Between the Lines: Banditti of the American Revolution

(Hardback)

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Description

This account depicts the roving bands of robbers, known as banditti, who plagued the countryside in areas not fully under the control of either army. The Revolutionary War was not a "polite" conflict between orderly troops and gentlemanly officers. Civilians on the home front suffered considerably. This account depicts the ugly side of the War for Independence, where roving bands of robbers, known as banditti, plagued the countryside in areas not fully under the control of either army. Regardless of their political sympathies, American civilians lived in terror of these well-armed gangs of looters, who frequently engaged in torture, arson, and murder. The players in this sordid tale, chiefly motivated by greed, chose their victims indiscriminately and then returned to sanctuary. Many civilians fled their homes, leaving large sections of New York, Georgia, and the Carolinas as no-man's-land, where near anarchy and the complete disruption of civilian justice only abetted the success of the marauders. Ward details the activities of the most prominent banditti and looks at the horrors and devastation of their actions. His account challenges readers to look beyond the set-piece battles and even past the guerrilla activities, to examine what life was like for those caught between the lines.

Reviews

"Using a wide variety of sources, personal and official, popular and academic, Ward delivers a fascinating, anecdotal study of an aspect of the Revolution that has often only been mentioned in passing in other works. He reveals that in the midst of this endeavor to make the law king, all too often lawlessness reigned. He paints an image of a wild, wild war, wherein "cowboys" were British rogues rustling cattle and "skinners" were patriot plunderers. Ward, in essence, shows how this war of liberation corrupted some people and, on the other hand, how some outlaws tried to pervert the war."-Holly A. Mayer Associate Professor Duquesne University
"Ward's book is a triumph of research into the obscure and neglected underside of the American Revolution. He has teased coherent stories out of an impressive array of scattered sources. There is grist here for dozens of movie plots."-Edward Cashin Director, Center for the Study of Georgian History Augusta State University
"Between the Lines offers readers a detailed description of the myriad illegal activities carried out by some of the American Revolution's most notorious, but also least documented, figures....[W]ard does an effective job of demonstrating the extent to which the American Revolution, like most wars, had an uncontrollable side."-Register of the Kentucky Historical Society
"The story that Ward tells has an almost nightmarish, Kafkaesque quality to it...Ward's book adds another component to thisn story of the Revolution...[W]ard shows beyond all peradventure...Ward's work, a monument to diligent scholarship, good writing, and mature judgement, is an important book on the American Revolution. It joins a handful of others that are essential reading for anyone who wishes to learn about all aspects of the Revolutionary War. Ward has labored for many years in producing one good book after another without achieving all the rewards that should come from being an excellent historian. This volume ought to bring him the recognition he so abundantly deserves."-Military History of the West
[o]ften fascinating and filled with useful detail.-Journal of American History
[t]his study admirably depicts the savagery of the Revolution that was often brutal for soldiers and civilians alike.-The North Carolina Historical Review
[B]etween the Lines is a splendid read, and Ward's ability to impose order upon a wide range of events that occurred along the "underside" of the war is most impressive. His sober, detailed analysis of important yet hitherto neglected banditti activity makes this book a must for any serious historian of the revolutionary conflict. And readers whose interests lay elsewhere should still enjoy Ward's exposure of so much defiance in a world of deference.-Georgia Historical Quarterly
[F]ascinating reading....will appeal to general readers as well as to serious students of the Revolution. Recommended. All university libraries and general libraries with strong US history collections.-Choice
[S]cholars of rebellions, invasions, guerilla warfare, and violent antisocial behavior will find it interesting and a useful guide to sources. This work may well stimulate more intensive studies of how extraordinary circumstances affect heretofore ordinary people in a particular time and place.-The Journal of Southern History
