Journal of Southern History

The Papers of George Washington has been among the largest, longest, and most successful projects in early American history. Hosted by the University of Virginia, the great undertaking to collect, curate, and make accessible George Washington’s papers began in 1968. The first fruits appeared in the six-volume set of his diaries, published between 1976 and 1979. The conscious commitments to both comprehensiveness and accessibility have been evident throughout the project’s long history. In 2004, the fifty volumes up to that point were republished in digital format, and henceforth all subsequent volumes have appeared both in print and online. Since then, the editors have doubled down on their commitment to leave no stone unturned to identify and print all papers related to Washington, introducing new branch projects that include the George Washington Financial Papers Project (begun in 2013), the digital project George Washington, Day-by-Day, 22 February 1732–14 December 1799 (launched in 2014), and the Martha Washington Papers Project (started in 2015). The Papers of George Washington project also includes a number of other digital resources, such as videos, interactive maps, and blogs, and it is a key participant in the laudable Founders Online—a freely accessible digital [End Page 138] archive hosted by the National Archives. To date, the project’s website (gwpapers.virginia.edu) boasts a staggering “135,000 documents and counting.” Not surprisingly, The Papers of George Washington and its small army of editors and staff have been praised for decades by a host of scholars and institutions and have received a slew of awards, including the National Humanities Medal in 2005. This review is no exception to such praise.

The two volumes considered here collectively cover the period from March 10, 1780, to July 4, 1780. In keeping with the long-standing tradition of the project, they are exquisite. The iconic aqua-colored dust jackets house two wonderfully produced volumes that feature relevant tables and maps, a table of contents that lists each document, a thorough index, and annotations with judicious contextual explanations and comprehensive cross-referencing. In consequence, as with the other volumes of the project, these two volumes are critical resources not only for Washington enthusiasts but also for anyone desiring a top-down perspective of the American Revolution during this critical period. Everyone of consequence seems to have written to Washington—the majority of letters reproduced are those he received—and, despite not being a lover of writing, Washington sent a great many letters in reply.

Not surprisingly, the vast majority of the correspondence relates to military matters. Morale, the relentless lack of supplies, the lack of intelligence on enemy operations, and planning dominate the correspondence. While not the darkest days for the Continental army, the spring and summer of 1780 were not prosperous times. Lingering winter weather, resignations, continued lack of supplies, the inability of Congress to prop up the new nation’s economy and thereby provide the army with badly needed resources, and the surrender of Charleston, South Carolina, on May 12 badly affected morale. In late May, a mutiny erupted among the Connecticut regiments over conditions and lack of pay, and, although loyal troops quelled it, the mutiny reflected genuine grievances suffered throughout the rank and file of the army. While discipline was necessarily harsh, Washington showed considerable mercy, such as in the dramatic pardoning of ten soldiers on May 26. In a powerful scene, the men, who had been convicted of an assortment of crimes, including desertion, and whose graves had already been dug, were awaiting their deaths on the scaffold when Washington’s last-minute pardon arrived. According to Dr. James Thacher, whose account of the scene is included in the volume, “The moment approaches when every eye is fixed in expectation of beholding the agonies of death—the eyes of the victims are already closed from the light of this world. At this awful moment, while their fervent prayers are ascending to Heaven, an officer comes forward and reads a reprieve . . . by the commander-in-chief. . . . No pen can describe the emotions which must have agitated their souls” (Vol. 26, p. 187).

There were notable bright spots. The Marquis de Lafayette arrived in early May with news that French ships and an expeditionary army would soon arrive, prompting optimism and a fury of planning letters. The British in New York attempted to take advantage of the beleaguered state of Washington’s forces by launching incursions on the Americans’ primary encampment in New Jersey. Expecting an easy victory over a disintegrating [End Page 139] Continental army, the British forces suffered for their hubris. Washington successfully thwarted the British at the battles of Connecticut Farms (June 7–8) and Springfield (June 23), which resulted in significantly greater losses for the British and effectively marked the end of the campaigns in New Jersey.

Ultimately, one cannot help but wonder about the fate that awaits these printed volumes (and others like it) when digital editions are readily available. Digital editions save the user from investigating indexes, cross-referencing volumes, and the ignominy of having to read the entire document to find a desired phrase or term. University librarians, who incessantly lament the lack of shelf space, will also appreciate the digital editions. In consequence, the printed volumes may appeal primarily to specialists and those who appreciate the aesthetics of bound volumes over a computer screen. That would be a shame. Although I am guilty of sometimes partaking of the shortcuts offered by user-friendly digital editions, I deeply regret the loss of the unique attributes printed volumes offer. Most notable is the opportunity to read Washington’s correspondence as a narrative story of the American Revolution from the perspective of arguably its most important figure. In so doing, the reader recaptures, among other things, the tenuousness of the Revolutionary cause, the perseverance and often unjustified optimism of Washington, and, in contrast to the present era, the incredible civility expressed by Washington and his opponents, both foreign and domestic. These two volumes, and the larger collection of which they are a part, are worthy of the attention of anyone interested in American history.