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A Battlefield Atlas of the American Revolution
A Battlefield Atlas of the American Revolution, a second collaboration between Dr. Craig L. Symonds and cartographer William J. Clipson, author of A Battlefield Atalas of the Civil War, is a fresh visual and narrative overview of the principle military engagements of the American war of independence. It chronicles the emergence of a new nation through the military campaigns of men such as Washington, Cornwallis, and Burgoyne. The war started with men fighting as raw, hastily-formed militia and ended with well drilled armies engaged in great battles that raged along the eastern seaboard.
Symonds narratives each battle in a clear concise and readable way. Accompanying two-color, full-page maps and the visual comprehension of students as well as military history buffs, making this easy-to-handle book an ideal classroom text, battlefield tour guide, or library reference. Four introductory essays draw the narrative together, each highlighting a new facet of the British-American conflict. "The Early Campaigns" recounts the formation of the Continental Army and the selection of Washington as its commander. Washington's persistence in keeping the army intact and his role in maintaining the morale of the budding nation were crucial to the Americans during the campaigns, from Lexington and Concord to Princeton.
"The Turning Point" discusses the tough winter spent by Washington's troops at Morristown, and the ongoing feuding within the American officer corps early in 1777. These problems belied that this year would prove the turning point of the war with the American defeat of Burgoyne at Saratoga. Burgoyne's ambitious but flawed campaign is outlined by the maps accompanying this section.
"A Global War" announces the entry of France into the war on America's behalf, renewing the struggle between two of the greatest powers in the western world - France and Britain. For the British, this American-French alliance would prove disastrous as the war moved off the North American continent to sea.
"The War Moves South" explorers the shift in British strategy in trying to recruit Loyalists from southern colonies, the last alternative to political defeat for Britain and for Colonial Secretary Lord Germain, whose reputation was at stake. The conflict between Patriot and Loyalist in the South led to the final destruction of this strategy and victory for the new nation.
Symonds narratives each battle in a clear concise and readable way. Accompanying two-color, full-page maps and the visual comprehension of students as well as military history buffs, making this easy-to-handle book an ideal classroom text, battlefield tour guide, or library reference. Four introductory essays draw the narrative together, each highlighting a new facet of the British-American conflict. "The Early Campaigns" recounts the formation of the Continental Army and the selection of Washington as its commander. Washington's persistence in keeping the army intact and his role in maintaining the morale of the budding nation were crucial to the Americans during the campaigns, from Lexington and Concord to Princeton.
"The Turning Point" discusses the tough winter spent by Washington's troops at Morristown, and the ongoing feuding within the American officer corps early in 1777. These problems belied that this year would prove the turning point of the war with the American defeat of Burgoyne at Saratoga. Burgoyne's ambitious but flawed campaign is outlined by the maps accompanying this section.
"A Global War" announces the entry of France into the war on America's behalf, renewing the struggle between two of the greatest powers in the western world - France and Britain. For the British, this American-French alliance would prove disastrous as the war moved off the North American continent to sea.
"The War Moves South" explorers the shift in British strategy in trying to recruit Loyalists from southern colonies, the last alternative to political defeat for Britain and for Colonial Secretary Lord Germain, whose reputation was at stake. The conflict between Patriot and Loyalist in the South led to the final destruction of this strategy and victory for the new nation.
110 pages, Hardcover
First published June 1, 1986
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166 people want to read
About the author
Craig L. Symonds
45 books241 followersCraig Lee Symonds is a retired professor and former chairman of the history department at the United States Naval Academy. He earned both his MA (1969) and Ph.D. (1976) from the University of Florida.
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Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews
July 30, 2025
A masterful synopsis of the war with maps of all significant battles combined with a concise description of the events. A “must have” book for students of US military history.
January 13, 2021
Great reference book on the battles of the War of Independence. There are 41 maps and each map gets an associated 800-word essay. The maps are clear and succinct. I did like that each map had a scale on it.
The book lacks an index, which would have been a great asset.
The maps are mostly in black and white but adds blue along the away. It would have been nice to show the British in red and the allies in blue.
There are some black and white photos that would have been much better in the original colour.
It is strange that the font size would change in the middle of a paragraph.
p. 9: "The independence of the United States, declared in the second summer of the war, rested entirely on the back of Washington's army. Cities and fortresses might fall, the Americans can lose battle after battle, but so long as Washington's army remained intact, the rebellion was alive."
p. 19: Clinton on Bunker Hill: "A dear bought victory, another such would have ruined us."
p. 21: On November 14, 1775: Montreal surrendered
p. 25: "Charleton" -- typo
p. 36: Battle of Saratoga: "Without a doubt it was the turning point of the war."
p. 62: Holland declared war in 1780
p. 73: Battle of Newton on August 29, 1779
p. 79: "There had been little important revolutionary activity south of the Potomac since the beginning of the conflict. Most Americans in the southern colonies merely wanted to be left alone."
p. 80: "The effect of these local attitudes, especially in North Carolina, was to create a series of broad bands of conflicting political opinion: Whig along the Tidewater, Tory in the Piedmont, and Whig again on the frontier."
p. 87: Alexander Hamilton offered the most appropriate comment: "Was there ever such an instance of a general [Gates] running away ... from his whole army? And was there ever so precipitous flight?"
p. 93: Charles James Fox remarked dryly that "Another such victory [as Guilford Court House] would ruin the British army."
The book lacks an index, which would have been a great asset.
The maps are mostly in black and white but adds blue along the away. It would have been nice to show the British in red and the allies in blue.
There are some black and white photos that would have been much better in the original colour.
