"This Glorious Struggle" George Washington's Revolutionary War Letters - A Book Review

Historians place a lot of importance on primary sources. And in “This Glorious Struggle” George Washington’s Revolutionary War Letters that is edited by Edward G. Lengel, we get an

at once entertaining, insightful, and informative collection of George Washington’s Revolutionary War Correspondence. That is to say, primary sources from Washington, himself. As these

letters and military orders show General Washington as being just as human as the everyday person with him expressing concern about the prices of household supplies such as spending

20/.a yard on some muslin cloth. But, at the same time, also an extremely erudite man who was most dedicated to the cause of Independence as he declares in his letters that he would tell all of the Ministers of Great Britain, in a few words, all of the Wrongs and Resolutions to be redressed. And not just under hidden and covert means, but in “Words as clear as the Sun in its Meridian brightness.”

When George Washington receives the news from Congress in Philadelphia that he is to take command of the army in Massachusetts, he realizes that this does not give him any time to

travel to his home of Mount Vernon prior to taking his command. And in these letters, we see him express concern about doing so and leaving his wife, Martha Washington, alone at Mount Vernon. He offers to have her build a kitchen and other houses as she deems proper should she decide to remove into Alexandria for the time being. And he lets her know that he retains “an unalterable affection for you (Martha Washington), which neither time or distance can change”.

Curiously enough, while much emphasis in American legal jurisprudence has been placed on Thomas Jefferson’s phrase that there should be “a wall of separation between church and state” in the United States, which comes from a letter he wrote to the Danbury Baptists; in Washington’s letters and orders we that see that Washington is at the very least not averse to seeking the aid of Providence while in command of the army. As in his General Order of July 04th, 1775, he requires and expects all officers and soldiers not engaged on actual duty, to punctually attend divine services “to implore the blessings of heaven upon the means used for our safety and defense”.

While much ado has been made in the school aged textbooks regarding the Massachusetts men of commerce and their decrying of “taxation without representation” which led to them taking up arms against King George III. In General Washington’s letter dated March 01st, 1778 to his loyalist friend, Bryan Fairfax, Washington explains his reasons for his strong

belief in the justness of the American cause. Reasons which include that the British “meant to drive us into what they termed rebellion, that they might be furnished with a pretext to disarm, and then strip us of the rights & privileges of Englishmen”. In other words, Washington was well aware of the importance of the right to bear arms long before the Second Amendment was ever conceived. And the right to bear arms forms a part and parcel of the USA’s collective consciousness even prior to the formation of their own country, independent of England.

It is reported that in a conversation between the artist Benjamin West and King George III, the king began asking West about the situation in America. The king even asked West what

would Washington do if America were to be declared to be independent. To which West replied that he thought Washington would retire to a private situation. A belief which is borne out in Washington’s letters as he writes from Valley Forge on February 15th, 1778, that “there is not an Officer in the Service of the United States that would return to the sweets of domestic life with more heart-felt joy than I should.” This notion astonished King George III. After all, Britain’s history is littered with the Wars of the Roses and other blood baths as various factions

literally fought to the death to become king. That someone would prefer not to become king was inconceivable. Which led to King George III stating that “If he does that, then he will be the greatest man in the world.” And the rest, as they say, is history.

This collection of the United Colonies’ “Chief Warrior” as Washington refers to himself in a letter intended for some of the members of the Iroquois Confederacy is 289 pages long. It is a

comfortable read that is best read at a relaxed pace so as to digest the contents of Washington’s letters fully and slowly. And it ends with Washington returning home to Mount

Vernon on Christmas Eve in 1783. All without having himself declared as king of the new nation.

Luisa Reyes is an attorney in Tuscaloosa with a bachelor's degree in mathematics from Judson, a master's degree in library science, and a law degree from Samford's Cumberland School of Law. She is also a piano instructor and vocalist.