Washingtons Crossing

Posted on 17 September 2018 by David Hackett Fischer

Six months after the Declaration of Independence, the American Revolution was all but lost A powerful British force had routed the Americans at New York, occupied three colonies, and advanced within sight of Philadelphia.Yet, as David Hackett Fischer recounts in this riveting history, George Washington and many other Americans refused to let the Revolution die On Christmas night, as a howling nor easter struck the Delaware Valley, he led his men across the river and attacked the exhausted Hessian garrison at Trenton, killing or capturing nearly a thousand men A second battle of Trenton followed within days The Americans held off a counterattack by Lord Cornwallis s best troops, then were almost trapped by the British force Under cover of night, Washington s men stole behind the enemy and struck them again, defeating a brigade at Princeton The British were badly shaken In twelve weeks of winter fighting, their army suffered severe damage, their hold on New Jersey was broken, and their strategy was ruined.Fischer s richly textured narrative reveals the crucial role of contingency in these events We see how the campaign unfolded in a sequence of difficult choices by many actors, from generals to civilians, on both sides While British and German forces remained rigid and hierarchical, Americans evolved an open and flexible system that was fundamental to their success The startling success of Washington and his compatriots not only saved the faltering American Revolution, but helped to give it new meaning. Best Read [ Washingtons Crossing ] author [ David Hackett Fischer ] For Kindle ePUB or eBook – kino-fada.fr Despite a great love of history, I ve never been able to really connect to the American Revolution as a historical event The reason, I think, is that the Revolutionary War is our creation myth Like other creation myths, such as the Christmas Story the one with Jesus, not the BB gun , historical veracity and the exact sequence of events is not as important as the fact that event happened at all Rigorous analysis takes a backseat to emotional considerations Objectivity is shrouded in the mist Despite a great love of history, I ve never been able to really connect to the American Revolution as a historical event The reason, I think, is that the Revolutionary War is our creation myth Like other creation myths, such as the Christmas Story the one with Jesus, not the BB gun , historical veracity and the exact sequence of events is not as important as the fact that event happened at all Rigorous analysis takes a backseat to emotional considerations Objectivity is shrouded in the mists of symbolism In the end, the American Revolution becomes an article of faith As with any faith, there are icons, and the iconography of the American Revolution is as visible today as it was in the late 18th century Walk into an elementary school classroom and you will likely see a copy of Charles Peale s por...Less than two weeks ago I read David McCullough s 1776, a history of the first year of the Continental Army under George Washington, its mixed success in Boston and disaster in New York City and culminating after a night crossing of the Delaware River in their victory in the Battle of Trenton It was an engaging, well told story of such suffering and such blunders I left that book amazed the American Revolution, the army and cause survived to triumph This book covers much of the same territor Less than two weeks ago I read David McCullough s 1776, a history of the first year of the Continental Army under George Washington, its mixed success in Boston and disaster in New York City and culminating after a night crossing of the Delaware River in their victory in the Battle of Trenton It was an engaging, well told story of such suffering and such blunders I left that book amazed the A... Washington s Crossing is a real page turner It is well researched and filled with detail yet never becomes tedious An added bonus is the historiography at the end showing all the ways the same events have been interpreted over the years by historians and artists of different nations For someone who is weary of constant references to American exceptionalism by the clearly unexceptional, Fischer s genuine depiction of American revolutionary leaders who deserve the accolade is wonderfully refres Washington s Crossing is a real page turner It is well researched and filled with detail yet never becomes tedious An added bonus is the historiography at the end showing all the ways the same events have been interpreted over the years by historians and artists of different nations For someone who is weary of constant references to American exceptionalism by the clearly unexceptional, Fischer s genui...Almost everyone knows the famous painting of General Washington standing heroically in a shallow boat, surrounded by soldiers in a variety of garb including James Madison holding an American flag, crossing the ice choked Delaware river The painting, done by a German artist 75 years after the fact, is a pretty romanticized depiction of the event But there s no debating the significance of what happened on that Christmas Day 1776 This book, which won the 2005 Pulitzer Prize for History, is a re Almost everyone knows the famous painting of General Washington standing heroically in a shallow