A People's Army - (Published by the Omohundro Institute of Early American Histo) by Fred Anderson (Paperback)

About the Book

People's Army: Massachusetts Soldiers and Society in the Seven Years' War

Book Synopsis

A People's Army documents the many distinctions between British regulars and Massachusetts provincial troops during the Seven Years' War. Originally published by UNC Press in 1984, the book was the first investigation of colonial military life to give equal attention to official records and to the diaries and other writings of the common soldier. The provincials' own accounts of their experiences in the campaign amplify statistical profiles that define the men, both as civilians and as soldiers. These writings reveal in intimate detail their misadventures, the drudgery of soldiering, the imminence of death, and the providential world view that helped reconcile them to their condition and to the war.

From the Back Cover

A People's Army documents the many distinctions between British regulars and Massachusetts provincial troops during the Seven Years' War. The provincials' own accounts of their experiences in the campaign amplify statistical profiles that define the men, both as civilians and as soldiers. These writings reveal in intimate detail their misadventures, the drudgery of soldiering, the imminence of death and the providential world view that helped reconcile them to their condition and to the war.

About the Author

Fred Anderson is professor of history at the University of Colorado at Boulder.