Carolina in Crisis: Cherokees, Colonists, and Slaves in the American Southeast, 1756-1763 - Softcover

Tortora, Daniel J.

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1469621223 ISBN 13: 9781469621227

Publisher: The University of North Carolina Press, 2015

Synopsis

In this engaging history, Daniel J. Tortora explores how the Anglo-Cherokee War reshaped the political and cultural landscape of the colonial South. Tortora chronicles the series of clashes that erupted from 1758 to 1761 between Cherokees, settlers, and British troops. The conflict, no insignificant sideshow to the French and Indian War, eventually led to the regeneration of a British-Cherokee alliance. Tortora reveals how the war destabilized the South Carolina colony and threatened the white coastal elite, arguing that the political and military success of the Cherokees led colonists to a greater fear of slave resistance and revolt and ultimately nurtured South Carolinians' rising interest in the movement for independence.

Drawing on newspaper accounts, military and diplomatic correspondence, and the speeches of Cherokee people, among other sources, this work reexamines the experiences of Cherokees, whites, and African Americans in the mid-eighteenth century. Centering his analysis on Native American history, Tortora reconsiders the rise of revolutionary sentiments in the South while also detailing the Anglo-Cherokee War from the Cherokee perspective.

About this title

About the Author:

Daniel J. Tortora is assistant professor of history at Colby College.

Review:

This is without a doubt a defining contribution on the Anglo-Cherokee War of 1759–1761. Until now, there has never been such a broadly conceived investigation of the Seven Years' War in South Carolina and how it shaped the intertwined histories of Anglo, Cherokee, and African peoples. Daniel J. Tortora weaves together a deeply researched and persuasive narrative on how the Seven Years' War shaped Carolina, its peoples, and indeed, the very origins of the American Revolution.--David L. Preston, The Citadel
Daniel J. Tortora's Carolina in Crisis is an original and insightful work with impressive scope. That the author is able to synthesize from such a vast array of sources a coherent and engaging narrative is truly extraordinary. I've only encountered a handful of books that come close to matching Tortora's work--a remarkable achievement.--Jim Piecuch, Kennesaw State University

About this edition

• Publisher: The University of North Carolina Press
• Publication date: 2015
• ISBN 10: 1469621223
• ISBN 13: 9781469621227
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 288