Pioneer Daniel
Boone, said to
possess the eye of an eagle and the height of a mountain, was made famous during
his lifetime with books such as The Adventures of
Col. Daniel Boon. That book recounted battles with Native Americans and
the settlement of Kentucky. Unfortunately, the book appears to have missed a
few things, like Lieutenant Colonel Boone’s correct military rank and
his court-martial.
Supplementing the historical record, the court-martial is
chronicled in a new novel.
The historical novel serves as a reminder that people have dark chapters in
their life and that military justice has a long history in the U.S. After all,
the first Judge Advocate General in the United States Army, William Tudor, was
appointed by the Second Continental Congress on July 29, 1775.
So if you have the time and inclination, it sounds like an
entertaining book. It’s always interesting for me when people successfully take
up their own defense. And when folk heroes have complicated life stories.
It's a little upsetting to see Fess Parker's Davy Crockett standing in for that other light colonel. I'm sure the Crockett stories are free from any similar oversights / exaggeration.
ReplyDeleteFess also played Daniel Boone! And for longer! Google said that image was Daniel Boone so I'm going with them here.
Delete