The Life and Times of General Andrew Pickens - by Rod Andrew (Paperback)

About the Book

"Though best known as a Revolutionary War general, Andrew Pickens (1739-1817) was more than just an influential military figure in the early American republic, also serving as a church leader, justice of the peace, legislator, and congressman. In this book, Rod Andrew Jr. offers the first comprehensive biography of Pickens, a hero at the pivotal Battle of Cowpens, in over a generation. Andrew defines his subject as a man of action, analyzing his motivations in context of the tumultuous and often violent landscape of early America. Andrew ... depicts the life of Pickens as he founds churches, acquires slaves, joins in the fight against the British in the American Revolution, and struggles over Indian territorial boundaries on the southern frontier"--

Book Synopsis

Andrew Pickens (1739-1817), the hard-fighting South Carolina militia commander of the American Revolution, was the hero of many victories against British and Loyalist forces. In this book, Rod Andrew Jr. offers an authoritative and comprehensive biography of Pickens the man, the general, the planter, and the diplomat. Andrew vividly depicts Pickens as he founds churches, acquires slaves, joins the Patriot cause, and struggles over Indian territorial boundaries on the southern frontier. Combining insights from military and social history, Andrew argues that while Pickens's actions consistently reaffirmed the authority of white men, he was also determined to help found the new republic based on broader principles of morality and justice.

After the war, Pickens sought a peaceful and just relationship between his country and the southern Native American tribes and wrestled internally with the issue of slavery. Andrew suggests that Pickens's rise to prominence, his stern character, and his sense of duty highlight the egalitarian ideals of his generation as well as its moral shortcomings -- all of which still influence Americans' understanding of themselves.

Review Quotes

"A comprehensive biography of Andrew Pickens, a backcountry planter, general, and diplomat on the southeastern frontier in the era of the American Revolution and new nation. Recommended." -- CHOICE

"A detailed portrait of a complicated, often enigmatic, historical figure and the society that produced him."--H-Net Reviews

"An outstanding book, long awaited by history buffs that will serve as a milestone on an important Revolutionary War military leader." -- McCormick Messenger

"Andrew's study is a full-scale biography of Pickens, one of the principal generals in the southern theater of the American Revolution . . . [that] open[s] our eyes to the incompleteness of the earlier stories. We cannot understand Pickens fully without considering Native Americans."--South Carolina Historical Magazine

"Invaluable for those interested in the finer points of the Revolution in the Carolina backcountry, the postwar shaping of frontier democracy, or a historical work that centers evangelical Christianity in the Revolution and early republic." -- North Carolina Historical Review

"Other biographies of Pickens have been written, but this is the best. Rod Andrew has done a great job of sifting through the available evidence to define the man and his life."--Journal of Americas Military Past

"Provides a well-deserved new treatment of Pickens as a military hero, civic leader, and self-made man who was not only a product of the frontier Revolutionary ethos of his day, but also an important shaper of it . . . a masterfully told story."--On Point

"This clearly written, well-constructed, and thoroughly researched book provides a welcome addition to Revolutionary and Indian affairs scholarship."--The Journal of Southern History

About the Author

Rod Andrew Jr. is professor of history at Clemson University.