George Washington: A BiographyWashington Irving's Life of George Washington (published in five volumes in 1856-59) was the product of his last years and remains his most personal work. Christened with the name of the great general, Irving was blessed by Washington while still a boy of seven, and later came to know many of the prominent figures of the Revolution. In these pages he describes them using firsthand source material and observation. The result is a book which is fascinating not only for its subject (the American Revolution), but also for how it reveals in illuminating detail the personality and humanity of a now remote, towering icon. Here is an intimate portrait of Washington the man, from Virginia youth to colonial commander to commander-in-chief of the patriot army to first president and great guiding force of the American federation. But one cannot read Irving's Life without marveling at the supreme art behind it, for his biography is foremost a work of literature. Charles Neider's abridgment and editing of Irving's long out-of-print classic has created a literary work comparable in importance and elegance to the original. George Washington, A Biography, Neider's title for his edition of Irving's Life, makes the work accessible to modern audiences. The extensive introduction provides a detailed analysis of Irving's life and times, and the difficulties he faced as he worked against his own failing health to finish what he felt was his masterpiece. This new edition of the superb biography of America's first citizen by America's first literary artist remains as fresh and unique today as when it was penned. |
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Page 134
... observed throughout the colonies , produced the effect on British commerce which Wash- ington had anticipated , and Parliament was incessantly impor- tuned by petitions from British merchants imploring its interven- tion to save them ...
... observed throughout the colonies , produced the effect on British commerce which Wash- ington had anticipated , and Parliament was incessantly impor- tuned by petitions from British merchants imploring its interven- tion to save them ...
Page 435
... observed by an experienced officer , the plan of attack was too widely extended for strict concert and too complicated for precise co - operation , as it had to be conducted in the night and with a large proportion of undisciplined ...
... observed by an experienced officer , the plan of attack was too widely extended for strict concert and too complicated for precise co - operation , as it had to be conducted in the night and with a large proportion of undisciplined ...
Page 713
... observed on the preceding night proved a fatal portent . " About one o'clock , " he notes , “ it began to snow , soon after to hail , and then turned to a settled cold rain . " Having on an overcoat , he con- tinued his ride without ...
... observed on the preceding night proved a fatal portent . " About one o'clock , " he notes , “ it began to snow , soon after to hail , and then turned to a settled cold rain . " Having on an overcoat , he con- tinued his ride without ...
Contents
Early Days | 3 |
Expeditions Beyond the Blue Ridge | 13 |
Washington in the Ohio Country | 22 |
Copyright | |
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advance affairs aide-de-camp alarm American arms army arrived artillery attack Boston Braddock brigade British Burgoyne camp campaign Captain Colonel colonies command commander-in-chief conduct Congress considered Cornwallis Creek Delaware despatch detachment effect encamped enemy enemy's England fire fleet force Fort Cumberland Fort Duquesne French friends garrison Gates give Governor Governor Dinwiddie guard Hessians Highlands Hill honor horse House House of Burgesses Hudson hundred Indians ington Irving Island Jerseys Lafayette land letter Lord Lord Cornwallis Lord Stirling Marquis de Lafayette meantime measures ment miles military militia morning Morristown Mount Vernon night o'clock officers orders party passed patriot Peekskill Philadelphia Point present President province Putnam quarters received Reed regiment reinforcements reply retire retreat river road Schuyler sent ships side Sir Henry Clinton soldiers soon spirit stationed thousand Ticonderoga tion took town troops Virginia Wash Washington whole wounded writes wrote York