A Few Bloody Noses: The Realities and Mythologies of the American Revolution

by Robert Harvey

Book Overview

The ensuing uprising led to the creation of the United States, the most powerful country in the modern world. Robert Harvey, whose most recent book Liberators was brilliantly reviewed on both sides of the ocean, challenges conventional views of the American Revolution in almost every aspect-why it happened, who was winning and when, the characters of the principal protagonists, and the role of Native Americans and slaves. In a time when the history...

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1585672734
• ISBN13: 9781585672738
• Release Date: May 2002
• Publisher: Harry N. Abrams
• Length: 478 Pages
• Weight: 2.00 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.6" x 6.3" x 9.3"
• Age Range: 18 years and up
• Grade Range: Postsecondary and higher

Customer Reviews

Important Book -- However, Like A Rattlesnake It is Injurious to Your Health

How can I defend 5 stars with my title? Well, there is much to learn here as to how foreigners look at us, treat us as stupid little children, claim that everything we know about our own history is false, and from the author's perspective, how the British really do know everything and why we should let them rule the world. Nearly everything is false, slanted, spun, or otherwise fabricated -- but it is important to know because many people believe this nonsense. When you read this book, keep other references handy like Phillips' "The Cousin's Wars", Flood's "Rise And Fight Again", Burrows' "Forgotten Patriots", Middlekauff's "The Glorious Cause", Ferling's "A Leap in the Dark", Marshall's "Washington", Miller's "Origins of the American Revolution" and whatever other references you have. Why foreigners believe they know everything that is wrong with the United States and find a ready market for their tomes here is beyond me. But they do. First of all, we are not ignorant of the "warts" on the Founding Fathers and do not believe Washington was a military genius. In fact, I know of no American historian who would say that. I vividly remember my first book on the Revolutionary War, Coffin's "The Boys of '76" that I read when I was eight years old. At the time I was thunderstruck at the many defeats suffered by the patriots, actually a majority of the battles, and have never been under illusions concerning the Revolutionary War since. Harvey's "illusions" are rather what he EXPECTS the Americans to believe if they were British and one were talking about British history. A note to Mr. Harvey -- please do not ascribe your shortcomings to us. It is difficult to know where to begin with this review. One can almost pick out any page at random and argue over the content. George III was not some benign democratic monarch only wishing to inflict "a few bloody noses" on colonial troublemakers and bring the rest into line in the world's best government (see "Forgotten Patriots"). And yes, self-interest played a role in the patriot uprising, but the basic tenent of the idea of freedon is to be able to pursue one's self-interest without interference from government. Somehow the author doesn't understand that. The author brings forth Lee, Conway and Gates as "...all fell from stars to ignominious discredit...". Gee, Lee and Conway made only negative contributions in the war, and Gates was fortunate to have others (most notably Arnold) fight his only victory (Saratoga) for him. They were "stars"? And Knox was an uneven general (see Germantown) rather than the consistent hero the author makes him out to be. The author's equating of the Revolutionary War with Vietnam betrays his total bankruptcy in understanding either conflict. Vietnam was not an American colony peopled by American colonists, Vietnam did not possess the approximately 2/3rds of its population unwilling to fight (in the Revolutionary War the idea that 1/3 were patri

A revised look at the American Revolution

Journalist Robert Harvey has attempted to write a "corrective" regarding the American Revolution; it's his belief that the Americans have mythologized and glorified the events and people involved, while the British have merely ignored them. Considering both trends to be negative and counter-productive, he has written this book with the hope of bringing both sides into better balance. At the beginning Harvey states that "virtually every common assumption has to be substantially modified, if not rejected." Some of these "assumptions" that he challenges include: Americans were not just motivated by a love of liberty, but more by economic self-interest and internal social unrest; a large number of Americans opposed resistance to Britain (8% of the population left America after the war); British commanders were incompetent while America's were geniuses; Saratoga was "the turning point" of the War; and French intervention "saved" the colonies from destruction. Harvey's most compelling argument regarding these objections is with the French intervention: he points out, and it makes sense, that when the French decided to back the American cause, it forced the British to concentrate its naval power off the European continent rather than against the colonies. The least compelling concerns his dismissing the British military leaders as being "merely" arrogant or lazy or overconfident - faults in generals that have wrecked many an army. Harvey is usually pretty fair-minded, and instead of totally debunking standard beliefs (he points out Washington's failures in the War, which the mythologists try to ignore, but recognizes his strengths, too), he re-examines them in a more critical light. I thought his final chapter on the creation of the Constitution after the country almost fell to anarchy, bankruptcy, and internal revolt after the British were defeated to be the best. He is quick to point out that the truly amazing thing about the Constitution and the "American experiment" in democracy was how they were able to combine individual freedoms with a set body of laws, to put controls on what undoubtedly would have spun off into total chaos. He is very impressed with how the Constitution was hammered out and what it finally meant for a free republic - as we all should still be today. Harvey writes engagingly and with verve, and his book is a most interesting one. Whether his goals in writing the book were ever actually achieved (see my first paragraph above), it's hard to say (my guess would be doubtful), I personally got much pleasure from reading it. Recommended.

