improved tactics of, 60–61, 72
lack of resolve in, 115–16
naval superiority achieved by, 37, 179, 182, 196–98, 204–5, 240
naval superiority sought by, 106, 112, 115, 139–40, 154
in Newport, 20–21, 37–40, 46, 114, 116, 117–18, 137, 154–55
in plan to capture Arnold, 44–46
priorities differing from Washington’s, 48–50, 112–13, 135, 137
and Race to Chesapeake, 52, 53, 54–55, 69, 218
ships of the line, 154, 183, 198, 199
signaling system of, 187
time-wasting activities of, 48–50, 73
as troop transport, 114, 115, 119–20, 137, 153
see also ships, French
French Revolution, 234, 265, 267, 268, 270, 271, 272–73
and Reign of Terror, 273, 276
Gage, Thomas, 156, 268
Gálvez, Bernardo de, 17, 18, 132, 133–34, 140, 141, 269
Gates, Horatio, 23, 261
at Camden, 19
and Newburgh conspiracy, 247, 248, 269
proposal to replace Washington with, 124, 247
at Saratoga, 228, 247, 255
after the war, 269
George III, king of England, 18, 109, 224, 231, 241, 261, 269
George IV, king of England, 278
Germain, George, 19, 76–77, 78, 79, 93, 107, 109, 241, 269–70
Germantown, British victory in, 108, 171
Gist, Mordecai, 171
Glorious First of June, Battle of, 270
Gloucester:
British attempt to escape to, 223–24, 226
British cavalry in, 273
British fortifications in, 138, 204
Gosnell, Nicholas, 84
Gouvion, Jean Baptiste, 165
Graham, Joseph, 83, 84, 85, 87, 95
Grandière, Charles-Marie de la, 61
Gras-Préville, Balthazar de, 187, 188
Grasse, François-Joseph-Paul, Comte de, 139–41, 147–51, 158
arrival at Chesapeake, 171–72, 174, 179–82, 183, 196–98, 228, 244
in Battle of Chesapeake, see Chesapeake, Battle of
and Battle of Saintes, 240–41, 266, 270, 277
en route to Caribbean, 130–31
en route to Chesapeake, 133, 148–49, 151, 152, 153, 154, 159–60, 161, 164, 180, 228
funding sought by, 139–40, 143–44, 150–51
in Haiti, 134–35, 139–41, 142–44, 151
impetuosity of, 181, 194, 201–3
in Martinique, 118, 130, 131, 134
oblivious to importance of naval superiority, 204–5, 223
and Old Bahama Channel, 144, 149–50, 151
relations with his officers, 132
reputation of, 185, 191
and Rochambeau, 112–13, 114, 118–20, 137, 139, 147, 174, 203
and Saavedra, 133, 135, 140–41, 144, 150–51, 174, 189, 228
secret orders from French ministry to, 112–13, 114, 146
Tobago taken by, 134
and troop transport, 119–20, 130, 148
after the war, 270
and Washington, 118, 147, 148, 196–98, 201–3, 204–5, 237, 240, 261
Washington uninformed about actions of, 113, 114, 118–19, 147, 170
in Yorktown area, 201, 204, 227, 228, 232
Graves, Samuel, 108
Graves, Thomas:
Arbuthnot replaced by, 137
and Battle of Cape Henry, 56, 163–64
in Battle of Chesapeake, 187–88, 190, 192, 194, 195–96, 240, 270; see also Chesapeake, Battle of
and Cornwallis’s surrender, 231
Digby as replacement for, 155
en route to Chesapeake, 180, 182–83
and Hood, 145, 161, 162–64, 173, 182, 183, 225
and London, 56, 164, 188, 195
in New York, 140, 145, 155, 224
and possible rescue of Cornwallis, 224–25
and Rodney, 145–46
as slow to act, 162–63, 224, 268
storm damage to ships of, 37, 44
after the war, 270
Greene, Caty, 25, 82, 102, 271
Greene, Nathanael, 22–26, 175, 239
and André trial, 22
army career of, 23–25
in Carolinas, 22, 25–26, 38, 39, 77, 79, 80–83, 102, 107, 121, 227, 228, 237
Congress’s evasions to, 23
