1975 his book Hopscotch, which won the Edgar Award for Best Novel. He is best known for his 1972 novel Death Wish, which was adapted for the 1974 film of the same title, followed by four sequels, and a remake starring Bruce Willis.
His follow-up 1975 sequel to Death Wish, Death Sentence, was very loosely adapted into a film of the same name which was released to theaters in late 2007, though an entirely different storyline, but with the novel's same look on vigilantism. Garfield is also the author of The Thousand-Mile War: World War II in Alaska and the Aleutians, which was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for History. Garfield's latest book, published in 2007, is Meinertzhagen, the biography of controversial British intelligence officer Richard Meinertzhagen.
Brian Garfield was the author of more than 70 books that sold more than 20 million copies worldwide, and 19 of his works were made into films or TV shows. He also served as president of the Western Writers of America and the Mystery Writers of America.
Pseudonyms:
• Bennett Garland
• John Ives
• Drew Mallory
• Frank O'Brian
• Brian Wynne
• Frank Wynne
His follow-up 1975 sequel to Death Wish, Death Sentence, was very loosely adapted into a film of the same name which was released to theaters in late 2007, though an entirely different storyline, but with the novel's same look on vigilantism. Garfield is also the author of The Thousand-Mile War: World War II in Alaska and the Aleutians, which was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for History. Garfield's latest book, published in 2007, is Meinertzhagen, the biography of controversial British intelligence officer Richard Meinertzhagen.
Brian Garfield was the author of more than 70 books that sold more than 20 million copies worldwide, and 19 of his works were made into films or TV shows. He also served as president of the Western Writers of America and the Mystery Writers of America.
Pseudonyms:
• Bennett Garland
• John Ives
• Drew Mallory
• Frank O'Brian
• Brian Wynne
• Frank Wynne
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
November 26, 2023
When I was offered this Fictionalized Historical Western, I jumped at the chance to read about something not commonly written about in westerns. The Wild West had largely been tamed and so men seeking adventure moved South to Mexico, looking to possibly make their fortune preying on the indigenous populations. In some ways Garfield is successful (communicating narrative), but in other ways he is woefully ineffective (getting into his MC's head, telling the story from various points of view.)
Here, the youthful Charley Evans is convinced to travel South with a group of men hired to protect a Mexican town from the marauding hoards of bandits and Indians. The problem lies in the fact that the person coming to rescue has designs on taking over the village himself and the villagers are not too keen on ceding control of their destiny.
There are parts where the storytelling becomes glacial, which for a western is usually the kiss of death. For me, I rolled with it, but in the parts where it becomes slow, the characters need to be explored and Garfield treats his characters like detestable walk-ons to be discarded. I think if the historical vacuum had not been so bereft, I might have not finished the book for the first time in my life. There shouldn't have been such a slow pace in such a short novel.
Here, the youthful Charley Evans is convinced to travel South with a group of men hired to protect a Mexican town from the marauding hoards of bandits and Indians. The problem lies in the fact that the person coming to rescue has designs on taking over the village himself and the villagers are not too keen on ceding control of their destiny.
There are parts where the storytelling becomes glacial, which for a western is usually the kiss of death. For me, I rolled with it, but in the parts where it becomes slow, the characters need to be explored and Garfield treats his characters like detestable walk-ons to be discarded. I think if the historical vacuum had not been so bereft, I might have not finished the book for the first time in my life. There shouldn't have been such a slow pace in such a short novel.
September 29, 2012
I won't say much, as I'm recording the audiobook version of this book. But I thoroughly enjoyed this tale of an obscure and tragic true misadventure in American history. A very good piece of historical fiction.
August 28, 2013
I feel that in Brian Garfield's The Vanquished I've discovered a minor modern classic. Kudos to Les Edgerton for cluing me in.
In the days before the filibuster was a parliamentary maneuver, it was a military campaign of doubtful legitimacy. The Unvanquished is a novelized version of one such that sought to conquer the Mexican State of Sonora and annex it to the U.S. The idea was to finance one set of American mercenaries to come at the state from the west, the other from the east, and for the two and to meet in the middle. As the title implies, it doesn’t quite work out.
