Book Talk: Robert Rogers, Ranger: The Rise and Fall of an American Icon,"

Robert Rogers, commander of Rogers’ Rangers during the French and Indian War, was the war’s best-known colonial military hero and, in the ensuing peace, one of the best-known Americans of any description, rivaling Benjamin Franklin in popularity. He was revered in the colonies as an example of the self-made man based on merit, in contrast to the hide-bound, hierarchical British military establishment. Yet this American icon ultimately alienated his peers, fought as a loyalist in the Revolutionary War, ruined himself financially, and died in obscurity in London, estranged from the country of his birth. Rogers is known today for his role in developing the mystique of the modern Ranger, but what explains his meteoric rise and his long, depressing fall? Martin Klotz, a graduate of Yale College and Yale Law School, served as a federal prosecutor, then, in private practice, represented investment professionals in criminal and regulatory investigations of securities trading. He lives in Brooklyn.

Register for the virtual Book Talk at 7 p.m.