America Goes to War: A Social History of the Continental Army
A unique and revealing analysis of the diverse body that made up the American revolutionary army

One of the images Americans hold most dear is that of the drum-beating, fire-eating Yankee Doodle Dandy rebel, overpowering his British adversaries through sheer grit and determination. The myth of the classless, independence-minded farmer or hard-working artisan-turned-soldier is deeply ingrained in the national psyche.

Charles Neimeyer here separates fact from fiction, revealing for the first time who really served in the army during the Revolution and why. His conclusions are startling. Because the army relied primarily on those not connected to the new American aristocracy, the African Americans, Irish, Germans, Native Americans, laborers-for-hire, and "free white men on the move" who served in the army were only rarely altruistic patriots driven by a vision of liberty and national unity.

Bringing to light the true composition of the enlisted ranks, the relationships of African-Americans and of Native Americans to the army, and numerous acts of mutiny, desertion, and resistance against officers and government, Charles Patrick Neimeyer here provides the first comprehensive and historically accurate portrait of the Continental soldier.

1114518178
America Goes to War: A Social History of the Continental Army
A unique and revealing analysis of the diverse body that made up the American revolutionary army

One of the images Americans hold most dear is that of the drum-beating, fire-eating Yankee Doodle Dandy rebel, overpowering his British adversaries through sheer grit and determination. The myth of the classless, independence-minded farmer or hard-working artisan-turned-soldier is deeply ingrained in the national psyche.

Charles Neimeyer here separates fact from fiction, revealing for the first time who really served in the army during the Revolution and why. His conclusions are startling. Because the army relied primarily on those not connected to the new American aristocracy, the African Americans, Irish, Germans, Native Americans, laborers-for-hire, and "free white men on the move" who served in the army were only rarely altruistic patriots driven by a vision of liberty and national unity.

Bringing to light the true composition of the enlisted ranks, the relationships of African-Americans and of Native Americans to the army, and numerous acts of mutiny, desertion, and resistance against officers and government, Charles Patrick Neimeyer here provides the first comprehensive and historically accurate portrait of the Continental soldier.

89.0 In Stock
America Goes to War: A Social History of the Continental Army

America Goes to War: A Social History of the Continental Army

by Charles Patrick Neimeyer
America Goes to War: A Social History of the Continental Army

America Goes to War: A Social History of the Continental Army

by Charles Patrick Neimeyer

Hardcover

$89.00 
  • SHIP THIS ITEM
    Qualifies for Free Shipping
  • PICK UP IN STORE
    Check Availability at Nearby Stores

Related collections and offers


Overview

A unique and revealing analysis of the diverse body that made up the American revolutionary army

One of the images Americans hold most dear is that of the drum-beating, fire-eating Yankee Doodle Dandy rebel, overpowering his British adversaries through sheer grit and determination. The myth of the classless, independence-minded farmer or hard-working artisan-turned-soldier is deeply ingrained in the national psyche.

Charles Neimeyer here separates fact from fiction, revealing for the first time who really served in the army during the Revolution and why. His conclusions are startling. Because the army relied primarily on those not connected to the new American aristocracy, the African Americans, Irish, Germans, Native Americans, laborers-for-hire, and "free white men on the move" who served in the army were only rarely altruistic patriots driven by a vision of liberty and national unity.

Bringing to light the true composition of the enlisted ranks, the relationships of African-Americans and of Native Americans to the army, and numerous acts of mutiny, desertion, and resistance against officers and government, Charles Patrick Neimeyer here provides the first comprehensive and historically accurate portrait of the Continental soldier.


Product Details

ISBN-13: 9780814757802
Publisher: New York University Press
Publication date: 11/01/1995
Series: The American Social Experience , #26
Pages: 260
Product dimensions: 6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.61(d)

About the Author

Charles Patrick Neimeyer is Assistant Professor of History at the University of Central Oklahoma and former teacher at the Naval War College.

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

"Fascinating."

-Historical Journal of Massachusetts,

"Neimeyer demythologizes the Continental army and very effectively demonstrates that it was an organization that evolved from its original relatively homogeneous make-up into a volatile, multicultural force that included many recent immigrants, African Americans, and Native Americans. . . . A testament to the propertyless, inarticulate, marginal individuals who actually secured liberty for later generations."

-Dr. David J. Fowler,The David Library of the American Revolution

"Neimeyer pushes to the next plateau the recent work of historians who have investigated the contributions of the Continental Army to the American Revolution. Because of his research and his synthesis of recent scholarship, the previously inarticulate common soldiers of the rank and file find their voices."

-James M. Johnson,author of Militiamen, Rangers, and Redcoats: The Military in Georgia, 1754-1776

"Thoroughly compelling. Neimeyer's research is superb, and his social history perspective has told us more than anyone about the origins of the Continental Army and the meanings soldiers attached to their service. This is a genuinely important book."

-Mark Edward Ledner,co-author of A Respectable Army: The Military Origins of the Republic

From the B&N Reads Blog

Customer Reviews