The American War.

At last, a book that scrapes away all the patriotic, American propaganda and rhetoric surrounding this conflict for the last two-hundred years and produces an unbiased, accurate, even-handed and honest version of events for the first time. The American War has deliberately been distorted ever since it was fought by American historians eager to promote their 'creation myth' in the style they're have liked it to have happened; namely righteous, noble, American heroes battling evil, dastardly, incompetent British redcoats. But this isn't the reality. This book is a fascinating and detailed overview of the whole of the American War that manages to resist the modern American failing of lapsing into self-indulgent, patriotic wallowing and just tells us what happened, when, where and why. Most American writers would have you believe that the British were military inept buffoons during this war, but that isn't the truth, just patriotic boasting. Also the idea that the Americans won the war by sniping at the dumb British redcoats from behind trees with accurate rifles is false. In fact, both sides used riflemen, but mostly smooth-bore muskets. George Washington is also correctly exposed as a mediocre general who lost two-thirds of the battles he fought against the British. And of those he won, he had a large numerical advantage over the enemy in each. Washington certainly wasn't the great military genius his admirers would have us all believe today. Interestingly, the myth about 'British tyranny' provoking the American Colonies to rebel is examined and smashed. In fact, the American Colonies had all the freedoms that the Britons back home did. Trouble started when a radical, hard-line group of the American elite came to power and wanted to break away to pursue their own, selfish, agenda. Only when this demand was refused did the cries about 'British tyranny' begin. But, then again, if you're an American Rebel trying to engineer a war and stir up unjustified trouble, what else are you going to say to encourage fellow Americans to join the army and hate the British! British tyranny to the American Colonies was merely a myth to justify the war. The reality was that the British won most of the battles and captured most of the biggest settlements. The Rebels spent most of the war on the defensive, usually retreating instead of risking pitched battles where possible. The French came in and saved the Rebels by giving them money and military aid! That's more or less the truth of it, as demonstrated in this uncompromising book. Of course, modern Americans don't want people to know that, so they assault us with fanciful, Brit-bashing, historically inaccurate, drivel such as Mel Gibson's 'The Patriot' instead. However, reading this book is well worth your time. For example, the idea, popular amongst Americans today, that the Rebels won the Battle of Bunker Hill. In fact, as this book convincingly demonstrates, the British actually won the battle bu

Remove the Rose coloured glasses!

If you're one of those people who believe that Washington never told a lie then this isn't the book for you, or maybe it should be. From the time of the revolution, America it seems wished to ditch the folk heroes of the British heritage, but needed to replace them with a whole host of homegrown, Robin Hoods, King Arthurs, and even the occasional Lady Godiva. This beautifully crafted work is remarkably even handed in its approach of the subject of the American revolution. The fact that the author does not call the Sons of Liberty terrorists, is testament to that. A more realistic view of the strengths, weaknesses, treachery, and dastardly doings of both sides in this conflict I have never read. Pieced together with the political shennanigans of the Americans in their dealings with both friend and foe alike and putting the war in its place as a sideshow in a much broader global conflict between Britain and France. The author does not neglect the British political establishment either, and its failure to conduct the war in a manner which may have brought a successful conclusion. Drawing many parallels with such conflicts as Vietnam. When one reads this very readable and highly entertaining book, you will be in no doubt that Britain and her loyal colonial and German allies, were engaged in the first WAR ON TERROR against, the Traitorous Colonials and their French,Spanish and later Dutch axis of evil.

An insightful read about the REAL American War...

At last, a book about the American War that scrapes away all that patriotic, propaganda surrounding this conflict for the last two-hundred years and produces an unbiased, accurate and honest version of events! Most American writers would have you believe that the British were military inept buffoons during this war, but that isn't true. In fact, the British won most of the War's battles, the American Rebels spent most of the war on the defensive and were saved by the military aid of the King of France! Another myth that's destroyed here is the idea that the Rebels won the war by sniping at the dumb British redcoats from behind trees with accurate rifles. In fact, BOTH sides used rifles, but mostly smooth-bore muskets. Therefore, the Rebels never had any range advantage whatsoever. The Rebel commander-in-chief, George Washington, is also exposed as a mediocre general who lost two-thirds of the battles he fought against the British and only won the ones he did when he had a large numerical advantage. Washington isn't the great military genius his admirers would have us all believe. Also, and perhaps most interestingly, the myth about 'British tyranny' provoking the American Colonies to rebel is examined and smashed. In fact, the American Colonies had all the freedoms that the British back home did. Trouble started when a radical, hard-line group of the American elite came to power and wanted to break away from Britain to pursue their own agenda. Only when this was refused did the cries about 'British tyranny' begin. Great book! Acquire and read if you want to know the REAL American War, other than nonsense like Mel Gibson's 'The Patriot'!