When the American Revolution began, the colonial troops had little hope of matching His Majesty's highly trained, experienced British and German legions in confrontational battle. Indeed, Washington's army suffered defeat after defeat in the first few years of the war, fighting bravely but mainly trading space for time. However, the Americans did have a trump, in a reservoir of tough, self-reliant frontier fighters, who were brave beyond compare, and entirely willing to contest the King's men with unconventional tactics. In this book, rewned author, and former U.S. Army Colonel, Robert Tonsetic describes and analyzes numerous examples of special operations conducted during the Revolutionary War. While the British might seize the coastlines, the interior still belonged to the Americans should the Empire venture inward. Most of the operations were conducted by American irregulars and volunteers, carefully selected, with specialized skills, and led by leaders with native intelligence. While General Washington endeavored to confront the Empire on conventional terms-for pure pride's sake at the founding of the Republic--he meantime relied on his small units to keep the enemy off balance. The fledgling Continental Navy and Marines soon adopted a similar strategy. Realizing that the small American fleet was match for the powerful British navy in major sea battles, the new Navy and its Marines focused on disrupting British commercial shipping in the Atlantic and Caribbean, and launching raids against British on-shore installations, first in the Bahamas and then on the British coastline itself. As the war continued, Washington increasingly relied on special operations forces in the rtheast as well as in the Carolinas, and an ad hoc frontiersmen to defy British sovereignty inland. When the British and their Indian allies began to wage war on American settlements west of the Appalachians, Washington had to again rely on partisan and militias to conduct long-range strikes and raids targeting enemy forts and outposts.
Product Identifiers
Publisher
Case Mate Books
ISBN-10
1612001653
ISBN-13
9781612001654
eBay Product ID (ePID)
141606118
Product Key Features
Author
Robert L. Tonsetic
Format
Hardback
Language
English
Subject
Military History
Type
Textbook
Dimensions
Height
152mm
Width
229mm
Additional Product Features
Place of Publication
Havertown
Content Note
Illustrations
Date of Publication
19/07/2013
Genre
Military History
Country of Publication
United States
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