Between the Lines: Banditti of the American Revolution

by Harry M. Ward

Overview

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 returbaned 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.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780275976330
Publisher:	Bloomsbury Academic
Publication date:	08/30/2002
Series:	Studies in Military History and International Affairs
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	352
Product dimensions:	6.14(w) x 9.21(h) x 0.81(d)

About the Author

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.

Table of Contents

Preface
Soldier-Straggler Plunderers
Cowboys and Skinners
Long Island Marauders
New Jersey Refugees
Highland Gangs
James Moody
Pine Robbers
Doane Outlaws
Chesapeake Picaroons
Josiah Phillips
Maroons
Scopholites
Daniel McGirth
"A Perfect Desert"
Epilogue
Index