Alexandersmap

    Tag: American Revolution

    • The Voice of Justice and Consanguinity

      We, therefore, the Representatives of the united States of America, in General Congress, Assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our intentions, do, in the Name, and by Authority of the good People of these Colonies, solemnly publish and declare, That these United Colonies are, and of Right ought to be Free and Independent States; that they are Absolved from all Allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political connection between them and the State of Great Britain, is and ought to be totally dissolved; and that as Free and Independent States, they have full Power to levy War, conclude Peace, contract Alliances, establish Commerce, and to do all other Acts and Things which Independent States may of right do. And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor. – Declaration of Independence, July 4, 1776

      There’s a sentence in the Declaration of Independence that grabs me, written before the lines above brings this document to its bold conclusion. It’s the accusation that the British have been deaf to the voice of justice and consanguinity, which is both accurate and ironic. For we are an imperfect country, and if the last five years taught us anything it’s this: justice and consanguinity (the belief that we’re all kin derived from the same blood) are stories that we tell ourselves when it works in our favor.

      I’m not here to beat up this country I love on her birthday. That would be unfair. We are an imperfect country, but we latched on to a bold idea that generally has steered us towards progress for the citizens of the United States, and maybe, in some ways, for the world. This idea, that all men are created equal, is still a work in progress. But it is progressing.

      That bold ask, freedom and independence, continues to this day. For the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution to follow were each intended to be a call for a higher standard. We are a country of laws and young traditions, based on a belief in justice and consanguinity. We’re a bit rough around the edges, we don’t always get it right, but we’re slowly progressing towards a more inclusive interpretation of that original vision.

    • Favorites From a Year of Reading

      This might go down as my favorite year of reading.  I made it a goal to read more the last two years, and the momentum from 2018 definitely carried over into 2019.  Reading inspired my travel to new places and offered side trips of meaning in places I’ve been many times before.  It kicked me in the backside with work, writing, exercise and diet, and it inspired me to be a better version of myself than I previously had been.  I’m still a work in progress, but aren’t we all?  In all I read 23 books cover-to-cover in 2019, and dabbled in chapters of a few more.  Here are my ten favorite books this year:

      Atomic Habits by James Clear was by far the most impactful book on self-improvement that I’ve read in many years.  Strongly recommend this if you’re looking to make meaningful changes in your life.  I’m going to re-read it again in January to get a jump-start on 2020.  Habits that are now part of my identity include reading, writing, walking and drinking water.  Habits that went by the wayside include daily burpees and drinking less.  2020 (every day really) offers a chance to reset on habits, with new possibilities with learning language(s) and a few notable work goals.

      The Gift by Hafiz is a stunningly beautiful collection of poems.  Why it took me until 2019 to find Hafiz I don’t know…  but I’m glad I got here.

      Dream Work by Mary Oliver is another collection of brilliant poetry that it took me way too long in life to discover.  Maybe Oliver’s passing this year put a spotlight on her work, or maybe the student was finally ready.  Either way I’m glad I’ve immersed myself in the world of Mary Oliver.

      To Shake the Sleeping Self: A Journey from Oregon to Patagonia by Jedidiah Jenkins is a travel book on the one hand, and a journey of self-discovery one the other as Jenkins wrestles with his religious upbringing and his sexual identity during an epic biking trip across North and South America.  The book reinforces my belief that most people are good while acknowledging some good fortune along the way.  As a bonus, Jenkins pointed me towards one Hafiz poem, Tim Ferriss pointed me towards another, and soon I was reading The Gift (above).

      Awareness by Anthony De Mello is not the kind of book I ever would have picked up, as it feels self-helpy and overly religious at first glance.  And it does have a healthy dose of both things, but this books is an incredible call to action for the self, and backed up with tremendous insight into human nature.  Another book I wish I’d read years ago that I’m glad I got to in 2019.

      How the Scots Invented the Modern World by Arthur Herman is a book I’ve had on the shelf for years that I finally got to in 2019.  Perhaps inspired by my then upcoming trip to Scotland, I burned through the book quickly, learning a lot about the Scottish people who made a massive impact on the world we live in today.  It also prompted me to add a few places to my trip that I might not otherwise have gone to.

      The Map Thief by Michael Blanding poured gasoline on my burning fascination with old maps, and fired me up in another way; as someone who is passionate about historical artifacts like maps and old books, and also in a career based on securing people and assets from criminals like Forbes Smiley, this book was highly relevant for me.

      The French and Indian War: Deciding the Fate of North America by Walter R. Borneman offered me more insight into the place I live than any history book in a long time.  The Northeast corner of North America is where most of this fighting took place, and I took the opportunity to visit many historically important sites in my travels that were inspired by this book.

