SAR Seeks Member Participation in Q & A with Author John R. Maass
SAR Outreach Education is pleased to announce an upcoming pre-recorded video interview with author John R. Maass on his new book From Trenton to Yorktown: Turning Points of the Revolutionary War. SAR membership is invited to be a part of this exciting book review, by submitting questions to the author for this Q & A. What questions do you have about this critical period of the war? Please submit your question for John R. Maass by March 6, 2025, by emailing Rae Ann Sauer at rsauer@sar.org and include your national number in the email. The top three (3) member-submitted questions chosen for the interview will receive a complimentary copy of the book. Due to time limits, not all questions may be chosen. Once the interview is complete it will be posted on the SAR website and Facebook page on March 26, and the book winners will be announced and notified. Historian General Jeff Thomas will moderate this event.
About the Book & Author: For eight grueling years, American and British military forces struggled in a bloody war over colonial independence. This conflict also ensnared Native American warriors and the armies and navies of France, Spain, the Dutch Republic, and several German principalities. From frozen Canada to tropical Florida and as far west as the Mississippi River, the Revolutionary War included hundreds of campaigns, battles, and skirmishes on land and sea in which soldiers and sailors fought and died for causes, crowns, and comrades.
In this masterful, yet accessible narrative of America’s fight for liberty, John R. Maass identifies the five decisive events that secured independence for the 13 hard-pressed but determined colonies. These include not only the obvious military victories such as Trenton, Princeton, and Yorktown but also the leadership and reforms that ensured Washington’s forces were capable of enduring the harsh conditions of the winter of 1778. Similarly, King Louis XVI’s decision to supply Continental troops during the Saratoga Campaign with desperately needed soldiers, arms, money, and fleets is also detailed as a key factor.
These turning points, not all of them triumphs on the battlefield, delivered a victory for the new United States. By challenging conventional interpretations of what ensures victory in warfare, From Trenton to Yorktown offers a fresh perspective on the Revolutionary War.
John R. Maass is from Rockbridge County, Virginia, in the Shenandoah Valley. He received a B.A. in history from Washington and Lee University, a M.A. in US history from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, and a Ph.D. in Early American history from the Ohio State University. He was an editor at The Journal of Backcountry Studies, and is historian at the National Museum of the U.S. Army. He also served in the 80th Division of the U.S. Army Reserve.
