Encyclopaedia Britannica


Book Description

This eleventh edition was developed during the encyclopaedia's transition from a British to an American publication. Some of its articles were written by the best-known scholars of the time and it is considered to be a landmark encyclopaedia for scholarship and literary style.




The French Army in the American War of Independence


Book Description

The French forces that fought during the American War of Independence (1775-1783) were, to a large extent, a product of the disasters of the Seven Years' War (1756-1763). During that war the fleet had been swept off the oceans, and nearly all colonies had been lost. Sweeping reforms were demanded. From the end of 1762 a series of royal orders dictated by common sense and good planning were signed by the king, and a vast reorganisation was started, ensuring that the army that fought in the American War presented a very different, altogether more formidable threat to her foes.







The American Revolution


Book Description

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER “An elegant synthesis done by the leading scholar in the field, which nicely integrates the work on the American Revolution over the last three decades but never loses contact with the older, classic questions that we have been arguing about for over two hundred years.”—Joseph J. Ellis, author of Founding Brothers A magnificent account of the revolution in arms and consciousness that gave birth to the American republic. When Abraham Lincoln sought to define the significance of the United States, he naturally looked back to the American Revolution. He knew that the Revolution not only had legally created the United States, but also had produced all of the great hopes and values of the American people. Our noblest ideals and aspirations-our commitments to freedom, constitutionalism, the well-being of ordinary people, and equality-came out of the Revolutionary era. Lincoln saw as well that the Revolution had convinced Americans that they were a special people with a special destiny to lead the world toward liberty. The Revolution, in short, gave birth to whatever sense of nationhood and national purpose Americans have had. No doubt the story is a dramatic one: Thirteen insignificant colonies three thousand miles from the centers of Western civilization fought off British rule to become, in fewer than three decades, a huge, sprawling, rambunctious republic of nearly four million citizens. But the history of the American Revolution, like the history of the nation as a whole, ought not to be viewed simply as a story of right and wrong from which moral lessons are to be drawn. It is a complicated and at times ironic story that needs to be explained and understood, not blindly celebrated or condemned. How did this great revolution come about? What was its character? What were its consequences? These are the questions this short history seeks to answer. That it succeeds in such a profound and enthralling way is a tribute to Gordon Wood’s mastery of his subject, and of the historian’s craft.




The American Revolution


Book Description

A lavishly illustrated essay collection that looks through a global lens at the American Revolution and re-positions it as the real 1st world war “Every American should read this marvelous book.” —Douglas Brinkley, author of Rightful Heritage: Franklin D. Roosevelt and the Land of America From acts of resistance like the Boston Tea Party to the "shot heard 'round the world," the American Revolutionary War stands as a symbol of freedom and democracy the world over for many people. But contrary to popular opinion, this was not just a simple battle for independence in which the American colonists waged a "David versus Goliath" fight to overthrow their British rulers. In over a dozen incisive pieces from leading historians, the American struggle for liberty and independence re-emerges instead as a part of larger skirmishes between Britain and Europe’s global superpowers—Spain, France, and the Dutch Republic. Amid these ongoing conflicts, Britain's focus was often pulled away from the war in America as it fought to preserve its more lucrative colonial interests in the Caribbean and India. With fascinating sidebars throughout and over 110 full-color images featuring military portraiture, historical documents, plus campaign and territorial maps, this fuller picture of one of the first global struggles for power offers a completely new understanding of the American Revolution.




The Day the American Revolution Began


Book Description

At 4 AM on April 19, 1775, several companies of light infantry from the British Army marched into Lexington, Massachusetts and confronted 77 colonists drawn up on the village green. British orders were to disarm the local rebels, but things went terribly wrong. By the end of the day, American colonists had routed the British and chased them back to the safety of Boston. Thus began the Revolution. In The Day the American Revolution Began, William H. Hallahan outlines, hour by hour, how this extraordinary day unfolded. Drawing on diaries, letters, and memoirs, Hallahan tells the unforgettable story of how twenty-four hours decided the fate of two nations. William H. Hallahan is the award-winning author of history books, mystery novels and occult fiction. His works include The Dead of Winter, The Ross Forgery and Misfire. He lives in New Jersey. “A fascinating story worthy of the attention of everyone wanting to learn more about the stirring early days of the American Revolution ... Highly recommended.” — James Kirby Martin, author of Benedict Arnold, Revolutionary Hero