boat, surrounded by soldiers in a variety of garb including James Madison holding an American flag, crossing the ice choked Delaware river The painting, done by a German artist 75 y...I ve been reading a lot of American Revolutionary history lately, and even so, David Hackett Fischer s 2003 volume Washington s Crossing, winner of the Pulitzer Prize for history, stands out as excellent Much like David McCullough s fantastic 1776, Washington s Crossing focuses in on a narrow portion of the Revolutionary War and brings it to vivid life.Washington s Crossing is devoted to an in depth look at the New Jersey campaign of the winter of 1776 1777 However, Fischer doesn t just dump y I ve been reading a lot of American Revolutionary history lately, and ev...A rare and impressive example of a modern academic doing military history, and doing it well.Yet clearly part of the reason Fischer wrote this book was to provide a kind of on the ground justification for his earlier work of social and cultural history, Albion s Seed, where he discovered four major folkways in America which he thought descended from four separate waves of migration Sure enough, he finds similar divisions here, such as that between the ordered liberty of the New England re A rare and impressive e...This book is so far, my personal favorite I wasn t 10 pages into it when I realized I was really going to enjoy this book David Fischer won the Pulitzer prize for History for it, and I can see why The story unraveled like no other I have ever come across Just like other reviewers have said, it should be required reading for anyone who is interested in learning about one of if not thee most important moment in American history.This is a wonderful story There is suspense, drama, impossibl This book is so far, my personal favorite I wasn t 10 pages into it when I realized I was really going to enjoy this book David Fischer won the Pulitzer prize for History for it, and I can see why The story unraveled like no other I have ever come across Just like other reviewers have said, it should be required reading for anyone who is interested in learning about one of if not thee most important moment in American history.This is a wonderful...David Hackett Fischer has produced a highly readable and fact filled account of the important battles of the Revolutionary War following the Declaration of Independence This conflict required a young, self made country to draw soldiers from among its colonies to go against the strongest army of the time without the knowledge of how or when the outcome would play out I think the heart of the American War of independence was the people of all classes who joined regiments and went to war under so David Hackett Fischer has produced a highly readable and fact filled account of the important battles of the Revolutionary War following the Declaration of Independence This conflict required a young, self made country to draw soldiers from among its colonies to go against the strongest army of the time without the knowledge of how or when the outcome would play out I think the heart of the American War of independence was the people of all classes who joined regiments and went to war under sometimes terrible physical conditions, for pay, food and clothing which was meager when available, which was not often The glue which held this together was the aristocratic George Washington, whose prior milita...Simply browsing the title, table of contents, and some reviews potential readers may fall into the trap of thinking that this book is too similar to David McCullough s 1776 to justify reading it However, this assumption isn t correct While both stories follow Washington s army through the fall of New York and conclude with the battles of Trenton and Princeton, Fischer s focus is different than McCullough s McCullough s main focus was on Washington s army throughout the entire year of 1776 st Simply browsing the title, table of contents, and some reviews potential readers may fall into the trap of thinking that this book is too similar to David McCullough s 1776 to justify reading it However, this assumption isn t correct While both stories follow Washington s army through the fall of New York and conclude with the battles of Trenton and Princeton, Fischer s focus is different than McCullough s McCullough s main focus was on Washington s army throughout the entire year of 1776 starting with a detailed description of the Boston siege Fischer only in minor detail discusses the very end of the siege of Boston in setting the stage for the showdown in New York Fischer focuseson the dark days of November December 1776 precluding Trenton Princeton and what Washington did to revitalize his fleeting army and keep the American cause alive Following through on this...Washington s Crossing is one of those tomes that every American citizen should read It s very well paced with an inclusive narrative that places the reader squarely in the action This book is so well written, I found myself under the mistaken impression that Fischer had actually interviewed the participants and their first generation relations I really enjoyed this book and highly recommend it This is not only a good read for history buffs, it s revealing of the subdural attitude, for better Washington s Crossing is one of those tomes that every American cit...

English
17 September 2018

David Hackett Fischer