Over the last 35 years, Aboriginal history has emerged as one of the fastest growing and most dynamic fields in Canadian history. Rather than simply casting Aboriginal peoples as either bloodthirsty savages or as noble, romantic comrades-in-arms, historians have begun to recognize that they have been active agents in shaping the development of Canada rather than simply supporting actors or passive victims of history. The chapters in this volume highlight their important contributions as longstanding allies of the Crown from the colonial-era through to the 20th century. If European “contact” was an ongoing process rather than an “event,” demanding a mutual exchange of ideas, technologies and military tactics, so too were evolving alliances between Aboriginal peoples and the Crown. The process of mutual learning and engagement continues today and will continue into the future. – From the Introduction
P. Whitney Lackenbauer and Craig Mantle (eds), Aboriginal Peoples and the Canadian Military: Historical Perspectives (Canadian Defence Academy Press, 2007).