and Cornwallis, 25, 26, 82–83, 85, 86–102, 121, 227
early years of, 23
and Guilford Courthouse, 96–103, 228
military strategy studied by, 25–26, 82–83, 87–88, 93, 97–98
militia distrusted by, 88
and Morgan, 26, 80–82, 86, 87–89, 97
and Race to Dan, 88–94, 89, 96, 111
in Virginia, 24–25, 93–94
and von Steuben, 25
after the war, 270–71, 274
and Washington, 22, 24–25, 103, 257
Washington’s letters to, 164, 238, 241
Grenada, British, 10
Guichen, Luc Urbain de Bouëxic, Comte de, 130
Guilford Courthouse, 86, 87, 90
Guilford Courthouse, Battle of, 96–103, 99, 107, 122, 228, 259
Gulf Stream, 52, 53, 54, 180
Haiti (Saint Domingue), 10
African slaves in, 143–44
French navy in, 134–35, 139–41, 142–44, 151
funding for French forces sought in, 143–44, 150, 151
McLane’s secret mission to, 147
Hamilton, Alexander, 227, 242, 247, 258
and Federalists, 265, 271
restored to army, 155–56
in Siege of Yorktown, 208–9, 215–16, 219–20, 222
and slavery, 236, 320
after the war, 271, 275
as Washington’s aide-de-camp, 42–44, 46, 47, 216
Hampton Roads, Chesapeake Bay, 27, 30
Harrison, Benjamin, 104, 106, 238, 243
Hawke, Sir Edward, 68
Hawthorne, Nathaniel, The House of the Seven Gables, 272
Haxton, Walter, 52, 54
Head of Elk, Maryland:
Continental army in, 38, 40, 49, 175
French and American armies en route to, 164–65, 170, 172
“mosquito fleet” in, 173–74
Heath, William, 155
Hendricks, James, 157
Hessian jaegers:
and Arnold, 28, 30, 69, 70, 71
and Cornwallis, 121–22
at Trenton, 76
after the war, 275
at Yorktown, 210, 211, 232, 234
Holland:
British declaration of war on, 130
supplies for Continental army from, 10
Hood, Samuel:
in Battle of Chesapeake, 186, 187–88, 190, 195; see also Chesapeake, Battle of
and de Grasse, 130, 131, 160–61, 173, 183, 185
and Graves, 145, 161, 162–64, 173, 182, 183, 225
at Martinique, 185
and possible rescue of Cornwallis, 225
and Rodney, 130, 131, 134, 145, 160–61
signaling system used by, 187, 188, 195
and surrender at Yorktown, 231
after the war, 270, 271
Howard, John Eager, 100
Howe, Richard, 270
Howe, Robert, 36
Howe, William, 5th Viscount Howe, 76, 98, 156, 268
Hudson, John, 175
Hudson River:
barricades across, 12, 251
Continental headquarters at, during British control of New York, 7–8, 75, 125, 152, 1
65
map (1780–1781), 41
Phoenix on, 12, 288
and Race to Chesapeake, 53, 158–59, 162
Washington’s postwar tour of, 255–56
Washington steering boat on, 3, 7, 239
and West Point, 3, 155, 251
Huger, Isaac, 80, 81, 82, 86, 88, 89, 90
Humphreys, David, 5, 176, 262
Huntington, Samuel, 26
hurricanes (1780), 10–18
Great Storm of 1780, 17, 18
Phoenix wrecked in, 13–17
Solano’s Hurricane, 17–18, 21
Jamaica, 10, 17, 141, 149, 240–41, 277
James, Bartholomew, 212, 214
James and York rivers (1781), 115
Jefferson, Thomas, 222, 250–51, 279
as British target, 123
and Democratic Republicans, 265–66
as governor of Virginia, 23, 24, 30, 39, 71, 78, 123
lack of response to British threat, 30–31, 39, 123, 271
Notes on the State of Virginia, 271
as president, 272
retirement from government service, 123, 152, 157
reward offered for Arnold’s capture, 33
as secretary of state, 265
and slavery, 236, 279, 320
after the war, 271–72
Jones, Joseph, 243, 246, 247, 250
Kempenfelt, Richard, 61
