Tag Archives: American Revolution

09.10.25
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JOHN HANCOCK/WILLARD RANDALL

If you thought you knew John Hancock you are in for a great awakening!

Willard Sterne Randall’s John Hancock is most timely during this 250th year of the American Revolution. Hancock is so much more than his signature of great renown. Randall places Hancock’s importance to the American quest for democracy , the Revolution and the Continental Congresses along side Dr. Joseph Warren, Samuel Adams, John Adams and Paul Revere.

The book is far beyond a biography of Hancock but a through study of all of the critical events that led to the American Revolution. Hancock the rebel, the revolutionary, adroit politician, and incredibly successful businessman, among the wealthiest in the colony.

The son of a poor preacher sent to live with his wealthy uncle who prepared him to take over the family enterprise. He became the first governor of Massachusetts and throughout his life was an extraprdinary philanthropist during a period in which the Colonists had few resources due to British occupancy, trade restrictions, embargoes, and the war itself. The colony’s wealthiest person found food and fuel for those who had none.

A wonderful eye openming addition to your reading list of the American Revolution.

04.12.25
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LEXINGTON AND CONCORD…250TH READING PREPARATION!

American independence and our nations history are of premium interest across all media. I would like to share with you three recommendations for enlightened reading of the events leading to the War of Independence and proceedings of the First and Second Congresses which lead to the Declaration of Independence of July 4th, 1776.

Nathaniel Philbrick’s Bunker Hill is a critical and remarkably readable history of events in the Massachusetts Bay Colony leading up to the ” Shot Heard Round The World” at Lexington and Concord on April 19th 1775. Though titled Bunker Hill the narrative goes far beyond that historic event putting the relationship between the Colonists and the British Parliament that lead to the war’s beginning in detailed perspective. The reader comes to an understanding of the City of Boston under Seige and how the colonist mindset there kindled a revolutionary spirit that ultimately encompassed all of the thirteen original Colonies.

A second remarkable read during this historic anniversary period is Our Lives, Our Fortunes & Our Sacred Honor, The Forging of American Independence 1774-1776, by Richard B. Beeman. While there is some historical overlap with Philbrick’s Bunker Hill, the additional perspective upon the familiar fixtures of the revolutionary movement is very worthwhile. Different takes on Samuel Adams, John Adams, John Hancock, Thomas Paine, John Dickinson, Thomas Jefferson and George Washington are found in each book. Beeman’s focus however is not on the military events of the day but more upon the First and Second Congresses in Philadelphia in 1775 and 1776 and the struggles between the patriots and the loyalists. Remember, these two conventions met while the early battles of the revolution were being fought with extremely mixed results. Beeman focuses upon the struggles for consensus that finally led to the wording of the declaration on July 2, 1776, and announced two days later on July 4th.

Who wrote the Declaration of Independence? Certainly not Jefferson as the sole author. Beeman is emphatic: The final product-Congress’s Declaration of Independence, not Jefferson’s-was in fact superior-more concise, more constrained, and, perhaps, even more elegant than the original.

Another very worthwhile read on events leading up to the Revolution is Rick Atkinson’s The British are Coming. ( see gordonsgoodreads). Atkinson has a new volume of this trilogy The Fate of the Day which will be released i later this month.

Enjoy this deep dive into American Revolutionary History.

01.03.19
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IN THE HURRICANE’S EYE/ NATHANIEL PHILBRICK

Nathaniel Philbrick’s IN THE HURRICANE’S EYE  paints a definitive picture of George Washington’s 1780 victory at Yorktown, Virginia. It was the battle coordinated with the French Navy that almost didn’t occur but inexorably led to final victory in America’s Revolution.

Philbrick is masterful in combing through the myriad of detail and negotiation that finally coordinated the French naval forces and the American Continental Army to rout the British at Yorktown. Ironically, It was a naval victory without a single American ship. IN THE HURRICANE’S EYE also details the relatively unknown story of the brilliant efforts of Continental Army General Nathaniel Greene battling Lord Cornwallis to an exhausting draw in the hills of North Carolina.

Just as in his book Mayflower,  Philbrick is the master story-teller , combining an enormous amount of historical data into a cohesive and human narrative. His insight into the mind of George Washington is brilliant.  IN THE HURRICANE’S EYE is a most worthy addition to your American Revolution reading list.  A battle waged two hundred thirty-nine years ago and still so much to learn. Philbrick makes it a great tale. Narrative non-fiction at its best.

Other volumes by Philbrick concerning the American  Revolution:  Bunker Hill: A City, a Siege, a Revolution and Valiant Ambition: George Washington, Benedict Arnold and the Fate of the American Revolution.

06.05.13
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BUNKER HILL- A FIGHT FOR LIBERTY BECOMES A WAR FOR INDEPENDENCE

Nathaniel Philbrick’s new non-fiction work  BUNKER HILL, A CITY, A SIEGE, A REVOLUTION is a rewarding  history of the early stages of the American Revolution including the battles of Lexington and Concord,  Breeds Hill/Bunker Hill and the siege and eventual evacuation of Boston by the  British.  Philbrick, as was his style in his previous books Mayflower and  The Last Stand,  Custer, Sitting Bull and the Battle of Little Big Horn ( see review at gordonsgoodreads.com ) , is focused. His  historical research is precise  and the development of the characters of the  historical figures adds new dimension to this period of American History.

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Set in 1775 and 1776, Philbrick explores the passions and the conflicts between Patriots , Loyalists and the multitude of  views  of those suspended in the middle. Many Patriots remained loyal to King George but simultaneously reviled against the British Parliament, clearly defining the difference between a call for “Liberty”  and the pursuit of  “Independence.”   In the ensuing American Revolutionary War, liberty and independence became synonymous.

Readers will meet a key revolutionary who stands unique among the better-known  Sam Adams , John Adams, John Hancock and Paul Revere.  Thirty three-year-old physician Joseph Warren cobbled together a group of independent thinking community leaders  and often unmanageable  farmers turned militiamen  into what would become the Continental Army.  Warren was  a self-styled political and military leader.  If it were not for Warren’s  death at the Battle of Bunker Hill,  Philbrick  speculates that relatively obscure George Washington may never have been called  upon to assume  leadership  of the Patriot  forces, which  of course ultimately lead to Washington becoming the nation’s first president. Thus , Bunker Hill gains even greater historical importance.

The Battle of Bunker Hill  ( June 17, 1775) , which came two  months after  Concord and Lexington  ( April 19, 1775  “The Shot Heard Round the World” ) , is considered the actual beginning of the Revolutionary War.  Concord and Lexington are referred to as ” skirmishes.”  British loses were so great at Bunker Hill, despite a technical victory, General Howe concluded that the British had in fact lost the battle for Boston, and was later forced to withdraw to Halifax, Nova Scotia following  a winter long siege of the city .

I greatly appreciate well researched non-fiction  like BUNKER HILL that focuses on specific events and the individuals  that played a vital role in the larger story.   Another example is David McCullough’s  biography  John Adams , critical to understanding  the American Revolution, the  drafting of the Declaration  of Independence and the Constitution.  An enlightening part of the puzzle pertaining to  George Washington and the Revolutionary War  is David Clary’s book Washington Lafayette, and the Friendship That Saved the Revolution. The book details the relationship between  the childless George Washington and a glory seeking teenage French Aristocrat,  Marquis de Lafayette. They become unlikely comrades-in-arms , forming  an unbreakable trust with great impact on  the war’s outcome and the forming of a new nation.  

BUNKER HILL, A CITY, A SIEGE, A REVOLUTION is worthy of your time and your library.