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No Contemptible Commander: Sir William Howe and the American War of Independence, 1775-1777
Smith, David
Smith, David
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2013-10
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Abstract
This thesis examines the period in command of British land forces during the
American War of Independence of Sir William Howe. The previously untapped
resource of a draft of Howe’s famous narrative to the House of Commons underpins
the original contribution made by this thesis, which also draws original conclusions
from more familiar documents. Howe’s command is considered in the light of four
major factors: his relationship with subordinate officers; the composition and quality
of his army; his relationship with the American Secretary, Lord George Germain; and
his personal qualities and experience. These four factors are then combined to
consider key tactical and strategic decisions made by Howe while in command of the
British army in North America. No attempt has been made to examine every decision
or event during Howe’s period in command. Rather, those most contentious and
controversial events, and those that can be reconsidered using new evidence and new
interpretations of existing evidence, have been focussed on. This thesis does not (nor
was it intended to) systematically counter the prevailing opinions of Howe set down
over more than two centuries of historical works. However, it can be seen that Howe
had more reasonable grounds for some of his most contentious decisions than has
previously been argued and his overall strategy for 1776 was more coherent than he is
generally given credit for.
Citation
Smith, D. (2013). No Contemptible Commander: Sir William Howe and the American War of Independence, 1775-1777 (Doctoral dissertation). University of Chester, United Kingdom.
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University of Chester
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Thesis or dissertation
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en