Book Talk with Dietmar Kuegler: The French & Indian War in Western Pennsylvania

The French and Indian War began in the backwoods of Western Pennsylvania when young George Washington’s British troops and American Indian allies fired on French marines who sallied forth from Fort Duquesne at the “Forks of the Ohio,” where Pittsburgh stands today.

German historian and publisher Dietmar Kuegler will discuss the war that claimed a million lives and set the stage for the American Revolution as part of an in-person lecture on Friday, June 17, beginning at 4 p.m. in the Heinz History Center’s Detre Library & Archives.

His latest book, “The World on Fire,” chronicles the conflict that Winston Churchill famously referred to as “the first First World War.”

For the past four decades, Kuegler has made American history his primary field of study. His deep knowledge of the westward movement and the resistance of American Indians collect in his books and the pages of Germany’s most popular magazine of American History, Verlag fur Amerikanistik. He has traveled extensively in the U.S., visiting battlefields and historical sites from coast to coast. Kuegler’s fascination with the American experience has led him to further his research with hands-on participation in “living history” recreations.

His lecture will touch on these personal experiences and how he and other Europeans have come to view the history of the U.S. and its diverse peoples.

A book signing will follow the lecture.

The event is free for History Center members and included with regular museum admission. You can purchase museum tickets in advance for Friday, June 17.

A book signing will follow the discussion.