      Benedict Arnold’s Navy: The Ragtag Fleet That Lost the Battle of Lake Champlain But Won the American Revolution by James L. Nelson is a look at the complex individual that is Benedict Arnold.  And it goes well beyond the Battle of Lake Champlain, with a detailed account of Arnold’s epic raid of Quebec through the wilderness of Maine.  The retreat from Quebec opened up the St Lawrence River to the British, which put Lake Champlain and Lake George in their sites as the critical water route to the Hudson River. Arnold’s fleet delayed the British just long enough to set up the victory at Saratoga (where Arnold played a critical role as well).  I followed this book by reading Valiant Ambition by Nathanial Philbrick, another excellent book with even more detail on complicated life of Benedict Arnold.  Benedict Arnold’s Navy inspired that read, so it gets the nod here in the top ten.

      The Daily Stoic: 366 Meditations on Wisdom, Perseverance, and the Art of Living by Ryan Holiday is, as the title indicates, meant to be read daily, one quick dose of stoic medicine at a time.  After immersing myself in Marcus Aurelius’ Meditations in 2018, I felt that The Daily Stoic would be a great way to add a little daily stoicism to my life.  And it became part of my morning routine, where I’d read this before other books.  I’ll continue this habit by re-reading The Daily Stoic one day at a time in 2020 and on into the future.

      So there you go, my top ten favorite reads in 2019.  I’m a better person for having read them all, and look forward to revisiting several of them again and again in the years to come.  I’m a better writer for having read them all (still a work in progress).  And there’s a big stack of exciting books to tackle waiting patiently beside them.  So here’s to some great reading in the year ahead!

    • Oriskany

      I wasn’t planning on another detour on this trip, but saw the sign, calculated the total time the detour would take and made the decision to stop by the battlefield.  I was deeply impressed with the quiet dignity of the site, and reflected on the violence that took place in the ravine I walked down into.  The battlefield is nothing but tranquil today, save for the landscaper mowing the fields.  But at 10 AM on August 6, 1777 this valley erupted in thunderous clouds of gunfire and screams the hidden Loyalists and Iroquois aligned with the British ambushed a column of American patriots and Oneida Indians allied with them.  That this battle pitted neighbor against neighbor, Iroquois tribe against Iroquois tribe makes the results all the more devastating.

      “We met the enemy at the place near a small creek. They had 3 cannons and we none. We had tomahawks and a few guns, but agreed to fight with tomahawks and scalping knives. During the fight, we waited for them to fire their guns and then we attacked them. It felt like no more than killing a Beast. We killed most of the men in the American’s army. Only a few escaped from us. We fought so close against one another that we could kill or another with a musket bayonet…. It was here that I saw the most dead bodies than I have ever seen. The blood shed made a stream running down on the sloping ground.” – Blacksnake, Seneca War Chief

      When I decided to divert from I-90 to check out the battlefield, I had no idea what to expect.  I’d seen pictures of the monument, but there’s an emotional weight in walking in the footsteps of those who perished here down into that ravine, across the creek and up the other side.  The land looks remarkably similar to what it looked like then.  Perhaps more fields have replaced the deep forest of the day, but this area remains largely undeveloped, and will remain so as the Oriskany Battlefield State Historic Site.

      So I pulled into the driveway leading to the monument and drove down to the parking area.  The 85 foot tall oblisk built in 1883 dominates the landscape in front of you.  But I’d noticed another monument and some signs marking historically relevant locations on the battlefield off to the right as I drove in, and decided to walk over to check those out first.  This is the best approximation of where the ambush took place, and looking around it seemed as appropriate a spot as any.  I walked up to the monument honoring General Nicholas Herkimer, wounded in the initial ambush, who famously directed patriot forces into defensive positions from behind an ash tree at or near this location. The Iroquois warriors would wait for a soldier to fire their one shot then rush at them with tomahawks and knives. This was up close, brutal fighting that decimated the American forces. Herkimer directed his men to pair up, with one firing while the other reloaded, to counter this rush.  Herkimer was shot in the leg, and died when the amputation to save him didn’t go as planned.  I wonder sometimes if Benedict Arnold, shot in the leg later in the same year, refused to have his leg amputated after seeing what happened to Herkimer?

      Of the almost 800 American and Oneida ambushes, almost half were killed, and overall casualties were over 500. For the patriotic farmers who rallied to save their brothers-in-arms under siege at Fort Stanwix, the ambush quickly ended their dreams and destroyed the lives of their families back home.  By all accounts these were tough losses for any army, but for Tryon County, it was a devastating loss of fathers, brothers and sons that brought the county to its knees.

      Ultimately the relief column suffered far more casualties than the defenders at Fort Stanwix, who were saved when Benedict Arnold orchestrated a con to make the British and Iroquois think he was much closer to engaging with them, and with many more troops than he actually had.  But that’s a story for another day.  The Loyalists who survived would eventually flee to Canada or other British territories as reprisals reached their homes as momentum swung away from the British.  While the battle at Oriskany was a huge setback in momentum, it was another domino in the string of events that led to the defeat of General Burgoyne’s army at Saratoga.

