ABSTRACT
Their authors view events through American eyes; to them George Washington is such an obvious hero that his enemies must automatically be wrong. This leads to an overemphasis on patriot victories and a convenient omission of patriot defeats; even the sea battles are described as the Bonhomme Richard’s triumph over the Serapis and John Paul Jones’ ‘three hundred’ captured prizes with never a mention of the English successes that drove the small American navy from the seas.
