David Preston, a professor of national security studies at The Citadel, published the book in 2015. It offers a transformative look at one of the British Empire's greatest military disasters. Drawing on years of archival research and personal fieldwork along the expedition’s original route, Preston challenges the traditional view of General Edward Braddock as a mere arrogant blunderer. The book details how the French and their Native American allies used superior diplomacy, discipline, and light-infantry tactics to dismantle a conventional British force in the Pennsylvania wilderness. Preston argues that the battle was a critical turning point that altered the global balance of power and forged a distinct American identity among colonial officers like George Washington. Ultimately, the work serves as a comprehensive study of how this frontier defeat shattered the myth of British invincibility and sowed the seeds of the American Revolution.

New York: Oxford University Press, 2015. 4th printing. 460 pages. Hardcover book with dustjacket. The book is in VERY GOOD condition. The edges are slightly bumped, and the first few pages are wavy. The dustjacket is NEAR FINE, with only a minute chip on the top of the back flap. Briefly inscribed and signed by Preston on the title page.