“Rabble in Arms”
September 5th, 2009
“A rabble in arms, flushed with success and insolence.”
–General Burgoyne to Lord Rockfort describing American troops before Boston.
When we were living in New England some years ago, one day I visited a favorite used book store. As I was talking books and history with the husband of the store owner, when he asked if I’d read Kenneth Roberts. I said, “No,” and he exclaimed, “You’ve never read Rabble in Arms!” Again, I replied, no, but with the anticipation that all bibliophiles know when they realize they are about to be given a new author to read.
Kenneth Roberts opens Rabble in Arms with the above words of General Burgoyne and finishes with the Second Battle of Saratoga in which Burgoyne is defeated by the “rabble” he had so derisively described. The story begins in early 1776, and follows the American northern army during the retreat from Canada through the building of the first American Navy and the valiant delay of the British on Lake Champlain in the Battle of Valcour Island, to the turning point of the Revolutionary War: the Battles of Saratoga in 1777.
The story of the campaigns to stop Carleton and Burgoyne as they moved south is a story of perseverance when circumstances were grim and the odds offered no hope. It is a story of a frequently incompetent Congress that directed and interfered in matters with little understanding as it promoted and rewarded those who should have been ignored or disgraced. It is a story of petty jealousies and revenge among men who used their positions of authority in self-serving efforts and protection. It is also a story of a few leaders who sacrificially held to their course and inspired men to stand with them. It is a story to read in hard and difficult times.
“…I turned to see where the British were. The Inflexible was coming into the wind, preparatory to tacking, far out beyond the headland. She fell off slowly on the other tack, working her guns with grim persistence. The shot splashed astern of the beached vessels. All of them were burning, the smoke and flames rolling and crackling from cabins and hatches. At their mast-heads flew our red and white flags, each with its rattlesnake and the words “Don’t Tread On Me.”
There was satisfaction in the knowledge that in three days of fighting, the British hadn’t been able to make us haul them down. And there was something in the sight of them that seemed to half strangle me. I think the scores who lay behind such shelters as the beach afforded, waiting for the fire to take those flags, must have felt as I did; for when Arnold, standing alone in the bow of the Congress to watch the progress of the flames, turned and stepped up on the bulwarks, the men burst into a shrill and quavering cheer that sounded as choked as my throat felt.”
Kenneth Roberts was a Down Easter, who was born in Kennebunk, Maine, and his books reflect the seaport heritage of Maine. At times you may disagree with the shades of his bias, but he was known for his historical accuracy and his books provide entrance into the early days of our Republic. In 1957, he was awarded a Pulitzer Prize: Special Awards and Citations, for his historical novels : “…which have long contributed to the creation of greater interest in our early American history.”
Other Roberts books I’ve enjoyed:
Arundel (1929) – The American Revolution through the Battle of Quebec The Lively Lady (1931) – War of 1812 Rabble in Arms (1933) – Sequel to Arundel; the American Revolution through the Battles of Saratoga Captain Caution (1934) – War of 1812 Northwest Passage (1937) – French and Indian War and the Carver expedition Oliver Wiswell (1940) – The American Revolution from a Loyalist’s perspective Lydia Bailey (1947) – The Haitian Revolution and the First Barbary War
Liberty must at all hazards be supported. We have a right to it, derived from our Maker. But if we had not, our fathers have earned and bought it for us, at the expense of their ease, their estates, their pleasure, and their blood.
John Adams1765 – A Dissertation on the Canon and Feudal Law
Crossposted to Be John Galt and RedState Member Diaries.
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H/T: Navy Jack: NavyJack.info.; Wikipedia; Who’s who of Pulitzer Prize winners, Elizabeth A. Brennan, Elizabeth C. Clarage, (571); Patriot Post, Founders Quote Data Base.
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5 Responses to ““Rabble in Arms””
[...] Crossposted to Be John Galt and J’s Cafe Nette. [...]
Is this book still available? It sounds interesting.
Jeanette, you can probably get it at your library. It’s also available at Amazon. I bought mine at that used book store. It was fairly easy for me to find all of these books secondhand.
Since you’re from Maine you will probably enjoy the Maine scenery and background. You should also know that American Indians are treated as both allies and enemies in the books. Some of the attitudes of various characters will certainly raise your ire.
You can, at times, see Roberts old-style of liberalism peeking through and some of his biases and misunderstandings regarding Christians showing.
Now you may be wondering why I recommend the books! They take you back to the time and they really helped me realize the prize that was paid by so many in the founding of our nation.
In the 1750’s the governor of the Massachusetts colony signed an order to pay for Penobscot scalps. This is my tribe. I have a copy of that order somewhere, but can’t lay my hands on it.
A man’s scalp got the most money, women next and children less. Of course, they called the women “squaws” which is a dirty term relating to a woman’s genitals and the white man couldn’t pronounce a word so they called it “squaw”.
Just the other day in the Kennebec (Maine) Journal was an article of someone on Craig’s List trying to sell the scalps of Maine Indians. Included were men, “squaws” and children identified somehow. The person would sell only to a white person.
It has been referred to the FBI and they are investigating now whether it is real or a hoax.
Either way, it brought back the old feelings of not being quite “good” enough for the prejudiced white people in some of Maine. It angered me and at the same time made me so sad I wept because these could be the flesh and hair of some of my ancestors and if real we need to recover them and give them a decent burial.
I feel the same way when I read “Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee” and I’ve read it three times.
We shared everything we had with the white colonists and what did we get in return besides diseases and killing, moving us to reservations with land that was barren and no one else wanted?
We would have shared with them forever if they had just let us live by them in peace. Scalping is not an Indian thing. It’s a white man’s tool of torture, learned well by the Indians.
If this book is down on Indians I doubt I’ll read it as it will just make me more angry, especially if it is about tribes that would include mine or have married into my tribe.
Jeanette, Roberts’ writing has a mix of of both positive and negative attitudes among the characters and it was hard for me to tell what his actual thinking was or if he was writing to reflect the times. In Arundel (which I haven’t read in quite a while) the father of the main character has two families–one is Indian and I think much of what was written was very positive. My copy is packed up at the moment so I can’t review it to make sure my memory is correct.