Igniting the American Revolution: 1773-1775

by Derek W. Beck

Overview

"For those who like their history rich in vivid details, Derek Beck has served up a delicious brew in this book. This may soon become everyone's favorite." —Thomas Fleming, author of Liberty!: The American Revolution

A provocative new look at the pivotal start of America's fight for freedom...

In this gripping history, Derek W. Beck draws on meticulous new research and previously unpublished documents to reveal the full story that ignited the Revolution — told from both the British and the American sides.

The Revolutionary War did not begin with the Declaration of Independence, but several years earlier with the Boston Tea Party. Spanning the years 1773–1775, Igniting the American Revolution sweeps readers to the passionate debates within the halls of Parliament and onwards to that fateful Expedition to Concord and the shot heard round the world. With exquisite detail and keen insight, Beck brings revolutionary America to life in all its enthusiastic and fiery patriotic fervor, painting a nuanced portrait of the war's perspectives, ambitions, people, and events.

Captivating and inspiring, Igniting the American Revolution is the most thorough and nuanced telling of these landmark years in our nation's history.

"Precise while being straightforward to read, [Igniting the American Revolution] shows the passion of the participants without taking sides, and gives equal play to the political and military affairs." —Don N. Hagist, author of British Soldiers, American War and editor of Journal of the American Revolution

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781492631323
Publisher:	Sourcebooks
Publication date:	05/03/2016
Pages:	432
Sales rank:	160,291
Product dimensions:	5.40(w) x 8.80(h) x 1.40(d)

About the Author

Award-winning author Derek W. Beck has always had a passion for military history, which inspired him to start his career in the U.S. Air Force. He has served as an officer on Active Duty in science roles and in space operations. In 2005, he earned a Master of Science degree at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), where he also fell in love with Boston’s revolutionary past. To more fully pursue writing, he later transitioned to the Air Force Reserves, though he still remains quite active, presently holding the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. Derek’s first book, Igniting the American Revolution: 1773-1775, was published in October 2015 by Sourcebooks. When not working on future history books, Derek is a frequent contributor to the online Journal of the American Revolution. You can follow or connect with him through his website at www.derekbeck.com.

Table of Contents

Preface vii

Acknowledgments ix

Part 1 Ratcheting Tensions (1773 to 1774) 1

Chapter 1 Dawn of an Epoch 3

Chapter 2 Coercive Measures 18

Chapter 3 An Army from Across the Sea 33

Chapter 4 An Unstable Peace 50

Part 2 Taking Up Arms (January to Mid-May 1775) 71

Chapter 5 A Disquieting Thaw 73

Chapter 6 Many Preparations 98

Chapter 7 The Die Is Cast 110

Chapter 8 The Rending of an Empire 145

Chapter 9 A Countryside Unleashed 177

Chapter 10 An Emboldened People 217

Chapter 11 The Spreading Flames of Rebellion 247

Epilogue 271

Abbreviations 273

Appendixes 275

Notes 357

Bibliography 443

Index 464

About the Author 468

Editorial Reviews

"Air Force officer and debut author Beck evidently relishes his subject, and he gives a fully fleshed portrait of the major patriots, both American and British...Beck's description of the "spreading flames of rebellion" and the taking of the forts at Crown Point and Ticonderoga is as engaging as fiction. A knowledgeable, elegant account full of elaborate depictions, complete with a thorough bibliography." - Kirkus

"Recommended for history lovers, those who want a refresher on the American Revolution, and those who enjoy quality nonfiction." - STARRED Library Journal

"It is in the clear, engaging telling of a complex story that Igniting the American Revolution by Derek W. Beck stands out. Rather than telling a heroic tale of heroic Patriots defying a tyrannical monarchy, Beck shows us the well-meaning efforts of participants on both sides to take what they believed to be just and legal courses of action. " - Journal of the American Revolution

"This is a good light read for those new to the subject and willing to continue with the series." - Historical Novel Society

From the Publisher

★ 09/01/2015
The year 1776 is often celebrated as the beginning of the American Revolution, but there were cornerstone events that preceded the Declaration of Independence. In his debut monograph, historian Beck, a major in the U.S. Air Force, details events from the Boston Tea Party (1773) to the Battle of Fort Ticonderoga (1775) as ones that precipitated the Revolution. The author effectively takes readers to 18th-century Boston and London as events spiraled into a division between the colonies and the Crown. In this unbiased account, Beck sees that both sides had their faults and were reckless toward the opposition. Given the author's military background, he most effectively writes on the Battles of Lexington and Concord (1775). The only criticism is the large number of appendixes, not all of which appear to be necessary. This books pairs well with Walter Borneman's American Spring and David Hackett Fisher's Paul Revere's Ride. VERDICT Recommended for history lovers, those who want a refresher on the American Revolution, and those who enjoy quality nonfiction.—Jacob Sherman, John Peace Lib., Univ. of Texas at San Antonio

Library Journal

2015-06-25
A descriptive account of the people (both rebel and loyalist) and events that propelled the great rupture with Britain. The period between the Boston Tea Party of December 1773 and the long siege of Boston in 1775 frames this finely delineated history of the buildup to revolution. Former Air Force officer and debut author Beck evidently relishes his subject, and he gives a fully fleshed portrait of the major patriots, both American and British. Dumping the tea in Boston Harbor was an act of destruction of private property, a notion no less sacred to the Americans than their liberty, and though many condemned the vandalism, the resistance to the tea duty had grown among the public as another instance of Parliament trying to "force-feed America a tax it had never consented to." Fearful of the mob mentality that seemed to be brewing, Gen. Thomas Gage recommended to King George III that regiments earmarked for New York to keep order in Boston would be sufficient to render the Americans docile: they were "Lyons, whilst we are lambs," he wrote. Little did he know the machinations already put in place by these "sly, artful, hypocritical rascalls [sic]," wrote Gen. Lord Percy of the rebels. Indeed, as Beck moves through the increasing lawlessness of the colonists, he points out the "ugly but very real side" to the American Revolution: "the American rebel seemed at times to take on the role of villain, turning the British into the victim." The author explores the top-down intelligence network of Gage versus the grass-roots organization of the rebels, each effective in its own way. Beck's description of the "spreading flames of rebellion" and the taking of the forts at Crown Point and Ticonderoga is as engaging as fiction. A knowledgeable, elegant account full of elaborate depictions, complete with a thorough bibliography.

Kirkus Reviews