Rise to Greatness, Volume 1: Colony (1000-1867): The History of Canada From the Vikings to the Present

by Conrad Black

Masterful, ambitious, and groundbreaking, this is a major new history of our country by one of our most respected thinkers and historians--a book every Canadian should own.


From the acclaimed biographer and historian Conrad Black comes the definitive history of Canada--a revealing, groundbreaking account of the people and events that shaped a nation.
     The first of three volumes, spanning from the year 1000 to 1867, and beginning with Canada's first inhabitants and the early explorers, this masterful history challenges our perception of our history and Canada's role in the world, taking on sweeping themes and vividly recounting the story of Canada's development from colony to dominion to country.
     Black persuasively reveals that while many would argue that Canada was perhaps never predestined for greatness, the opposite is in fact the emergence of a magnificent country, against all odds, was a remarkable achievement. Brilliantly conceived, this major new reexamination of our country's history is a riveting tour de force by one of the best writers writing today.

Genres: History

384 pages, Paperback

Published March 7, 2017

About the author

Conrad Black is a Canadian-born British peer, and former publisher of the London Daily Telegraph, The Spectator, the Chicago Sun-Times, the Jerusalem Post, and founder of Canada's National Post.

He is a columnist and regular contributor to several publications, including National Review Online, The New Criterion, The National Interest, American Greatness, the New York Sun, and the National Post.

As an acclaimed author and biographer, Lord Black has published comprehensive histories of both Canada and the United States, as well as authoritative biographies of Maurice Duplessis, and presidents Franklin D. Roosevelt, Richard Nixon, and Donald Trump.

Lord Black is also a television and radio commentator and a sporadic participant in the current affairs programming of CNN, Fox News, CTV, CBC, BBC, and Radio Canada.

Reviews

[David Ball · Rating 3 out of 5]

I grew up admiring Conrad Black. Back in the 1980s he was a successful Canadian businessman who had made it big on a world stage, in an industry I had a lot of respect for, newspapers. And for a Canadian, he was charismatic, both opinionated and well spoken. Since then it has been downhill for Black: he was convicted of multiple counts of fraud, imprisoned, and lost much of his empire; and is now mostly famous for his public support of Donald Trump. His name may be mud, but I bought his book thinking my knowledge of Canadian history is dismal, and if anyone could make it interesting, it ought to be Conrad Black.

I was wrong. Canadian history is inherently boring, mostly sensible people trying to organize themselves in sensible ways. And Black’s writing style is orotund; sentences go nowhere, bogged down by five-dollar words, which doubled my hardship. But on the plus side, unlike many historians who try to hide their voice behind the “facts”, Black is not afraid to let his views infiltrate the narrative. So a theme emerges which, rightly or wrongly, stuck with me: Canada was very fortunate to have its British roots.

Not not only did Britain send over a steady stream of respectable governors who were more interested in the rule of law than personal profit; but in people like Guy Carelton, they provided leaders who had the good sense to recognize the importance of the French Canadian settlers, and to acknowledge and respect their distinct culture (something many of us in English speaking Canada unquestioningly disregard 200 years later). The threat of British military strength also kept the Americans at bay during the peak years of Manifest Destiny. Britain’s sense of good government also provided the Canadian colonies a path to self government. It may have taken thirty years to accomplish this goal, but statehood was eventually achieved with very little bloodshed.

Ironically it was partnerships of English and French speaking politicians that drove the process. From Robert Baldwin and Louis Hippolytus LaFontaine who started the things off in the 1840s to John A. McDonald and George-Etienne Cartier, who saw it through to the creation of the British North America Act in 1867. According to Black this notion of respect for other cultures dates back to Champlain, who went to great lengths to honour the First Nation’s people he encountered, and explains the country’s more enlightened approach to slavery. I was particularly affected by the excerpts of a letter from an escaped slave, Joseph Taper, who settled in St. Catherine’s in 1839. Writing to his former owner:

“I now take this opportunity to inform you that I am in a land of liberty, in good health…. Since I have been in the Queens dominion, I have been well-contented… man is as God intended he should be. That is, all are born free and equal… We have good schools, and all the coloured population [are] supplied with schools. My boy Edward who will be six years next January, is now reading, and I intend keeping him at school until he becomes a good scholar… I have enjoyed more pleasure within one month here than in all my life in the land of bondage… My wife and self are sitting by a good comfortable fire, happy, knowing that there are none to molest [us] or make [us] afraid. God save Queen Victoria”.

I’m sure there are people out there who will question the legitimacy of the letter, but at a time when the Black Lives Matter movement has launched a campaign to remove Queen Victoria’s name from a local school, the irony is not lost on me. So credit goes to Black for writing a version of Canada’s history which kept me reading until the end. I’m sure it is flawed and one-sided, but it is a useful basis on which to further my education.

[Dave McCracken · Rating 5 out of 5]

Conrad Black masterfully presents Canada's embryonic story in Volume 1. Conrad's storytelling captures the eras diverse factors and influences of world politic that affected the many individuals, policies and countries which played their part in Canada's wild beginnings. The relationships between the Indians and various explorers, settlers and soldiers is an incredible tale of friendship, manipulation, deceit and war. Revealed to me in this volume is the intricate relationships and reasoning for Upper & Lower Canada to unify in the wake of US Revolutionary War 1776, War of 1812 and the US Civil War. Conrad manages to describe the characters for separation & unity detailing their biographies in short sharpe exposures that makes delightful reading.
Having read numerous selective period accounts on various aspects of Canadian History, I find Conrad Black's ability to amass in unity this diverse story spanning events in North America and around the world extraordinary. Looking forward to reading volumes 2 & 3.

[Joanna Thiessen · Rating 1 out of 5]

I didn’t finish this book. I may not ever finish this book. It’s lazy and convoluted. While I understand the intention behind his coverage of Indigenous peoples, it comes off as judgemental and arrogant. His coverage of atrocities committed by white people are admiring while the same acts committed by Indigenous peoples appear to be proofs of their savagery. Black even alludes to Indigenous folks being inferior because they were susceptible to illnesses brought over by Europeans? Tone determines how it would be taken and this book is most definitely written through the white lens. I was willing to read this book anyway because if I’m being honest, I didn’t expect much better from an old white guy. However, when pursuing reviews of this book to see if I were the only one who had a problem with his condescending attitude I found his response in the National Post to legitimate criticism of his insensitive coverage of Indigenous peoples. He came across as holier than thou and brushed off every criticism by threatening to sue for libel.

Terrible book. Don’t waste your time.

[Kevin · Rating 4 out of 5]

8/10. 🇨🇦 For those of us who didn’t pay attention in high school social studies. The first of three volumes of Black’s history of Canada. Volume one starts at the discovery of the new world and then tells the story of how a large and sparsely populated nation was eventually unified from it’s imperial and colonial beginnings, despite the drastic cultural, linguistic, and political differences between it’s citizens, the ancestors of the colonialists from very opposite European nations. #risetogreatness #canada🇨🇦 #reads

[Evan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Book 34 of 50 for 2021. First book of a three volume trilogy of Canadian history. I loved it on many levels. In addition to straight up filling gaps in my knowledge of Canadian history, it’s true value was in the sharing of a perspective of history and the United States from a great Canadian thinker and writer and historian.

[Thomas · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very boring in content and unstructured. The only redemption this book has is it's content which is comprehensive which is appreciated.