Synopses & Reviews
In 1776, Thomas Paine published Common Sense, the Continental Congress declared independence, and Washington crossed the Delaware. We are familiar with these famous moments in American history but know little about the extraordinary events occurring that same year beyond the Revolution. In this distinctive history, Claudio Saunt tells a fascinating, largely untold story of an immense and restless continent connected in surprising ways. In the pivotal year of 1776, the Spanish landed in San Francisco, Creek emissaries sailed to Cuba, and the Sioux discovered the Black Hills. In rich, narrative prose, Saunt tells how decisions made across the Atlantic affected Indian trade routes on the Mississippi, set off an environmental revolution in Canada’s boreal forests, and reconfigured the political balance in the Southwest. These formative events shaped America in lasting ways. Richly illustrated, with maps that reenvision a familiar landscape, West of the Revolution explores a turbulent continent in a year of many revolutions.
Review
"A dramatic and compelling new take on the North America of 1776. With careful research and in evocative writing, Saunt brilliantly recovers the cultural diversity and many possibilities of a continent dominated by native peoples and coveted by several empires." Alan Taylor, author of The Internal Enemy (National Book Award Finalist)
Review
"An engaging, original, and thought-provoking book on what was happening on the American continent in 1776 outside of our traditional line of sight. The result is a fascinating new look at the most familiar of years." Jon Meacham, author of Thomas Jefferson: The Art of Power
Review
"Move over, Minutemen: teeming with Sioux hunters, Creek farmers, Aleutian traders, Russian trappers, and Spanish missionaries, portrays America in 1776 as we've never seen it before. In a vivid narrative sweeping from Alaska to Cuba, Claudio Saunt upends the conventional vision of this moment, oriented around a handful of statesmen in Philadelphia. He enriches this history with travel accounts, material culture, and consistent attention to the natural environment. A revelation." Maya Jasanoff, author of Liberty's Exiles
Review
"What might the American Revolutionary period look like without the Revolution at its center? Claudio Saunt's remarkable book asks this counterintuitive question, and the results are revelatory. Its wide-ranging
Review
"No one who reads it will think of 1776 the same way again." Publishers Weekly
Review
"What might the American Revolutionary period look like without the Revolution at its center? Claudio Saunt's remarkable book asks this counterintuitive question, and the results are revelatory. Its wide-ranging
Synopsis
In that pivotal year, the Spanish established the first European colony in San Francisco and set off a cataclysm for the region s native residents. The Russians pushed into Alaska in search of valuable sea otters, devastating local Aleut communities. And the British extended their fur trade from Hudson Bay deep into the continent, sparking an environmental revolution that transformed America s boreal forests.
While imperial officials in distant Europe maneuvered to control lands they knew almost nothing about, America's indigenous peoples sought their own advantage. Creek Indians navigated the Caribbean to explore trade with Cuba. The Osages expanded their dominion west of the Mississippi River, overwhelming the small Spanish outposts in the area. And the Sioux advanced across the Dakotas. One traditional Sioux history states that they first seized the Black Hills, the territory they now consider their sacred homeland, in 1776. "Two nations were born that year," Saunt writes. The native one would win its final military victory at the Battle of Little Bighorn one hundred years later.
From the Aleutian Islands to the Gulf Coast and across the oceans to Europe s imperial capitals, Saunt s masterfully researched narrative reveals an interconnected web of history that spans not just the forgotten parts of North America but the entire globe.
Richly illustrated, with maps that reenvision a familiar landscape, West of the Revolution explores a turbulent continent in a year of many revolutions.
"
Synopsis
This panoramic account of 1776 chronicles the other revolutions unfolding that year across North America, far beyond the British colonies.
Synopsis
In 1776, Thomas Paine published , the Continental Congress declared independence, and Washington crossed the Delaware. We are familiar with these famous moments in American history, but we know little about the extraordinary events occurring that same year far beyond the British colonies. In this distinctive history, Claudio Saunt tells an intriguing, largely untold story of an immense and restless continent connected in surprising ways.
Description
This panoramic account of 1776 chronicles the other revolutions unfolding that year across North America, far beyond the British colonies.
In 1776, Thomas Paine published Common Sense, the Continental Congress declared independence, and Washington crossed the Delaware. We are familiar with these famous moments in American history, but we know little about the extraordinary events occurring that same year far beyond the British colonies. In this distinctive history, Claudio Saunt tells an intriguing, largely untold story of an immense and restless continent connected in surprising ways.
In that pivotal year, the Spanish established the first European colony in San Francisco and set off a cataclysm for the region’s native residents. The Russians pushed into Alaska in search of valuable sea otters, devastating local Aleut communities. And the British extended their fur trade from Hudson Bay deep into the continent, sparking an environmental revolution that transformed America’s boreal forests.
While imperial officials in distant Europe maneuvered to control lands they knew almost nothing about, America's indigenous peoples sought their own advantage. Creek Indians navigated the Caribbean to explore trade with Cuba. The Osages expanded their dominion west of the Mississippi River, overwhelming the small Spanish outposts in the area. And the Sioux advanced across the Dakotas. One traditional Sioux history states that they first seized the Black Hills, the territory they now consider their sacred homeland, in 1776. "Two nations were born that year," Saunt writes. The native one would win its final military victory at the Battle of Little Bighorn one hundred years later.
From the Aleutian Islands to the Gulf Coast and across the oceans to Europe’s imperial capitals, Saunt’s masterfully researched narrative reveals an interconnected web of history that spans not just the forgotten parts of North America but the entire globe.
Richly illustrated, with maps that reenvision a familiar landscape, West of the Revolution explores a turbulent continent in a year of many revolutions.
About the Author
Claudio Saunt is the Richard B. Russell Professor in American History at the University of Georgia. He is the author of award-winning books, including A New Order of Things and Black, White, and Indian and West of the Revolution. He lives in Athens, Georgia.