King’s Mountain, Battle of, 19–20, 22, 23, 78, 259
Knox, Henry, 24, 146, 147, 153, 197, 228
and army crises, 35, 250
at Siege of Yorktown, 220, 221–22
after the war, 272, 274, 277
on Washington’s leadership, 42, 239
Kosciuszko, Thaddeus, 25
Lafayette, Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de, 22, 23, 38–39, 40, 113
avenging death of his father, 110, 120
and Cornwallis, 121–23, 125, 138–39, 151–52, 178
en route to Chesapeake area, 44, 46, 69, 70, 107, 116
and French retreat from Cape Henry, 71, 72
and Hamilton, 43
on the importance of naval superiority, 39, 71
in Maryland, 109–11
and plans to capture Arnold, 40, 48–49
return to France, 252–53
and Rochambeau, 43
and Saint-Simon’s troops, 181
at Siege of Yorktown, 215–16, 220
on slavery, 252–53, 256, 322
in Virginia, 120–22, 123, 125, 138–39, 148, 181, 202, 218
after the war, 272–73
and Washington, 39, 40, 43, 49, 74, 121, 146, 147, 151–52, 156, 196, 215–16, 240, 252–53, 256, 272
Lamb, Roger, 84, 99–101
Latrobe, Benjamin Henry, 236, 278
Laurens, John:
death of, 245
on granting freedom to slaves after military service, 236, 320
and Hamilton, 44, 236
and negotiation of terms of surrender, 230
at Siege of Yorktown, 216, 236
travel to France, 35, 44, 105, 106, 112
Lauzun, Armand Louis de Gontaut, Duc de, 49, 112, 118, 136, 169, 172, 231, 273
Lee, Billy, 176, 262
Lee, Henry “Light Horse Harry,” 89, 90–91, 92–93, 94–95, 96, 272, 273–74
Lee, Richard Henry, 44, 123–24, 261
Lee, Robert E., 274, 280
Lee, Thomas Sim, 177
Lexington, Battle of, 229, 251, 259
Lincoln, Benjamin, 136, 155, 159, 165, 216, 229–30, 232, 233, 274
Long Island, Battle of, 108, 176, 199
Luzerne, Anne-César, Chevalier de la, 3, 45, 46, 110, 136, 215
Mackenzie, Frederick, 169–70, 173, 224
Madison, James, 266, 271
maps:
Battle of Guilford Courthouse (1781), 99
Chesapeake (1780–1781), 29
to Chesapeake (1781), 180
Eastern North America and Caribbean (1780), 11
Hudson River and New York (1780–1781), 41
James and York rivers (1781), 115
march to Yorktown (1781), 166–67
Race to Chesapeake (1781), 53
Race to Dan (1781), 89
Siege of Yorktown (1781), 213
Marion, Francis, 20
Martin, Joseph Plumb, 198–99
on African Americans released from Cornwallis’s army, 235
at Battle of Long Island, 199
on German soldiers, 232
A Narrative of Some of the Adventures, Dangers and Sufferings of a Revolutionary Soldier, 274–75
with Sappers and Miners, 199, 206–8, 219
at Siege of Yorktown, 209, 219–20, 235
after the war, 251–52, 274–75
and Washington, 207
Martinique, 10, 17, 112, 118, 130, 131, 134, 185, 189
Mason, George, 118
Mauduit du Plessis, Thomas-Antoine de, 170
McHenry, James, 241
McKean, Thomas, 169, 201
McLane, Allan, 147
McLeod, John, 100
Mifflin, Thomas, 261
Miles, Samuel, 160, 164
Monson, Aeneas, 222
Montcalm, Louis-Joseph, Marquis de, 189
Montecler, Marquis de, 191
Monteil, Chevalier François-Aymar, 140, 186, 190
Morgan, Daniel:
and Cornwallis, 39, 77, 81–82, 85–87
at Cowpens, 26, 39, 77, 81, 87, 97, 275
and Greene, 26, 80–82, 86, 87–89, 97
after the war, 275
Morgan, Edmund, 156
Morgann, Maurice, 242
Morogues, Vicomte de, 60
Morris, Gouverneur, 42
Morris, Robert:
and army discontent, 168, 174
financing the war, 147, 157, 165, 168, 174, 257, 275
in Philadelphia, 147, 160, 165