      On this rainy June afternoon, I had the place largely to myself.  There were about a dozen New York State Troopers visiting, a couple huddled under an umbrella, a man walking two Labrador retrievers, and… me.  The experience reminded me of my trip to Hubbardton a couple of months ago, the quiet solitude and signs describing the lay of the land on the day of the battle were similar.  But Oriskany felt different, because what happened here was different. Hubbardton was a retreating rear guard being caught by a faster moving British force. Oriskany was neighbors ambushing neighbors. Iroquois tribe against Iroquois tribe. A mass casualty event that shook a region. The Revolutionary War was far more complicated than Americans overthrowing a tyrannical oppressor. It was a messy divorce that forced each individual to decide which parent they were going to remain with, and which one they would betray in the most violent ways.

      Visiting the Oriskany battle site is easy. Roughly ten minutes off I-90, it offers a quick respite from travel, and perspective on the sacrifices others made to give us the freedom to do so. On the day I visited, as with other battlefields related to the Saratoga campaign, a quiet stillness prevailed. There’s a small building set down behind the monument where you can learn more about the site and events that day, and (please) leave a donation to help support the maintenance of this sacred ground.  The obelisk is showing signs of wear and needs renovation, but remains a striking tribute to those who fell here.

    • John Glover

      One of the biggest heroes for the American Colonists in the Revolutionary War in 1776 was a fisherman from Marblehead, Massachusetts.  Actually, he was more than a fisherman, he was also a cordwainer (shoemaker), rum trader, merchant and notably, the first Captain (of the Hannah) in the Continental Navy a later in the war he commanded forces at Saratoga and served with distinction there as well.  But it was and as the Commander of a brigade known as the “Amphibious Regiment” that John Glover became a legend in the history of the American Revolution.

      Glover’s group of fishermen and merchants saved the Continental Army twice in New York with strategic evacuations from Brooklyn and later from Manhattan.  These two evacuations saved the Continental Army from certain defeat against far superior numbers.  These weren’t the battle hardened troops of later in the war, these were undisciplined troops led by Generals, including George Washington, who were being outmaneuvered by the British Generals.  Glover’s fleet of small boats shuttled the entire army across the Hudson River to Manhattan and then to New Jersey in the cover of darkness.

      In December of 1776, Glover’s Marblehead men once again became heroes in shuttling the Continental Army across the frigid Delaware River to Trenton, and then back again with 900 Hessian POW’s.  Glover’s fleet pulled off some of the most impressive amphibious maneuvers of the war, equalling the British invasion of Long Island in seamanship, and perhaps surpassing the British with their sheer audacity.

      At some point I’ll update this post with pictures of John Glover’s statue in Boston and his home in Marblehead, Massachusetts.  For now, I’m taking a moment to appreciate this war hero, rum trader, merchant, fisherman and yes, cordwainer.  Glover is one of the legends of the American Revolution and should be more widely known today.

    • Benedict Arnold

      Growing up in the United States of America, you heard a version of history that made our Founding Fathers and the generals who fought the American Revolution out to be heroes.  And in many ways they were.  The winners write the history, no doubt, but they did create a democracy that was the envy of the world while fighting off the greatest military power of the day.

      I’ve read that if Benedict Arnold had been killed at Saratoga instead of badly wounded he would be remembered as one of our greatest heroes.  There’s no doubt that he was a complicated man; aggressively ambitious to a point where he drove those he commanded, was loathed by many of his peers, but loved as a true leader by anyone who saw him in action.  
      Had Benedict Arnold not turned against the colonies, he would have been celebrated as one of our greatest military leaders for his raid on Quebec, the raid on Ticonderoga, the Battle of Valcour Island on Lake Champlain against overwhelming odds, the Battles of Ridgefield, Connecticut and Saratoga. In all of these, Arnold exhibited courage, persistence, strategic vision and competitive spirit critical in war.  He sacrificed an enormous amount of his personal wealth and political power for the Revolution, and was a key reason the British were ultimately defeated.  And yet he’s best known for his betrayal.
      You can’t take omit that betrayal when considering the man.  There’s no doubt that he deserved the condemnation and infamy he received and receives to this day for not just betraying the colonies, but also betraying George Washington and the troops he served with.  But it’s… complicated.  If Arnold weren’t such a hero in 1775-1778, his betrayal in 1780.  He remains the most famous traitor in history, and the most forgotten hero.
      I’ll try to visit a few of the places that Benedict Arnold made history in.  Not because I admire the man, but because without him I’m not sure that the Continental Army would have won in the end.  And what would our history have been then?  Unlike Washington, there aren’t a lot of “Benedict Arnold slept here” placards on the sides of colonial era homes.  But there are monuments to what he accomplished, and I’d like to explore a few of those in 2019.