The central figure in the book is Charley Evans, a young man of perhaps sixteen who ran away from a drunken stepfather and is drifting, working odd jobs. in 1858, He's swamping saloons in the little Sierra foothill town of, Ironically, Sonora, CA, when we first meet him. The gold rush has kind petered out at this point, and he Charley meets a guy who's recruiting for the arm of the filibuster that's supposed to strike inland from the west. Charley joins because he doesn't have anything particular going on in his life. He doesn't really believe the get-rich-and-powerful promises the recruiter offers, but he doesn't really care to stay where he is, either. So, he travels by land to San Francisco. By boat to San Pedro (SoCal), then joins the march to Sonora.
The march is very hard. They arrive at Caborca only to find themselves betrayed and hoodwinked. What happens afterwards you can read for yourself.
imagesOne of Garfield's great achievements in this book is to put his novel on the shoulders of a man who is given neither to talking nor to self-examination. He has only occasional and shallow interactions with men, and even less meaningful associations with women. Thus, we spend a few hundred pages in a highly verbal medium--the novel--with a character who has almost no verbal life at all. Yet, we're fascinated by his moods, his turns, his choices, trying to infer from almost no clues why he does what he does. Why doesn't he quit, for example? In the end, we don't know, and, probably, neither does he. He's the very essence of Socrates unexamined life, and if you don't believe me by the time you finish the book, don't skip the epilogue. There, I will rest my case on that point.
This is a seriously significant historical novel about a little-known but emblematic piece of American history. Go for it.
In the days before the filibuster was a parliamentary maneuver, it was a military campaign of doubtful legitimacy. The Unvanquished is a novelized version of one such that sought to conquer the Mexican State of Sonora and annex it to the U.S. The idea was to finance one set of American mercenaries to come at the state from the west, the other from the east, and for the two and to meet in the middle. As the title implies, it doesn’t quite work out.
The central figure in the book is Charley Evans, a young man of perhaps sixteen who ran away from a drunken stepfather and is drifting, working odd jobs. in 1858, He's swamping saloons in the little Sierra foothill town of, Ironically, Sonora, CA, when we first meet him. The gold rush has kind petered out at this point, and he Charley meets a guy who's recruiting for the arm of the filibuster that's supposed to strike inland from the west. Charley joins because he doesn't have anything particular going on in his life. He doesn't really believe the get-rich-and-powerful promises the recruiter offers, but he doesn't really care to stay where he is, either. So, he travels by land to San Francisco. By boat to San Pedro (SoCal), then joins the march to Sonora.
The march is very hard. They arrive at Caborca only to find themselves betrayed and hoodwinked. What happens afterwards you can read for yourself.
imagesOne of Garfield's great achievements in this book is to put his novel on the shoulders of a man who is given neither to talking nor to self-examination. He has only occasional and shallow interactions with men, and even less meaningful associations with women. Thus, we spend a few hundred pages in a highly verbal medium--the novel--with a character who has almost no verbal life at all. Yet, we're fascinated by his moods, his turns, his choices, trying to infer from almost no clues why he does what he does. Why doesn't he quit, for example? In the end, we don't know, and, probably, neither does he. He's the very essence of Socrates unexamined life, and if you don't believe me by the time you finish the book, don't skip the epilogue. There, I will rest my case on that point.
This is a seriously significant historical novel about a little-known but emblematic piece of American history. Go for it.
Want to read
May 4, 2022openroadmedia
March 26, 2014
This western story is based on true events that the author describes in the beginning of the book. The story mainly follows a young man by the name of Charlie Evans and his decision on whether to join with the group of men that were going to ride to Arizona and fight. Hired by a man in northern California who wanted to take over that part of the territory in Sonora. Norval Douglas was the man signing up and promising payment on behalf of the man from northern Ca. it took Charlie up to the time they were getting ready to leave to finally decide to go with the group he was being pulled to stay in town by a young women but got lead by older men. The story was a little boring on the ride through the desert to Sonora. When they were about a few days away a group of men got sick so they had to stay back while the rest of the men went into the town. Meanwhile the Mexican government sent troops to the town and when the first time the groups meet the Americans got the better of them that first day. Then there was a stand off until more troops could come from the Mexican side and after about 4 days of fighting thinking more men were going to show up as promised and knowing that they were fooled. Fighting until food and ammo were gone. Taking a vote they decided to surrender all agreed accept two Douglas, being one of them. After the surrender all were killed by Mexican General accept for Charley him being the youngest. He was released in September of 1857 six months after the execution at Caborca. No one saw or heard from him for forty years one day in 1897 in walked Yuma with a burro saying he had prospecting, after that day he was never seen again. This was an interesting story about really a group of mercenaries who were looking for adventure. The author at the end of the book has more records showing that our Government was wanting to put this behind them. A very interesting story. I got this book from net galley.
