The Revolutionary War Lives and Letters of Lucy and Henry Knox
“[This] collection of Lucy and Henry Knox’s correspondence movingly reveals a marriage and a nation coming of age in the crucible of the Revolutionary War.” —Lorri Glover, author of Eliza Lucas Pinckney

In 1774, Boston bookseller Henry Knox married Lucy Waldo Flucker, the daughter of a prominent Tory family. Although Lucy’s father was the third-ranking colonial official in Massachusetts, the couple joined the American cause after the Battles of Lexington and Concord and fled British-occupied Boston. Knox became a soldier in the Continental Army, where he served until the war’s end as Washington’s artillery commander.

Their correspondence—one of the few collections of letters between revolutionary-era spouses that spans the entire war—provides a remarkable window into the couple’s marriage. Placed at the center of great events, struggling to cope with a momentous conflict, and attempting to preserve their marriage and family, the Knoxes wrote to each other in a direct and accessible manner as they negotiated shifts in gender and power relations. Working together, Henry and Lucy maintained their household and protected their property, raised and educated their children, and emotionally adjusted to other dramatic changes within their family, including a total break between Lucy and her Tory family. Combining original epistles with Hamilton’s introductory essays, The Revolutionary War Lives and Letters of Lucy and Henry Knox offers important insights into how this relatable and highly individual couple overcame the war’s challenges.

“A fascinating and important addition to the literature of marriage and family life during the revolution. These unique letters, punctuated by excellent narrative interludes, provide a rich vein of information about the war.” —Edith B. Gelles, author of Abigail and John: Portrait of a Marriage
1126229850
The Revolutionary War Lives and Letters of Lucy and Henry Knox
“[This] collection of Lucy and Henry Knox’s correspondence movingly reveals a marriage and a nation coming of age in the crucible of the Revolutionary War.” —Lorri Glover, author of Eliza Lucas Pinckney

In 1774, Boston bookseller Henry Knox married Lucy Waldo Flucker, the daughter of a prominent Tory family. Although Lucy’s father was the third-ranking colonial official in Massachusetts, the couple joined the American cause after the Battles of Lexington and Concord and fled British-occupied Boston. Knox became a soldier in the Continental Army, where he served until the war’s end as Washington’s artillery commander.

Their correspondence—one of the few collections of letters between revolutionary-era spouses that spans the entire war—provides a remarkable window into the couple’s marriage. Placed at the center of great events, struggling to cope with a momentous conflict, and attempting to preserve their marriage and family, the Knoxes wrote to each other in a direct and accessible manner as they negotiated shifts in gender and power relations. Working together, Henry and Lucy maintained their household and protected their property, raised and educated their children, and emotionally adjusted to other dramatic changes within their family, including a total break between Lucy and her Tory family. Combining original epistles with Hamilton’s introductory essays, The Revolutionary War Lives and Letters of Lucy and Henry Knox offers important insights into how this relatable and highly individual couple overcame the war’s challenges.

“A fascinating and important addition to the literature of marriage and family life during the revolution. These unique letters, punctuated by excellent narrative interludes, provide a rich vein of information about the war.” —Edith B. Gelles, author of Abigail and John: Portrait of a Marriage
13.49 In Stock
The Revolutionary War Lives and Letters of Lucy and Henry Knox

The Revolutionary War Lives and Letters of Lucy and Henry Knox

by Phillip Hamilton
The Revolutionary War Lives and Letters of Lucy and Henry Knox

The Revolutionary War Lives and Letters of Lucy and Henry Knox

by Phillip Hamilton

eBook

$13.49  $17.99 Save 25% Current price is $13.49, Original price is $17.99. You Save 25%.

Available on Compatible NOOK devices, the free NOOK App and in My Digital Library.
WANT A NOOK?  Explore Now

Related collections and offers

LEND ME® See Details

Overview

“[This] collection of Lucy and Henry Knox’s correspondence movingly reveals a marriage and a nation coming of age in the crucible of the Revolutionary War.” —Lorri Glover, author of Eliza Lucas Pinckney

In 1774, Boston bookseller Henry Knox married Lucy Waldo Flucker, the daughter of a prominent Tory family. Although Lucy’s father was the third-ranking colonial official in Massachusetts, the couple joined the American cause after the Battles of Lexington and Concord and fled British-occupied Boston. Knox became a soldier in the Continental Army, where he served until the war’s end as Washington’s artillery commander.

Their correspondence—one of the few collections of letters between revolutionary-era spouses that spans the entire war—provides a remarkable window into the couple’s marriage. Placed at the center of great events, struggling to cope with a momentous conflict, and attempting to preserve their marriage and family, the Knoxes wrote to each other in a direct and accessible manner as they negotiated shifts in gender and power relations. Working together, Henry and Lucy maintained their household and protected their property, raised and educated their children, and emotionally adjusted to other dramatic changes within their family, including a total break between Lucy and her Tory family. Combining original epistles with Hamilton’s introductory essays, The Revolutionary War Lives and Letters of Lucy and Henry Knox offers important insights into how this relatable and highly individual couple overcame the war’s challenges.

“A fascinating and important addition to the literature of marriage and family life during the revolution. These unique letters, punctuated by excellent narrative interludes, provide a rich vein of information about the war.” —Edith B. Gelles, author of Abigail and John: Portrait of a Marriage

Product Details

ISBN-13: 9781421423463
Publisher: Johns Hopkins University Press
Publication date: 02/03/2022
Sold by: Barnes & Noble
Format: eBook
Pages: 224
File size: 3 MB
Age Range: 18 Years

About the Author

Phillip Hamilton is a professor of history at Christopher Newport University. He is the author of The Making and Unmaking of a Revolutionary Family: The Tuckers of Virginia, 1752–1830 and Serving the Old Dominion: A History of Christopher Newport University, 1958–2011.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgements

Introduction

Chapter 1. Courtship and Marriage (1773-1775), "the most perfect disinterested love"

Chapter 2. The Excitement of War (April 1775-June 1776), "Citizens of the World"

Chapter 3. The Perils of War (July 1776-December 1777)

Part I. The New York-New Jersey Campaign of 1776-1777, "the Horrid Scenes of War:"

Part II. The Philadelphia Campaign of 1777: "there is such a thing as equal
Command"

Chapter 4. Enduring the War (1778-1783), "swords into ploughs[hares]"

Afterwards (1784-1824)

What People are Saying About This

Woody Holton

A highly analytical and beautifully narrated joint biography that is also a collection of intriguing (and well-glossed) letters, this book represents a tremendous contribution to the history of the American Revolution. There will be strong demand from both history buffs and classroom teachers.

Carol Berkin

Scholars and students of the American Revolution owe a deep debt of gratitude to Phillip Hamilton for bringing this correspondence of Henry and Lucy Knox from the archives to the pages of his elegant book. Hamilton's insightful and gracefully written introductory notes combine with his subjects’ chronicle of separation, anxiety, and resilience to give us a fuller, more human understanding of the costs and the rewards of the long struggle for independence. This collection reminds us that personal strategies for survival are as important to consider as battlefield strategies for victory.

Edith B. Gelles

A fascinating and important addition to the literature of marriage and family life during the revolution. These unique letters, punctuated by excellent narrative interludes, provide a rich vein of information about the war.

From the Publisher

A fascinating and important addition to the literature of marriage and family life during the revolution. These unique letters, punctuated by excellent narrative interludes, provide a rich vein of information about the war.
—Edith B. Gelles, author of Abigail and John: Portrait of a Marriage

A highly analytical and beautifully narrated joint biography that is also a collection of intriguing (and well-glossed) letters, this book represents a tremendous contribution to the history of the American Revolution. There will be strong demand from both history buffs and classroom teachers.
—Woody Holton, author of Abigail Adams: A Life

Phillip Hamilton’s illuminating and important collection of Lucy and Henry Knox’s correspondence movingly reveals a marriage and a nation coming of age in the crucible of the Revolutionary War. Filled with peril, perseverance, loss, and love, their letters—at once intimate and expansive—affirm the deeply personal dimensions of the American Revolution.
—Lorri Glover, author of Founders as Fathers: The Private Lives and Politics of the American Revolutionaries

Scholars and students of the American Revolution owe a deep debt of gratitude to Phillip Hamilton for bringing this correspondence of Henry and Lucy Knox from the archives to the pages of his elegant book. Hamilton's insightful and gracefully written introductory notes combine with his subjects’ chronicle of separation, anxiety, and resilience to give us a fuller, more human understanding of the costs and the rewards of the long struggle for independence. This collection reminds us that personal strategies for survival are as important to consider as battlefield strategies for victory.
—Carol Berkin, author of Revolutionary Mothers: Women in the Struggle for America's Independence

Lorri Glover

Phillip Hamilton’s illuminating and important collection of Lucy and Henry Knox’s correspondence movingly reveals a marriage and a nation coming of age in the crucible of the Revolutionary War. Filled with peril, perseverance, loss, and love, their letters—at once intimate and expansive—affirm the deeply personal dimensions of the American Revolution.

From the B&N Reads Blog

Customer Reviews