General Sir William Howe's NewYork campaign gave the British their best chance of destroying the Continental Army and George Washington's resistance to colonial power. Having initially assembled his forces on Staten Island, Howe succeeded in dividing the Continentals, defeated them on Long Island and forced Washington to retreat to Brooklyn Heights. Under siege there Washington successfully extricated his troops and crossed the East River to Manhattan but soon had to fall back on Harlem Heights.
After a few weeks Howe forced the Continentals north to White Plains and defeated them again. However, he allowed Washington to withdraw and preserve his army when more aggressive pursuit could have brought the campaign to a decisive conclusion and ended the war. Instead, with the British army rapidly weakening and facing huge manpower shortages, Washington emerged from a succession of defeats to produce what was ultimately a war-winning strategy. The author provides fascinating insights into a unique campaign in which a string of British victories ultimately led to failure and defeat.
Customer Reviews
Average Rating:
Rating: - Washy Nearly Loses It All!
This new Osprey title brings a nice addition to growing publications on the Battles for New York in 1776. Like most Osprey titles this one provides a nice synopsis of the campaign. Those expecting more than this should turn elsewhere for additional works. For its size the book does a nice job providing an overview of the fighting around New York City. Some minor details may be a bit off. The references to the Delaware "Dandy 5th" seems to have illcited a lot of ire in some readers. To be honest ... Read More
Rating: - Sloppily Done
After years of waiting, I finally got a copy of Osprey's latest addition to its Campaign Series, "New York 1776" by David Smith and Illustrated by Graham Turner. After a cursory read last night, I have to say it was certainly not worth the wait and is quite disappointing in comparison to the last two titles in the series, "Philadelphia 1777" and "Monmouth Courthouse 1778".
Originally set to be authored by Brendan Morrissey, who wrote "Boston 1775", "Quebec 1775", "Saratoga 1777", "Monmouth ... Read More
Rating: - A Winner that Follows Classic Osprey Format
While the Battle for New York in 1776 has been fairly well covered in the history of the American Revolution - including major works such as Fischer's Washington's Crossing and Ferling's Almost a Miracle - Osprey's Campaign No. 192 by David Smith uses the classic Osprey format to best advantage to produce a compact and incisive summary of this famous campaign. Although I was a bit put off early in the volume by the appearance of so many well-known, iconic images and an introduction that seemed a bit puffy, ... Read More
- Washy Nearly Loses It All!
- Sloppily Done
