illustrations, maps

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

Contenidos :
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

"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.