1. Alexander Hamilton
Alexander Hamilton follows the Caribbean-born immigrant who became a Continental Army officer, constitutional theorist and the first United States secretary of the treasury. It covers his service as George Washington’s aide, his combat command at Yorktown and his central role in advocating a stronger federal union.…
2. American Revolution
The American Revolution surveys the imperial crisis that transformed thirteen British colonies into an independent republic. It traces taxation disputes, popular protest, the outbreak of war at Lexington and Concord, the Declaration of Independence and the military struggle against Britain. The account follows major campaigns, foreign…
3. Battle of Bunker Hill
The Battle of Bunker Hill reconstructs the June 1775 fighting on the Charlestown peninsula outside Boston. It explains why colonial forces fortified Breed’s Hill, how British troops launched repeated frontal assaults and why the defenders eventually withdrew after running short of ammunition. Although Britain captured the…
4. Battles of Lexington and Concord
The Battles of Lexington and Concord recount the events of 19 April 1775, when British regulars marched from Boston to seize colonial military supplies. The narrative follows the confrontation on Lexington Green, the search at Concord and the fighting at the North Bridge. Militia attacks along…
5. Battles of Saratoga
The Battles of Saratoga follow the British campaign of 1777 that aimed to isolate New England by advancing south from Canada. It traces John Burgoyne’s increasingly difficult march, the fighting at Freeman’s Farm and Bemis Heights and the American command tensions involving Horatio Gates and Benedict…
6. Benedict Arnold
Benedict Arnold examines the gifted Continental officer whose name became synonymous with treason. It follows his early military successes at Ticonderoga, Quebec and Saratoga, where his courage and aggressive leadership made a major contribution to the American cause. The biography then traces the grievances, debts and…
7. Boston Massacre
The Boston Massacre reconstructs the confrontation of 5 March 1770, when British soldiers fired into a hostile crowd and killed five colonists. It places the incident within years of tension over taxation, military occupation, waterfront labour and organised resistance in Boston. The book follows the propaganda…
8. Boston Tea Party
The Boston Tea Party examines the destruction of East India Company tea in Boston Harbor in December 1773. It explains the Tea Act, colonial resistance to parliamentary taxation and the organisation that allowed participants to board the ships and dispose of their cargo without widespread looting…
9. Culper Spy Ring
The Culper Spy Ring tells the story of the intelligence network created to provide George Washington with information from British-occupied New York. It follows Benjamin Tallmadge, Abraham Woodhull, Robert Townsend and their associates as they used couriers, coded messages, invisible ink and carefully constructed cover identities.…
10. George Rogers Clark
George Rogers Clark follows the Virginia officer whose western campaigns expanded revolutionary warfare into the Illinois Country. It traces his capture of Kaskaskia and Cahokia, his winter march to Vincennes and his defeat of the British commander Henry Hamilton. The biography places these exploits within a…
11. John Jay
John Jay examines the lawyer, diplomat and statesman who helped connect the American Revolution to the institutions of the early republic. It follows his work in the Continental Congress, his diplomatic service in Spain and France and his part in negotiating the Treaty of Paris. The…
12. Marquis de Lafayette
The Marquis de Lafayette traces the French aristocrat who volunteered for the American cause and became a close associate of George Washington. It follows his military service from Brandywine and Valley Forge to Virginia and Yorktown, as well as his role in securing French support. The…
13. Thomas Paine
Thomas Paine follows the radical writer whose pamphlets gave clear, forceful language to revolutionary politics. It examines Common Sense, which attacked monarchy and argued for American independence, and The American Crisis, written to sustain morale during the war. The biography continues through Paine’s involvement in the…