Almost a miracle : the American victory in the War of Independence

Format:

Book

Title:

Almost a miracle : the American victory in the War of Independence

Author:

Ferling, John E.

ISBN:

9780195181210

Edition:

Book Club edition.

Publication:

Oxford ; New York : Oxford University Press, [2007]

Physical Description:

xiii, 679 pages : illustrations, maps ; 24 cm

Contents:

Introduction: "my country, my honor, my life": bravery and death in war -- Pt. 1: going to war, 1775-1776 -- "Fear is not an American art": the coming of the war -- "A loss that is greater than we can bear": going to war -- Choices, 1775 -- Pt. 2: the war in the North, 1776-1779 -- "Hastening fast to a crisis": June 1775-June 1776 -- Choices, 1776 -- "Knock him up for the campaign": the Battle for New York, 1776 -- "This hour of adversity": to the end of 1776 -- Choices, 1777 -- "The caprice of war": America's pivotal victory at Saratoga -- "We rallied and broke": the campaign for Philadelphia, September-December 1777 -- Choices, 1778 -- "A respectable army": the grim year, 1778 -- Choices, 1779 -- "A band of brotherhood": the soldiers, the army, and the forgotten war in 1779 -- "We have occasioned a good deal of terror": the war at sea -- Choices, 1780 -- Pt. 3: the war in the South, 1780-1781 -- "A year filled with our disgraces": defeat in the South, 1780 -- "Southern means and Southern exertions": hope and despair, June-December 1780 -- Choices, 1781 -- "Bloody and severe": the pivotal Southern war, early 1781-- "We are suspended in the balance": Spring and Summer 1781 -- Pt. 4: American victory, 1781-1783 -- "America is ours": victory at Yorktown, 1781 -- Choices, 1782 -- "May we have peace in our time": peace and demobilization, 1782-1783 -- "Little short of a miracle": accounting for America's victory.

Summary:

Describes the military history of the American Revolution and the grim realities of the eight-year conflict while offering descriptions of the major engagements on land and sea and the decisions that influenced the course of the war.

Corporate Subject:

United States. Continental Army -- Biography.

United States. Continental Army -- Military life.

United States. Continental Army. (OCoLC)fst00531979

Subject(s):

United States. Continental Army -- Biography.

United States. Continental Army -- Military life.

Generals -- United States -- Biography.

Soldiers -- United States -- History -- 18th century.

United States -- History -- Revolution, 1775-1783 -- Campaigns.

United States -- History -- Revolution, 1775-1783 -- Biography.

United States -- Politics and government -- 1775-1783.

Geographic Term:

United States -- History -- Revolution, 1775-1783 -- Campaigns.

United States -- History -- Revolution, 1775-1783 -- Biography.

United States -- Politics and government -- 1775-1783.

United States.

Genre:

Biographies.

History.

Holds:

Available:*

Library	Call Number	Status
Searching... McMinnville Public Library	973.33 Ferling	Searching... Unknown

Bound With These Titles

On Order

Summary

In this gripping chronicle of America's struggle for independence, award-winning historian John Ferling transports readers to the grim realities of that war, capturing an eight-year conflict filled with heroism, suffering, cowardice, betrayal, and fierce dedication. As Ferling demonstrates, it was a war that America came much closer to losing than is now usually remembered. General George Washington put it best when he said that the American victory was "little short of a standing miracle." Almost a Miracle offers an illuminating portrait of America's triumph, offering vivid descriptions of all the major engagements, from the first shots fired on Lexington Green to the surrender of General Cornwallis at Yorktown, revealing how these battles often hinged on intangibles such as leadership under fire, heroism, good fortune, blunders, tenacity, and surprise. The author paints sharp-eyed portraits of the key figures in the war, including General Washington and other American officers and civilian leaders. Some do not always measure up to their iconic reputations, including Washington himself. Others, such as the quirky, acerbic Charles Lee, are seen in a much better light than usual. The book also examines the many faceless men who soldiered, often for years on end, braving untold dangers and enduring abounding miseries. The author explains why they served and sacrificed, and sees them as the forgotten heroes who won American independence. Ferling's narrative is also filled with compassion for the men who comprised the British army and who, like their American counterparts, struggled and died at an astonishing rate in this harsh war. Nor does Ferling ignore the naval war, describing dangerous patrols and grand and dazzling naval actions. Finally, Almost a Miracle takes readers inside the legislative chambers and plush offices of diplomats to reveal countless decisions that altered the course of this war. The story that unfolds is at times a tale of folly, at times one of appalling misinformation and confusion, and now and then one of insightful and dauntless statesmanship.