after the war, 275
Mount Vernon:
British visit to, 105
name of, 4
shad harvests at, 197
threats to, 124
Washington’s brief stops in, 175–78, 238
Washington’s papers in, 257
Washington’s return home to, 262, 272, 278
Muhlenberg, John, 69, 70
Napoleon Bonaparte, 208, 267, 273, 276
Napoleonic Wars, 278
Narragansett Bay, French fleet in, 33
Nelson, Horatio, 271
Nelson, Thomas, 33, 151–52, 209, 212
Newburgh, Washington remaining by his troops in, 243–44
Newburgh conspiracy, 246–51, 269
New Jersey:
army mutiny in, 35–37
Continental army’s march through, 158–60, 162, 164, 169–70
New York:
American prisoners’ deaths in, 259
British express boats between Yorktown and, 211–12
British navy in, 155, 196, 199–201, 224, 231
British soldiers remaining in, 251
Clinton in, 10, 18, 77, 78, 107, 115, 117, 121, 158–59, 161–63, 169, 244, 259
French doubts about attack on, 112, 116
as lost British opportunity, 259
map (1780–1781), 41
postwar British evacuation of, 258, 267
spies in, 113, 148, 259
Washington’s change of plans about, 146–49
Washington’s focus on, 106, 114–16, 117, 118–19, 135–37, 244–45
Washington’s postwar entry into, 258–59
Noailles,
Vicomte de, 230
North, Frederick, Lord North, 241
North Carolina:
condition of roads in, 79
see also Carolinas
O’Hara, Charles:
in Carolinas, 20, 77, 79–80, 84, 86, 93, 96
at Cowan’s Ford, 84
on destruction of baggage, 80
at Guilford Courthouse, 100–101
and surrender, 231–32, 276
after the war, 276
at Yorktown, 229, 231–32, 276
Olney, Stephen, 216–17, 219
Orvilliers, Louis Guillouet, Comte d’, 9
Overmountain Men, 19–20, 78
Panic of 1797, 275
Parker, Sir Hyde, Jr., 12–17
Pennsylvania, army mutiny in, 34–35
Pensacola, see Florida
Peters, Richard, 148–49
Philadelphia:
Constitutional Convention in (1789), 265, 278
Continental Congress in, 22, 34, 75, 169, 238, 246, 255
French and American armies in, 168–69, 174, 303
French and American armies’ march to, 165
Phillips, William, 102, 107, 109, 110, 120
Pickens, Andrew, 94, 95, 96
Pickering, Timothy, 36, 147, 148, 157–58, 160
Point of Fork, Virginia, 123
Pope, Alexander, 120
Portsmouth, Arnold’s base in, 30, 32, 33–34, 37, 46, 68–69
Potomac Company, 278
Prescott, William, 208
Pyle, John, 94–95
Pyle’s Massacre, 95, 96
Randolph, Edmund, 254
Rawdon, Lord Francis, 19, 121, 197
Reed, Joseph, 34, 101
Richmond, British attack on, 31–32, 39, 69
Rittenhouse, David, 245
Rivington, James, 259
Robespierre, death of, 276
Rochambeau, Jean-Baptiste Donatien de Vimeur, Comte de:
actions contrary to Washington’s orders, 49, 50
Chesapeake as focus of, 119, 136, 148, 227
as commander in chief of French army, 113
communications between Washington and, 38, 44, 46, 48, 73–75, 118–19, 146–48, 154, 244
de Barras’s refusal to follow orders of, 154–55
and de Grasse, 112–13, 114, 118–20, 137, 139, 147, 174, 203
disagreements between Washington and, 113, 117–20, 137
French government’s lack of support for, 111–12
and funding, 139, 174
at Mount Vernon, 176, 178
negative outlook of, 113–14, 116, 136, 139
in Newport, 20–21, 46, 154
and New York, 135–37
secrecy of, 46, 48, 112–13, 117–19, 137, 147, 244, 245
son of, as messenger, 21, 35, 111; in prisoner exchange, 276
after the war, 268, 276
Washington’s meetings with, 21, 111–13, 165, 172