... The American Revolution


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1776-1783


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Building a Revolutionary State


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How does a popular uprising transform itself from the disorder of revolution into a legal system that carries out the daily administration required to govern? Americans faced this question during the Revolution as colonial legal structures collapsed under the period’s disorder. Yet by the end of the war, Americans managed to rebuild their courts and legislatures, imbuing such institutions with an authority that was widely respected. This remarkable transformation came about in unexpected ways. Howard Pashman here studies the surprising role played by property redistribution—seizing it from Loyalists and transferring it to supporters of independence—in the reconstruction of legal order during the Revolutionary War. Building a Revolutionary State looks closely at one state, New York, to understand the broader question of how legal structures emerged from an insurgency. By examining law as New Yorkers experienced it in daily life during the war, Pashman reconstructs a world of revolutionary law that prevailed during America’s transition to independence. In doing so, Pashman explores a central paradox of the revolutionary era: aggressive enforcement of partisan property rules actually had stabilizing effects that allowed insurgents to build legal institutions that enjoyed popular support. Tracing the transformation from revolutionary disorder to legal order, Building a New Revolutionary State gives us a radically fresh way to understand the emergence of new states.




Grace Barclay's Diary: 1776-1783


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"PLUNDER, rapine, and violence still go on...It has indeed been at times almost beyond endurance." With her husband away at war, Grace Barclay strives to carry on day-to-day, raising children, caring for a household, and keeping a journal for her husband to read when he gets home. Neighbors are robbed and depredations committed on citizens by British soldiers. One of the most enthralling diaries from America's War of Independence is now available as an affordable, well-formatted book for e-readers and smartphones. From 1875-1883, American colonists fought for independence from their mother country. This is the true story of ordinary citizens during the occupation of Long Island by the British. A wounded British officer is housed in Grace's care against her will. Yet she comes to admire and like the man, and he eventually renounced the war his country has brought to the colonies. She writes of the terrible void and anxiety caused by her husband's absence, and the family members who feel he is fighting for the wrong side. Even her own father cannot forsake his feelings for his homeland of England. All the while, Grace records news of victories and defeats, her admiration for George Washington, and so much more. The death of Nathan Hale, the betrayal of Benedict Arnold, and the execution of Major Andre are all among her jottings. You'll never think about the colonial period in quite the same way after reading GRACE BARCLAY'S DIARY. Be sure to LOOK INSIDE or download a sample.