A comprehensive one-volume study of the military aspects of the War of Independence, drawing on hundreds of specialist sources, contemporary and archival. The first part of the book offers a detailed examination of eighteenth-century combat: Who fought and what motivated them, whether patriot or redcoat, Hessian or Frenchman? How were they enlisted and trained? How were they clothed and fed? What weapons did they use, and how effective were they? When soldiers became casualties or fell ill, how did medical services deal with them? What roles did loyalists, women, blacks, and Indians play? The second part of the book gives a closer look at the war's greatest battles: What parts did terrain and weather play? What were the qualities of the respective commanders, and what tactics did they employ? How did the soldiers fight? Throughout, cherished myths are challenged, reputations are reassessed, and long-held assumptions are tested.--From publisher description.