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Background to Glory: The Life of George Rogers Clark
George Rogers Clark came out of Virginia to lead a frontier militia during the Revolutionary War. Fighting against the British and the Indians in the Illinois country, he scored impressive victories at Kaskaskia and Vincennes. His eventful life is brought to the fore in Background to Glory by John Bakeless, the author of Daniel Boone: Master of the Wilderness, also a Bison Book.
386 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1957
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
June 18, 2025
Historian John Bakeless brings George Rogers Clark’s life to the forefront in vivid yet at times overly dramatic fashion, detailing the major achievements of the frontier warrior while mindfully placing the blame elsewhere for his fall from grace. From the introduction, Bakeless informs the reader that while some of the more famous frontiersmen such as Simon Kenton and Daniel Boone have had numerous biographies published, George Rogers Clark left a treasure trove of journals and accounts of his experiences and life in comparison to the latter two—and yet has not received his due respect and notoriety for his accomplishments. Considering this, Bakeless may come across as a little too fond and enamored by his subject in which he repeats several times that Clark was undefeated in his efforts during the Revolutionary War. He also suggests that Clark is more remembered for his failures in his later years (blunders and ruin brought on by the greed and machinations of others) and not his own personal decisions and mistakes.
While Bakeless’s writing is in tune with the brash nature of a frontiersmen, he at times summarizes a battle or event in a short and to the point manner, leaving out such interesting points as his upbringing and time spent as a surveyor for the Ohio Company, and eagerly breezing through his early Revolutionary War exploits in order to get to the meat of Vincennes. Altogether, it is made clear from the beginning and halfway through the narrative that Clark’s victory at Vincennes is the defining point of his career and a godsend to the Continental Army’s morale. It was made especially pertinent with the eventual territory amassed from this feat during peace negotiations, with more than a few appropriate chapters detailing the capture, surrender, and significance of the taking of the fort.
The book takes a notable turn after the American Revolution comes to its eventual conclusion, where we see Clark between a rock and a hard place in debt and accused of granting improper amounts of money, services, and land to various soldiers and landowners alike during his wartime efforts in the Western Frontier. It’s here that Bakeless blatantly admonishes Clark of any foul play—clearly showing favoritism and partiality for his subject at hand. The tone moves fortunately from the all-too-positive excitement and praise of the first half to a more direct and factual approach of monetary figures, claims, and encounters of family, friends, and—most significantly—enemies of Clark:
Before him now lay another kind of combat: the struggle with officialdom, bumbledom, red tape, paperwork, confusion, greed, indifference, dishonesty, sheer stupidity, the rankest ingratitude—in short, a government. George Rogers Clark could fight Indians or British. In later life it looked as if he might fight the Spanish, too, a prospect that terrified Castilian officials along the Mississippi. But with this new sort of struggle, he was unqualified to cope. It was not in the least like wilderness battles. Clark had been invincible when he was fighting for his state and nation. When bumbling officials turned their power against him, he was helpless. They swindled him with ease.
Bakeless justifiably places James Wilkinson, the noted “Patriot” general yet spy in the pay of Spain, as the backstabbing villain behind most of the accusations of drunkenness and faults in judgment while Clark was in command—all of this without the least bit of treasonous hesitation and all in an effort to gain glory and standing from both the US and Spanish government. Characteristically, Bakeless brushes off Clark’s lapse in judgement while recklessly pursuing and accepting a commission via the divisive Citizen Genêt in the new French Republic, in order to lead an army against the Spanish for territory near the Mississippi—a clear violation of International law that would put the budding American Republic in an awkward position.
Clark’s slow demise and descent into alcohol clearly ages him compared to that of other famous frontiersmen like Kenton and Boone, and the reader begins to understand why such a Revolutionary War legend and veteran may have been obscured and relatively forgotten as time went on—as these other men held more active experiences in retirement after their brief sojourn for the American Cause. The final years are briefly discussed as the life of Clark comes to an abrupt and anticlimactic end, where at one point fortune seems to favor him upon being granted a helpful pension and long overdue sword of honor. This is only fleeting, as he loses his leg a few years later when falling into his stone fireplace due to either an untimely stroke or more likely drunkenness. Unfortunately, maps and illustrations are not provided.
While Bakeless’s writing is in tune with the brash nature of a frontiersmen, he at times summarizes a battle or event in a short and to the point manner, leaving out such interesting points as his upbringing and time spent as a surveyor for the Ohio Company, and eagerly breezing through his early Revolutionary War exploits in order to get to the meat of Vincennes. Altogether, it is made clear from the beginning and halfway through the narrative that Clark’s victory at Vincennes is the defining point of his career and a godsend to the Continental Army’s morale. It was made especially pertinent with the eventual territory amassed from this feat during peace negotiations, with more than a few appropriate chapters detailing the capture, surrender, and significance of the taking of the fort.
The book takes a notable turn after the American Revolution comes to its eventual conclusion, where we see Clark between a rock and a hard place in debt and accused of granting improper amounts of money, services, and land to various soldiers and landowners alike during his wartime efforts in the Western Frontier. It’s here that Bakeless blatantly admonishes Clark of any foul play—clearly showing favoritism and partiality for his subject at hand. The tone moves fortunately from the all-too-positive excitement and praise of the first half to a more direct and factual approach of monetary figures, claims, and encounters of family, friends, and—most significantly—enemies of Clark:
Before him now lay another kind of combat: the struggle with officialdom, bumbledom, red tape, paperwork, confusion, greed, indifference, dishonesty, sheer stupidity, the rankest ingratitude—in short, a government. George Rogers Clark could fight Indians or British. In later life it looked as if he might fight the Spanish, too, a prospect that terrified Castilian officials along the Mississippi. But with this new sort of struggle, he was unqualified to cope. It was not in the least like wilderness battles. Clark had been invincible when he was fighting for his state and nation. When bumbling officials turned their power against him, he was helpless. They swindled him with ease.
Bakeless justifiably places James Wilkinson, the noted “Patriot” general yet spy in the pay of Spain, as the backstabbing villain behind most of the accusations of drunkenness and faults in judgment while Clark was in command—all of this without the least bit of treasonous hesitation and all in an effort to gain glory and standing from both the US and Spanish government. Characteristically, Bakeless brushes off Clark’s lapse in judgement while recklessly pursuing and accepting a commission via the divisive Citizen Genêt in the new French Republic, in order to lead an army against the Spanish for territory near the Mississippi—a clear violation of International law that would put the budding American Republic in an awkward position.
Clark’s slow demise and descent into alcohol clearly ages him compared to that of other famous frontiersmen like Kenton and Boone, and the reader begins to understand why such a Revolutionary War legend and veteran may have been obscured and relatively forgotten as time went on—as these other men held more active experiences in retirement after their brief sojourn for the American Cause. The final years are briefly discussed as the life of Clark comes to an abrupt and anticlimactic end, where at one point fortune seems to favor him upon being granted a helpful pension and long overdue sword of honor. This is only fleeting, as he loses his leg a few years later when falling into his stone fireplace due to either an untimely stroke or more likely drunkenness. Unfortunately, maps and illustrations are not provided.
November 20, 2023
Was an early America frontier warrior.
December 1, 2009
Wow!This book was amazing. George Rogers Clark was definitely a brilliant war hero. Bakeless spends most of the book describing Clark's war campaigns. Though I'm not usually big on the description of battles, the ingenious tactics of Clark kept me interested the whole way through. It is such a disappointment that Clark wasn't rewarded for his heroism during the Revolutionary War.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews