Brothers at arms : American independence and the men of France & Spain who saved it /
Larrie D. Ferreiro.
- xxv, 429 pages : illustrations, maps ; 25 cm
Not just the Declaration of Independence but also a declaration that we depend on France (and Spain, too) -- The road to war -- The merchants -- The ministers -- The soldiers -- The sailors -- The pieces converge -- The endgame -- The road to peace -- The legacy.
"The remarkable untold story of how the American Revolution's success depended on substantial military assistance provided by France and Spain, and places the Revolution in the context of the global strategic interests of those nations in their fight against England. In this groundbreaking, revisionist history, Larrie Ferreiro shows that at the time the first shots were fired at Lexington and Concord the colonists had little chance, if any, of militarily defeating the British. The nascent American nation had no navy, little in the way of artillery, and a militia bereft even of gunpowder. In his detailed accounts Ferreiro shows that without the extensive military and financial support of the French and Spanish, the American cause would never have succeeded. France and Spain provided close to the equivalent of $30 billion and 90 percent of all guns used by the Americans, and they sent soldiers and sailors by the thousands to fight and die alongside the Americans, as well as around the world. Ferreiro adds to the historical records the names of French and Spanish diplomats, merchants, soldiers, and sailors whose contribution is at last given recognition. Instead of viewing the American Revolution in isolation, Brothers at Arms reveals the birth of the American nation as the centerpiece of an international coalition fighting against a common enemy"-- "The remarkable untold story of how the American Revolution's success depended on substantial military and financial assistance provided by France and Spain, and places the Revolution in the context of the global strategic interests of those nations in their fight against Great Britain"--
9781101875247 (hardback)
HISTORY / United States / Revolutionary Period (1775-1800). HISTORY / Military / United States. HISTORY / Europe / General.
United States--Foreign relations--1775-1783. United States--History--Participation, French.--Revolution, 1775-1783 United States--History--Participation, Spanish.--Revolution, 1775-1783 Great Britain--Foreign relations--1760-1789. France--Foreign relations--Great Britain. Great Britain--Foreign relations--France. Spain--Foreign relations--Great Britain. Great Britain--Foreign relations--Spain. Estados Unidos --Relaciones exteriores--1775-1783. Estados Unidos --Historia--Revolución, 1775-1783 Gran Bretaña --Relaciones exteriores