Annotated Bibliogrphy Discussion post

Annotated Bibliogrphy Discussion post

Annotated Bibliography: The Fog of Revolution Sara Rodriguez Professor Gina Jenkins History 306 Allen, Thomas. “One Revolution, Two Wars.” Military History 27 (2011): 58–63. Print. This article points out that the American Revolution was in many ways a civil war between Patriots, who wanted revolution, and Loyalists who supported King George III. As Allen points out, “the signers [of the Declaration of Independence] knew they did not speak for ‘one people’ but for a people including Americans who opposed the Revolution” (58). Many members of established families acted as informants for the British. Many Loyalists would join the British forces in battles against the Patriots. These divisions led to much distrust among the Patriots, because they weren’t certain who was on their side and who was against them (61). My assessment: This article can be helpful for my argument. Part of my argument is that we are given a rather cleaned-up version of the American Revolution in our classes and textbooks. This article demonstrates that the war was not one that pitted American patriots against British oppressors. Instead, there were many factions in the colonies who had reasons to support or fight against independence. Black, Jeremy. George III: America’s Last King. New Haven, CT: Yale UP, 2006. Print. The author points out that King George III has become a caricature in American history. In some accounts, he is portrayed as a cruel dictator. In other accounts, he is a bumbling monarch, unable to hold together the vast empire he inherited from greater monarchs. Black looks at the historical context in which King George III found himself. He points out that many pressures were being placed on the British Empire at that time. So, it’s not surprising that the uprising of some colonists was not handled with full concern. Discussing the king’s values, Black writes, “George’s conception of his task was always led by a commitment to restore and maintain the moral order of society, a position that greatly influenced his attitude towards dissatisfaction in the American colonies” (1). Also, he was distracted by numerous upheavals among his ministers in London, so George may not have given the rebellion in the American colonies much thought until it was too late (107). My assessment: This book is critical toward my argument about the state of mind of King George III. The author includes several chapters that delve into the king’s family, values, religion, and his psychological state. These chapters will be especially helpful toward showing that George was handling a great number of other matters that may have distracted him from the problems in the American colonies. The book also shows how George’s strict adherence to values may have kept him from compromising with the colonists at key points in the conflict. Bonwick, Colin. The American Revolution. Charlottesville, VA: U of Virginia P, 1991. Print. This book suggests that the American Revolution is generally misunderstood by the general public. Typically, Bonwick argues, the American Revolution is portrayed as an uprising among colonists who were seeking their freedom from Britain. This revolutionary narrative glosses over the many “internal debates and processes which gave birth to the United States from 1776 onwards” implying they “were little more than necessary consequences of independence” (1). The book steps back and shows that each colony had its own reasons for seeking independence. Overall, though, much of the tension between the colonies and Britain were due to economic rather than ideological reasons (56). The final move toward Revolution was more about preserving economic strength rather than freeing people from any kind of bondage. My assessment: This book makes a similar argument to the one I am making. I’m arguing that King George III’s actions, especially increased taxation, made the economic situation in the colonies more difficult, which made it easier for arguments for independence to take hold.

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