Author Notes

John Ferling brings to this book nearly forty years of experience as a historian of early America. He is the author of nine books and numerous articles on the American Revolution and early American wars, and has appeared in four television documentaries devoted to the Revolution and the War of Independence. His book A Leap in the Dark won the Fraunces Tavern Book Award as the year's best book on the American Revolution. He and his wife live in metropolitan Atlanta.

Reviews (4)

Publisher's Weekly Review

Ferling, professor emeritus at the University of West Georgia, caps his distinguished career as a scholar and popular writer on the colonial/revolutionary period with arguably the best, and certainly one of the most stimulating, single-volume histories of the American Revolution. Exhaustively researched and clearly written, it stresses the contingent aspects of a war where victory depended on making the fewest mistakes. Despite chances to end the war in battle, by negotiation or by international conference, Britain failed for lack of manpower, the decision to wage limited war and an ineffective central government--and above all, comprehensive underestimation of American military effectiveness and political resolve. America's cause, ironically, nearly foundered on reluctance to support a standing army, and a government that wasn't strong enough to plan and execute a concerted war effort. That popular enthusiasm never broke owed much to a stable French alliance and to George Washington, who was a good diplomat, a better politician and an excellent judge of character. Steadily growing into the responsibilities of commander in chief, he achieved legitimate iconic status by the war's end. Ultimately, Ferling demonstrates that independence was won through the endurance of the American people and their soldiers, who held on for that last vital quarter of an hour. (June) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved

Booklist Review

Ferling, a history professor, is the author of nine books on the American Revolution and early American wars. In his new book, he posits that the War of Independence was so vast that hardly anyone living east of the Appalachian Mountains was untouched. Many civilians were killed, including Indians and the residents of some coastal towns, both of whom were deliberately targeted, and countless others fell victim to diseases that soldiers on both sides spread unwittingly. He points out that his book seeks to explain why America won the war and why the British, despite their many advantages, lost it. One of the book's many well-developed themes is that the war came much closer to ending short of a great American victory than many now realize. It also looks at how wars were waged in the eighteenth century and explores how soldiers and civilians experienced the war. Ferling admits that he came to see both more flaws and greater virtues in Washington's leadership, that he gained a deeper appreciation of General Nathanael Greene, and that he saw General Charles Lee as a tragic figure. --George Cohen Copyright 2007 Booklist

Choice Review

Monographs on the military history of the American Revolution are beyond count, but Ferling (emer., Univ. of West Georgia) has put together new and old materials in a compelling way. This book (a companion to his A Leap in the Dark, CH, Feb'04, 41-3629, which covers the political side of the war) takes readers into the camps and winter quarters of the two armies and into the minds of the commanders and the common soldiers. Though the outcome is known, one can sense the uncertainties and confusions of the time. Upon finishing the book, readers will understand how true the title is. George Washington's flaws, the intricacies of congressional relations with the army and navy, the tactics of guerrilla warfare, and the horrors of the battlefield--all are presented in a readable and academically sound manner. The vignette and the broad brushstroke fit together flawlessly. Descriptions of the (likely) weather are sometimes garish, and the role of Native Americans is understated; on the other hand, the participation of women and slaves is conspicuous. General readers and specialists alike will applaud this work. Summing Up: Highly recommended. All levels/libraries. T. S. Martin Sinclair Community College

Library Journal Review

Ferling (history, emeritus, Univ. of West Georgia; Adams vs. Jefferson: The Tumultuous Election of 1800), a prolific historian of Colonial and Revolutionary America, provides a traditional diplomatic and military history of the Revolutionary War. He focuses on how tightly matched the conflict was, emphasizing the importance of the choices and decisions the commanders made as well as the war's ensuing turning points. Ferling's passion for the topic is obvious. His prose is generally solid, despite some minor annoyances. For example, his repeated references to Washington's "Fabian tactics" get tiresome. His book's primary value is as a modern, accessible survey that incorporates the findings of many scholarly texts from the last few decades. Though the book is marketed as the first authoritative military history of the war in 40 years, Don Higginbotham's The War of American Independence and Robert Middlekauff's The Glorious Cause remain the standards. Recommended for public and academic libraries seeking to expand collections on the American Revolution.-Matthew J. Wayman, Pennsylvania State Univ. Lib., Abington (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.