To many War History Network readers, the American Revolution is summed up by the Boston Tea Party, the Declaration of Independence, the cold winter at Valley Forge and victory at Yorktown. History buffs might even remember Lexington and Concord and Bunker Hill. Morristown chronicles the crucial middle time between The Shot Heard Round The World and the playing of “The World Turned Upside Down” at Cornwallis’ surrender.
The subtitle The Darkest Winter of the Revolutionary War and the Plot to Kidnap George Washington succinctly describes the heart of this tome. Though not limited to these seasons, the primary action takes from the Fall of 1779 through the Winter of 1779-1780. The most significant events are the treachery of Benedict Arnold and the British attempt to kidnap General Washington in February 1780.
Many think of Valley Forge as being the nadir of the War of Independence, but author William Hazelgrove makes a compelling case that the winter Washington’s army spent in Morristown, New Jersey was really the time when the Revolution was in greatest peril.
Employing a non-linear timeline, Hazelgrove introduces the main characters and chronicles their actions: George Washington, the athletic American commander given to bold action with a taste for fine company, food and drink; Benedict Arnold, the ambitious but frustrated American general who, after having been involved in major engagements, including the failed attack on Quebec and the successful one on Fort Ticonderoga, sought his fortune by delivering the crucial West Point on the Hudson to the enemy; British Lt. Col. John Graves Simcoe, hatcher of the scheme to end the Revolution by kidnapping Washington.
The scene was stark. The coldest winter in a century froze the Hudson, turning it into a highway across which raiding forces could march. Winds froze men’s ill-clad bodies, but stimulated officers’ minds to unique opportunities. When Washington saw a chance to surprise the British on Staten Island, as he had the Hessians in Trenton in 1776, Simcoe sought the big prize by capturing Washington.
During the 19th Century, though assassination was considered bad form, kidnapping important figures was an accepted form of warfare, perhaps harking back to medieval times when kings would be ransomed. The descriptions of Simcoe’s plot have the makings of a mystery. I was introduced to new terms, such as the “Life Guard”, Washington’s large body guard corps.
Histories and biographies are often lauded on the basis that “it reads like a novel”. I always understood that as meaning it is really good writing. Morristown takes the phrase to a new level. Hazelgrove skillfully weaves presumed details into historical fact to the point that, at times, I looked to see if this really was historical fiction. Consider: “Martha shut her eyes and fell asleep. Sometime after midnight she opened her eyes in the cold room as the door burst in and three large uniformed men burst in with muskets at the ready and went to the window, throwing open the window to the subzero air.” I doubt this is documented in the historical record, but it enhances the text without compromising the history.
Morristown is a good, fairly short read, that fills in the middle of the Revolutionary story from the enthusiastic beginnings in Boston and Philadelphia with the events that made victory at Yorktown possible. It is probably no spoiler to say that the kidnapping plot failed, but I will stop there. The suspense of how it failed is too entertaining to give it away. I recommend “Morristown” to War History Network readers seeking a deeper understanding of the daunting task of winning independence and the winter that gave the American cause a chance to succeed.
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