Customer Reviews

The Long Fuse: How England Lost the American Colonies 1760-1785

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An enjoyable, eminently readable narrative of the American Revolution. Cook concentrates on the political aspects of the revolution, particularly on the British side of the pond. He gives Ben Franklin the starring role on the American side. Despite concentrating strongly on the "high politics" of the era, Cook never bogs down in the details, and the result will be of wide interest to armchair historians and the general public alike. This book should be of interest to anyone with even a passing interest in the Revolution, Ben Franklin, or the the state of the late eighteenth century British Empire.

I discovered this book thanks to Amazon's personalized recommendations, and I am very grateful. This is simply a wonderful book. It opens up a side of the Revolutionary War that is rarely taught or discussed, and therefore provides a depth of understanding that is extremely valuable; and somehow, the author has made this a thoroughly enjoyable and absorbing read. I literally did not want to put it down. Reading the actual text of Ben Franklin's testimony to the House of Commons was very compelling, particularly in the context the author created. Although I must admit I am a big history fan, I believe that anyone with even a mild interest would be very happy that they read this book.

If you've ever wondered how the British could have been so continually and incredibly stupid as to lose their American colonies, this book will answer your questions! It provides a view of the Revolution not often encountered by Americans. Your view of the American Revolution is not complete without this view. Highly recommended.

Cook has undertaken a difficult task. The thoughts and actions of King George III and his ministers have been heretofore shrouded in a fog of mystery, deception, and embellishment. While contending that George III was responsible for a "determined consistency" toward the American colonies, Cook nevertheless manages to reveal that the loss of England's most prized possessions was a process that began a decade before Lexington and Concord. His treatment of George III, Germain, Lord North, and the military commanders in America is nothing short of harsh, and perhaps deservedly so. The author believes that if George III lacked more intelligence and perception, the king could have steered England away from confrontation with America. While Cook's research on the political machinations of England is excellent, his dealings with military matters in America are lacking. Several historical mistakes could have been corrected making his work even more substantial. However, Cook's book certainly deserves recognition, and any fan of Revolutionary politics should consult his book.

I would recommend this as one of the easiest to read overviews of the war. It makes sense of some of what happened on this continent by focusing on what was happening in England. Definitely helped me to sort out some of the people who are casually mentioned but not explained in many books on the Revolution. Couple this with "Liberty" by Fleming or "A Short History of the American Revolution" by Stokesbury and you'll have a basic grasp of the struggle.

Cook's book is an accomplishment in historical prose. Primarily taken from diaries and other primary sources, it relates the tensions in Britain after the 1760's. The author deftly deliniates the intricacies of politics, economics, power, and the behind the scenes attempts at peace that wove themselves at Parliament and the Court of George III. The writing flows and Cook makes his points clearly. Enjoyable for the armchair enthusiast as well as the scholar. A must for the shelf of any historian.

What a joy to read. Cook has an excellent narrative style that educates and entertains. The Revolutionary War was truly a giant jigsaw puzzle with thousands of people playing a part. This book is a fast-paced lesson in what was happening in England before and during the war. Examples: Benjamin Franklin being hauled up in front of the King's advisors (Privy Council) to explain why the colonists were destroying tea, and unwilling to pay taxes, will forever heighten your admiration for Franklin. The in-fighting in Parliament was downright funny in places as well. I could go on. But there was a tremendous amount of material here that I have not seen in other history books. Outstanding.

Don cook is to " the long fuse" as Stephen Ambrose is to " D-day". Mr. cook has the talent and gift for bringing the revolutionary era alive and to your doorstep. he is able to immediately capture your attention in a manner that is both refreshing and entertaining AND at the same time maintaining the relevancy of that historical era.
The long fuse is a great reading and i would recommended to everyone. His style of writing is such it is easily readable for both adults and young adults. It is ideal for young adults who want to supplement their school lessions in revolution history .

The Long Fuse is a sad and frustrating history of the violent separation and origin of the United States from Great Britain. Understanding success is easy sometimes. Understanding multi-origin failure, which starts 20 years before it metastasizes, is a little harder. No reasonable person, based on the facts available really saw the coming crisis between Great Britain and its 13 North American colonies, yet the ingredients were there.

Don Cook was a journalist and historian who spent a good part of his career in Britain. What he brings to this book is his American background to his understanding of how Britain works, especially in the last half of the 18th century. The Long Fuse is a rare popular history that was written to help the reader understand the long chain of events, mistakes and follies that led to the break between eight million British in the home islands, and nearly three million British in North America, forming the United States of America, within an easy to understand context.

Cook's narrative goes to great lengths to show that the British state never intended to bestow or recognize that their fellow subjects owned the same rights as they did. So when the initial tax acts were passed with hardly any debate or dissent, at the end of a long day before Parliamentary recess, no one could foresee the problem. For other than the 18th century version of political lobbyists, no one in the British state has ever really met an American. So from the beginning of the crisis that followed after the Seven Years War, Cook shows how a common people, separated by distance, used the same language, but were never understanding of each other.

Benjamin Franklin, agent for several colonies, is the representative American for this history because he went from loyal subject, to frustration with the government, to finally a Patriot who refuses even back - channel attempts to negotiate a half-hearted settlement. Lord North, Lord Germain, and King George are most often quoted members of the British state. Their combination of a lack of desire to handle the growing crisis with a passive-aggressive war management style contributed to nothing less than economic and political catastrophe.

By presenting this history strictly from the political and military hierarchy of Britain, Cook sheds a unique light, on perhaps the greatest failure of the British state of the last 300 years. He perhaps wrote this history with a little too much emphasis on King George, and perhaps not enough on the royal governors and military establishment in the colonies. Besides that, this is a fine book and is highly recommended to anyone interested in that time period of British and American history, political history, leadership studies, especially failure in leadership.

This is a brilliant book - well researched, very well written and a powerful read!

Drawing on a wealth of British primary sources, Don Cook shows clearly that King George III and his Generals and Admirals were fighting two wars between 1775 and 1783; one against the American rebels and another, equally important conflict, against a Parliament and British press that had a great deal of sympathy for the Americans.

As the war progressed and the British Army and Navy were unable to subdue Washington, his Continental Army and Navy, and a host of State militia forces, opposition to the conflict in Parliament and among the British people grew. That opposition undermined the war effort by causing the Government to send mixed signals to commanders in the field regarding the use of force and negotiations against and with the Americans.

Certainly, the Americans had a great deal to do with British political setbacks, for as the British suffered defeat after defeat, first at Bunker Hill and Boston, and later at Saratoga and Yorktown, the King and his Government found it harder and harder to continue the war.

Don Cook's brilliance is in compiling a narrative that is crisp, clear and extremely compelling.

Anyone interested in the Revolutionary War or the linkage between political and domestic opposition to a war and commanders in the field will find this a great read!