December 31, 2023
A fictionalized account of a real-life event. In the late 1850s, a group of about 100 American filibusters traveled to Mexico, contracted to help overthrow a corrupt district governor in exhange for land. But when they arrive, they discover the governor has been kicked out without their help and they are told to go home.
They opt not to go home. Violence ensues.
The primary point-of-view character is Charlie Evans, the youngest (15 years old) of the filibusters. Garfield, though, occasionally shifts the point-of-view to other characters, both North American and Mexican. This is a short novel, but Garfield still manages to tell the story well and give various characters three-dimensional personalities.
The action in the book is viceral and often brutal. Of particular note is a scene late in the book when the filibusters are besieged inside a mansion. The Mexicans are occupying a nearby church to keep them under fire. The description of a desperate attempt by the filibusters to attack and clear out the church is one of the most intense battle sequences I've run across in a long time.
They opt not to go home. Violence ensues.
The primary point-of-view character is Charlie Evans, the youngest (15 years old) of the filibusters. Garfield, though, occasionally shifts the point-of-view to other characters, both North American and Mexican. This is a short novel, but Garfield still manages to tell the story well and give various characters three-dimensional personalities.
The action in the book is viceral and often brutal. Of particular note is a scene late in the book when the filibusters are besieged inside a mansion. The Mexicans are occupying a nearby church to keep them under fire. The description of a desperate attempt by the filibusters to attack and clear out the church is one of the most intense battle sequences I've run across in a long time.
August 7, 2019
A BG Western Action Adventure of Historical Events (TV)
BG has penned a western action adventure based on historical information in the old chronicles of Arizona, New Mexico and Senora, Mexico. BG has selected a time period in which one man decides to be the ruler of Senora. The man goes to great lengths to overtake the government of the state of Senora before being stopped by the US and Mexico. The alleged leader disappears into the Mojave Desert. This is an excellent read for the genre.....DEHS
BG has penned a western action adventure based on historical information in the old chronicles of Arizona, New Mexico and Senora, Mexico. BG has selected a time period in which one man decides to be the ruler of Senora. The man goes to great lengths to overtake the government of the state of Senora before being stopped by the US and Mexico. The alleged leader disappears into the Mojave Desert. This is an excellent read for the genre.....DEHS
June 12, 2022
A story of a small piece of the past
This story grabs you from the very beginning. Although it is historical fiction you are quickly drawn into the history of the period. Having heard of William Walker and his adventures in Central America this story got me interested in a period of U.S. - Mexico history that I have heard little of. Now I will have to find out the really story of this ill-fated expedition into Mexico in the 1850's, but that is what a good story should do make you want to find out the real facts.
This story grabs you from the very beginning. Although it is historical fiction you are quickly drawn into the history of the period. Having heard of William Walker and his adventures in Central America this story got me interested in a period of U.S. - Mexico history that I have heard little of. Now I will have to find out the really story of this ill-fated expedition into Mexico in the 1850's, but that is what a good story should do make you want to find out the real facts.
July 2, 2022
In the old west, after the Mexican-American war, life is unsettled. Henry Crabb is hired by
the Sonorans for protection against the Apaches. What the people don't realize is Henry isn't quite who he seems. Something is driving the man, and he may just be too ambitious for all involved. This is a good western that is well written and intriguing.
the Sonorans for protection against the Apaches. What the people don't realize is Henry isn't quite who he seems. Something is driving the man, and he may just be too ambitious for all involved. This is a good western that is well written and intriguing.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews