George Washingtons Great Gamble: And the Sea Battle That Won the American Revolution

George Washington's Great Gamble: And the Sea Battle That Won the American Revolution by James Nelson () on leondumoulin.nl *FREE* shipping.
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The spring and summer only served to reinforce his despair, but in late summer the changing circumstances of war presented a once-in-a-war opportunity for a French armada to hold off the mighty British navy while his own troops with French reinforcements drove Lord Cornwallis's forces to the Chesapeake. The Battle of the Capes would prove the only time the French ever fought the Royal Navy to a draw, and for the British army it was a catastrophe.

George Washington's Great Gamble and the Sea Battle that Won the American Revolution - ProQuest

Cornwallis confidently retreated to Yorktown, expecting to be evacuated by a British fleet that never arrived. In the end he had no choice but to surrender. Although the war sputtered on another two years, its outcome was never in doubt after Yorktown. General Washington's Great Gamble is the story of the greatest naval engagement of the American Revolution.

It is also a study in leadership, good and bad, political machinations and the wild, unpredictable circumstances that led to the extraordinary confluence of military and naval resources at that time and place. The Personal Memoirs of U. Grant Volumes I and II. Andrew Jackson and the Miracle of New Orleans.

The Dawn's Early Light. The American Victory in the War of Independence. A Short History of the American Revolution. New American Revolution Handbook. Guide to the Battles of the American Revolution. A History From Beginning to End. Personal Memoirs of U. Grant — Volume 2. Revolution on the Hudson: The Words Of War. Chronicles of the Revolutionary War.

From Fort Henry To Corinth. The Capture of Atlanta and the March to the Sea. The American Revolutionary War. War on the Waters.


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The War of Special Operations in the American Revolution. General William Tecumseh Sherman. The Chesapeake Campaigns — Ships of Oak, Guns of Iron. American War of Independence Commanders. Alabama and the Civil War. Battles of the Revolutionary War, — Stamped from the Beginning.


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Yorktown's Civil War Siege. Rip Van Winkle Illustrated Edition. War of American Independence the Revolutionary War: The Worlds Greatest Civilizations: The History and Culture of the Aztec. Battle Of Brooklyn The Mammoth Book of the West. The War of American Independence. The God of His Fathers. I got way more than I bargained for, and loved it. I thought I was just going to learn about the very last battle of the Revolution.

Instead, I thoroughly enjoyed being immersed in the details of the last year-and-a-half of Revolutionary fighting. So, why do I only give four stars and not five? By necessity, a large portion of this book is devoted to naval matters, for the siege of Yorktown was largely a naval operation. I like boats, but I am not a sailor.

The author is, and I think that he assumes that his audience knows more about naval matters than they actually might. He does explain some naval matters for example, he takes to time to make sure that his audience understands what makes ships sail faster or slower than other ships. But for a non-sailor like myself there is still a lot of naval matters he does not explain which I did not understand. That aside, though, this book is still worth the read. I definitely enjoyed it and look forward to exploring history with this author again. Steven Peterson Top Contributor: This is a work that explores the evolution of George Washington's military thinking as the French entered the Revolutionary War.

Talking about his "Great Gamble," I think, rather overstates things. A key point of this book is how Washington began to appreciate the potential value of naval superiority. After the French entered the War, he had hoped for some collaborative successes between the French navy and the American-French infantry. It did not happen. The book also notes Washington's fixation on New York as the proper focus of his military strategy.

British General Clinton was hunkered down in New York City and its environs--making it difficult for Washington to "get at him. Poor strategic thinking by the British left Cornwallis and his forces tied to the coast, to allow for the British fleet to communicate with him. However, a large French fleet set out from the Caribbean. Cicrumstances conspired to lead Washington and the French General, Rochambeau, to target Cornwallis rather than Clinton.

The march of these two forces south and the confluence with the French navy threatened Cornwallis' position. Then the story of the naval battle and the French victory and the doom of Cornwallis' forces. The book concludes that Washington's evolution in thinking about the importance of control over the waters was a key part of the signal victory at Yorktown. Having read Nelson's previous book, George Washington's Secret Navy, with fascination, I was especially looking forward to his book on the end game of the Revolutionary War.


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I was not disappointed. Every school kid has heard about Lafayette I even went to an elementary school named for the French hero , but hardly anyone knows what exactly he did. Moreover, that a key victory by the French Navy over an English fleet set the stage for Cornwallis' surrender at Yorktown was an obscure fact shared only among expert scholars. Nelson's book, suspenseful even though we know the conclusion, relates all the confusion of war, the clashing egos and the ineptitude at crucial moments of key British officers, the indecisions and meanderings of all forces due to long-delayed communications, and the undue caution and delays by state politicians in assisting military operations.

This is a grand tale, almost Shakespearean. My only minor complaint is Nelson's repetition, particularly the advantage of copper-bottom ships. Otherwise, the political and military strategy and battlefield tactics are well presented.

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The book was a joy to read and I learned much. All the events of the founding of our nation, and each addition to the story, as Nelson's latest opus, continues to amaze. See all 30 reviews. Most recent customer reviews. Published 1 year ago. Published on July 30, Published on July 24, Published on July 23, Published on July 20, Published on July 17, Published on June 22, Nelson made the reading so interesting and Published on June 7, Published on May 28, Amazon Giveaway allows you to run promotional giveaways in order to create buzz, reward your audience, and attract new followers and customers.

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George Washington's Great Gamble: And the Sea Battle That Won the American Revolution

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