Praise for Blood of Tyrants
“Gripping. Relevant. Revolutionary. This page-turning historical thriller is packed with fresh factual narratives that draw the reader into the scenes to show how the United States earned its stripes. The wisdom of 1776 was never more crucial than today.”
—Amy Chua, Yale Law School professor and best-selling author of Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother
“A fresh and stimulating history of the American Revolution . . .”
—James McPherson, Pulitzer Prize–winning author of Battle Cry of Freedom
“[T]here is almost no tale told of the Revolution that does not find its way into Blood of Tyrants, provided it is juicy enough.”
—Wall Street Journal
“A timely, insightful, and much-needed reminder why America does best at war when it honors rather than erodes its founding principles.”
—Victor Davis Hanson, senior fellow in classics and military history at the Hoover Institution and author of A War Like No Other
“[A] fresh new perspective . . . . Beirne’s genealogical and personal interest in history, politics and the military makes for an enjoyable read.”
—Washington Times
“Blood of Tyrants strips away the fantasy and lays bare the violence and political intrigue needed for the American Revolution to succeed. Lurid, horrifying, scandalous. I could not put it down.”
—William Eskridge Jr., Yale Law School professor and author of Republic of Statutes
“In this fast-paced narrative, Logan Beirne vividly explains something every American should know, but which few of us really understand.”
—Jack Rakove, Stanford University professor and Pulitzer Prize–winning author of Original Meanings: Politics and Ideas in the Making of the Constitution
“Anyone interested in the original meaning of the Constitution, or America’s revolutionary struggle generally, should read this riveting and informative account.”
—Weekly Standard
“Those who want an unvarnished account of how a great leader handled nasty and messy problems of war: prepare to be shocked, amazed, and educated.”
—Hon. Michael W. McConnell, Stanford Law School professor, director of the Stanford Constitutional Law Center, and former federal judge, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit
“There was more to the founders than noble sentiments and fine words—they were revolutionaries, who fought for and won America’s freedom on bloody battlefields. Blood of Tyrants tells this gritty story smartly and compellingly—and plumbs it for practical lessons for the toughest issues of our times.”
—Adam Cohen, research scholar at Yale Law School and author of Nothing to Fear: FDR’s Inner Circle and the Hundred Days That Created America
“Beirne’s narrative pulls the reader directly into the scenes, filling the void in our understanding of the presidency and our ingenious Founders’ pragmatic approach to issues we still face today.”
—Huntington News
“Future roads of national promise rest on proven paths of the past. Colby Award winner, Logan Beirne, points us on our way by strikingly using Washington’s guideposts. Tomorrow is yesterday.”
—John Borling, Major General (Ret.), U.S. Air Force, 6.5-year POW in Hanoi, and author of Taps on the Walls
BLOOD OF TYRANTS
© 2013, 2014 by Logan Beirne
Preface © 2014 by Logan Beirne
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior written permission of Encounter Books, 900 Broadway, Suite 601, New York, New York, 10003.
First American edition published in 2013 by Encounter Books, an activity of Encounter for Culture and Education, Inc., a nonprofit, tax exempt corporation.
Encounter Books website address: www.encounterbooks.com
The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of ANSI/NISO Z39.48-1992 (R 1997) (Permanence of Paper).
First paperback edition published in 2014.
THE LIBRARY OF CONGRESS HAS CATALOGUED
THE HARDCOVER EDITION AS FOLLOWS:
Beirne, Logan
Blood of tyrants: George Washington & the forging of the presidency / Logan Beirne.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-1-59403-767-2 (ebook) 1. United States—History—Revolution, 1775–1783—Influence. 2. United States—History—Revolution, 1775–1783—Campaigns. 3. Washington, George, 1732–1799—Influence. 4. Washington, George, 1732–1799—Military leadership. 5. Strategic culture—United States—History. 6. Civil-military relations—United States—History. 7. Presidents—United States—Biography. 8. Generals—United States—Biography. 9. United States—Politics and government—1775–1783. 10. United States—Politics and government—1783–1809. I. Title.
E209.B37 2013
973.3—dc23
2012038961
Title Page: The Battle of Princeton. Photograph of painting by John Trumbull. Springfield, Mass.: Taber-Prang Art Co., c1900. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division, LC-USZ62-469. Part I: Scene at the Signing of the Constitution of the United States. Painting by Howard Chandler Christy, 1940. Collection of the U.S. House of Representatives. Part II: The Battle of Bunker Hill. Copy of engraving by James Mitan after John Trumbull, 1808. National Archives, 148-GW-454 (George Washington Bicentennial Commission). Part III: Province of New York, 1767. Created by Bernard Ratzer. London: Jefferys & Faden, 1776. Library of Congress Geography and Map Division, G3804.N4 1767 .R3. Part IV: Last Moments of Major André. Copy of engraving by F. F. Walker after M. A. Wageman. New York: Virtue & Co. Publishers, 1861. Courtesy of the Author. Part V: The Victory Ball, 1781. Painting by Jean-Léon Gérôme Ferris, c1929. Courtesy of Virginia Historical Society. Part VI: Triumph of Patriotism, 1783. Copy of engraving by Alexander Hay Ritchie after Felix Octavius Carr Darley, 1853. National Archives, ARC ID 532881. Epilogue: The Prayer at Valley Forge. Copy of engraving by John C. McRae after Henry Brueckner. New York: John C. McRae, c1866. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division, LC-DIG-pga-03965. Insert, first image: George Washington, 1796. Gilbert Stuart, American 1755–1828. Oil on Canvas, 121.28 x 93.98 cm (47¾ x 37 in.), Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. William Francis Warden Fund, John H. and Ernestine A. Payne Fund, Commonwealth Cultural Preservation Trust, and the National Portrait Gallery, Washington D.C., 1980.1.
For Sheila and Thomas Beirne, my two favorite patriots