Washington's General: Nathanael Greene and The Triumph of the American Revolution, by Terry Golway
A John Macae book, Henry Holt and Company, 2005
315 pages plus Notes, Bibliography and Index. 1 illustrations, 2 maps
Library: 973.33092 GOL
Description
He was an unlikely warrior, even in an army of inexperienced officers and citizen soldiers. The Quaker with a pronounced limp, Nathanael Greene surprised fellow patriots by rising quickly to become George Washington's favorite soldier and heir apparent. Other generals could claim a deeper knowledge of strategy and tactics, but none possessed his foresight and ingenuity or his organizational skills.
Unjustly humiliated for the loss of New York early in the war, Greene demonstrated the ability to turn defeat into victory in countless engagements. Yet it wasn't until he replaced Horatio Gates, the failed commander of the southern army, and formulated an unconventional campaign employing hit-and-run guerilla tactics that his true military genius became apparent.
Gates-a traditional general of the old school, had spent the two years since Saratoga basking in the glow of that famous victory. In the meantime, he had stumbled into a series of catastrophes until finally his entire army-1,500 Continentals and 2,000 militia patriots-was annihilated at Camden South Carolina, in the summer of 1780. Benedict Arnold's stunning treason followed a month later to deliver a near-fatal blow to the rebel cause.
Greene knew that the lessons learned under WAshington on the battlefields of New Jersey and Pennsylvania would not apply in the South. Instead of risking conventional battles with Cornwallis' superior army, Greene kept his smaller field forces of Continentals and militia, calvary and lightly outfitted iunfantry in constant motion.
His was a partisan campaign, and its success depended on local support. His unorthodox strategy was to win by surprise attacks and hasty retreats, which cut the enemy's supply lines until the British leaders tired of hunger and bloody sacrifices.
In one of the most audacious decisions of the war, Greene divided his army, separating DAniel Morgan's nimble troops from his own by 120 miles, with Cornwallis' army between them. The gamble paid off handsomely: the victory that followed not only stunned the British, it gave heart to southern patriots. Conscious of doubt among many southerners about the REvolution, Greene believed civilians would be more inclined to join the Continentals if the cause did not seem unwinnable. Greene's unconventional campaign sealed the bargain, and the way was prepared for the final victory at Yorktown less than a year later.
Terry Golway's bold new book, drawn from field documents, letters, diaries and other sources, takes full account of the scope of Nathanael Greene's remarkable accomplishments, returning the forgotten patriot to his proper place in American history.
Table of Contents
1. The Quaker General
2. A Downright Democracy
3. The Making of a Rebel
4. An Uncommon Degree of Zeal
5. The Dark Part of Night
6. Victory or Death
7. The Cries of the People
8. Low Intrigue
9. "It Wounds My Feelings"
10. "O, This WAr!"
11. "The Prospect is Dismal"
12. Victory
13. Forging a Nation
14. Unfinished Business
Notes
Bibliography
Acknowledgments
Index
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A book is added every Monday and Thursday. On other days, news reports, if any, regarding any aspect of the war will be shared.
