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The Battle for New York: The City at the Heart of the American Revolution

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Despite the title, this book provides a good general history of the American Revolution but, from a military standpoint, starting with the Battle of Brooklyn in 1776 rather than with Lexington and Concord in 1775. Anyone who has read extensively concerning the battles will not really find anything new about Saratoga, Trenton, Princeton, Guilford Courthouse, Yorktown, etc. However, for the general reader, the book does provide good summaries of many battles and may whet your appetite to read books that are more specific....such as the volumes written by Richard Ketchum on Saratoga, and Trenton/Princeton. For the person who has already read quite a bit about the Revolutionary War, what makes this book worthwhile is Mr. Schecter's focus in the first half of the book on the battles in and near New York City, and in the second half of the book his arguments, generally convincing, that New York City was always important to the strategy of both sides. Even though the British occupied New York City, they were always worried about the rebels launching a counterattack, especially once the French allied themselves with the Americans. As British resources were limited, and as tremendous distances were involved, this nagging concern with New York City prevented the British from concentrating their forces sufficiently to be able to deliver a knockout blow. Mr. Schecter has some interesting things to say about the Battles of Brooklyn, Harlem Heights, etc. While not downplaying the strategic errors made by the rebel forces, the author is persuasive when he makes his point that these battles were not quite as one-sided as they have been portrayed in the past. Although it is true that the British took many more prisoners than the Americans did, the dead and wounded on the British side were usually greater...once the Hessian losses are factored in. This is a key point, as the British traditionally tended "not to count" the losses sustained by their mercenary forces. And while many historians down through the years have pointed out that the British commander General Gage missed several opportunities, by his conservative strategy, to trap and destroy (or force a total capitulation by) Washington's forces, Mr. Schecter points out that one reason, though certainly not the only reason, for this conservative strategy was a grudging and growing respect for the willingness of the Americans to fight. Yes, it is true that there was sometimes panic and hasty retreat on the rebel side, but there were several instances, also, of stubborn fighting...which resulted in those not inconsiderable British/Hessian casualties. This book does have some weaknesses: Mr. Schecter has an annoying habit, especially in the first half of the book, of disrupting the narrative by providing detailed information concerning current day locations of where much of the action took place. A reader that does not possess an intimate knowledge of New York City will find this information to be extraneous, and I assume there will be many such readers. Another glaring weakness is the maps. There are not enough of them and they are poorly placed- usually after rather than just before or during the narrative descriptions of the battles. On the plus side, Mr. Schecter's main thesis is interesting, he writes well and he includes many first-person quotations (which help bring the story to life). Particularly enlightening and amusing are the excerpts from the memoirs of a soldier, Joseph Plumb Martin, who fought throughout the war. He may have been a "common" soldier, but his wit, insights and writing ability were quite uncommon. Thanks to Mr. Martin we are brought down from the stratosphere of grand strategy and politics to the cold earth of the battlefield- where the citizen-soldier usually had inadequate clothing and would sometimes go several days without food or sleep......and his bed would be the hard ground and the ceiling consisted of the stars.

When one thinks of the Revolutionary Era in America, one might tend to think of Concord and Lexingtion, Boston, Monmouth, Philadelphia, Valley Forge, or a dozen other places before ever giving Manhattan a thought. This, as Barnet Schecter's brilliant history, "The Battle for New York: The City at the Heart of the American Revolution", is an undeserved slight to New York. As his perfect subtitle states, New York City was the pivotal center--the "heart"--of the Revolution.

Too much had happened in New York to dismiss its role immediately before, during, and after the war. One example: the Battle of Golden Hill (at the present John Street) in which British troops fired upon and killed American patriots occurred more than a month before the Boston Massacre, which has been long regarded as the first skirmish between colonists and the Crown. Mr. Schecter appropriately emphasizes the Battle of Brooklyn (or the Battle of Long Island) and how Washington's strategic (and lucky) evacuation across the East River and through Manhattan turned the tide of the war: the war could've been over then and there had Washington's army been captured. There are more stories, there is more evidence of the critical role New York played during the nascent years of the United States, and, Mr. Schecter has wonderfully captured this undeniable fact.

For a complete understanding of New York's role in this conflict, I recommend reading: "Divided Loyalties" by Richard Ketchum, which presents the political and social tensions of the city in the years before the Revolution; "The Battle of Brooklyn" by John Gallagher for a detailed examination of the weeks before, during and after this first large-scale confrontation between the British and Americans; and then Schecter's book--IN THAT ORDER. Each book picks up where the previous one had left off. There are other good books about New York's involvement in the Revolution, but these three can give you as close to a complete understanding of it as possible.


"The Battle for New York: The City at the Heart of the American Revolution" is one of those books that fulfills a large gap in our complete understanding of that war and that era in history.
For that reason, Mr. Schecter is to be thanked for his contribution.

As a born and bred New Yorker I was fascinated to read about the close to home battles fought in the early days of the Revolution. Those concrete NYC masses were once bucolic fields and small hamlets. Battles were fought where we now have massive bridges and urban sprawl. Schecter tells the story with an engaging style of a novel. He does not overwhelm us with tactics or military details. He tells a more personal account of the men and women who fought in this battle. What is also interesting is how the loyalties were clearly split among New Yorkers. This was not a revolution of unanimity. The British Loyalists felt that their attachments to the crown were as patriotic as the cause of the revolutionaries. Well done Mr. Shecter.

