Birth of Our Nation: 1776, by David McCullough

Review by Bruce Collier August 11, 2005 Issue

David McCullough’s latest work of history, 1776, contains only 294 pages of actual text. The remaining 92 pages are made up of source notes, an extensive bibliography, and an index. The work is a concise and chronologically ordered account of what could be considered to have been this country’s most crucial year.

McCullough begins with a description of an address to Parliament by George III, made in October of 1775, on the subject of unrest in the American colonies. In a twenty-minute speech, America’s last king declares the colonies to be in rebellion and announces his intention to commit land and sea forces. The monarch hints at “friendly offers of foreign assistance” in bringing the rebels to heel. Following intense debate, both Lords and Commons vote not to oppose their sovereign’s plans, and the American Revolution is off and running.

On the other side of the Atlantic, the by-no-means united colonies are scraping together their own military force. The embryonic American army is known variously as “the New England army,” “the army of the United Colonies,” and “the Continental Army.” Its new commander, Virginian George Washington, officially calls it “the Troops of the United Provinces of America.” Unofficially, he simply calls it the “raw materials” for an army. One British general, occasional satirist John Burgoyne, famously describes his opponents as “a rabble in arms.”

Burgoyne was not far off—at least at first. As one sees in reading McCullough’s descriptions of the gathering troops, Washington had a nearly impossible task. Each state, though theoretically willing to send a contingent of homegrown soldiers to fight for the nation, is cautious to allow too many to stray too far. Fears of a British invasion runs up and down the Atlantic coast. No one knows for certain where they will land, and no one wants to be defenseless.

McCullough notes the effect of propaganda on American attitudes toward a fight. Stories circulate of the brutality of British troops, the savagery of their Hessian allies, and the prospect of mass hangings for treason. Most are exaggerations, but some people are inclined to side with the coming soldiers, or to just stay home and hope the storm lands elsewhere.

Even so, says McCullough, America held a pair of aces. They were George Washington, and a 33-year-old Quaker from Rhode Island named Nathanael Greene. While Washington had seen active service in the British Army in the French and Indian War, Greene had no military training, having grown up working on a farm and in his family’s various businesses. Before the war, his knowledge of military matters all came from books. From one book, Greene learns the three essential qualities of a general are courage, intelligence, and health. Greene and Washington, as well as any number of their officers and men, seem to have been blessed with all three qualities.

As the narrative shows, all three were needed in 1776. The year would see the formation and organization of the Continental Army, and the landing of thousands of British troops in addition to those already in America. In months, the British would evacuate Boston, invade and chase the Americans out of New York, and suffer two small but psychologically important defeats at Trenton and Princeton. The capture of Trenton from its Hessian garrison, which took place following Washington’s famous crossing of the Delaware River, served to stiffen the American backbone. The war would continue until 1783, but 1776 was the year that gave the rebels a sight of the prize.

McCullough prefers to rely on contemporary accounts in telling his story. Sources include letters and official correspondence of both British and American commanders, personal letters of soldiers and their families, and newspapers. Some of the maps contained in the book are difficult to read, but they were contemporarily drawn, and it helps to see the terrain the way it appeared to the people involved.

There is no lack of drama. On the day the Declaration of Independence was being signed in Philadelphia, Washington was in Brooklyn, observing the massing British force that would eventually compel him to leave his position. When he does resolve to leave, he moves 9,000 men across the river into Manhattan, in virtual silence, without losing a man. His crossing of the Delaware, slipping into Trenton to surprise the Hessians, is likewise conducted in near-perfect stealth. Washington made a lot of mistakes, but his successes made up for them.

Washington is, of course, the star of the book. While he had no illusions about his army, he maintained that success would come, as long as there was “perseverance.” The word appears frequently in his correspondence. As a commander, Washington succinctly expressed himself on the American character. Speaking of the army after Trenton and Princeton, he wrote: “A people unused to restraint must be led, they will not be drove.”

No wonder they made the guy the first president of the United States. He understood America before there even was an America.

1776, Simon & Schuster, 386 pages, available online and local booksellers and libraries.

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