This Glorious Struggle: George Washington's Revolutionary War Letters - Hardcover

Lengel, Edward G.

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0061251313 ISBN 13: 9780061251313

Publisher: Smithsonian, 2008

Synopsis

George Washington wrote an astonishing number of letters, both personal and professional. The majority—about 140,000 documents—are from his years as commander in chief during the Revolutionary War, from 1775 to 1783. This Glorious Struggle presents a selection of Washington's most important and interesting letters from that time, including many that have never been published.

Washington's lively and often surprisingly candid notes to his wife and family, friends, Congress, fellow soldiers—and even the enemy—chronicle his most critical tactical and strategic decisions, while offering a rare glimpse of the extremes of depression and exultation into which he was cast by the fortunes of war. The letters are arranged chronologically and give a dramatic sense of the major phases of the war, from Boston, Trenton, and Valley Forge, to Monmouth and Yorktown.

The more personal missives show us a Washington who worried about his wife's well-being and who appreciated a good joke and a well-laid table, not to mention the company of the ladies.

This Glorious Struggle brings Washington to vivid life, offering a fresh and intimate sense of this most towering American figure and the critical role he played in the creation of our country.

About this title

About the Author

Edward G. LengeL is editor in chief of the Papers of George Washington and a professor at the University of Virginia. He is the author of several books, including General George Washington and This Glorious Struggle. A lecturer on Washington and the Revolutionary War, Lengel is also a historical consultant, advising on such works as the History Channel's own comprehensive documentary. He is a frequent radio and television guest—appearing on C-SPAN, CBS, and NPR, among others—and is a regular contributor to newspapers and magazines in the vein of military history and American heritage. He lives with his family in Charlottesville, Virginia.

Reviews

A scholar of Washington’s military career (General George Washington, 2005), Lengel samples Washington’s war correspondence. In topical range and variety of recipients, the collection conveys the types of problems that came to Washington’s attention and captures aspects of his personality as he dealt with them. Throughout the protracted war, Washington coped unendingly with army administration, extending from supplies to enlistments to discipline. Lengel’s selections in these areas show Washington’s sense of duty, which he repeatedly expressed as his reason for accepting the position of army commander. However, when threatened with removal in 1777–78, he maneuvered to keep the job, as a series of letters here shows. Battles, however, are what interest most modern readers, and they receive a sense of immediacy in Washington’s reports to Congress, usually written within hours of disengagement from combat, and covering the siege of Boston to that of Yorktown. Including personal letters that reflect Washington’s tastes and concern with the fortunes of friends and relatives, Lengel’s selection permits readers to trace the Revolutionary War as Washington experienced it. --Gilbert Taylor

Edition details

• Publisher: Smithsonian
• Publication date: 2008
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0061251313
• ISBN 13: 9780061251313
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 320