Book Review: Emperor of the North by James Raffan

As a Canadian, I feel like I should read and promote the history of my country to others. But the truth is that I often find myself reading the history of other countries, regions, time periods and cultures, all at the expense of reading about my own country and background. 

Recently, I read Emperor of the North (often referred to in the context of "Emperor of the Bay") by James Raffan. The work chronicles the life of Sir George Simpson (1786–1860) who was appointed to revive the flagging fortunes of the Hudson’s Bay Company. For those who don’t know, the Hudson's Bay Company was incorporated by grant of the English Crown and operated as a fur trading company in much of what is now Canada, as well as the western United States. 

At the time Simpson was appoint, the Hudson’s Bay Company was struggling. It was looked in a ruthless conflict with the Northwest Company run out of Montreal. The competition was so ruthless, then men of each of the companies actually fought and killed one another.

The Company was also badly managed, poorly structured and with little in the way of financial controls.  The people running the business were more adventurers than accounts. These men paddled canoes thousands of kilometers, braved brutal weather, wild animals and navigated relations with the indigenous peoples that were often hostile.

It was Simpson’s job to merge the Northwest and Hudson’s Bay company together effectively, restructure the company, assert financial controls, and put the Bay Company back on profitable footing. 

In a way, the history reminded me very much of a modern executive brought into a business by activist shareholders intent on downsizing, restructuring and cutting corporate costs in order to fix a poorly run company.

And, in fact, Simpson was credited with transforming the Bay Company into a highly profitable, massive commercial empire that controlled roughly one-twelfth of the Earth's land surface.

As described in Emperor of the North, Simpson was a "ruthless" businessman. Raffan describes how he was nicknamed the "Little Emperor" due to his iron-fisted management style, which included navigating treacherous territory by canoe to inspect forts personally without advance notice. Not all employees of the Bay Company thought highly of Simpson.

What was surprising to me was how many children these wanders had with women who lived at the posts, whether of indigenous or European background. Simpson also had many children with many women, mostly out of wedlock, and generally taken care of financially but never emotionally. 

These were certainly interesting times and this is a work of history that is well worth reading for anyone interested in Canadian history, the history of the settlement of North America or of European and Indigenous relations, and particularly the Metis people of Canada.

About the author:

James Raffan is a renowned Canadian, explorer, author and geographer recognized as one of Canada's most authoritative voices on the Arctic and canoe culture. Raffan has spent over 50 years researching and travelling through remote regions by canoe, dogsled and icebreaker. He has written several books on the Canadian North. 

Publication date: 2006    Publisher: Abacus  Page Count: 551 

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