Reminiscences of a Bungle by One of the Bunglers, And Two Other Northwest Rebellion Diaries

Rod C. Macleod is a University of Alberta historian and the author/editor of books on law enforcement and conflict in the North-West. This volume reprints three eyewitness accounts of the 1885 North-West Resistance, a series of battles where Métis and First Nations groups clashed with Canadian militia and the NWMP amidst tensions regarding governance in the North-West. The volume includes “Reminiscences of a Bungle by One of the Bunglers” by Lewis Redman Ord, “The Diary of Lieutenant R. S. Cassels” by Richard Scougall Cassels, and “Notes on the Suppression of the Northwest Insurrection” by Harold Penryn Rusden. Each author adopts a distinct tone – Ord’s writing is lively and entertaining, Cassels’ journal is detailed-filled, and Rusden provides a matter-of-fact account of soldiering. Complaints about the militia’s leadership and withering remarks about the resistance forces echo throughout the book. Includes an introduction and notes by Macleod as well as an index.