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Product Reviews:
Battle of Paoli |
Rating: 5 (out of 5)
Summary: Not at all American propaganda!!
Comments: This is a great book, and not at all American propaganda, despite being written for the local "Battlefield Trust". Note for wargamers: this could serve as a design specification for a classic Columbia Games wooden block game -1of those early ones like Quebec, 1812 or Napoleon, before the hubris set in.
This is the British campaign to take Philadelphia. The book starts just after the battle of Brandywine, where allegedly the Americans might have won, if1of their Generals hadn't blundered, causing them to have to retire from the field. Althogh it is a detailed day by day account of the campaign from there until after the battle of Germanstown a couple of week later, even down to the cap badges, it is less than 200 pages, and not at all boring. The author doesn't analyse the strategy of either side, however he does make enough comment on it for you to be able to construct a different book in your head, as I started doing. Looking at a map, at the bottom right, you have the head of the Chesapeake, where the Royal Navy has landed the British army; along the right edge of the map is the Delaware river, leading to Philadelphia, the American capital. Half way along that river, the Schuylkill river flows in, running across the centre of the map. There are several fords over this river, and towards the head of it, on the left side of the map, are Lancaster and or Reading (I forget which is more important) which are the main arsenals of the Continental army. There are several forges and powder mills in the area about the fords (including Valley Forge) and lots of Welsh place names too, as this is Pennsylvania where all the radical Welsh emigrated to, both before and after the Revolution. Anyway, there is a network of roads running all over the place, and the American army has initially retired into the middle of this area (still on the south side of the Schuylkill). The British are moving slowly forward as they have to gather transport and supplies, and place their wounded from the battle of Brandywine. Eventually they rumble forward to the Valley Forge area, and after an attempt at a battle, whch got rained off, Washington takes his army over the Schuylkill. However, he has detached a division under "Mad" Anthony Wayne to circle around the British right flank, where he is to rendezvous with a militia force from Maryland and attempt to attack the British rear and destroy their baggage train and supplies. From memory, there was another force trying to get round the other flank as well. If he could destroy their baggage train, then the British would be short of ammunition, and if they could be forced to retire back to the ships, they would be in no state to continue the campaign, and have to evacuate.
Anyway, as the author makes clear, British intelligence gathering was great, and they had a couple of Washington's dispatches as well as (unconfirmed) Loyalist help. A force of Light Infantry, a Highland battalion, and a couple of dozen dragoons were sent off to make a night raid on the American detachment, camped near the Paoli tavern. Wayne got wind of this, and had his troops forming up to retire as the British approached; however,1of his artillery pieces broke down in the road and stopped the infantry retreating; Wayne was the other side of the camp, forming a defensive position while this was happening. There were camp fires alight, and some of the camp shelters had been set on fire, so the American forces were illuminated. The British light infantry had unloaded muskets, so when American pickets started firing, they were shot at by their own side, who couldn't see the British. The light infantry made a bayonet attack on the American riflemen, who couldn't reload as quick as smoothbore men would have been able to; the Americand were not all equipped with bayonets either, and were routed; the dragoons charged through the camp, and then a highland battalion charged the American column with the bayonet. No contest. The British then pursued and overran the Militia force that was approaching, which disintegrated. Wayne was able to rally his regulars later, however the British had in effect cleared the south bank of the Schuylkill, and were able to occupy the American supply depots and destroy the forges and factories, and even blew up a stockpile of 100 tons of gunpowder.
The fight itself led to all sorts of wild accusations. The British were accused of letting the Hessians "massace" the Americans in their beds, although there were no Hessians present, and the Americans were well out of their beds; Wayne was accused of all sorts of incopetence, however cleared himself at the inquiry. 52 Americans were buried on the field the next day, however there were many more wounded scattered around, plus those who subsequently died from wounds. British losses were minimal.
Howe or Clinton (I forget which) sent a messanger next morning to Washington with the news and a request for surgeons to attend the wounded. (The British took their wounded away, as well as many wounded Americans). The messanger took the long way round, and rode through the American army and across a couple of important fords, which caused Washington to arrest the officer who let him through the lines.
Washington had to decide whether to cover Philadelphia (from where the Congress had already bolted) or the manufactories further west; and he chose the manufactories, as without them, the army couln't continue, so he shifted his weight upriver. The British meanwhile had been countermarching and got over a couple of fords before Washington could react in time. They then moved off to Germanstown anf then into Philadelphia. Washington moved up closer, and launched a dawn attack on the army camped at Germanstown. The outlying light infantry were chased back on the main camp, however the Americans were held up by a stone house defended by light infantry who had been told to expect no quarter in retaliation for the Paoli affair, so they were not going to give up easily. This held the American attack up long enough for the main British force to deploy and drive the Americans back. And so the campaign and book end. |
Rating: 5 (out of 5)
Summary: Battle of Paoli
Comments: Battle of Paoli. Author: Thomas J. McGuire. 270 pages. 2006.
This is perhaps the best book written on the Battle of Paoli/The Paoli Massacre/ Wayne's Affair. The battle itself is an obscure battle which occurred during the Philadelphia Campaign of 1777 after the Battle of the Brandywine. The battle is almost allly forgotten in popular memory and merely a footnote in the best of Revolutionary War Histories. The actual Paoli Battlefield is fairly well preserved and marked. The field is located in Malvern, PA.
The battle itself occurred when a British detachment attacked a Continental force commanded by Anthony Wayne which had gotten astride of the British Lines of Communication and Supply. General George Washington had instructed Wayne to seek out the enemy's flanks and rear and shadow him. It is unclear if the intent was to actually launch a full scale attack, a harassing attack at a moment of opportunity or to jeopardize further British moves towards Philadelphia with a compromised supply corridor. The reason for the continuing uncertainty is that some of the primary documents were lost and during the court martial later on myth had already taken hold as reputations were at stake.
What this battle did show was that Washington was no mere Fabian seeking to avoid combat by a system of defending posts. It showed that the conflict from Brandywine to the occupation of winter quarters at Valley Forge was a conflict of aggressive maneuvering, competing intelligence gathering and guessing. The actual battle itself is a testimony to the advantages of trained troops and the use of shock action at night instead of firepower. This lesson would be paid back to the British some2years later at Stony Point when Wayne and some of these same troops would carry a fortified British defensive position with cold steel at night. The Battle cry that night was, "Remember, Paoli!!"
The book does a great job of providing the lead up to the battle. Much of the marching, counter-marching, skirmishing, and reactions were unknown to me. It seems that where I now live was part of a British encampment. The sheer size of these columns and encampments will surprise almost all readers unfamiliar with these aspects of warfare. The actual battle is covered in as great a detail as is possible. The author relies on primary source documents from both sides as well as the terrain itself. He supplies a great follow up and legacy section as well. The appendix is highlighted by transcripts from the court martial of Anthony Wayne (he was acquitted). The dire supply situation of the Continental Army is probably best brought into focus by the lack of much written correspondence due to a chronic shortage of paper. Many transcripts being scribbled on what ever was available, such as troop strength returns, supply requests etc.
Unlike the authors' Philadelphia Campaign series where the actors do almost all of the speaking with the author providing direction and linkage this book turns that approach on its head. The author supplies the bulk of the story in traditional historical linear narrative format. He sprinkles the text with numerous passages from the actors as appropriate. I think that this was a wise choice given the many conflicting points of view and myths which quickly grew up around this Battle. Many of these myths seemed to be ready made even as the Battle was approaching. The myths grew and magnified to the point where the truth is probably lost in its entirety and only segments, glimpses, and pieces can be put together.
Given these obstacles the author does a great job of providing both what is probably the closest version o the truth and some of the myths and their probable origins. This book is an excellent piece of history about a battle which deserves to be better known and studied. |
Rating: 5 (out of 5)
Summary: A Balanced, Scholarly Examination of the "Paoli Massacre"
Comments: I was delighted to find that "Battle of Paoli" -- a fairly specialized work on a secondary engagement in the Revolution -- is available as a Kindle book. The author has reviewed a massive amount of primary sources in tracing the movements of the forces of Washington and Howe after the Battle of the Brandywine on Sept. 11, 1777, and in reconstructing what actually happened in the so-called Paoli Massacre on the night of Sept. 19-20. The narrative he tells, with the help of letters, memoirs, and inquiry transcripts, is different from the version commonly offered in histories of the American Revolution. The Continentals were not completely surprised, were not bayoneted in their sleep, and were not fatally silhouetted against their campfires.
The Kindle formatting is about standard for non-fiction books. As I have come to expect, the illustrations are murky and the maps illegible. The table of contents is linked, however the footnotes are not (the1significan not flaw).
The book also Comes with the complete surviving transcript of the court of inquiry that was held after the battle and lists of the men known to be in the Continental forces, with indications of those killed and wounded. |
Rating: 4 (out of 5)
Summary: Important Treatment of Relatively Obscure Battle
Comments: The author is to be commended for writing this book and lifting the veil of obscurity that has relegated the "Paoli Massacre" to a few lines in almost all works on the Revolutionary War. McGuire isn't an accomplished writer and some parts are disjointed, however the nuggets contained are worth the mining.
McGuire accurately plays up the important aspects of this battle. 1st, the British were able to surprise Wayne's Pennsylvania troops who were on their home turf. This was due to the dark and rainy night, the fact that the British moved forward without flints so there would be no firing from the British side, and the Pennsylvanians were silhouetted against their campfires while the British were alalmost all invisible in the dark woods. Secondly, it was only due to great fortune that Wayne's entire command was not annihilated. Third, the case can be made that Wayne should never have been in the exposed position he was in without some form of cavalry cover. Fourth, this battle "made" Wayne in that he learned from his mistakes and was able to turn the tables on the British later at Stony Point. And last, the survivors were energized to greater efforts and became better soldiers as a result.
Although the Court of Inquiry's findings concerned with the Paoli battle have been lost, Wayne was obviously not exonerated at the inquiry, and at least4of the16 officers who testified criticized him. Wayne was then brought up on charges at a court-martial and acquited.
About one-half of the book covers events before the battle and supplies a great deal of information on the units, dispositions and movements preceeding the night of battle. The battle itself takes up less than fifty pages.
1of the best features about this book is the detail it goes into debunking the many myths concerning the battle and putting the event in proper context. The British posessed an excellent plan that was not executed well in its entirety, however nevertheless inflicted a crushing defeat on great soldiers and competent officers. On the American side there is confusion, mistakes, and an inability to adapt at all levels. It could have been worse, however Howe's thought that the Americans had been sufficiently humbled so as to pose little threat to his army was roundly shown to be in error only2weeks later at Germantown.
In short, this is a specialist's book, well worth reading. |
Rating: 5 (out of 5)
Summary: A detailed look at a long overlooked event.
Comments: Thomas McGuire brings to life the events leading up to and including the "surprise" attack near Paoli Pennsylvania. It is clear that a lot of research went into this book that reveals that what appeared to be just another early revolutionary war lost battle for the continentals was more than what appears on the surface.
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