The author has done considerable research and filled his book with names that are distant memories of elementary school history (even for New Yorkers). Unfortunately, he misses an A because he fails to link the significance of the events and conflicts that he cites in his book to the Articles of our Constitution that specifically prohibit them. For example: The author's first chapter addresses the seeds of discontent and discusses the friction between the Anglican church and all others. He points out how all ranking members of the royal colonial government were members of the Anglican church but doesn't mention that England required all of its peerage to be members of the Church of England. This is the origin of the "separation of church and state" issue that still bedevils American lawmakers and justices alike. In stipulating the separation of church and state, our founding fathers were simply reacting to this English practice and asserting that there would be no "official" religion of the fledgling United States to which all members must belong. Similarly, the author discusses the unrest created by quartering troops among the populous. Hence, it's prohibition. The book is a great read for those wishing to know about the power brokers in NYC leading up to, during, and following the Revolution; but the author could have better linked the events 225 years ago to the Constitution that guides our American experience today.

Mr. Schecter has done a fabulous job of describing the American Revolution as it took place within the present-day boundaries of New York City. The Battle for the City is set forth in all of its very exciting but unfortunately little known details. Other amateur Revolutionary War historians may have known, as I did, that the "Battle of Long Island" (the traditional name is rather confusing since it was fought entirely within present-day Brooklyn) and the subsequent capture of Manhattan were pivotal events in setting the course of the war, but all of the accounts I had read before seemed to gloss over the specifics of the engagements. Probably because we (the Americans) lost so ignominously. The author does not hide from the serious mistakes made by General Washington and the other Patriot generals, but he also brings to light the many heroic engagements that the American forces fought in this campaign, at locations scattered all across the city -- on Staten Island, in Brooklyn, in the Bronx, on Manhattan and just outside the city at White Plains (I'm sure something important happened in Queens too but I can't recall what now). In particular, I found Mr. Schecter's description of the delaying action fought by a small unit of Americans when the British tried to outflank the Continental Army in the Bronx to be very stirring. I had never known anything before about that particular engagement, and after reading about it I wanted to enlist in Glover's regiment even though I'm 225 years too late!

In addition to the pivotal campaign, Mr. Schecter vividly captures events in the city preceding the British invasion in 1776, as well as the long years under British occupation before the final evacuation and General Washington's triumphal reentry into the city at the end of the War. The author also provides detailed itineraries for touring the surprisingly many Revolutionary War sites that can still be seen in the expanse of New York's 19th and 20th Century sprawl. I am looking forward to touring the city soon and trying to find all of these sites!

I'm not from New York but Mr. Schecter's book had me riveted from the introduction to the last footnote. My wife gave me this book for my birthday last year, and I am overjoyed that she did! The only caveat I have is that if you are looking for details about the many equally fascinating events that occurred in Upstate New York during the Revolutionary War, they're not here. Having said that, this book is a must read for anyone who is interested in not just the big picture, but also the details, of the American Revolution.

hard to imagine british troops landing near the UN. never knew what "fort lee" was named after. the list of mystererious names and places for those of us who grew up in the area goes on and on. this book filled in a lot of gaps in my knowledge of history around the new york area. if you were going to read 1 book on the american revolution, i would recommend this one. extremely enjoyable read!

This was an interesting book mostly from the standpoint of including a lot of new information about the events in NYC politics prior to the war and the aftermath of the war. The majority of the middle of the book is the military campaign itself. this is really just a more detailed version of what you can get in a more readable form from 1776. There is inclusion of writings from a Pvt. Martin that add a lot of humor and color to the book.

All in all, if you're looking for more detail....this is a good one to try. If you're looking for a general overview, go read 1776.

People, including Franklin (father and son), the Howe brothers (William and Black Dick), the DeLanceys, the Livingstons, George Washington and Lord Stirling (a soi-disant Scottish peer AND an American patriot!); and geography, Hell Gate, Sandy Hook, Flatbush and Gravesend are the stars of Barnet Schecter's masterly study of New York in the American Revolution. In this 400+ page impeccably sourced book, we also learn about the first combat submarine (the Turtle) and other fascinating details like the peace conference on Staten Island and the noble death of Nathan Hale. I especially liked the maps which combine historic details with modern landmarks which helped enormously in picturing the action.Schecter is an up and coming historian; I look forward to reading his latest work on the 1863 NYC draft riot during the Civil War.

At the last minute, I ordered the hardcover edition of the book, The Battle for New York by Barnet Schecter, from Amazon used books as I was attending a historical book club presentation. The book was rated in fair condition. I was more than pleasantly surprised when it arrived, and I found it to be in Excellent condition. The book must have been mailed out immediately upon my ordering, since I received it in three days. I am extremely happy with the book price, condition, and the speed of arrival. I will definitely be doing business with Amazon used books in the future.

An excellent and well-written piece of history. The biblio alone is worth the price of the book. The walking tour at the end of the book is a must for any New Yorker who loves the city and its history. Highly recommended.