Scars of Independence


Book Description

Tory hunting -- Britain's dilemma -- Rubicon -- Plundering protectors -- Violated bodies -- Slaughterhouses -- Black holes -- Skiver them! -- Town-destroyer -- Americanizing the war -- Man for man -- Returning losers




I Survived the American Revolution, 1776 (I Survived #15)


Book Description

Bestselling author Lauren Tarshis tackles the American Revolution in this latest installment of the groundbreaking, New York Times bestselling I Survived series. Bestselling author Lauren Tarshis tackles the American Revolution in this latest installment of the groundbreaking, New York Times bestselling I Survived series. British soldiers were everywhere. There was no escape. Nathaniel Fox never imagined he'd find himself in the middle of a blood-soaked battlefield, fighting for his life. He was only eleven years old! He'd barely paid attention to the troubles between America and England. How could he, while being worked to the bone by his cruel uncle, Uriah Storch? But when his uncle's rage forces him to flee the only home he knows, Nate is suddenly propelled toward a thrilling and dangerous journey into the heart of the Revolutionary War. He finds himself in New York City on the brink of what will be the biggest battle yet.




War & Society in the American Revolution


Book Description

The War for Independence touched virtually every American. It promised liberty, the opportunity for a better life, and the excitement of the battlefield. It also brought disappointment, misery, and mourning. In this collection of original essays that highlight the variety and richness of recent research, eleven leading historians investigate the diverse experiences of Americans from North to South, from coast to backcountry, from white townsfolk to African American slaves. Revolutionary ideology may have inspired some soldiers in the Continental Army, but as the case studies in this volume document, the men of New England also weighed family commitments, economic concerns, and local politics when deciding whether or not to enlist in the militia. Slaves joined the army believing the war would bring them personal freedom while women served as auxiliaries or as camp followers. Those left behind defended the homefront--unless the war took their homes and made them refugees. On the frontier, politically astute Native Americans weighed the relative advantages to themselves before deciding to support the patriots or the Crown. By bringing together the perspectives of soldiers, women, African Americans, and American Indians, War and Society in the American Revolution gives readers a fuller sense of the meaning of this historical moment. At the same time, these essays show that instead of unifying Americans, the war actually exacerbated social divisions, leaving unresolved the inequalities and tensions that would continue to trouble the new nation.




March to Independence


Book Description

The American Revolutionary War began when Massachusetts militiamen and British troops clashed at Lexington and Concord on April 19, 1775. Two months later, a much larger engagement occurred at Bunker Hill in Boston. The conflict then expanded into a continent-wide war for independence from Great Britain. Or so we are taught. A closer look at events in the South in the eighteen months following Lexington and Concord tells different story. The practice of teaching the Revolutionary War as one generalized conflict between the American colonies and Great Britain assumes the South's support for the Revolutionary War was a foregone conclusion. However, once shots were fired, it was not certain that the southern colonies would support the independence movement. What is clear is that both the fledgling American republic and the British knew that the southern colonies were critical to any successful prosecution of the war by either side. In March to Independence: The American Revolution in the Southern Colonies, 1775-1776, historian Michael Cecere, consulting primary source documents, examines how Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia ended up supporting the colonies to the north, while East Florida remained within the British sphere. South Carolina, Georgia, and East Florida all retained their royal governors through the summer of 1775, and no military engagements occurred in any of the southern colonies in the six months following the battles in Massachusetts. The situation changed significantly in the fall, however, with armed clashes in Virginia and South Carolina; by early 1776 the war had spread to all of the southern colonies except East Florida. Although their march to independence did not follow the exact route as the colonies to the north, events in the South pulled the southern colonists in the same direction, culminating with a united Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776. This book explores the crucial events in the southern colonies that led all but East Florida to support the American cause.