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They did the dirty work of the American Revolution Their spontaneous uprisings and violent actions steered America toward resistance to the Acts of Parliament and finally toward revolution. They tarred and feathered the backsides of British customs officials, gutted the mansion of Lieutenant Governor Thomas Hutchinson, armed themselves with marline spikes and cudgels to fight on the waterfront against soldiers of the British occupation, and hurled the contents of 350 chests of British East India Company tea into Boston Harbor under the very guns of the anchored British fleet. Cradle of Violence introduces the maritime workers who ignited the American Revolution: the fishermen desperate to escape impressment by Royal Navy press gangs, the frequently unemployed dockworkers, the wartime veterans and starving widows--all of whose mounting ""tumults"" led the way to rebellion. These were the hard-pressed but fiercely independent residents of Boston's North and South Ends who rallied around the Liberty Tree on Boston Common, who responded to Samuel Adams's cries against ""Tyranny,"" and whose headstrong actions helped embolden John Hancock to sign the Declaration of Independence. Without the maritime mobs' violent demonstrations against authority, the politicians would not have spurred on to utter their impassioned words; Great Britain would not have been provoked to send forth troops to quell the mob-induced rebellion; the War of Independence would not have happened. One of the mobs' most telling demonstrations brought about the Boston Massacre. After it, John Adams attempted to calm the town by dismissing the waterfront characters who had been killed as ""a rabble of saucy boys, negroes and mulattoes, Irish teagues, and outlandish jack tars."" Cradle of Violence demonstrates that they were, more truly, America's first heroes.… (plus d'informations)
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I read this book a couple of years ago, so my memory isn't as specific as I'd like at this point. What I do remember is the "big picture" that this finely written and carefully researched book presented of the unruly "lower sorts" in the economically depressed, hardscrabble waterfront of Boston in the 1760s and 1770s. Looking at the early years of the Revolution from this perspective is undeniably appealing to modern Americans, who view protest against "the Man" as a birthright, but it's also the smart thing to do. It was the "unrest" of these years--the rebellious actions of regular people--that simultaneously underscored the views of so-called radical leaders such as Samuel Adams, and disturbed the upper-crust of Massachusetts and other colonies that sought abrupt political change, but not social upheaval. To the extent that the "mobs" could help the gentry achieve their goals for political change, they were directed, sanctioned, even assisted in conducting what we would call street action. But to the extent that the social and economic change demanded by those mobs would have upset the status quo, they were opposed, undermined, and even sold out. In one sense, then, it's sad to read this book and cheer for the underdogs opposing "the Man," be he the British Parliament or the colony's own elite--only because we know, in the end, that the economically underprivileged never did win get the social revolution they'd hoped for.
On the other hand, because of this careful tightrope-walking by the colonies' elite--in harnessing the power of the "street" when it could be helpful and restraining it when it could have gone too far for the tastes of the gentry--the American Revolution is one of the few, perhaps the *only*, successful revolution in history. (I phrased that like it's my opinion, but it's more the general consensus of historians.) We have the Boston waterfront residents of the 1760s and 1770s to thank for fomenting the rebellion that resulted in the United States. We also have them to thank for showing us the egalitarian ideals they fought for--regardless of whether those ideals were achieved.
As if these intriguing and thoughtful concepts weren't enough to take away from a simple book, I found the writing style to be engaging and active. This book "reads" well--don't be put off by all this high-falutin' talk if that isn't your thing. It's a great read!
As I read this book, I kept hearing the old line from the play "1776" in my head, uttered by a frustrated Pennsylvanian: "Why is it always *Boston* that breaks the King's peace?!" Well, this book explains why. Loved it. ( )
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For I have heard the whispering of the crowd; Fear is all around; They put their heads together against me; They plot to take my life. - Psalm 31:13
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Premiers mots
Informations provenant du Partage des connaissances anglais.Modifiez pour passer à votre langue.
(Preface) When Boston's best lawyer, John Adams, was persuaded by his conservative merchant clients to defend the British soldiers who had slain five waterfront characters on King Street on the cold night of March 5, 1770, he devised a strategy that would both calm the town and satisfy the Crown.
The ambitious and well-connected British foreign service official Francis Bernard, who had served competently as the governor of New Jersey during the French and Indian wars, believed that to assume the governorship of prosperous Massachusetts would be to attain the pinnacle of his career.
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But what neither General Washington nor the myth-maker Webster could foresee was that the liberties of the country, once protected and advanced by the blood of seamen, mechanics, freed slaves, and other common people at Bunker Hill, can only be truly safe when the heirs of those and other Americans are willing to fight additional battles both bloody and bloodless and to achieve victories against newly emerged cities.
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They did the dirty work of the American Revolution Their spontaneous uprisings and violent actions steered America toward resistance to the Acts of Parliament and finally toward revolution. They tarred and feathered the backsides of British customs officials, gutted the mansion of Lieutenant Governor Thomas Hutchinson, armed themselves with marline spikes and cudgels to fight on the waterfront against soldiers of the British occupation, and hurled the contents of 350 chests of British East India Company tea into Boston Harbor under the very guns of the anchored British fleet. Cradle of Violence introduces the maritime workers who ignited the American Revolution: the fishermen desperate to escape impressment by Royal Navy press gangs, the frequently unemployed dockworkers, the wartime veterans and starving widows--all of whose mounting ""tumults"" led the way to rebellion. These were the hard-pressed but fiercely independent residents of Boston's North and South Ends who rallied around the Liberty Tree on Boston Common, who responded to Samuel Adams's cries against ""Tyranny,"" and whose headstrong actions helped embolden John Hancock to sign the Declaration of Independence. Without the maritime mobs' violent demonstrations against authority, the politicians would not have spurred on to utter their impassioned words; Great Britain would not have been provoked to send forth troops to quell the mob-induced rebellion; the War of Independence would not have happened. One of the mobs' most telling demonstrations brought about the Boston Massacre. After it, John Adams attempted to calm the town by dismissing the waterfront characters who had been killed as ""a rabble of saucy boys, negroes and mulattoes, Irish teagues, and outlandish jack tars."" Cradle of Violence demonstrates that they were, more truly, America's first heroes.
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1
On the other hand, because of this careful tightrope-walking by the colonies' elite--in harnessing the power of the "street" when it could be helpful and restraining it when it could have gone too far for the tastes of the gentry--the American Revolution is one of the few, perhaps the *only*, successful revolution in history. (I phrased that like it's my opinion, but it's more the general consensus of historians.) We have the Boston waterfront residents of the 1760s and 1770s to thank for fomenting the rebellion that resulted in the United States. We also have them to thank for showing us the egalitarian ideals they fought for--regardless of whether those ideals were achieved.
As if these intriguing and thoughtful concepts weren't enough to take away from a simple book, I found the writing style to be engaging and active. This book "reads" well--don't be put off by all this high-falutin' talk if that isn't your thing. It's a great read!
As I read this book, I kept hearing the old line from the play "1776" in my head, uttered by a frustrated Pennsylvanian: "Why is it always *Boston* that breaks the King's peace?!" Well, this book explains why. Loved it. (