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Book Critique Of Revolutionary Summer By Joseph J. Ellis

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Eric Tu Mr. Carter JAGS AP US History 11 July 2014 AP US History Book Critique 1. Brief Overview Joseph J Ellis’s book, Revolutionary Summer, is both a nonfiction political tale of how the thirteen colonies all agreed to separate from the British Empire and a brief military narrative of the battles on Long Island and Manhattan. This book focuses much on the non-military aspects of the conflict between the Continental Army and British Army such as the various events of the summer and fall of 1776. Important figures included in Revolutionary Summer are, delegate John Adams, John Dickinson, Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Franklin, General George Washington, British Officers William and Richard Howe. Although the British army delivered several …show more content…

These important events were also known as “The Cause”. A major episode briefly described in Revolutionary Summer was Britain’s victory of the French and Indian War, causing colonists to become less dependent on Britain for protection. Another event elucidated was the Proclamation of 1763, prohibiting colonists to settle beyond the Appalachian Mountains, which many Americans took offense to. Other acts including the sugar, currency, quartering, stamp, and Townshend Acts, angered colonists who strongly believed in equal rights and no taxation without representation. Gatherings such as the First and Second Continental Congress were another contributing factor to America’s independence. Ellis also analyzes the choices Continental Army General George Washington and the British Army Officer William and Richard Howe made during the Battle of Long Island and Manhattan. Revolutionary Summer also explains why these choices affected the outcome of the war. Ellis then ends his book by analyzing the decisions General Howe could have made to win the war for Britain by stopping the Continental Army from growing stronger and overwhelming the British …show more content…

Historical Accuracy After comparing my AP textbook and other websites (History.com, Alphahistory.com, and UShistory.org) to Revolutionary Summer, the overall historical accuracy of the book was well supported. The book has also given me an analytical perspective of the different chronological events. For example, after the battle of Long Island, Washington came to realize that with the army he had he could not defeat the British in a traditional battle on open ground. Eventually the General understood that as long as he could prevent his army from being destroyed, he would finally prevail. Washington further realized that he must swallow his pride and fight a war with scattered and defensive actions, and that he would win the war by keeping his army as a fighting force, even if it meant continual retreat from the superior British army, this strategy eventually won America’s independence. Another example of an analytical perspective that Ellis has shown me would be how the British commanders, brothers Richard and General William Howe, could have ended the war by using strong numbers and artillery as a fear factor. They did not think it would be necessary nor preferable, to completely wipe out Washington's

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