Wolfe, James 1727-59
English general

Born in Kent, he was the eldest son of General Edward Wolfe (1685-1759). In 1745-46 he served against the Scottish Jacobites at Falkirk and Culloden. In 1758, as colonel, Pitt, the Elder, Chatham gave him the command of a brigade in the expedition against Cape Breton under General Jeffrey Amherst, and he was mainly responsible for the capture of Louisburg (1758). Pitt gave Wolfe command of the expedition for the capture of Quebec, and, as major-general and commanding 9,000 men, Wolfe landed below Quebec in June 1759. The attack on Montcalm's strong position foiled Wolfe until on 13 September he reached the Plains of Abraham by scaling the cliffs at a poorly guarded point. After a short struggle Quebec capitulated, and its fall decided the fate of Canada. Wolfe died in the hour of victory.