The American Revolution and the fate of the world / Richard Bell.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Bell, Richard, 1978- Author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

United States--History--Revolution, 1775-1783--Influence.

United States.

United States--History--Revolution, 1775-1783--Foreign public opinion.

Great Britain--Colonies--History--18th century.

Great Britain.

Genre:

Informational works.

Physical Description:

406 pages : illustrations, maps ; 24 cm

Place of Publication:

New York : Riverhead Books, 2025.

Summary:

"A prize-winning historian's fascinating and unfamiliar recasting of America's war of independence as a transformative international event. In this revelatory and enthralling book, award-winning historian Richard Bell reveals the full breadth and depth of America's founding event. The American Revolution was not only the colonies' triumphant liberation from the rule of an overbearing England; it was also a cataclysm that pulled in participants from around the globe and threw the entire world order into chaos. Repositioning the Revolution at the center of an international web, Bell's narrative ranges as far afield as India, Africa, Central America, and Australia. As his lens widens, the "War of Independence" manifests itself as a sprawling struggle that upended the lives of millions of people on every continent and fundamentally transformed the way the world works, disrupting trade, restructuring penal systems, stirring famine, and creating the first global refugee crisis. Bell conveys the impact of these developments at home and abroad by grounding the narrative in the gripping stories of individuals--including women, minorities, and other disenfranchised people. The result is an unforgettable and unexpected work of American history that shifts everything we thought we knew about our creation story"-- Provided by publisher.

Contents:

Introduction: A world turned upside down

The Empress of China : the Boston Tea Party and the fight for free trade

Disunited kingdom : the British people and the American war

Shock troops : Hessian soldiers and the counterinsurgency campaign

Molly Brant : native diplomacy and the fight for indigenous independence

The line of Ireland : Erin's solder's and the transatlantic struggle for liberty

Baron Steuben : the Prussian drillmaster at Valley Forge

Long live King Louis : the French alliance and the road to Yorktown

William Russell : privateers, prisoners, and Britain's black holes

The crown jewels : the battle for the British Caribbean

Harry Washington : slavery, freedom, and the pursuit of happiness in Africa

The Spanish reconquest : dreams and defeats in Spain's New World

Independence lost : the invasion of India and the rebirth of empire

Warra warra : the convict crisis and the odyssey to Australia

Peggy Shippen : loyalists, mongrels, and the great refugee resettlement

Conclusion: A vast globe sent up into the air

Acknowledgments

Notes

Index.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 365-387) and index.

Local Notes:

Athenaeum copy: Kennedy fund bookplate.

Other Format:

Online version

Bell, Richard, 1978- American Revolution and the fate of the world

Online version Bell, Richard, 1978- American Revolution and the fate of the world

ISBN:

9780593719510

0593719514

OCLC:

1499661199