It is strange that the font size would change in the middle of a paragraph.
p. 9: "The independence of the United States, declared in the second summer of the war, rested entirely on the back of Washington's army. Cities and fortresses might fall, the Americans can lose battle after battle, but so long as Washington's army remained intact, the rebellion was alive."
p. 19: Clinton on Bunker Hill: "A dear bought victory, another such would have ruined us."
p. 21: On November 14, 1775: Montreal surrendered
p. 25: "Charleton" -- typo
p. 36: Battle of Saratoga: "Without a doubt it was the turning point of the war."
p. 62: Holland declared war in 1780
p. 73: Battle of Newton on August 29, 1779
p. 79: "There had been little important revolutionary activity south of the Potomac since the beginning of the conflict. Most Americans in the southern colonies merely wanted to be left alone."
p. 80: "The effect of these local attitudes, especially in North Carolina, was to create a series of broad bands of conflicting political opinion: Whig along the Tidewater, Tory in the Piedmont, and Whig again on the frontier."
p. 87: Alexander Hamilton offered the most appropriate comment: "Was there ever such an instance of a general [Gates] running away ... from his whole army? And was there ever so precipitous flight?"
p. 93: Charles James Fox remarked dryly that "Another such victory [as Guilford Court House] would ruin the British army."
August 8, 2019
Brilliant! Excellent companion for anyone trying to figure out the sequence, location, and activities of battles in the American Revolution. Maps are clear. Engagements presented in chronological order. (and not just the major engagements). Even better is the concise narrative of what happened before, during and after each engagement. It is amazing what can be explained in just a few paragraphs. Entire book runs just over 100 pages. Major kudos to the author Symonds, and the cartographer Clipson.
January 5, 2024
Purchased this little gem at the Museum of the American Revolution in Philadelphia.
It is an EXTREMELY helpful companion to me, trying to get a grasp on that "revolution" (insurrection / revolt ?) via the help of concise MAPS and (short, but very concise) descriptions of the main actions / actors.
I have been using this book as a reference to a few, more detailed, descriptions of the Breaking Away of the American Colonies from Britain. (see later addition to my reading list, under the label of "George III").
It is an EXTREMELY helpful companion to me, trying to get a grasp on that "revolution" (insurrection / revolt ?) via the help of concise MAPS and (short, but very concise) descriptions of the main actions / actors.
I have been using this book as a reference to a few, more detailed, descriptions of the Breaking Away of the American Colonies from Britain. (see later addition to my reading list, under the label of "George III").
December 20, 2024
Brief narrative with an accompanying map on the principal military battles / engagements of the American Revolutionary War.
There are 4 main chapters.
“The Early Campaigns”, “The Turning Point”, “A Global War” & “The War Moves South”.
I have the 2018 version. The maps are in Black and White. They are helpful; however, as it is Black and white, if one is not familiar with the individuals associated in the battles, one may not know which is the American Colonist and their allies or the British and their allies.
Enjoyed it.
There are 4 main chapters.
“The Early Campaigns”, “The Turning Point”, “A Global War” & “The War Moves South”.
I have the 2018 version. The maps are in Black and White. They are helpful; however, as it is Black and white, if one is not familiar with the individuals associated in the battles, one may not know which is the American Colonist and their allies or the British and their allies.
Enjoyed it.
September 7, 2017
A great short summary of the battles of the revolutionary war. As good as their civil war atlas.
April 25, 2023
Fantastic summary, with great maps of the battles that took place, along with thoughtful commentary. Highly recommended for a bird’s eye view of events throughout the war’s entirety.
January 11, 2017
I got this book to help me read the Chernow biography of Washington to better understand our Revolutionary War. It is more than I expected - the drawings and illustrations were easy to read and the notes (including reference numbers on the maps) made comprehension easier.
Plus there were good explanations of the participants and some strategy etc and it of course also covered parts of the war not really covered in the biography as GW did not fight in all the battles.
Not sure why not five stars.
Maybe the smaller numbers of participants made this book easier to do than atlases of other wars such as our Civil war or WW II.
It took so long because I proceeded together with the biography.
Plus there were good explanations of the participants and some strategy etc and it of course also covered parts of the war not really covered in the biography as GW did not fight in all the battles.
Not sure why not five stars.
Maybe the smaller numbers of participants made this book easier to do than atlases of other wars such as our Civil war or WW II.
It took so long because I proceeded together with the biography.
October 31, 2014
This is a great reference for the battles of the Revolution. The battles are given a high level overview and laid out on a map. It is very helpful when trying to figure out what actually happened during many of the battles. I use this very often when reading about the various battles of the Revolution.
March 11, 2023
Good overview of the war, it covers the major battles and campaigns. Except for one map (#29) that covers naval actions near Great Britain during 1778-1779, the book almost entirely concentrates on land operations in the thirteen colonies, ignoring operations in the Caribbean or by U.S. allies France, Spain, and the Dutch.
June 7, 2008
I use it to set up my Revolutionary War people.
July 15, 2009
Excellent (though with some annoying editing issues), map-oriented overview of the course of our war of independence. Fascinating! Actually this is my third time through this book...
February 4, 2010
Absolutely superbly designed and executed. The perfect companion for any military history of the period.
July 25, 2014
There are many Revolutionary War battle sites in the Eastern United States. The author has complied an atlas of many of the sites with brief descriptions sand maps.
March 2, 2013
Very good starter and quick reference book of major revolutionary war battles. Nice simple and clear maps.
February 3, 2014
A great collection of maps with straight forward explanations to build context. Could really have used a copy edit before publication, however.
August 31, 2016
Excellent short book on the Revolutionary War or the War of Independence depending on your viewpoint. Each battle has a clear map and a delightful story.
July 9, 2014
This book was a revealing survey of the American Revolution.
Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews