George Washington's Military Genius - Hardcover

Palmer, Dave Richard

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 159698791X ISBN 13: 9781596987913

Publisher: Regnery History, 2012

Synopsis

George Washington’s military strategy has been called bumbling at worst and brilliant at best. So which is it? Was George Washington a strategic genius or just lucky? So asks Dave R. Palmer in his new book, George Washington’s Military Genius. An updated edition of Palmer's earlier work, The Way of the Fox, George Washington’s Military Genius breaks down the American Revolution into four phases and analyzes Washington's strategy during each phrase. "The British did not have to lose; the patriots did not have to triumph," writes Palmer as he proves without a doubt that Washington's continuously-changing military tactics were deliberate, strategic responses to the various phases of the war, not because he lacked a plan of action. Confronting the critics who say Washington's battlefield success and ultimate victories were a function of luck, George Washington's Military Genius proves why the father of our country also deserves the title of America's preeminent strategist.

About this title

About the Author

Dave Richard Palmer is a retired United States Army Lieutenant General, former Superintendent of the West Point, military historian and author, and former President of Walden University.

From the Back Cover

Too often George Washington gets dismissed as little more than a bumbling but lucky military leader. Not so, says distinguished military historian Dave R. Palmer in his compelling volume. Palmer shows in convincing fashion how Washington showed courageous flexibility in formulating the strategy that would bring the rebellious Americans victory in their War for Independence. From beginning to end, George Washington s Military Genius makes for gripping reading....Highly recommended!!"
James Kirby Martin, author of the award-winning Benedict Arnold, Revolutionary Hero: An American Warrior Reconsidered

Too many Americansincluding scholarsdownplay Washington s military leadership, implying he was just the right man at the right place. General Palmer demonstrates once and for all that Washington had a strategy to win the war, and the determination to survive against all odds.
James C. Rees, president of the Mount Vernon Ladies Association

Palmer makes a convincing case that America is free, united, and governed by civilians because of Washington s strategic foresight and tactical brilliance.
Publishers Weekly

Dave Palmer rightly portrays General George Washington as a shrewd and effective commander in chief who understood better than anyoneAmerican or Britishthe connection between political goals and military operations during the American Revolutionary War. Palmer s superb history is clearheaded and insightfulanyone interested in the art of war at the strategic level will find this thoughtful book indispensable.
Colonel Lance Betros, head of the Department of History, West Point
"

From the Inside Flap

George Washington: Genius or Goat?

Many military historians dismiss George Washington as merely lucky: he won the Revolutionary War by sheer dogged persistence against a half-hearted British enemy that decided the prize wasn't worth the cost. But this, says Lieutenant General Dave R. Palmer--a combat veteran, former superintendent of West Point, and expert military historian--is simply wrong. Washington's strategy was suited to his aim and changed with the circumstances of the war--but through it all he practiced the way of the fox. In George Washington's Military Genius, Lieutenant General Palmer reveals:

• What guided Washington's boldness in the first year of the war
  
• How Washington held his army together and built it up--with little or no money and, in the beginning, no allies
  
• How Washington used European professionals to train his soldiers--and capitalized on the results
  
• Washington's keen appreciation for French naval power
  
• The secret of Washington's unparalleled moral leadership, without which the war might not have been won
  

A stirring and provocative military history of the war and George Washington's leading place in it, George Washington's Military Genius is sure to enlighten and entertain any reader with an interest in America's War for Independence.

Edition details

• Publisher: Regnery History
• Publication date: 2012
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 159698791X
• ISBN 13: 9781596987913
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 320