Between the Lines offers readers a detailed description of the myriad illegal activities carried out by some of the American Revolution's most notorious, but also least documented, figures....[W]ard does an effective job of demonstrating the extent to which the American Revolution, like most wars, had an uncontrollable side.-Register of the Kentucky Historical Society
Reading Between the Lines reminds one of the savage guerrilla warfare in Missouri during the American Civil War, when war and the breakdown of civilian authority allowed criminals to roam freely, and where soldiers became outlaws...This is an important and disturbing book, one of Harry Ward's best.-Richmond Times-Dispatch
The published scholarship on the Revolution lacked a study of the lawlessness of the times, and Ward fills much of the need.-Florida Historical Quarterly
The story that Ward tells has an almost nightmarish, Kafkaesque quality to it...Ward's book adds another component to thisn story of the Revolution...[W]ard shows beyond all peradventure...Ward's work, a monument to diligent scholarship, good writing, and mature judgement, is an important book on the American Revolution. It joins a handful of others that are essential reading for anyone who wishes to learn about all aspects of the Revolutionary War. Ward has labored for many years in producing one good book after another without achieving all the rewards that should come from being an excellent historian. This volume ought to bring him the recognition he so abundantly deserves.-Military History of the West
Ward has collected a wealth of characters and sources that should provide material for Ph.D. dissertations for decades to come.-The Virginia Magazine of History and Biography
"often fascinating and filled with useful detail."-Journal of American History
"this study admirably depicts the savagery of the Revolution that was often brutal for soldiers and civilians alike."-The North Carolina Historical Review
"Between the Lines is a splendid read, and Ward's ability to impose order upon a wide range of events that occurred along the "underside" of the war is most impressive. His sober, detailed analysis of important yet hitherto neglected banditti activity makes this book a must for any serious historian of the revolutionary conflict. And readers whose interests lay elsewhere should still enjoy Ward's exposure of so much defiance in a world of deference."-Georgia Historical Quarterly
"Fascinating reading....will appeal to general readers as well as to serious students of the Revolution. Recommended. All university libraries and general libraries with strong US history collections."-Choice
"Scholars of rebellions, invasions, guerilla warfare, and violent antisocial behavior will find it interesting and a useful guide to sources. This work may well stimulate more intensive studies of how extraordinary circumstances affect heretofore ordinary people in a particular time and place."-The Journal of Southern History
"[o]ften fascinating and filled with useful detail."-Journal of American History
"[t]his study admirably depicts the savagery of the Revolution that was often brutal for soldiers and civilians alike."-The North Carolina Historical Review
"[B]etween the Lines is a splendid read, and Ward's ability to impose order upon a wide range of events that occurred along the "underside" of the war is most impressive. His sober, detailed analysis of important yet hitherto neglected banditti activity makes this book a must for any serious historian of the revolutionary conflict. And readers whose interests lay elsewhere should still enjoy Ward's exposure of so much defiance in a world of deference."-Georgia Historical Quarterly
"[F]ascinating reading....will appeal to general readers as well as to serious students of the Revolution. Recommended. All university libraries and general libraries with strong US history collections."-Choice
"[S]cholars of rebellions, invasions, guerilla warfare, and violent antisocial behavior will find it interesting and a useful guide to sources. This work may well stimulate more intensive studies of how extraordinary circumstances affect heretofore ordinary people in a particular time and place."-The Journal of Southern History
"Reading Between the Lines reminds one of the savage guerrilla warfare in Missouri during the American Civil War, when war and the breakdown of civilian authority allowed criminals to roam freely, and where soldiers became outlaws...This is an important and disturbing book, one of Harry Ward's best."-Richmond Times-Dispatch
"The published scholarship on the Revolution lacked a study of the lawlessness of the times, and Ward fills much of the need."-Florida Historical Quarterly
"Ward has collected a wealth of characters and sources that should provide material for Ph.D. dissertations for decades to come."-The Virginia Magazine of History and Biography

Author Bio

HARRY M. WARD is William Binford Vest Professor of History, Emeritus at the University of Richmond. He is the author of numerous books and other publications relating to Colonial and Revolutionary America.