Collection

War broke out between Britain and France in North America in 1754. In 1759 the British embarked on the decisive campaign of what was later known as the Seven Years War: the capture of Québec City. Commanding the French defenders of the city was the governor, the Marquis de Vaudreuil, although the key military commander was the Marquis de Montcalm. The British forces under James Wolfe captured the city after a battle on the Plains of Abraham where both Montcalm and Wolfe received mortal wounds. The loss of the French empire in North America to the British was officially recognized in 1763 by the Treaty of Paris.

Born in Scotland, James Murray (1722-1794) held the post of military governor of Québec from 1760 to 1764 and was appointed as its first civilian governor in 1764. An advocate of a policy of conciliation towards the French Canadians, Murray was quite unpopular with the English merchants. He served as governor until 1768 and later served as the lieutenant-governor (1774) and governor (1779) of the island of Minorca. In 1783 he was made a general.

(Source: Guide to Archival Resources at McGill University: Private Papers at McGill University. McGill University Archives. 1985. Vol. 3, p. 189.)