General Howe's Dog: George Washington, the Battle for Germantown and the Dog Who Crossed Enemy Lines (Hardcover)

by Caroline Tiger (Author) "On May 25, 1775, General Sir William Howe sailed into Boston on a British warship, the HMS Cerberus..." (more)
Key Phrases: Mount Vernon, George Washington, New York (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly
After the American defeat at the 1777 Battle of Germantown, a fox terrier belonging to the British general William Howe appeared in Washington's camp and was sent back to Howe by Washington under flag of truce, the whole affair climaxing in an exchange of polite notes. Journalist Tiger makes this minimally consequential Revolutionary War anecdote the crux of a desultory exploration of the two generals' lives, the chivalrous rules of eighteenth-century warfare and the exalted status dogs enjoyed among gentleman-farmers like Washington, who named one of his favorite hounds "Sweet Lips." Tiger's easily distracted account rambles along like a canine's afternoon outing, pricking up its ears when a dog comes into sight, but otherwise nosing around in whatever it comes across, from Howe's dalliances with his mistress to Washington's abhorrence of profanity in the ranks. She pads it out with a pair of appendices listing the 110 "Rules of Civility" Washington memorized in childhood (Rule 94 admonishes "If you soak bread in the Sauce let it be no more than what you put in your Mouth at a time") and the United Kennel Club standard for the treeing walker, a hound breed Washington helped develop.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Product Description
Before they were generals-they were gentlemen.

A remarkable footnote to history surfaced during America's fight for independence. After the Battle of Germantown, General George Washington came across a stray dog wearing an inscribed collar marking him as the property of British general William Howe-the very man Washington was trying to defeat. As a well-bred gentleman and man of his times, Washington did the proper thing: he returned the dog to his adversary, along with a polite note. Though separated by ideals and loyalties, both Washington and Howe adhered to a common code of conduct. Following the early lives of both men, General Howe's Dog provides a fascinating account of their upbringings and ascents through the military ranks, detailing how enemies on the battlefield composed themselves as respectable gentlemen in the midst of war. It is a rarely seen glimpse into the personality and character of the father of our country.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 176 pages
• Publisher: Chamberlain Bros. (June 28, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1596090324
• ISBN-13: 978-1596090323
• Product Dimensions: 7.5 x 5.3 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #873,472 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A delightful diversion, August 2, 2005

By	Scott Cummings "PatriotResource" (Louisiana) - See all my reviews

General Howe's Dog is a light-hearted diversion in the American Revolution non-fiction genre. General George Washington is the central figure of this book, though General Howe and his dog have their moments. However, it is not Washington's military and political achievements that are the focus, but rather his etiquette, hunting habits and dog breeding. The title is somewhat misleading with its reference to the Battle of Germantown. Caroline Tiger uses the Battle of Germantown and the incident with General Washington returning General Howe's dog as a crossover from his well-known military exploits to his more gentlemanly pursuits.

Ms. Tiger takes a fitting, almost tongue-in-cheek tone at times as she weaves hunting exploits and dog breeding into the tapestry of Washington's famous life. Her light-hearted approach does not belittle the subject matter which were serious personal pursuits to gentlemen, both English and American. The book gives the reader a glimpse of a portion of Washington's life that is all but omitted from his biographies because of its more 'trivial' nature. However, these aspects are actually by no means trivial, but rather demonstrate the deep -seated principles that guided Washington's military and political decisions.

General Howe's Dog is a delightful and even insightful, summertime diversion for those even remotedly interested in either early American History or in the origins of American dog breeding. Caroline Tiger's fluid writing style makes for an enjoyable read. Two additional treats are included that will appeal to the more avid historians or dog breeders: The Rules of Civility & Decent Behavior in Company and Conversation, which Washington had copied as a teenager, and Breed Standards of the Treeing Walker.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Fun Little Book on the Revolutionary War and George Washington, October 5, 2005

By	New York, NY - See all my reviews

I highly recommend this book for anyone interested in the Revolutionary War or George Washington. It is a welcome diversion from the more weighty treatises on the topic, and is great as an evening or weekend read. Unlike most books dealing with historical topics, "General Howe's Dog" is written in a breezy, easy to digest style, but succeeds in informing the reader and not coming off as sounding trite or simplistic. In addition, "General Howe's Dog" doesn't cover the same well worn ground of many other books dealing with that period, focusing instead, among other things, on selected aspects of George Washington's character, his affinity for dogs and the role of the dog in warfare.

4.0 out of 5 stars A small incident in a larger war, June 25, 2008

By	David W. Nicholas (Montrose, CA USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

This is one of those books which takes a small nugget of history and attempts to make something larger of it. Apparently, during the Battle of Germantown in 1777, General William Howe lost his dog, and the animal wound up being captured by the American army. When Washington found this out, he returned the dog under a flag of truce along with a note.

Author Tiger works into this narrative a variety of things. She recounts both Washington and Howe's life briefly, telling of their lives before and after the incident, spending more time on Washington apparently because Howe's papers all were destroyed in a fire in the 19th Century. Washington's character is a large part of the story, and the author goes to the extent or reprinting, in full, the maxims that George wrote down when he was a teenager, and tried to follow for the rest of his life. His devotion to hunting dogs and the sport of foxhunting is also highlighted.

This is a pretty short book, rather thin on material about the battle. The author doesn't have much material upon which to build a story, and she isn't very conversant with history. For instance, she confuses Washington's biography, recounting that he led troops to victory in the French and Indian War, when in reality he was at best only partially successful. She also at one point refers to historian Gary Wills as "Gary Willis".

I enjoyed this book. It's a little thin, and small, but it also recounts an interesting snippet of history. I would recommend it to anyone interested in the Revolution, Washington, or of course dogs.