1776 by David McCullough

p 1776 ' by David McCullough

In the book 1776 , biographer and historian David McCullough tells the tale of the crucial first year and a half of the American Revolution During that crucial first year and a half several important events occurred . The first was the Siege of Boston and the Battle of Breeds Hill , or Bunker Hill as it is commonly called . The second major event was the signing of the Declaration of Independence in July of 1776 that effectively ended the colonies political relationship with Great Britain . The third event was

the ill-fated Battle for New York . The final events were the battles for Princeton and Trenton New Jersey that ended the critical year of 1776 . McCullough 's thesis states that without the perseverance of the Continental troops led by George Washington , the fight for American independence would have failed (McCollough : 2005

The American Revolution was essentially a chess game played out between the two great Georges of the 18th Century . King George III of Great Britain was only 36 years old when the conflict with the American colonies had begun in 1774 . Much like the other George , he was tall for the times , handsome and had a powerful personality that drew people to him (McCullough : 2005 :5-6 )George Washington , the second player in this chess game was not that much older than George III at a young 44 years of age . He to be tall for the era , at over 6 ft tall . Washington was charismatic , and military in bearing . In fact , due to his service in the French and Indian wars , Washington had more military experience than men did twice his age (McCullough : 2005 :48

The Siege of Boston had begun in 1775 when the British troops had landed just outside of Boston . The first battles in the Siege were the Battles of Lexington and Concord in which a small number of farmers tradesman , and professionals (Doctors , Lawyers , Church Officials , and Schoolteachers , known as the Minutemen , held off the British military with a small number of people (McCullough : 2005 :25

The British succeeded at taking Boston however , the Continental Army would face them for the first time in Charleston Massachusetts , outside Boston on June 17 , 1775 . This battle would become known as the Battle of Breeds Hill , or Bunker Hill . This would be the first time that the perseverance of the Continental Army would show itself . During the Battle of Breeds Hill the Continental Army faced the British Army with a force that was less than half the strength of the British Forces , and caused the British Army heavy losses (McCulough :2005 :7

McCullough states the Continental Army was a rather ragtag group . They wore no official uniform and there were no standardized weapons , or ly camps such as one say with the British Army . The Continental Soldiers were farmers , and fur trappers , lawyers , doctors and schoolteachers some of whom had never handled a gun in their lives However , they had one thing the British Army did not...